HARRISBURG – Today, after more than 130 days, both chambers of the Pennsylvania legislature passed a $50.1 billion state budget deal. The total amount is down from the $51.6 billion Governor Shapiro offered at his Budget Speech in February and the $50.6 billion House Democrats offered earlier this summer. The budget deal includes a $50 million increase for the Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) Program, which takes money earmarked for public school students and inequitably move it to private schools, as well as an overall 4.8 percent increase for Higher Education, which includes a 5 percent increase in general support for Lincoln University, a very small increase for the state-related universities, but no budget increases for Community Colleges.

AFT Pennsylvania has made the following endorsements in the 2025 Pennsylvania general election. These endorsements are authorized by AFTPA, Wendy G. Coleman, president. AFT Pennsylvania does not ask for or accept authorization from any candidate or political committee and no candidate or political committee is responsible for its operations.

RHODE ISLAND (July 21, 2025) — A coalition of school districts, parents, teachers’ unions, and nonprofit organizations represented by Democracy Forward, Jacobson Lawyers Group, and Deluca, Weizenbaum, Barry, and Revins filed a lawsuit today against the Trump-Vance administration for unlawfully withholding nearly $6 billion in education funding that Congress directed to support students for the 2025–2026 school year. A motion for immediate relief via a preliminary injunction will follow this week.

PHILADELPHIA – On Sunday, AFT Pennsylvania elected Wendy G. Coleman president of the statewide teachers union at the conclusion of their Biennial convention. Coleman is the first Black person elected to lead the union. Coleman and her slate of officers from across the state, representing educators and support staff from early childhood education through higher education as well as state professional employees, were elected to two-year terms.

DELAWARE COUNTY (March 4, 2025) – Members of the American Federation of Teachers in communities stretching from Philadelphia to Allegheny counties took part in a national day of action to inform and activate members of the public about looming federal education cuts that would hurt Pennsylvania students. Nearly 90% of K-12 students in Pennsylvania are enrolled in public schools, many of which benefit from funding and programmatic support from the U.S. Department of Education.

Following is a statement from Arthur Steinberg, president of the American Federation of Teachers Pennsylvania (AFTPA) and the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers (PFT), on Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris' selection of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her vice presidential running mate:

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.

Summer is upon us, and parents, children and teachers are winding down from what has been an exhausting and fully operational school year—the first since the devastating pandemic. The long-lasting impact of COVID-19 has affected our students’ and families’ well-being and ignited the politics surrounding public schools. All signs point to the coming school year unfolding with the same sound and fury, and if extremist culture warriors have their way, being even more divisive and stressful.

Attacks on public education in America by extremists and culture-war peddling politicians have reached new heights (“lows” may be more apt), but they are not new. The difference today is that the attacks are intended not just to undermine public education but to destroy it.