Snohomish County educators rally against state and federal cuts

LYNNWOOD — On a windy Tuesday afternoon, some protesters held signs that read “Don’t balance the budget on the backs of teachers” and chanted, “Billionaires take a hike, education is a right!”

About 75 people gathered outside the Lynnwood Event Center to draw attention to proposed state and federal cuts to education.

The Edmonds College Federation of Teachers held the rally as part of the American Teacher Federation’s “Protect Our Kids” Day of Action.

On Thursday, Gov. Bob Ferguson released recommendations to the Legislature for $4 billion in savings to address the state’s budget shortfall. Part of his proposal suggested state employees, including public school faculty and staff, take one furlough day per month for two years. Protesters advocated for the state to instead raise taxes for the top 1% of earners.

A total of 24 days without pay would amount to a nearly 5% pay decrease for teachers, said Scott Haddock, president of the Edmonds College Federation of Teachers.

“We’re here today because we know our worth,” Haddock said. “We know that fair pay is not about a paycheck. It’s about respect. It’s about ensuring that people who dedicate their lives in education can afford to keep doing this important work.”

Attendees raised concerns about the Trump administration’s efforts to shut down the U.S. Department of Education. Linda McMahon, the new U.S. Secretary of Education, posted on the department’s website that the department is “not working as intended.”

“Our job is to respect the will of the American people and the President they elected, who has tasked us with accomplishing the elimination of bureaucratic bloat here at the Department of Education—a momentous final mission—quickly and responsibly,” McMahon said.

The department funds essential programs for community colleges, such as Pell Grants, Career and Technical Education, and federal student loans, said Chuck Mueller, vice president for action and advocacy for Edmonds College Federation of Teachers.

“This is also going to impact the wraparound services that we can provide to our students, things like giving students access to housing,” Mueller said. “So we’re out here to show our support for public education so that we can show there’s resistance to this.”

Several Edmonds School District staff were in attendance to raise awareness of the potential effects of state and federal cuts on K-12 education. The Edmonds School District has made about $25 million in cuts in the last two years. This year, it faces an $8.5 million deficit.

“If the Legislature does not fulfill their constitutional duty of amply funding public education, the level of cuts that means is just unimaginable,” said Andi Nofziger-Meadows, president of the Edmonds Education Association.

On Feb. 14, the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights issued guidance to schools, saying the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision to end affirmative action in college admissions also requires colleges to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Haddock, a law professor, called the guidance “misleading” and said there’s “no excuse” for colleges to abandon diversity, equity and inclusion work.

“When they come after DEI, they’re coming for the rights of all faculty, but especially faculty of color, LGBTQ+ faculty, women, and faculty who have fought to make our institutions more just and inclusive,” he said. “We cannot separate the fight for fair pay from the fight for fair treatment, and not separate the fight for fair pay from the fight for fair policies, or the fight for fair workplace or the fight for faculty.”

Members of the Washington State Nurses Association were there to support the fight for education and raise awareness of federal cuts to Medicaid. The federal cuts are all interconnected, said Justin Gill, president of the Washington State Nurses Association.

“In order for people to succeed, for the future of our healthcare workforce, we need to have a system that supports them as they try and move through and become the nurses and health professionals of the future,” Gill said. “These cuts are going to damage not just lives. They’re going to break down communities.”

Representatives from Communities for Our Colleges, a local campaign to make community and technical colleges more accessible and equitable, said federal cuts are directly threatening the work they do.

“As a first-generation Latina, I strongly believe that protecting our students and schools is important for everyone’s future,” said Dafne Piñon-Guzman, a student at Everett Community College and organizing fellow for Communities for Our Colleges. “Many of our students are already fighting their own battles, and adding another fight does not seem fair to me.”

Jenna Peterson: 425-339-3486; jenna.peterson@heraldnet.com; X: @jennarpetersonn.