| Mission
Statement Albert Shanker was a thinker, a teacher, and an organizer. He believed in democracy and took it seriously —intellectually, morally, and practically. The son of immigrants and a proud product of the streets and public schools of New York City, he believed in an inclusive America whose diverse citizenry is drawn together by common values, not driven apart by cultural differences. And he fought for his vision and values from the podiums to the picket lines, fearlessly challenging entrenched institutions and intellectual fashions.Most of all, Al Shanker devoted his professional life to two institutions that he understood to be indispensable to democracy —public education and trade unionism. He saw public education as important not only because it imparts the skills people need to be productive workers but because it instills the knowledge, the values, and the experiences people need to be responsible citizens. Similarly, he understood that trade unions are essential to a democratic society—not only because they enable workers to share in the fruits of their labor, but also because they give workers voice and dignity, and empower them to improve the quality of the products they make and the services they provide.As much as any public figure, Al Shanker was an activist intellectual. A doer as well as a thinker, he spent most of his professional life developing ideas that work and finding ways to turn his ideas into reality. Thus, his legacy is the remarkable growth, continuing strength, and increasing influence of the many domestic and international organizations he helped to build, most especially the American Federation of Teachers. His influence extends to countless individuals here in the United States and throughout the world whose thinking he helped to shape and whose commitments he helped to inspire. To honor Al Shanker’s legacy, advance his ideals, and continue his work, this institute will:
To pursue these purposes, the Albert Shanker Institute will conduct a broad program of activities that address and act upon major educational, social, political, and economic questions of our times. In so doing, the institute’s agenda will consistently:
Albert Shanker Institute 555 New Jersey Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20001 Phone: 202/879-4401 Fax: 202/879-4403 Top of Page | Home | Site Index | Search This Site | |