Red River United

APPROVED: 6% PAY RAISE FOR CADDO EMPLOYEES

Tonight, the Caddo Parish School Board approved the district’s 2026-2027 budget, including a 6 percent across-the-board raise for employees beginning July 1.

This is an investment in the people who make Caddo Schools work, including the teachers, support staff, school leaders, bus drivers, cafeteria teams, custodians, maintenance teams, office staff and district employees serving students every day.

We need to hear from YOU!

Survey Participation

🚨 ACTION NEEDED TODAY 🚨

The teacher and school employee stipend was NOT included in HB 1 this morning. While legislators tapped the Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund, there is currently NO funding for educator and school employee stipends in any budget bill.

Teachers and school employees cannot afford a pay cut.

We need EVERY member, family member, and community ally to contact legislators TODAY and demand they use the Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund money to protect educator pay.

📢 Please take a moment to complete the click-and-send campaign and SHARE it widely through texts, social media, and direct outreach.

✏️ TAKE ACTION HERE:
https://actionnetwork.org/letters/tell-legislators-use-the-revenue-stabilization-trust-fund-money-to-prevent-a-pay-cut

Our educators have shown up for Louisiana students every single day. Now it’s time for legislators to show up for them.

Let’s keep the pressure on. 💪

Tell Legislators: Use the Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund money to prevent a pay cut Louisiana teachers and school employees are facing a real pay cut. Legislators should use the Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund to prevent the immediate loss while they continue working on a recurring plan for a permanent raise.

We want to address some misconceptions regarding certified vacancies in the parishes we serve.

If a school district currently has a certified opening, then that means exactly what it says — the district should first seek and prioritize a certified teacher before placing a Temporary Authority to Teach (TAT) teacher into that classroom, even if the TAT teacher is enrolled in a teaching program.

As a union, we know how important it is for boys and girls to have a certified teacher in the classroom. That does not mean individuals working through alternative certification programs cannot be effective educators. Many absolutely can be, and many become outstanding teachers. However, the goal should always be to place a fully certified teacher in front of students whenever possible.

That is the standard we expect in every other profession. We expect lawyers to be licensed. We expect doctors and nurses to be certified. We expect barbers, electricians, and countless other professionals to meet certification and licensing requirements before practicing independently.

Public education should be no different.

The law itself recognizes this by requiring districts to demonstrate that there is “no regularly certified, competent, and suitable person available for the position” before issuing a TAT. That language matters because it reinforces that certified teachers are the preferred and intended standard for our classrooms.

Our students deserve qualified, prepared, and supported educators. And our certified teachers deserve to know that their training, experience, and professional credentials are valued.

On Wednesday, May 20, at 6 p.m. EDT, join AFT Share My Lesson and Proof Positive, for Practical Strategies to Support Educator Wellness and Student Well-Being, the next session in our 2026 Educator Wellness Webinar Series, a free, for-credit professional learning opportunity designed to support your well-being.

Well-being doesn’t have to be one more thing on your plate. It can be integrated into what you already do. In this interactive webinar, Katie Curran from Proof Positive, shares practical, easy-to-use strategies to support educator wellness and student well-being.

Participants will be introduced to the PERMA+ framework and a selection of evidence-informed skills designed to build positive emotions, strong relationships, engagement, meaning, resilience and overall well-being.

You’ll leave with simple tools you can use right away to support connection, joy and well-being for yourself and the students you serve.

Note: Each webinar in the 2026 Wellness Series is a stand-alone professional development webinar; you can watch one or all and in any particular order that suits your needs.

Register now.

https://click.actionnetwork.org/ss/c/u001.XaF8mXqsA6b2dSPmhsleMUywbOP3wxdvKZxI_yGOpFFB4feFsKLwsO7r6hMPz5QgxmvJ_HVhu1-A5a9Dw6PFuHqXvcNFzUuU-BkADb82QFJ2-aJfvlSBOTPGRz1uugc7j27_dJYyx4AfLh1q-HjkYbXldGUURC_F3hDjgXf53634dcxY3snKnCG9xepXYlqt1_bX0auTcDzSw6mwUFRNciiHlQdmgA1ISBVuyjwAlyQBEDDhPK3xpdVs3zGmghujDa7yF-nDhnfFVVcAyJSkGS2c4i3zlrqP3cgFbmYWGC8ZBn43T2G6Dq76TaEuePlCGFnCd3GELb5br9UFK-dhqlp3aR-t2mWpfO_I-WGIFkHr4pLfjdY9cBgtaJ7PFByZpvl5o_epXLTixCvwF7fCaQ/4qr/fToEoH70SFemOOseBhdEjw/h3/h001.oqkxhPYLKz3YsymWNkPdBDnze5pLzLSNCZ_x9fF4XDo

Reminders:

This event is free and eligible for continuing education credit and professional development points. Learn how credit works with Share My Lesson.
If you can’t make the time of a live session, register anyway to access this and other webinars on demand with closed captioning in English and Spanish.

AFT PL Wellness

Louisiana teachers and school employees should not face a reduction in pay while the state has resources available to prevent it.

The Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund exists to help Louisiana navigate critical financial needs, and protecting educator pay should be a priority. Teachers and support staff have continued showing up for students every single day, and lawmakers must do the same for them.

Take action today and tell legislators to use Revenue Stabilization Trust Fund dollars to prevent a pay cut for teachers and school employees.

Sign the letter here:

(https://actionnetwork.org/letters/tell-legislators-use-the-revenue-stabilization-trust-fund-money-to-prevent-a-pay-cut)

Our educators, students, and schools are worth the investment.

Ready to drive the future and make a difference?

Caddo Schools is NOW HIRING bus drivers and attendants, and we want to meet you at our Transportation Job Fair on May 28!
Join us to learn more about rewarding opportunities to support students and schools every day.

📅 May 28, 2026
⏰ 10 a.m.–5 p.m.
📍 Wanda Gunn PD Center, 3908 Joplin Street

Start your next chapter with Caddo Schools! Learn more at caddoschools.org.