Detroit Federation of Teachers

NO to School Vouchers

Members hear from the Political Action Committee and AFT Retiree Activist, Lois Lofton-Doniver, about why we're against school vouchers in Michigan. We are asking for members to let the governor know.

Tea Party at Ronald Brown Academy

Seventh graders were greeted with a tea party from Ronald Brown Academy staff. More about this in the May/June edition of The Detroit Teacher.

40th Annual Building Representatives Recognition Dinner

A good time was had by all at the spring Building Representatives dinner at Sindbad's. This annual event is held to show appreciation for the hard work performed by our building reps.

Speaking to Members

Members attending the June membership meeting had the opportunity to hear from Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate, Jocelyn Benson. She answered questions from the rank and file.

Collective Bargaining Agreement for 2026-2028 DFT

At the July 14, 2026 the DPSCD Board of Education approved the 2026-2028 Detroit Federation of Teachers Tentative Agreement. This is the final step of the process of the collective bargaining agreement process.

Here is the ratified CBA: 2026-2028 DFT Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Be sure to read the letters of agreements for:

Lead Teacher (Teacher Leader) pages 33-36
Training and Support Coordinators (TSC) page 37
Class Size Overage Supplemental Pay pages 38-40
Five-Day GSRP / Pre-K Schedule pages 41-48
Ancillary Staff Overage pages 49-50
ESL/Bilingual Retention Bonus pages 51-52
School Point of Contact pages 53-55
Bilingual interpreter pages 56-57

Here are the calendars for the next two years:

Primary Endorsements 2026

Here are the endorsements for the August 2026 Michigan Primary from our statewide federation and the Michigan AFL-CIO. The DFT supports candidates who advocate for public education and are pro-labor.

AFT Michigan List of Candidates
Michigan AFL-CIO List of Candidates

We encourage you to cast a ballot for the primary so we can elect folks who stand with us.

Absentee ballots have gone out and we want to make you aware of a couple of resources:

Information Source for Upcoming 2026 Primary Election in Michigan
Michigan Voter Information Center

DFT Office Closures in July

The DFT Office will be closed on Friday, July 3rd in observance of Independence Day.

Because of the AFT National Convention, the DFT Office will also be closed the week of July 13th, 2026.

Ratification Vote Passes

We are pleased to announce the ratification of the tentative agreement. The final results of the vote are YES 1751 (80%) NO 440 (20%).

The next step in the process is to have the DPSCD School Board agree to accept the results of the vote. This is planned for the July 14th regular school board meeting. Once the school board has agreed to this, then we will publish the tentative agreement to our website, under key documents.

DFT Offices Closed for Juneteenth

The DFT Office will be closed on Friday, June 19 in observation of Juneteenth. We will reopen on Monday, June 22nd.

PSRP activists swap advice on campaigning

AFT President Randi Weingarten shared thoughts on campaigning with up-and-coming PSRP leaders.

The AFT PSRP leadership conference last month came chock-full of advice from activists on how to optimize campaigns, whether they focus on organizing, politics, a living wage or community service. PSRP co-chairs Carl Williams and Sarah Wofford led the proceedings. Williams is president of the Lawndale (Calif.) Federation of Classified Employees, a former school custodian and president of California’s classified members. Wofford is an accounting specialist for Rogue Community College and president of the Oregon School Employees Association. Eighteen AFT locals sent paraprofessionals and school-related personnel to Chicago April 10-12 for the conference.