A Legacy of Advocacy: The History of Teacher Organizations in Utah

The history of teacher organizations in Utah is a compelling narrative of educators striving for a voice, better working conditions, and the advancement of education in the state. From the early roots of the Deseret School Teachers Association to the modern Utah Education Association (UEA) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) locals, this history showcases the dedication and resilience of Utah's teachers. This study seeks to present a history of the Teacher Organizations which have functioned in Utah from 1860 to 1940. This study is a phase of the history of education as as such shares in the purposes claimed for such studies.

The Purpose of Studying Educational History

The history of education is an ally in the scientific study of education rather than a competitor. It enables teachers to avoid the mistakes of the past. The necessity for adequate interpretation of the history of education is emphasized by E. W. Taylor, Carl H., "The History of the Utah Education Association" (1950). All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023. Copyright for this work is retained by the student.

Early Foundations: The Deseret School Teachers Association

The Utah Education Association (UEA) has its roots in the Deseret School Teachers Association, which was formed in 1860. This early organization laid the groundwork for collective action and advocacy for teachers in the Utah territory. Later in 1910, the direct predecessor organization to the Utah Educational Association was incorporated as the Utah Educational Association. In 1924, the organization adopted its present-day name.

The Utah Education Association (UEA): A Century of Service

The UEA has been a significant force in shaping education in Utah. For over a century, the UEA has advocated for quality education, improved working conditions for teachers, and adequate resources for schools. In February 1973, the Utah Education Association registered as a tax-exempt 501(c)(5) nonprofit organization in Murray, Utah. It is an affiliate of the National Education Association, America’s largest labor union.

UEA's Political Stance and Advocacy

The Utah Education Association supports policies aligned with left-of-center aims relating to taxes, LGBT-issues, critical race theory, and curriculum oversight. For instance, the organization’s Bill Scorecard had an unfavorable opinion of Utah State bills such as HB 29 Sub 2, which would create a review process for objective and subjective materials and would require a statewide ban of materials removed by at least three districts; HB 257 Sub 5, which would place certain restrictions on the use of sex-specific bathrooms and showers in public schools; and SB 69, which would reduce the State of Utah’s income tax rate from 4.65 to 4.55 percent. The organization opposed HB 303, a proposed bill that would prohibit public school employees in the state of Utah from promoting political or social beliefs, sexual orientations, or gender identities through instruction, materials, displays of symbols, images, and so on.

Founded in 1964, the Utah Education Association’s political action committee affiliate is UEA-PAC. In general, the PAC supports and opposes the same bills as the Utah Education Association and supports aligned members of and candidates for the Utah State Senate. Every senator scored with a 100 percent rating on the PAC’s Legislative Voting Record Summary was a member of the Democratic Party.

UEA Leadership

Renee Pinkney is the president of the Utah Education Association’s board of directors as well as a social studies teacher in Park City, Utah. Previously, she worked as the organization’s vice president from 2019 to 2022 and was a member of its board of directors representing Eastern Utah from 2016 to 2019. Brandon Baca is the vice president of the Utah Education Association’s board of directors as well as a geography and history teacher at Sand Ridge Jr. High School in Roy, Utah. Jennifer Boehme is the executive director of the Utah Education Association. Formerly, she was the director of the Jordan UniServ (Unified Service), a UEA-NEA political division; president and vice president of the Jordan Education Association; president of the UEA Council of Local Residents; and a member of UEA’s board of directors. Denise Lake is a member of the Utah Education Association’s board of directors and the National Education Association state director for Utah as well as teacher at Mountain Green Elementary in the Morgan School District.

UEA Convention

For over 100 years the UEA's annual convention was its largest and most high-profile event, featuring national speakers and workshops on best teaching practices. It also attracted political candidates, and included an awards banquet highlighting excellence in teaching.

The UEA is a labor union for teachers and other education professionals in the state of Utah, representing more than 18,000 teachers. It has local affiliates in 41 school districts, Applied Technology Colleges, and the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind in Ogden. From 1990 to 1996, the president of the UEA was Lily Eskelsen.

The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) in Utah: A History of Perseverance

Organized labor has been in Utah since men started pulling coal out of the ground in the Coalville and Scofield areas in the early 1880s but it was not until 1919 that teachers started to form unions. The AFT's presence in Utah dates back to 1919 when the first local, The Ogden Federation of Teachers Local #78, was chartered on May 9. After this event, other AFT locals were organized throughout Utah. Dan Golodner, AFT Archivist at the Walter P. Reuther Library Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs at Wayne State University compiled this brief history of AFT in Utah.

Early Challenges and Setbacks

The early years of the AFT in Utah were marked by challenges. The first AFT local organized in Utah was the Ogden Federation of Teachers Local 78 in 1919. It lasted less than a year when it was forced to disband from pressure by the administration. Then the Ogden High School teachers organized Local 163 a month later. They too faced the same pressures from administration to disband which they did. In general, after World War I it was not a good time to be in a union; the public sentiment towards organized labor was very negative, especially towards public employees. Teachers who tried to gain a voice in the workplace found it especially hard; there was no protection for teachers in their jobs, they worked at will and could be fired without cause. When teachers formed unions or even talked about unions, the administration would intimidate, threaten and flat out let the teacher go to stop a union being formed in their district. Although the first wave of teacher unionism was stopped cold, the AFT continued to organize.

The 1930s: A Resurgence and Continued Resistance

In the 1930s when it seemed like the entire nation was joining a union, teachers in Utah did as well, forming nine AFT locals throughout the state. A few managed to hold on throughout the decade while others could not get any support to get going. It was the same issues as before, it was unprofessional for teachers to organize with labor, and superintendents wanted to retain their control. The Utah Education Association had also increased its’ power and influence in the state. The UEA had enough funds to offer teachers health insurance, small loans and other benefits if they were members. Under the fear of firing and the availability of having some sort of benefits, teachers mostly stayed away from the AFT, by the end of the 1930s all AFT locals had disbanded.

The 1950s: Renewed Interest and Ongoing Obstacles

In the 1950s a resurgence of interest in the AFT by teachers in Utah occurred again. Late in 1951, F.C. Snow, an organizer for the AFT started laying the ground work for locals, especially in Ogden. Some of the difficulties were “50% of the teachers in Utah have only emergency credentials, and are hesitant to make demands or even request. The teacher turnover is very high. Most teachers were working two or three jobs. They have no time to give to a union program. Average salary below $3,000.” However, with his tenacity in 1953 five locals were chartered. This sudden interest was partly because the state legislatures were planning to tie teachers’ salaries to merit pay schemes. The UEA was in full battle mode to stop any teacher affiliating with the AFT. The AFT remained in place for the next couple of years but again the steam ran out of the teachers, and the pressure from the UEA was too much for the AFT to place a strong foothold.

The 1980s and Beyond: A New Era of Organizing

The next signs of the AFT moving into Utah was the early 1980s. Hints of a successful organizing drive started in Alpine when a series of investigations began to look into corruption with the school board. The Alpine Federation of Teachers was the only voice for the teachers during this time and teachers started signing cards to join the Alpine Federation of Teachers. The local submitted a charter application with 172 members and received their charter in June 1984. The AFT began the Utah organizing project and for nearly 15 years new locals were formed covering K-12, school personnel, higher education and staff.

AFT Utah Today

The history of the AFT in Utah has been as long as the AFT has been around. With perseverance and strong leadership AFT Utah continued through good times and bad to remain a voice for the voiceless in Utah. AFT National has given us permission to stake claim to our 1919 roots in Ogden by giving us the option to use Local #78 as the official local number for AFT Top of Utah that incorporates the Ogden District. We may request that Granite, Salt Lake Federation, Alpine, and others (as they increase membership) use their historic local numbers. There have been those throughout our state that have tried to marginalize AFT by claiming our union is relatively new to Utah, but the evidence is clear that we have a legacy of protecting the rights of working people and their families as a UNION that stands with the employees of public and higher education.

Short Bios of Utah AFT Locals

These are the foundations of the AFT in Utah.

Ogden Federation of Teachers Local 78: Founded May 9, 1919. The local organized like many with high hopes and full support from the local labor council. So much support that the Ogden Trade and Labor Assembly unanimously voted in as first vice president Mrs. Hvizdalek from Local 78. But with pressure from the school board, the new superintendent and anti-labor forces the teachers decided to vote to disband by November 1920.
Local 163 Ogden High School Federation of Teachers: Organized in March 1920 and disbanded by that fall.
Tooele County Federation of Teachers Local 270: Organized in 1933. They tried to work on issues surrounding tenure and pension. There is no real correspondence from them but they lasted a good 5 years.
Jordan Chapter of Federation of Teachers Local 348: Organized in October 1934 but like some locals in the early history of the AFT, they vanished.
Tintic District Teachers Union Local 285: Organized in March 1934 and had almost 100%, with only 2 hold outs. The archive has very little correspondence from the local. The only thing kept in the files were the monthly per caps. The last correspondence was telling the national AFT that they were disbanding, mostly because the UEA at the time was too good to pass up not being a member. They offered small loans, insurance, etc. and paying into two organizations was a bit much for the low waged teachers.
Provo Federation of Teachers Local 351: Chartered in October 1934 and disbanded in July 1935. There is no correspondence from the local about their activities.
Salt Lake City Federation of Teachers Local 352: Was founded in October 1934 and disbanded April 1940. During their tenure, the very small local of about 10 fought for a tenure law in the state of Utah but mostly the local tried to increase membership. There seemed to have been a logistical issue with numbers for Salt Lake City. The original local started in 1934 and disbanded within a year, then was brought back in November 1937 and given number 526, but filed as 352. So Salt Lake had two numbers in the 1930s.
Park City: In October 1934 the teachers of Park City sent a charter application to the AFT but that is the last we heard from them.
Sevier Federation of Teachers Local 363: Was founded in December 1934 with a membership of 30 teachers. But there is no historical record of what happened to them and they themselves disappeared.
Granite Federation of Teachers Local 378: Lasted for less than three months.
Salt Lake City Adult Education Local 565: Was a WPA local that represented all adult teachers and recreation teachers in the county lasted from April till December 1938. One possible reason for the local to fold was financial reasons, the last correspondence talked about getting back dues paid up and finding the teachers to pay their dues.
Salt Lake County Federation of Teachers Local 1187: Was founded in April 1953 and immediately the Utah Education Association pounced with anti-union rhetoric.
Salt Lake City Federation of Teachers: Was chartered on May 11, 1953, membership peaked at 60 members in the fall of 1953 and ended in 1957, with membership at 7 individuals.
Provo Federation of Teachers Local 1198: Was another local formed in 1953 and ended November 1955 with seven members.
Alpine federation of Teachers Local 1201: Was chartered in September 1953 and only lasted three months.
Carbon County Federation of Teachers: Chartered November 1953 and could only put in four months.

AFT Utah: Forming a State Federation

In the 1930s AFT locals met as a group before the UEA convention. The local press called it the Utah Federation of Teachers in which the Utah locals knew they could not form a state federation without 5 locals, they thought it best not to correct the press and let it stand to show the UEA a sign of strength. Finally, in 1953 five locals sent in a charter application to be a state federation and it was in November 1953 with Jack Pressitt as its first president and Mrs. Wilmith J. Rees as the first executive secretary. National AFT organizers worked in Utah in the 1980’s and 1990’s and from their efforts we have the locals that exist in Utah today. The Utah State Federation, AFT Utah #8042, was re-established on November 1, 1990 with other locals being chartered around the same period.

Education in Utah: A Broader Perspective

The history of teacher organizations is intertwined with the broader history of education in Utah. Formal schooling for their children. is not synonymous with actually having education and schools. commitment to expressions of rhetoric. are rooted in religious ideals are frequently modified by inescapable realities. others were hostile to book learning. to support schools. during the week. offerings and the quality of their teaching. texts and supported in part by tuition from patrons and local taxes. theory if not in practice. words of John C. were still basically Mormon oriented schools supported by local taxes. 1890. by Congregational, Presbyterian and Methodist mission boards. professionalization of teaching. private denominational school, St. Mark's, in 1867. also maintained St. Mary's Academy (1875-1926) and St. (1926-1970), Judge Memorial High School (established in 1921) and St. High School in Ogden (established in 1929). decade of the twentieth century. percent. to the state for a nominal fee. between Mormons and non-Mormons. very closely national educational issues. led to demands for more efficiency in the management of tax-money. was praised nationally. financial sacrifice more equitably among the state's taxpayers. involvement in Utah schools. outside of Utah from breaking the strike. incentives such as career ladders. meet the individual needs of the students. unique. of tax revenues in Utah than in any other state. for quality education and resources available. its resources than many other states. age with a high school diploma. as compared with the national average of 15.9. the electorate defeated tax limitation proposals by a wide margin. personnel, facilities, and, most importantly, financial support.

Historical Context and Influences

The development of education in Utah has been shaped by various factors, including religious influences, demographics, and economic conditions. Early schools were often Mormon-oriented and supported by local taxes. Private denominational schools, such as St. Mark's, also played a role in providing education.

Challenges and Achievements

Utah has faced challenges in adequately funding its schools, as it allocates a smaller percentage of tax revenues to education compared to other states. However, the state has also achieved notable successes, such as a high percentage of adults with high school diplomas.

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