Albuquerque Teachers Federation - ATF

09/04/2026

7-0 UNANIMOUS VOTE! ✊🎉

On Wednesday evening, the Albuquerque Public Schools Board of Education voted unanimously to approve negotiated changes to your ATF union contract. This followed a bargaining unit contract ratification vote, in which thousands of APS educators participated, and 98.9% voted FOR ratification.

The Albuquerque Teachers Federation thanks all educators who took part in the contract ratification vote, the APS Board of Education for voting unanimously in favor of the changes, the APS negotiating team for negotiating in good faith, and, of course, our own ATF union negotiating team for all their tireless work.

09/03/2026

"A bipartisan group of 35 state lawmakers sent a letter to Public Education Department Secretary Mariana Padilla last week raising concerns with the use of the AI program Amira ISIP in public schools to test and track K-2 students’ literacy skills and screen for early reading difficulties. Use of the program is required by the PED, but local districts have the choice to opt out and use a different testing method.

"The AI program has drawn criticism in districts throughout the state for recording and storing students’ voices and personal information and a lack of transparency. In the letter sent to the PED, lawmakers asked the department to do more to inform parents of the use of the program and how their children’s sensitive information is being used, and require parental consent in the future."

New Mexico lawmakers recently voiced concerns over the use of AI in public schools as 18 local districts and charter schools opt out.

08/28/2026

💡 Be Part of This Year's Lead and Learn Cohort! ✨

What does it mean to be a community school educator? It means turning neighborhoods into classrooms and students into community leaders.

Throughout this semester-long professional learning initiative, educators across our district designed projects centered on deeper, personalized learning rooted in the lived experiences of our students and families. From recording immigration stories to building intergenerational pen-pal programs, these projects proved that education thrives when the community is actively engaged.

This video shows how this experience reignited their passion for teaching and transformed their community school classrooms.

Teaching is most powerful when we lean into community. As our past participants shared, stepping into community-connected learning doesn't just transform students—it rejuvenates educators.

Now, it’s your turn. Whether you want to launch hands-on student projects, build local partnerships, or simply reignite your passion for education, the upcoming Lead and Learn is built for you.

Join us for this year's Lead and Learn to help shape the future of our schools.

➡️ APPLY NOW: Link in the comments section.

An extraordinary year of growth and community awaits—come be a part of it!

08/21/2026

A Wisconsin special education teacher says changes to student loan ...

08/19/2026

Special Ed Professionals Join SETT Students for Roundtable Event

The CNM Special Education Teacher Training program (SETT) held its second annual roundtable discussion event at the ATF union hall today. Experienced professionals who support our special education students shared their knowledge with CNM SETT Cohort 9 Teacher Residents.

The CNM SETT program is a collaborative partnership between Albuquerque Public Schools (APS), Central New Mexico Community College (CNM), and Albuquerque Teachers Federation (ATF).

All residency teachers are placed with an experienced special education teacher within APS. They co-teach with their cooperating teacher four days a week in an immersive learning experience, or apprenticeship, and take their CNM coursework on Wednesdays. This rigorous, advantageous program supports early-career teachers and their students.

If you are interested in becoming an APS special education teacher and taking the CNM SETT program, please email: [email protected]

08/18/2026

VOTE FOR CONTRACT RATIFICATION!

Your ATF bargaining team spent many hours at the negotiating table this summer and worked hard to secure changes that continue to improve the terms and conditions of employment for the diverse educators we represent. (You can read a summary of those changes and the full language at the bottom of this article.)

With solidarity and conviction, our union successfully advocated and won advances defining fair compensation for extended contract work, secured the district’s commitment to expanding collaboration time for middle and elementary school, continued to work on neglected differentials, and formalized the 1% salary increase that passed in the legislative session.

Though this year’s raise is small, it also comes with an increase in the amount the employer (state and district) pays toward health insurance premiums. This amount rose from 60% for most of the ATF Bargaining Unit to 80%, thanks to years of advocacy and lobbying in the NM Legislature by ATF and AFT NM. This is a significant increase in educators’ take-home pay if they have insurance coverage through APS.

Your ATF bargaining team spent many hours at the negotiating table this summer and worked hard to secure changes that continue to improve the terms and cond ...

08/18/2026

"The reports are not user-friendly and don't give me the data I need as a teacher.

It marks students incorrectly if they have an accent or any speech delays.”

08/18/2026

“This data is useless since we can not use it to drive instruction.

I would much rather read one-on-one with [my students] to hear how they are reading."

08/18/2026

“Teachers are creating and administering their own assessments to obtain more reliable data, which increases their workload.

We have found the reading data from Amira to be difficult to interpret and often inaccurate.”

Julie Baker
Dean of Students/Test Coordinator
Monte Vista Elementary

08/17/2026

"My students with thick British accents are easily understood by AMIRA AI, while my students with Spanish and Diné accents are not understood by AMIRA AI at all. When contacting AMIRA's support team, I have been repeatedly told we are having 'technical' issues with our Chromebooks, but our APS tech team has proven there are no issues with our technology. I work hard as a teacher to incorporate culturally responsive practices into my classroom and see how it benefits my students. What is AMIRA doing to address the multicultural makeup of our student body and ensure all students have equal access, regardless of the voice they use?"

- Meghan Hendricks
Special Education Teacher & Technology Liaison
Alvarado Elementary School