AFT Massachusetts Convention

AFT Massachusetts Announces Recipients of 2020 Distinguished Service Awards

AFT Massachusetts President Beth Kontos and Secretary-Treasurer Brant Duncan are thrilled to announce the winners of the union’s 2019 Distinguished Service Awards.

The Distinguished Service Awards are presented annually to AFT Massachusetts members who have demonstrated an outstanding level of service and dedication to their local union.

Every year AFT Massachusetts awards thousands of dollars in scholarships to eligible high school seniors who are dependents of AFT Massachusetts members. AFT Massachusetts President Beth Kontos and Secretary-Treasurer Brant Duncan are thrilled to announce the recipients of the union’s 2020 Scholarship Awards.

The awards, named in honor of former AFT leaders Kathy Kelley, Albert Shanker and Sandra Feldman, and for long-time AFT Massachusetts field representative Jay Porter, are awarded on the basis of a labor history exam administered by the Massachusetts AFL-CIO. The exam includes questions covering the history and structure of the labor movement in America, legislation affecting American workers, child labor laws, minimum wages, civil rights, safety and more, as well as a 500-word essay based on a current labor issue.

“Let’s Keep Winning: Advancing Educational and Workplace Justice Through Union Activism”

When we launched the Fund Our Future campaign, we were told we were asking for too much, and that we would never win the resources our students needed in the classrooms. But we stuck together, we organized, and we advocated, and we won a historic $1.5 billion funding commitment that prioritizes low-income communities that were being harmed by the old, inequitable system.

As an AFT Massachusetts member, you know that we have more power when we join together through our union. We’re most effective when we tap into our most enduring source of power: our collective engagement and activism as educators, finding common cause with parents, students, and community.

Every year AFT Massachusetts awards thousands of dollars in scholarships to eligible high school seniors who are dependents of AFT Massachusetts members. The awards, named in honor of former AFT leaders Kathy Kelley, Albert Shanker and Sandra Feldman, and for long-time AFT Massachusetts field representative Jay Porter, are awarded on the basis of a labor history exam administered by the Massachusetts AFL-CIO.

“Now more than ever, it’s important for young people to understand the role of labor unions in our country’s history,” said AFT Massachusetts President Beth Kontos. “AFT Massachusetts is

Help the AFT Massachusetts celebrate the service of an educator, librarian, nurse, or school related-personnel whose leadership has made our union stronger. Nominations are now being accepted for our 2020 Distinguished Service Awards, which recognize substantial contributions made to the development of the union at the state and local levels, from membership building and leadership training to the advancement of political and professional issues important to the union.

Who will you nominate to be recognized at the AFT Massachusetts annual convention in May 2020?

Awards will be given in each of

The AFT Massachusetts convened our 51st annual convention at Boston’s Park Plaza hotel on the first weekend in May this year. Hundreds of delegates heard from local and national elected leaders who serve in the United States Congress or within the ranks of the American Federation of Teachers. The ongoing fight to provide a great public education for every child continues, but our unity has never been stronger.

The convention was also an important time to celebrate our successes and the children we teach. The Saturday session kicked off with the awarding of scholarships to children of AFT Mass

At the 2019 AFT Massachusetts Convention, President Beth Kontos and Secretary-Treasurer Brant Duncan announced the winners of the union’s 2019 Distinguished Service Awards.

The Distinguished Service Awards are presented annually to AFT Massachusetts members who have demonstrated an outstanding level of service and dedication to their local union. Here are this year’s winners:

Educators in the K-12 System

Lori Burnham, Lawrence Teachers Union. A grades 1-4 teacher at the Gerald Guilmette Elementary School in Lawrence and Vice President of the Lawrence Teachers Union executive board, Lori is active

AFT Massachusetts Announces Recipients of 2020 Distinguished Service Awards

AFT Massachusetts Announces Recipients of 2020 Scholarship Awards

Get Ready for the 2020 AFT Massachusetts Convention!

AFT Massachusetts 2020 Scholarship Program

A Call for Nominations

AFT Massachusetts Annual Convention Celebrates Unity, Focuses on Organizing & Engagement

2019 Distinguished Service Awards