Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1500904
David B. Goldberg BORN, RAISED AND LIVES: In Echo Park, in northeast Los Angeles FAMILY: Wife Karla Alvarado-Goldberg (psychiatric social worker with LAUSD and UTLA member); children ages 16, 19 and 22 CAREER AS AN EDUCATOR: Most of his 25+ years in the profession have been as a bilingual teacher at Murchison Elementary in LAUSD UNION ACTIVITY: Multiple leadership positions, including UTLA Treasurer, CTA Director, CTA Secretary-Treasurer, CTA Vice President EDUCATION: B.A., Community Studies, UC Santa Cruz RANDOM FACTS: Practices Transcendental Meditation twice a day; trilingual including Spanish and sign language; briefly played pro basketball overseas; relaxes through beach bike rides with Karla On the importance of connecting with members: I'm committed to democratic, bottom-up leadership. Our CTA local presidents are the backbone of our organiza- tion, and we have to figure out better ways to be connected and responsive to them. For presidents to be more respon- sive to members at their work sites, we must be more responsive to them. One way we're doing that is through CTA organizing grants around site visits, etc. — [this helps ensure we have] a place where members and leaders can debrief, discuss les- sons learned and what support they need from CTA. I'd like to have deeper democratic conversations about the direction of our union, at State Council and in the regions. CTA is such a big, incredible, finely tuned organization but sometimes it's easy for all of us to skip steps that take a bottom-up look at what we're doing to meet the needs of our members. On CTA and community schools: Goldberg is spearheading CTA's work with commnity schools, a partnership with the state, school districts, students, families and communities (see cta.org/communityschools). The model of community schools is a bottom-up, anti-racist model, a democratic model. It's a model that builds power with community, that brings broader issues of the common good to the table. And it's a model that breaks down a lot of silos within CTA and in our locals so we all work together in ways that allow us to recalibrate our rela- tionship with each other. For me it has been an important way to see the value that CTA can bring to locals. I'm trying to figure out how to use the community schools model, where people connect to and support each other, throughout all of CTA. On CTA's strengths: At CTA, our real power is broader than just one local. We have a gift — a union where we come together, have conver- sations, have political disagreements, and come up with a plan and action to build power and win what our members and students deserve. We represent different communities. We come from all walks of life, we come from different racial backgrounds, gender backgrounds, who you choose to love. We have a place where we can bring all that in as an asset, as a real strength. Educators overwhelmingly are still respected and even revered in many communities. So we are uniquely situated to stand up not only for ourselves, but we have the capac- ity to lead broader struggles. Because we are in every community across the state [we can work to] change our schools, and through schools, change our society. Connected as we are to a broader vision of a com- mon good,* we can organize and lead around issues * "Common good" is the advantage or benefit of all people in society or in a group. Common good issues such as hunger, homelessness, racial and social injustice, and more must be addressed at the advocacy and bargaining levels to ensure students and educators' teaching and learning conditions are equitable and optimal. Addressing these issues lifts entire communities, benefiting all. "I'm committed to democratic, bottom-up leadership. Sometimes it's easy for us [at CTA] to skip steps that take a bottom-up look at what we're doing to meet member needs." 13 J U N E / J U L Y 2 0 2 3