MTA Resolutions are the association’s statements of principle on issues relating to members, public education, the welfare of students and human and civil rights.
Resolutions may be submitted by any member to the Resolutions Committee by the second Friday in January.
They also may be submitted by the end of business on Friday at the Annual Meeting of Delegates. In addition, the committee may propose resolutions.
All resolutions submitted are considered by the committee, and those submitted in time are also brought before the Board of Directors. To become an official position of the MTA, a resolution must be adopted by the delegates at the Annual Meeting.
The proposed revisions printed in this edition of MTA Today were recommended by the Resolutions Committee in 2020. The Board voted on March 21, 2020, to recommend passage by the delegates. They were not brought before the Annual Meeting in 2020 because the COVID-19 pandemic led to a shortened convention.
In 2021, no new resolutions were submitted by the January deadline, so the approved 2020 resolutions are being brought forward for consideration at the 2021 Annual Meeting. Please note that 20 out of the 25 resolutions were submitted by the MTA’s LGBTQ Committee in an effort to make sure the language of these principles includes all genders and gender identities.
A section of the current resolution that has a line through it is proposed for elimination; a section that is underlined is a proposed addition.
All current resolutions are posted on the MTA website. To review the resolutions and bylaws, please visit massteacher.org/resolutions.
Proposed amended Resolution A-3 Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education is entrusted with providing the supervision and direction for Massachusetts public schools. The MTA also believes it is crucial that individuals who are appointed demonstrate a record of commitment to public education and not have a vested interest in organizations that would benefit from the dismantling of public education.
The MTA further believes that appointees to the constitution of the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education must reflect the racial and ethnic diversity of our public school students and include other historically marginalized groups. (99, 09, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution B-9 Health Awareness and Education
The Massachusetts Teachers Association recognizes that sensitive and comprehensive health education can be a positive force in promoting physical, mental and social health. The MTA urges school systems to assume an important role in developing and implementing courses in this area. The MTA believes that school systems should establish and support quality comprehensive health programs, including sex education programs that are medically accurate and gender-affirming and that include information on birth control and family planning, parenting skills, prenatal care, communicable and infectious diseases, sexually transmitted diseases, HIV/AIDS prevention, incest and sexual abuse, the effects of substance abuse during pregnancy, and problems associated with and resulting from preteen and teenage pregnancies; as well as other programs that include information on violence and mental health. The MTA further recommends the continued development and implementation of programs designed to cultivate respect for the human mind and body and the full range of sexualities and gender expressions. Teachers must be qualified and licensed to teach health and must be legally protected from censorship and lawsuits. (69, 75, 79, 81, 85, 87, 94, 99, 09, 17, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution B-29 Adolescent Pregnancy and Parenting
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that special efforts must be made by school districts to meet the needs of adolescent parents to live productive lives in our society. The MTA recommends that special programs be implemented to include:
(a) Flexible scheduling and attendance policies to assist pregnant adolescents and adolescent parents in completing their education.
(b) Adequate guidance in continuing education and productive employment.
(c) Promotion of sound health principles regarding nutrition, substance abuse, exercise, family planning and parenting skills.
(d) Establishment of child-care services.
The MTA further believes that adolescent mothers and fathers parents should not be discriminated against or denied equal educational opportunities. (89, 02, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution C-2 Education for Homeless Children
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that education must be provided for all children, including those without a permanent legal address. The MTA advocates the right of all students to an education, adequate housing and health care. The MTA recognizes the need for cooperation among school and community groups in meeting the needs of homeless children, including the need for a stable education environment. The MTA recognizes the disproportionate rate of homelessness among LGBTQ+ children, children of color and lowincome children. The MTA seeks and supports legislation to ensure equal educational opportunities for all children. The MTA believes that the state must fully finance the cost of implementing these programs. (89, 94, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution C-3 Equal Opportunity in Extracurricular Programs
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that at all educational levels each student must have an equal opportunity to participate in extracurricular programs. The MTA urges that school committees and boards of trustees provide funding for equity in facilities, equipment and staff for both male and female students regardless of gender, gender identity, or expression.
The MTA further believes that students who participate in intercollegiate athletics should receive compensation. In cases where the financial impact of the student’s participation has a notable impact on the revenue of the institution, compensation may extend beyond alleviation of tuition and fees. Students receiving such compensation should have the right to unionize under relevant labor laws. The MTA urges intercollegiate athletic associations to alter their rules accordingly. (79, 01, 19, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution C-4 Benefits of Recess
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that elementary school children benefit from having recess. Recess is an unstructured time that allows children to play and to release energy and stress. Daily recess provides children the opportunity to develop and improve social skills and it provides them a break from the academic rigors placed on them. The MTA recommends daily recess of at least 15 20 minutes for children in grades K-5. (05, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution C-7 School Facilities: Design, Construction and Function
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that school facilities must be conducive to teaching and learning. The physical environment must allow for a variety of needs, including the number of students, physical characteristics of students, changes in teaching methods, presentation of instruction, and an increased use of school facilities. The MTA also believes that all school facilities must be well constructed, safe, energy-efficient, aesthetically pleasing, accessible, functional and adaptable to persons with disabilities. The MTA supports building designs that prioritize the safety, dignity and privacy of students and student athletes of all genders. The MTA supports ecologically conservative facility designs including heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems. The MTA believes that the community, parents/guardians and education employees should play an advisory role in designing these facilities. The MTA also believes that stable and sufficient funding must be provided for the design, construction, maintenance and operation of the school facility. These principles should apply equally to preK-12 schools and buildings used by public higher education institutions. (11, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution C-11 Disciplinary Policies and Restorative Practices
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that students learn best in a safe and peaceful environment. Safe and peaceful learning environments need to be supported by consistent and effective disciplinary procedures in combination with preventive and restorative practices built through strong community relationships.
The MTA believes that frequent disruptions can only be effectively addressed by comprehensive approaches that dedicate sufficient resources for the development of systemwide solutions involving multiple stakeholders. These solutions must balance protecting the learning environment from disruption, protecting students and staff from risks posed by students who have a history of violent or threatening behavior, and protecting the rights of all students to dignity and fair treatment. This should include proper notification to school staff of the risks posed by students with a demonstrated history of violent or threatening behavior.
The MTA opposes disproportionately relying on punitive and zero-tolerance measures that contribute to the "school-to-prison pipeline" in which children are funneled out of public schools and into the juvenile and criminal justice systems. Zero-tolerance policies that criminalize minor infractions tend to have an adverse impact on low-income children, students with disabilities and students of color. Policies that criminalize or excessively penalize students for minor infractions have disparate impacts on students of color, low-income students, students with disabilities, transgender, gender nonconforming and other LGBTQ+ students. (76, 77, 78, 81, 89, 99, 08, 18, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution C-18 Foster Care
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that children are entitled to live in a caring, non-abusive and nurturing environment. The MTA urges that foster care placement be based on the needs of the child as determined by those professionals working with that child. The MTA further believes that no individual should be prohibited from becoming a foster parent based on age, color, gender, marital status, nationality, race, religion or sexual orientation race, ethnicity, color, national origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, immigration status, age, physical and mental ability, marital status or social class. The MTA opposes any policy or legislation that would threaten quality foster care to children by mandating such prohibitions. (91, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution C-19 Rights of the Child
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that children in all societies should enjoy basic fundamental human rights and educational opportunities. The MTA urges all its members and affiliates to adhere to and expand on the principles outlined in the United Nations’ Declaration of the Rights of the Child.
The right:
• to affection, love and understanding.
• to adequate nutrition and medical care.
• to free education.
• to full opportunity for play and recreation.
• to a name and nationality.
• to special care if handicapped for differences in physical and mental ability.
• to be among the first to receive relief in times of disaster.
• to be a useful valued member of society and to develop individual abilities.
• to be brought up in a spirit of peace and universal brotherhood fellowship.
• to enjoy these rights regardless of race, ethnicity, color, gender, gender identity and expression, sexuality, religion, national or social origin or social class. (79, 80, 86, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution C-20 Quality Health Care for Children
The Massachusetts Teachers Association firmly believes that all children have the right to quality health care regardless of their parents’ employment status or income level. The MTA advocates universal access to quality comprehensive health care for all children of the Commonwealth to promote their optimal health and well-being. The MTA recognizes the importance of gender- and sexuality-affirming medical care and culturally proficient medical providers to address the specific health needs of marginalized student populations. The MTA will work in partnership with parents, health care professionals and members of statewide and community organizations in providing health education, community service programs and public health initiatives. (99, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution C-23 Child Labor
The Massachusetts Teachers Association recognizes that many of our students feel obligated to neglect schoolwork for wage labor and, therefore, urges employers and school officials to fulfill their obligations diligently under Massachusetts labor laws.
Furthermore, the MTA deplores the use of child labor anywhere in the world and abhors forcing any child to spend his/her childhood working work for wages rather than exercising the right to attend school. (00, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution D-9 Mentor and Induction Programs
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that professional peer support systems, such as mentor and induction programs, must be utilized solely for the development of professional expertise.
The MTA believes that the planning, implementation and evaluation of such programs must be cooperatively developed and negotiated with the local association.
Qualifications of mentor licensed educators teachers and Education Support Professionals and the duties and responsibilities of all parties must be clearly defined and uniformly administered.
The criteria and process for selection of mentor licensed educators teachers and ESPs must be negotiated with the local association. Participation must be voluntary. The state and local school committees and boards of trustees also have the obligation to provide hold-harmless protection.
The MTA believes that mentor licensed educators teachers and ESPs must be compensated for all additional responsibilities and that the program must be fully funded by the state.
The MTA also believes that mentor licensed educators teachers and ESPs must have reduced teaching loads and must be given release time during the regular school day to fulfill their mentor-related activities.
The MTA further believes that the formative assistance provided by such programs must be independent of any summative evaluation. Any documentation or discussion that results from the mentoring relationship must be confidential and must not be included in the participant’s personnel files. (89, 02, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution D-14 Teacher Licensure of Appointment of Coaches
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that the essence of interscholastic sports is to promote the growth, health, character and participation of all students. The MTA supports the concept that all athletic coaches who are responsible for this facet of education shall be teachers educators licensed by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, or Education Support Professionals, and that they shall be subject to the provisions of the collective bargaining agreement in the system in which they are employed as coaches. (84, 09, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution D-17 National Licensure
The Massachusetts Teachers Association supports voluntary professional national licensure by which the profession grants recognition to an individual who has met qualifications specified by the profession. The MTA supports the establishment of appropriate assessment procedures by which individuals demonstrate exemplary practice in pedagogy and in subject matter areas, supports the establishment of appropriate standards for the issuance of licenses to all individuals who meet these standards, and supports national professional organizations, such as the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (BPTS), which is composed of a majority of practicing public school teachers educators and which maintains a roster of those who have been certified/licensed. The MTA further supports the periodic evaluation of such licensure procedures to ascertain whether discrimination bias is perpetuated based on cultural, economic, gender, racial or age, race, ethnicity, color, national origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, immigration status, age, disability or social class by the requirements for licensure. (01, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution F-6 Compensation for Substitutes
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that substitutes perform a vital function in the continuity of daily education, are essential to the maintenance of daily operations, and should be compensated fairly and treated with respect.
The MTA further believes that substitutes in long-term assignments should receive additional pay reflecting the added work intrinsic in such a role.
The MTA further encourages the use of experienced, qualified educators as both per-diem and long-term substitutes. Compensation should be commensurate with the substitute’s responsibility and experience and with the duration of the assignment. (18, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution F-24 Right to Privacy and Access
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that all educational personnel must be guaranteed rights of privacy under state and federal legislation. The MTA urges its members, affiliates, school committees and the governing boards of higher education institutions to respect and advance rights that include the following:
(a) The right of an employee to access his or her their own personnel records.
(b) The right to be notified of any addition to an employee’s personnel records prior to placement of those materials in the personnel records.
(c) The right to respond to any record, and to challenge inaccurate, distorted or misleading records.
(d) The right to provide or withhold consent on the release of such records.
(e) The right to be notified of these rights by educational institutions.
(f) The right to be guaranteed the existence of only one personnel file per employee.
(g) The right to confidentiality of medical records.
(h) The right to refuse any type of test for drugs.
(i) The right to refuse any type of test for HIV/Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS)/sexually-transmitted disease.
(j) The right to be free from fingerprinting as a condition of employment.
(k) The right to refuse any type of polygraph or lie detector test.
(l) The right to bargain over the employer’s use of any electronic surveillance technologies, including computer monitoring software. (88, 89, 90, 09, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution F-29 Equitable Support for Collective Bargaining
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that solidarity among all members of a bargaining unit is integral to supporting and defending public educators through collective bargaining. The MTA supports requiring The MTA strongly encourages all members of a bargaining unit to become dues-paying members of that unit or to pay a fair share fee to sustain the benefits that all members receive under the collective bargaining agreement. The MTA opposes any measure that undermines this solidarity, such as so-called right-to-work legislation. (16, 17, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution F-31 Pay Equity/Comparable Worth
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that all educational personnel should be paid on the basis of the requirements, skills and worth of their jobs and that factors such as gender, sexual orientation, race or ethnicity race, ethnicity, color, national origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, immigration status, age, disability physical and mental ability, marital status or economic condition social class should never play a role in determining salary. The MTA encourages efforts by collective bargaining units to gain salary levels appropriate to the skills, value, responsibility and requirements of their jobs. The MTA further believes that all efforts should be made to attain accurate and unbiased forms of job evaluation and to raise the pay of those jobs that are presently undervalued. (95, 99, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution F-32 Diversity
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that the diversity of our society enhances the lives of all individuals. The similarities and differences among people in regard to race, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, language, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, immigration status, age, physical and mental ability, size, occupation, marital or parental status or economic status social class form the fabric of our society. The MTA also believes that education should raise the awareness and understanding of the qualities that individuals and members of a group diverse groups possess. The MTA urges that inaccuracies and biases be identified and corrected. The MTA further believes that basic education should reflect our multicultural society. In addition, the MTA believes that the contributions of diverse ethnic historically marginalized groups should be recognized and become a part of the established curriculum. (00, 07, 11, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution F-34 Right to a Civil Marriage
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes in the right to civil marriage for lesbians and gay men people regardless of gender, gender identity or expression. The MTA opposes any efforts at the local, state or national level to deny or restrict this right. (05, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution I-3 Hate-Motivated Violence
The Massachusetts Teachers Association believes that hate-motivated violence, including but not limited to physical and verbal violence, as well as digital and technology-based violence, against individuals and groups because of their race, ethnicity, color, national origin, religion, language, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, immigration status, age, disability, physical and mental ability, size, marital status or social class economic condition, is unconscionable. The MTA also believes that the threat or promotion of such violence is similarly reprehensible.
The MTA opposes any act that infringes upon the civil and human rights of any person. The MTA supports all efforts to make schools sanctuaries for vulnerable groups, in addition to the creation of communities that support those efforts. The MTA further believes the federal, state and local governments and community groups must oppose and eliminate hate-motivated violence and that current events and/or economic conditions should not diminish such opposition. (07, 17, 21)
Proposed amended Resolution I-6 The MTA, an Equal Opportunity Employer
The Massachusetts Teachers Association, an equal opportunity employer, shall continue its practice of recruiting, hiring, training and retaining minority persons from historically marginalized groups through the implementation of its affirmative action practices plan. The MTA shall accelerate its affirmative action program for women and minorities. (95, 21)
Proposed New I-8 after I-7, and renumber the remainder of section I
Proposed new Resolution I-8 Advancement of Transgender and Non-Binary Educators
The Massachusetts Teachers Association supports gender diversity and affirming policies and practices toward transgender, non-binary and agender people in education in recruiting, hiring, job postings, salary and wage determinations, and promotion procedures, and it endorses equal opportunity employer practices. (21)
Proposed amended Resolution I-20 Respect for and Support of All Families
The Massachusetts Teachers Association recognizes that the composition of families in our society has changed. The MTA believes that the long-term, committed, stable relationships of families are of fundamental importance to children. The MTA encourages, supports and acknowledges the inclusion of all types of families and family structures in our schools, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, creed or sexual orientation/gender color, national origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, immigration status, age, physical and mental ability, marital status or social class. (99, 21)
