News | AFT-NH

Stay Tuned for the State Board of Education Meeting Next Week

New Hampshire Department of Education 306 Rules FAQ

Next week, on Wednesday, at the State Board of Education meeting, the 306 rules, the rules that govern our local neighborhood public schools, are on the agenda. These rules have been worked on, mostly in secret, for nearly three years now. The first draft that was released last March was terrible for public students, teachers and staff. We do not know yet what will come out of the meeting on Wednesday but wanted to prepare you with a one pager on the 306 rules and prepare you for action after the next draft of the rules are released. Please watch this space for further updates and actions. Here is a Q&A on the process and rules.

Poll Shows Granite Staters Do Not Support the Voucher Program and Strongly Oppose an Expansion

Poll Shows Granite Staters Do Not Support the Voucher Program and Strongly Oppose an Expansion

CONCORD, N.H. - More Granite Staters oppose the taxpayer-funded school voucher program than support it, with an even stronger opposition to further expansion of the program, according to polling released by the UNH Survey Center yesterday. AFT-NH President Deb Howes released the following statement:

“The Granite State Poll proves what we have said from the beginning, that hard-working Granite Staters are looking for solutions that help all our neighborhood public school students and are not interested in funding unaccountable, unproven, and over budget programs that only help a few families. The voucher scheme pushed by Frank Edelblut and extreme right-wing politicians raises local property taxes and does not improve educational outcomes for most students, all while New Hampshire continues to fail to fulfill its constitutional duty and fund our neighborhood public schools. The New Hampshire legislature should and must turn its attention to fully funding neighborhood public schools and ensuring that each student can access a robust, challenging and honest curriculum so that the Granite State can continue to have some of the best schools and best-educated students in the country.”

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Weingarten launches new campaign: ‘Real Solutions for Kids and Communities’

Photo of AFT President Randi Weingarten addressing TEACH 2023

The AFT has always been a solutions-driven union, and our new campaign, launched during TEACH on July 21, proves it once again with a fresh, practical approach to strengthening public education. As AFT President Randi Weingarten pointed out during her keynote speech, the $5 million, yearlong campaign, “Real Solutions for Kids and Communities,” stands up against attacks on public schools and offers real-world solutions to build up, rather than break down, our communities.

AFT-NH Reacts to Governor Sununu Announcing He Will Not Seek Another Term

CONCORD, N.H.— From the moment he was sworn in Governor Sununu showed us he was an anti-education governor. His pick of Frank Edelblut as his Commissioner of Education has set off a chain of events in New Hampshire that have been detrimental to most Granite State students who rely on our neighborhood public schools. From the over budget, unaccountable and unproven school voucher program to signing a ban on teaching honest history, Sununu’s record on education will not be looked well upon in the years to come.