Take the Respect Pledge

✍️ Sign the Pledge: Join the RESPECT Campaign!

Haga clic aquí para ver este formulario en español.

Texas ranks 45th in the country for per-student funding. It’s no wonder our teachers are struggling with overwhelming workloads and low pay — fueling a teacher retention crisis — and that other school employees like paraprofessionals and cafeteria workers are making poverty wages.

Texas students deserve passionate, qualified educators who’ll lay the foundation for their futures, but right now, too many school districts are seeing rising turnover rates for educators and employees. Statewide, the teacher turnover rate for last year was more than 14%! Things are so bad right now that more and more districts are threatening educators’ teaching certificates for resigning, and Texas has more than 10,000 teaching job openings.

This is a crisis — but one that can be fixed. School employees, parents, and students are coming together across Texas to demand respect from our state’s elected officials. Together, we are fighting for:

Meaningful pay raises for school employees
Significant increases in state funding for public education
Cost-of-living increases for retired educators
Ending the over-reliance on high-stakes testing
Working directly with parents & teachers to support Texas students

Join now & pledge to take action with other school employees & families to improve our schools!

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* 1. First Name

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* 2. Last Name

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* 3. Zip code

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* 4. Mobile phone number

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* 5. Personal email address

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* 6. School district (please do not abbreviate!)

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* 7. Which best describes you? Check all that apply.

A parent of TX K-12 student

A TX teacher

A TX school employee (non-teacher)

I am not a TX parent or TX school employee, but I am a supporter

I am an elected official

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* 8. Do you pledge to stand with school employees, parents, students, and school advocates in fighting for the Respect priorities outlined above?

YES, I pledge to fight for the respect our students, school employees, and parents deserve

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* 9. Take the next step. How can you make a difference? Check all the ways you're willing to show up for teachers, staff, and our schools. We'll be in touch to discuss!

Get trained as a Respect Champion by attending our June Bootcamp

Help coordinate a Respect event at my school or in my district (organizing support will be provided)

Attend a Respect event at my school or in my district

Reach out to other teachers and parents about the Respect Campaign

More About the Respect Pledge

We are taking action for Texas’ future.

School employees and families across the state have been crying out for our state elected officials to hear them. A survey by the Texas American Federation of Teachers showed that 66% of teachers and school staff are considering leaving their jobs in education. Turnover rates have been steadily increasing since 2009 — statewide, the teacher turnover rate for last year was more than 14%.

Meanwhile, research from our union and Every Texan shows why:

Texas educators make $7,500 less per year than their counterparts (using the national average)
Salaries of Texas public school teachers have fallen by an average of 4% over the past 11 years when adjusted for inflation
Many school employees like paraprofessionals and food service workers, meanwhile, make poverty-level wages.

And Texas ranks below even neighboring states like Louisiana, Arkansas, and New Mexico in per-student funding.

We know that if politicians continue blocking sufficient school funding during the 2023 legislative session, the crisis in our schools will deepen. Experienced teachers will continue to leave the profession, forcing schools to depend on hard-to-find substitutes or stand-ins with no teaching experience — and that's the real learning loss for students.

We have reached a tipping point. But we also have an incredible opportunity to acknowledge the value that schools add to our society, help create living-wage jobs, and support families. It is well past time that the Texas Legislature meaningfully invested in education funding to raise wages for educators and guarantee permanent, high-quality teachers in every classroom in our state. It is time to value the people who keep Texas schools running and make sure every child and family has access to a high-quality education.

That’s why school employees and parents are coming together across Texas to show our elected leaders that our schools need Respect. Sign the pledge to be part of the Respect campaign.