Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/129419
Note: In every 2013 issue of the Educator we will be highlighting a portion of CTA's proud history in a timeline. Collect all 9 and put them together for a big look at all we've accomplished over the past 150 years. To get started just cut out the timeline from this page. Your next installment will be coming to you in June/July. 1946-60 1946: CTA was part of a successful lawsuit to desegregate schools for Mexican Americans: Mendez v. Westminster. Judge Paul McCormick ruled that school districts had no business and no right in separating school children on the basis of race or nationality. The decision helped establish a precedent for other important cases that led up to the landmark 1954 Supreme Court Brown v. Board of Education decision stating that "separate educational facilities are inherently unequal." In CTA's publications, Sierra Educational News and later CTA Journal, teachers wrote columns on such topics as how to prepare for the return of Japanese American children to their classrooms, how to start Teacher Clubs to encourage young people to become educators, what should the teacher look for in a written contract, and the effectiveness of detention. In 1956, following a yearlong debate, CTA adopted its first education platform, "We Hold These Truths," After the end of World War II, men returned to the home front, women returned to the household, and the baby boom was on. defining the responsibilities of the schools. Among the principles is: "The public school is committed irrevocably to strive for equal educational opportunity for all." The policy coincided with the White House Conference on Education, which brought public attention to problems in the nation's schools. California continued to experience a massive teacher and classroom shortage while the population increased and shifted. CTA continued to call for increased professionalism to draw people to the profession, and campaigned for better salaries and working conditions as it had since its founding in 1863. Said classroom teacher Verna M. Moran: "We, the present-day teachers, must be willing and ready to fight the battle of the future. The battle for such things as good salaries, security, tenure for the small school and health insurance for all." 1947 1953 1954 1956 Gov. Earl Warren signs AB 1625, which improves teacher retirement benefits. Ninety-two percent of the education bills passed by the Legislature are signed into law during that watershed session. CTA wins a historic case when it represents San Lorenzo teacher Fern Bruner in suing a local radio commentator who wrongfully accused her of being a Communist. The court rules the commentator slandered the teacher and awards her $55,125. Throughout the 1950s and into the early '60s, thousands of California students receive polio vaccinations at their local schools. CTA helps address the ongoing teacher shortage by encouraging student clubs like the California Education Club at Sanger High School. Today, CTA still supports these efforts through its Student CTA affiliate.