CCA and CTA support Brown for governor; Tom Torlakson for state schools chief

Volume 45 Number 3

Primary slated for June 8

CCA/CTA will support state Attorney General Jerry Brown in his bid for governor in November and state Assembly member Tom Torlakson for Superintendent of Public Instruction.

“Jerry Brown is the choice of educators because he has shown himself to be committed to ensuring all students have a quality education and providing public schools and colleges with the resources they need to succeed,” said CTA President Sanchez. “California needs a leader who fully understands the problems that threaten the stability of our state and who knows what is needed to resolve them.”

As governor, Jerry Brown signed the first collective bargaining bill in California’s history, allowing educators to be full partners in the governing process. Brown also supports Proposition 98, the state’s minimum school funding law.

The CTA State Council of Education also voted to support state Assembly Member Tom Torlakson for Superintendent of Public Instruction.

Tom Torlakson was named “Legislator of the Year” by the Community College Association last fall for his support of community college faculty and public education.

He is the author of the CCA-sponsored AB 581, a bill intended to make sure that community colleges spend 50 percent of their budget on faculty salaries, as required by the state’s Fifty Percent Law. If passed, the bill mandates that the Chancellor’s Office conduct random audits of five community college districts for compliance with the law. CCA had approached Torlakson after conducting an audit of 10 community colleges and finding they were wildly out of compliance. The Fifty Percent Law was originally passed to ensure that colleges are spending at least 50 percent of their budget on educating students, and not on administrative salaries or other projects.

“Tom is a former teacher who has been a true champion of public education as a legislator. He has carried legislation to increase funding for textbooks, and worked with CTA to sponsor the Quality Education Investment Act, which has directed nearly $3 billion for proven classroom reforms to assist lower-performing schools rather than sanctions. CTA wholeheartedly gives its support to his campaign,” Sanchez said.

In other races, CCA/CTA State Council delegates voted to support San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom for Lieutenant Governor, state Assembly Member Dave Jones for Insurance Commissioner and Chris Parker and Jerome Horton for Board of Equalization, Second and Fourth Districts, respectively. State Council took an oppose position on Proposition 14 - Elections: Open Primaries because it is costly and unnecessary. A complete list of CTA-supported candidates can be found at www.cta.org.