Editor’s note: Long time AFT union leader and Skyline College Professor of Chemistry Joaquín Rivera concluded his service for our union and our college this January. Please stay tuned for a longer article about Joaquin’s significant accomplishments in the next edition of The Advocate. Here we present some brief words by his long time friend […]

How Cal Poly Humboldt Students Activated Faculty to Stand Up for Freedom: A Conversation with Dr. Tony Silvaggio By Jessica Silver-Sharp For more than a decade AFT1493 has proposed article language around academic freedom that our District has struck down. However, with recent, dramatic shifts in our political climate already underway with the reelection of […]

Reflections on CFT’s Convention in San Diego By Mandy Lucas, AFT 1493 Organizer, Skyline College Prior to the California Federation of Teacher’s 2025 convention, I didn’t know what to expect so I arrived with an open mind and the curiosity to learn more about our statewide union. There were over 350 people in attendance and […]

The Launch of Article Committees: A note of thanks AND an invitation to our members By Jessica Silver-Sharp It was with both excitement and trepidation that I met with our local’s new Executive Director Chet Lexvold in his second week of work to break the news: AFT would be forming article committees of faculty for […]

In The Advocate’s recent article “Why has contract bargaining taken so long” (Nov. 2024), our union reported on some of the many ways our District has for years stalled contract negotiations, resulting in long delayed faculty contracts, raises that show up as as retropay, and even a time and energy sapping unfair labor practice (ULP) […]