By Brenda Ortega
MEA Voice Editor

Under gray skies and cold wet weather—at the end of a long day in the classroom—first-year teacher Alexandra McCloskey stood in a puddle on a pedestrian overpass spanning Interstate-696 in Farmington Hills last week. She held a sign asking drivers to honk if they love public schools.

McCloskey absorbed a steady stream of blaring and beeping car horns from afternoon commuters as an energy source to keep going. “Those honks are why I’m going to be standing here for longer than I’d like to, even though my feet are frozen and I can’t feel my hands,” the fifth-grade teacher said.

“Sometimes you have to stand for something bigger than you. I’m here for the kids. I’m here to do whatever I can to make a difference.”

McCloskey joined fellow union members and public education supporters from across Michigan and the U.S. in a national “Protect Our Kids” Day of Action last Tuesday. Members wore red-for-ed to school, showed support on social media, and attended local events as part of a joint effort by NEA and AFT along with various community partners.

Join the movement, and sign up for Town Hall zoom meetings (the next one will be at 8 p.m. on Thursday, March 13) with NEA to learn what you can do to get involved, at nea.org/protect.

Along with McCloskey, a few dozen MEA members from Farmington and neighboring communities showed up to the Oakland County freeway overpass to raise awareness about the importance of federal education funding for students amid efforts to broadly slash government services under President Donald Trump.

Trump is reportedly planning to issue an order directing newly confirmed U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon—a former pro-wrestling executive without an education background—to begin the process of fully dismantling the U.S. Department of Education.

Hours after she was confirmed for the job by the Republican-controlled U.S. Senate on Tuesday, McMahon sent an email to staff calling Trump’s plan to push Congress to shutter the department as its “final mission.”

Many people don’t know the importance of federal funding and oversight that helps public schools provide staff and services for low-income students in rural and urban communities, and students who need special education supports, said Chris DeYonke, president of the Farmington Education Association, who organized the I-696 event.

“I think with so much going on—all of the cuts and chaos across the board—this issue of losing federal support for vulnerable students hasn’t been on people’s radar yet,” DeYonke said. “But I can tell you about half of the people on this bridge today are special-ed staff, because they definitely know how big the stakes are in this fight.”

DeYonke and wife Christina Fernandez—both 20-year special education teachers in the district—participated in the Day of Action to build awareness needed to engage more people to preserve the Education Department and protect federal education funding.

Educator shortages still remain from decades of declining investment in schools, Fernandez said. “Hopefully people see our signs and start asking, ‘Wait, what? Why are they out here in this cold? What’s happening to our schools? What can I do?’ Because we’re out here for kids.”

Every voter can help by speaking out to policymakers and spreading the word to friends and neighbors who can also get involved, DeYonke said.

“People need to contact representatives and senators in Congress; they need to contact the White House and the new Secretary of Education and let them know: Public schools play a vital role in our communities, and they need more supports—not less.”

MEA President and CEO Chandra Madafferi joined the Farmington event for the same reason: to encourage parents and other community members to become equipped with data and knowledge so they can help spread awareness of what is happening and how to get involved.

“We can all have conversations to say, ‘This is how much our district receives, and this is what it pays for,’ so it becomes meaningful to parents,” Madafferi said. “A lot of staff positions and services in our schools are funded through federal programs, which are on the chopping block, so this is cutting close to the bone.”

Public school advocates need to get the attention of as many people as possible, Madafferi said, including those who voted for the current administration. “We’re trying to bring people in and educate them so they become activists to help with change—because it’s going to take everyone.”

MEA has developed a breakdown by district of federal funding for at-risk and special education students. Last year Michigan received about $461 million in federal funds to help pay for special education services, an amount that covers about 15% of the state’s special education costs.

In addition, Michigan receives about $440 million in federal funding to help students learn in cash-strapped rural and urban areas which would face massive cutbacks without it.

Having a chance on Tuesday to join local voices with so many across the nation also enticed dozens of members of the Berkley Education Association to march on the sidewalk along Coolidge Highway near Berkley High School, BEA President Steve Lyskawa said.

Educators are eager to get out word of what’s happening, and hearing the many car horns honking throughout the 90-minute event was music to educators’ ears, Lyskawa added.

“We are grateful for all of the support that we have out here today. It’s such an important time to support public education and to do the best we can to try to protect our students.”

With only about 48 hours’ notice, several dozen BEA members showed up with additional participation by parents and other supporters. The event was organized by local resident Brian Burnett, who stepped forward to volunteer as mobilization chair for the South Oakland County Democratic Party.

Tuesday’s march was the first event he organized since taking on the role in January, said Burnett, who added he moved quickly when he heard about the Day of Action because public schools and educators are so central to our country’s future.

“What holds our communities together is the public education system,” he said. “I don’t think that many of the people who voted for Trump are in favor of these cuts, so I’m going to do whatever networking I can to get more people out to make a difference. I’m just getting started.”

Parent Mary Hippler said she answered the call to action to awaken parents to what’s coming if federal cuts move forward. Her daughter is autistic and attends a public school district in Oakland County that offers critical services from warm and caring educators—services she’s being warned could disappear.

“It’s hard to think of all these cuts, to special education, to lower-income schools, to students who need Pell grants to go to college—cuts to all these wonderful programs that create opportunities for children,” Hippler said. “That’s terrifying to me, not just for my child but for our country in general.”

The same sentiment brought MEA-Retired member Angie Church out for the Day of Action after she just retired last June from a distinguished career as an award-winning Berkley social studies teacher and instructional coach.

People need to understand how integral federal supports are to the work that schools and educators do every day, Church said, her voice breaking with emotion when asked about why she participated.

“Stripping away that funding is going to harm a lot of kids. That’s why I’m here, because all kids need opportunities and all kids deserve access.”