Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1544915
a successful get-out-the-vote effort this fall," Morganstern said. "We were also able to present at a local CTA-Aspiring Educators meeting and worked closely with our Anaheim CSEA chapter to coordinate site visits. This approach has seen organic leaders within ASTA and our community spring up who want to help secure the resources stu- dents and schools deserve. As a core We Can't Wait local, we were able to make the connection with our members about the need to renew Prop. 55 to ensure that our WCW wins will continue to be funded with state revenue." ASTA is also working with aspiring educators from nearby Santa Ana Com- munity College to inform them about Prop. 55 and to engage, mentor and help educate them about the union. The local award s 10 $1,000 scholarships annu- ally to Anaheim students who want to become educators, with the goal of grad- uating students who have strong union values from the moment they earn their credentials. Modeling how shared gover- nance looks, ASTA invited the Anaheim Union High Community Schools Steer- ing Committee to make the scholarship selections this year. "It's powerful to educate and engage aspiring educators," Morganstern says. " This is part of a long-term goal: What can we do now, but also what can we do in the future?" Background on Prop. 55 Prop. 55 is income tax on California's wealthiest that is set to expire in 2030. It was passed by voters in 2012 and extended in 2016. Since its passing, Prop. 55 has generated billions in revenue for California's general fund, 40% of which is constitutionally mandated by Prop. 98 to fund the state's public schools. Learn more at cta.org/prop55extension. One in six of our colleagues will lose their jobs unless we pass the Prop. 55 extension in November. We Did It! Our union gathers the majority of signatures to put Prop. 55 permanent extension on the ballot O N A P R I L 2 2 , more than 1.6 million signatures were submitted to county election officials to place a permanent extension to Proposition 55 on the November ballot. The signatures submitted far surpasses the ~875,000 required to qualify it for the ballot. If passed, this extension, also known as the California Children's Education and Health Care Protection Act of 2026, will prevent billions in cuts to schools and health care by extending the existing tax on the wealthiest Californians. Our members secured the vast majority of signatures by talking to each other at our worksites. More than 100 local chapters had more than 85% of members sign a petition. A strong coalition of other unions joined our effort including Califor- nia Federation of Teachers, California Service Employees Association, Service Employees International Union, California Professional Fire- fighters, and more. Together, we secured 1.6 million signatures. What Comes Next: Once signatures are validated, the initiative will be assigned a new proposition number and will be included on the November ballot. Then it's going to take all of us working together to get out the vote for public education. If we don't extend Prop. 55 in November the wealthiest will get a tax break in 2030 while 1-in-6 educators would lose their jobs. Our power as a union can win this! We've shown time and again that there's nothing we can't do if we have ambitious goals, a plan and a commitment to win together. 27 S P R I N G 2 0 26