Fighting for a Better Future: Labor and Education Policy

The Institute of Global Politics and SIPA’s Urban and Social Policy Concentration co-hosted the 25th annual David N. Dinkins Leadership and Public Policy Forum on December 4, featuring American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingarten as the keynote speaker. Weingarten spoke about the future of labor and education policy in America in her remarks and later joined a fireside chat with Ester Fuchs, Professor of Political Science and Urban Social Policy at SIPA, and Michael Nutter, the 98th Mayor of Philadelphia and David N. Dinkins Professor of Professional Practice in Urban & Public Affairs at SIPA. Fuchs is an IGP-affiliated faculty member and Mayor Nutter is a member of IGP’s Faculty Advisory Board.
The forum opened with introductory remarks from SIPA Dean Keren Yarhi-Milo, who paid tribute to the late Mayor Dinkins and praised his focus on policies that supported children, families, and communities. Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton, professor of International and Public Affairs and IGP Faculty Advisory Board member, introduced Weingarten, lauding her "dedication to improving educational opportunities" for all Americans.
Weingarten reflected on the current turbulent political climate and the need to chart a path forward that “leans on hope, not fear.” Discussing the recent presidential election and factors that drove the outcome, she highlighted the economic concerns that have fueled voter discontent, including stagnant wages and soaring cost of living. She said the “downward mobility” many Americans have experienced has had real economic consequences and “inflicted psychological wounds on a country that has long believed in the promise of upward mobility.”
"For the first time, Democrats won the richest third of Americans, while losing low income and middle class Americans," Weingarten noted. "The party of working people lost working people."
As the American dream feels increasingly out of reach for many Americans, Weingarten argued that the key to making it more attainable lies in strengthening public education and the labor movement. "What people suffering economically and feeling powerless to change their conditions need is not a strong man promising to fix their lives," she said. "What they need is education, good jobs, and a labor movement to empower themselves.”
Weingarten outlined three educational strategies AFT is employing to promote agency and opportunity while rebuilding trust among Americans. The first was a push to open more community schools that focus on student and family well-being, offering services like adult education, food banks, and clothes closets. The second was to advocate for more engaging, experiential learning that gives students “hands-on, real-world experiences, including career and technical education (CTE) programs, to better prepare them for the workforce,” she said. And the third was a focus on literacy; through their Reading Opens the World campaign, AFT has given away ten million books in the last decade and led work to address pandemic-related educational losses.
By partnering with social workers, school bus drivers, and local organizations to distribute books and other resources, Weingarten wants AFT to instill hope and determination in people, countering the fear and helplessness many feel amid current political polarization. "In a world of great distrust, of great unease, our members who work in pre-K-12 education, higher education, and public services, they're trusted,” Weingarten said. "We’re trusted because we make a difference on a very local level in the lives of others."
Weingarten called for support for unions, emphasizing the economic advantages of union membership and the need for policies that support workers' rights to organize. She said that unions are essential for empowering workers and creating agency, and lamented the decline in membership, despite support for unions being at the highest level in 60 years. She highlighted that union members enjoy higher wages and better benefits, are more likely to own homes, and have higher household wealth.
"None of us can do everything, but each of us can do something to reclaim that promise of America," she said.