Amid Trump Attacks on Education, Sanders to Hold Town Hall on Teacher Pay Crisis

With the Trump administration continuing to withhold billions of dollars from the nation's public schools—threatening teacher training programs and other crucial funding for school districts—U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders on Tuesday announced an upcoming town hall where he will hear directly from educators about how low wages as well as "disinvestment" in schools are creating a crisis in education.

"It is simply unacceptable that, in the richest country in the history of the world, 40% of teachers have to work extra jobs just to make ends meet," said Sanders (I-Vt.) as he announced a town hall that will be hosted Thursday by the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, where he serves as the ranking member.

Sanders has long been an advocate for public school teachers, and counted them among his top supporters during his 2020 presidential campaign.

More than 100 educators are expected to be in attendance at the town hall, along with American Federation of Teachers president Randi Weingarten and National Education Association vice president Princess Moss. Sanders plans to speak directly with many of them about how teachers are experiencing high levels of burnout.

"The situation has become so absurd that four hedge fund managers on Wall Street make more money in a single year than every kindergarten teacher in America combined—nearly 120,000 teachers."

Nearly 1 in 8 teaching jobs is currently vacant or held by a teacher who is not fully certified, while about one-third of public school educators make less than $60,000 per year. That's about $20,000 less than the annual salary a single adult needs to live in the country's most affordable state—West Virginia—according to a recent analysis by SmartAsset, and far less than what one would need to live in many other states.

Sanders noted Tuesday that in 36 states, teachers' wages are so low that an educator with a family of four qualifies for public housing, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and other public assistance.

"The situation has become so absurd that four hedge fund managers on Wall Street make more money in a single year than every kindergarten teacher in America combined—nearly 120,000 teachers," said Sanders.

The senator is holding the town hall, which will be livestreamed on Sanders' social media accounts, days after President Donald Trump's administration announced it would release part of the $6.8 billion in education funding it has withheld from states, after being sued by several states over the funds, which had already been appropriated by Congress.

While the withheld funds don't directly impact teacher salaries, advocates have warned that Trump's attacks on public education will put a strain on schools and already-strained educators.

"If we are going to have the best public school system in the world," said Sanders, "we have got to radically change our attitude toward education and make sure that every teacher in America receives the compensation that they deserve for the enormously important and difficult work that they do."