Member of largest teachers union in US claims org is 'no longer focused on children,' only 'political power'

A long-serving member of the National Education Association (NEA) and the California Teachers Association (CTA) told Fox News Digital that major teachers unions have abandoned instructional quality to focus almost exclusively on accumulating political power."It's all about power," said Michael Greer, a special education teacher who spent 26 years as a CTA and NEA member."In California, the California Teachers Association is the most powerful lobbying group in the state, which also transfers into the national union."Greer — a retired educator with two decades of classroom experience who previously served as a local CTA chapter president and as a member of the Del Norte County Unified School District Board of Trustees — said the unions’ core priorities have fundamentally shifted since he entered public education.PRO-TRUMP GROUP LEADS NEW COALITION TO UNDERCUT TEACHERS UNIONSRandi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, speaks during a rally outside the US Department of Education headquarters in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, March 13, 2025.  (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)"When I first became a union president, it was about the teachers.

We were focused on helping educators become better at what they do — helping them teach reading, math, and science," Greer explained, noting that union-sponsored conferences used to feature practical instructional workshops and classroom training."We took those programs back and taught our colleagues how to implement them.

That has changed completely."Greer’s remarks follow independent analyses revealing that the nation's two largest teachers unions — the NEA and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) — have directed hundreds of millions of dollars toward political activism, lobbying, and progressive advocacy groups over the last decade.According to an investigation by the North American Values Institute (NAVI), an education watchdog tracking ideological activism, the NEA spent at least ...