State of education report finds teachers in need of more support

BY ALISON BERG ROCKY MOUNTAIN PBS

Survey results conducted by the largest educator’s union in Colorado paint a bleak picture of how most educators feel in their jobs.

The Colorado Education Association recently surveyed around 1,600 public educators in the state and found their main concerns were lack of investment in the education system, disrespecting their professional experience and feeling unsafe at work. Those issues were more pronounced for LGBTQ+ educators, who said they felt particularly unsafe existing authentically at work.

Education association leadership members presented the report in a press conference last week they called “State of Education,” mimicking the nationwide “State of the Union,” address.

“Respecting our educators as experts means centering our voices in legislation that affects our work,” said Amie Baca-Oehlert, a high school counselor and president of the Colorado Education Association. “We need to be asking our educators who do the job every day