Teachers unions are using Covid-19 as a political weapon.

“Go and set the world on fire.” Those simple words from St. Ignatius of Loyola, whose feast day is today, colored all of his works, most notably the establishment of the Jesuits, among whose leading contributions is Catholic education.

As school systems are struggling to manage the myriad challenges of reopening, the American Federation of Teachers Union President Randi Weingarten announced that her union had approved teacher strikes as a “last resort” to protest school reopening plans that do not meet its laundry list of demands and safety standards.

The reactions to a recent article about reopening school and the pernicious effects of delaying school, in any form, any longer, have reminded me of a fundamental tenet of good communication: Never assume your reader knows anything about your subject.

As districts announce confusing and convoluted reopening plans, parents are demanding answers and responses to how they can ensure their children get educated this school year. In her latest Forbes article, CER’s Founder & CEO Jeanne Allen recommends three action steps policymakers can take to support families and ensure the nation is supporting only the…

Instead of preparing to reopen schools, unions have spent their own members' time and resources on securing concessions and negotiating contracts.

Left, right and center, political reporters are knee deep in covering the impact and controversy over conflicting calls and demands to open school or limit everyone to learning remotely. Community, parent and teacher responses have been fast and furious. It’s hard to keep up. Nearly every hour of the day there is a new story…

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This time the sour reminder hit close to home, however, when the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools (NAPCS) announced that charters’ arch enemy, teachers union leader Randi Weingarten, would be joining them for a folksy little fireside chat in their annual conference (virtual this year) in an effort to find ‘common ground.’

Happy Bastille Day! Saluting the French, who on this day in 1789 charged the Bastille — synonymous with tyranny — sparking the French Revolution and the beginning of the Republic, roughly at the same time we were adopting the U.S. Constitution. Here’s to the cause of freedom for people everywhere.