Detroit Federation of Teachers

DFT Townhall Forum

The DFT was proud to host a townhall to discuss the upcoming general election, There was information presented about voting rights, misinformation and why it's important to vote. GET OUT THE VOTE!

Red for Ed Canvassing

DFT President, Lakia Wilson-Lumpkins joins AFT members for canvassing. GET OUT THE VOTE!

Listening to Obama

President Lakia Wilson-Lumpkins was invited to hear Barack Obama speak at Cass Tech High School. The former president rallied on behalf of the blue ticket.

Solidarity Wednesday at Western

The DFT president and EVP pose with Western HS members wearing their RED FOR ED Solidarity Wednesday.

DFT Units M and S CBA 2026-2028

At the August 11th DPSCD school board meeting, members unanimously approved the tentative agreement for DFT Units M (paraprofessionals) and S (food service workers). These members voted overwhelmingly to ratify the TA. The DFT negotiated this contract because the former Detroit Federation of Paraprofessionals merged into the DFT last year.

Here is the ratified CBA: Collective Bargaining Agreement for Units M and S.

Weingarten launches new campaign: ‘Real Solutions for Kids and Communities’

Photo of AFT President Randi Weingarten addressing TEACH 2023

The AFT has always been a solutions-driven union, and our new campaign, launched during TEACH on July 21, proves it once again with a fresh, practical approach to strengthening public education. As AFT President Randi Weingarten pointed out during her keynote speech, the $5 million, yearlong campaign, “Real Solutions for Kids and Communities,” stands up against attacks on public schools and offers real-world solutions to build up, rather than break down, our communities.

Randi Weingarten at a Massachusetts high school

Summer is upon us, and parents, children and teachers are winding down from what has been an exhausting and fully operational school year—the first since the devastating pandemic. The long-lasting impact of COVID-19 has affected our students’ and families’ well-being and ignited the politics surrounding public schools. All signs point to the coming school year unfolding with the same sound and fury, and if extremist culture warriors have their way, being even more divisive and stressful.

Randi Weingarten and NYC teacher Tamara Simpson

Attacks on public education in America by extremists and culture-war peddling politicians have reached new heights (“lows” may be more apt), but they are not new. The difference today is that the attacks are intended not just to undermine public education but to destroy it.

In AFT President Randi Weingarten’s latest New York Times column, she describes what it is exactly that unions do. Though unions are the most popular they have been in decades, anti-union sentiment still thrives in red states and across the nation. “Several years ago, The Atlantic ran a story whose headline made even me, a labor leader, scratch my head: ‘Union Membership: Very Sexy,’” Weingarten writes in the column. “The gist was that higher wages, health benefits and job security—all associated with union membership—boost one’s chances of getting married. Belonging to a union doesn’t actually guarantee happily ever after, but it does help working people have a better life in the here and now.” Click through to read the full column.

AFT-MANA Community Civic Engagement Event October 24, 2026

AFT is hosting, in partnership with MANA de Metro Detroit and MANA, A National Latina Organization, on October 24, 2026, at Wayne State University in Detroit. The event is designed to engage Latino/a families and community members through educational resources, family activities, and civic engagement opportunities. MANA is a national organization dedicated to empowering Latinas through leadership development, advocacy, education, and community engagement.

The AFT Family Fair and panel discussion will take place from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. and will feature grab-and-go breakfast and coffee, free multilingual and Spanish-language books, student backpacks, hygiene kits, and other community resources while supplies last. The conference will begin at 10:00 a.m. and continue throughout the day.

For more information look here on Eventbrite.

Registration is available here: Register for the AFT-MANA Community Civic Engagement Event.