When Oklahoma teacher Sally Salmons saw momentum building toward teacher protests in her state, she immediately reached out to family ties and educators in West Virginia. She said teacher walkouts in the Mountain State provided her and colleagues across the state with the courage they needed to take a stand. […]
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Lesson Learned: Teachers Across the Country Follow West Virginia’s Lead
Teachers across the country are going on strike after West Virginia’s teachers successfully secured raises in a standoff with state officials that shut down schools in all 55 counties last month. The widely-covered walkout in West Virginia is pointed to as a source of inspiration and empowerment by many teachers […]
Read MoreWhat Would ‘Fixing’ PEIA Really Look Like?
During the teacher strike a couple weeks ago, West Virginia educators were asking for two main things: a pay raise and for legislators to “fix PEIA.” While the program’s finance board ultimately agreed to freeze proposed changes to the plan that would have increased costs, truly fixing PEIA on the […]
Read MoreNot Just Red vs Blue: What the Teacher Strike May Reveal About West Virginia’s Political Landscape
The nine-day teachers’ strike in West Virginia made headlines across the country, and some are wondering what the events mean for state’s political landscape. How did a widespread labor strike, a practice normally associated with Democrats, happen in a state that voted so heavily for Donald Trump? We wanted to […]
Read MoreStudents Push As Lawmakers Ponder Gun Safety Bills
In a recently released court video, Capt. Matt Hilbrecht of the Marshall County, Kentucky, Sheriff’s office testifies about his interrogation of Gabriel Parker, the15-year-old accused of a mass shooting at Marshall County High School in January. “We asked him initially when he had the thought of the school shooting,” Hilbrecht […]
Read MoreChanging Course: Coal Country Students Working For A Power Switch
Arlie Boggs Elementary sits between Kentucky’s two tallest mountains in a remote area that once had a booming coal economy. Ten years ago there were over a thousand coal miners employed here in Letcher county. Today, there are just 28. “We were left with many unemployed miners,” eighth-grader Nicholas Sturgill […]
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