WHO WE ARE

​The Fall River Educators Association is the professional teachers union for the Fall River, MA public schools. FREA represents approximately 850 teaching faculty and educational specialists working with and for children in the district. We fight for the schools our community deserves.
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WHAT WE BELIEVE

Quality public education is the cornerstone of a just and democratic society. In the interest of the schools our community deserves, we believe in:
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  1. Fully funded public schools in every neighborhood. We can’t work with what we don’t have. Greater funding in our district means modern, safer school buildings with smaller class sizes, better technology, and more social-emotional supports. It means competitive salaries that retain talented teachers. In short, it means better teaching and learning. To make all of this possible, we support funding the district above the net school spending requirement. We support the recommendations of the Foundation Budget Review Commission, which account for rising transportation and special education costs. We support the Fair Share Amendment, which will invest in public education and transportation by taxing millionaires at a 4% higher rate. And we oppose all efforts to privatize education—from expanding charter schools to weakening unions.
  2. Educating all of our students. We understand our district’s diversity as an asset, and we welcome our students regardless of race, class, gender, sexuality, ability, language, or citizenship status. Because our students’ lives at home determine their success in our classrooms, we support an economic agenda that lifts families up—from a $15/hour living wage to paid family and medical leave.  
  3. Less testing, more learning. High-stakes testing hurts us and our students. Tying test scores to student graduation and teacher evaluations turns our schools into pressure-cookers. We support a holistic curriculum with plenty of room for the arts and recess. We support hands-on, student-centered learning and authentic, teacher-designed assessments.
  4. Restorative justice practices. Punitive discipline doesn’t work, and it doesn’t respect our students. We see the children in our classrooms as young people deserving of love. We strive to work with them in ways that hold them accountable, repair harm, and transform behavior over the long term. We support adoption of these practices in every school and training in restorative justice practices for every educator.
  5. Professional development. Our population of high-needs students is growing. We need ongoing high-quality professional development to meet those needs.

WHO WE SUPPORT

As a local union, we are affiliated with the following regional, state, and national unions:
We also support the following state and national coalitions: