PFT OFFICERS REELECTED WITHOUT OPPOSITION

PHILADELPHIA – Philadelphia Federation of Teachers President Ted Kirsch and his slate of officers and executive board members have been reelected to a sixth consecutive three-year term, without opposition, the union announced today.

No nominating petitions were filed challenging the incumbent leadership of Kirsch, PFT president, Jerry T. Jordan, general vice president, and their slate of candidates for PFT Executive Board and for delegates to the 2005 Pennsylvania Federation of Teachers and the 2006 American Federation of Teachers conventions.

Under the organization’s constitution, Kirsch and Jordan, who have served as president and vice president of the union since 1990, and their slate will be elected by acclamation Jan. 27, when the Executive Board meets.

Nominating petitions for PFT officers, executive board members and delegates were due at the union offices by 5 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 13, for three-year terms of office beginning July 1.

In a statement, Kirsch, who heads the slate known as the CB (Collective Bargaining) Team, said:

“We are pleased to have the opportunity to serve our members for another three years. We have tried to be responsive to the needs of our members throughout our tenure and have been blessed with overwhelming support for our negotiating team and the contracts we have won.

“We were successful in negotiating the current contract and will continue to fight to protect the dignity of our members as they strive to provide children with a high-quality education.

“ We will continue to listen to our members and work with the district to improve the teaching and learning environment in our schools.

“We are proud of the work that our members do every day. But we recognize that we have much more work to do to make every school the islands of learning and growth we know they can be. As we move into the next term, we pledge to continue the fight for smaller class sizes, highly qualified teachers in every classroom and research-based education programs for our students.”