Teachers union rallies on Monday
The Idaho Education Association is promoting a series of rallies planned throughout the state this Presidents Day Weekend.
There are two gatherings scheduled Monday in Coeur d’Alene.
According to the IEA website, the rallies “will give Idaho educators, parents, and students a chance to stand in support of public schools and public employees.”
One of the Coeur d’Alene rallies is planned at 4 p.m. at City Hall, on Mullan Avenue behind the Coeur d’Alene Public Library. Another rally is scheduled at 5 p.m. at the Human Rights Education Institute, about a mile west of City Hall on Mullan Road, next to City Park.
The Human Rights Education Institute will be closed Monday for the President’s Day holiday. Director Dan Lepow told The Press his organization is not connected with the rally. They gave the teachers permission to use their parking lot for the event.
The rallies are in response to Republican-backed, sweeping kindergarten- to -12th-grade education reform legislation now making its way through the Idaho Legislature. If enacted, the package of bills will increase class sizes, and require high school students to take four online courses. It will eliminate at least 700 teaching positions in Idaho, phase out tenure, remove job security for teachers with seniority, and limit collective bargaining by local unions.
Supporters of the reform plan, which is proposed by Idaho public school chief Tom Luna, claim the measures are needed because existing education polices and practices are no longer financially sustainable.
Strong opposition to the plan has come from the Idaho teachers union, and some parents and students.
A commenter on an IEA Region One social networking page responded to notice of the local rally: "I'm tired of being respectful to people who totally and vocally disrespect us! Let's take off the gloves people!”
Similar events are scheduled in Lewiston on Saturday, and on Monday in Idaho Falls, Pocatello, Boise, Moscow, Twin Falls, Hailey, Nampa, and Payette. The IEA expects more rallies will be added to the list.
“Please note this is NOT a rally just for the union members, it is a rally for those of us who want to fight against these corrosive, divisive, and inflammatory bills that will NOT benefit education in Idaho!” writes a commenter on the IEA's Facebook page.