If you could invite the presidential candidates to spend a day with you at your workplace, what is the most important challenge you face every day that you would want them to see first hand?

"I would like the candidates to see all that I do, with a mere 20-minute lunch break and 40 minutes of planning time a day. Follow me home and you will see I do lesson plans, parent communication, paper grading, posting grades online, and much more in my "free" time. Why? Because I care about my job and my classroom of students."
—Jeanne Devincent, West Virginia Federation of Teachers

"I would like the candidates to see just how hard I work to keep control of the class and teach. I teach emotionally handicapped students who have a lot of behavioral challenges. I would like them to know that I plan until 4 or 5 p.m. and then do hours of prep at home every night."
—Mary Yonkers, Rensselaer Greene (N.Y.) BOCES

"I would like the candidates to see the time and energy that we put into our daily schedule, from the minute we arrive before school begins to the late hours when we leave. Our job is not an 8 to 4 job. Usually the planning does not end when we leave. There is still more work to be finished when we go home to our own families."
—Bernadine Woodruff, CY-Fair (Texas) Federation of Teachers

"I would like the candidates to see what public education is really like. There are highly skilled, well-educated and very dedicated people trying to teach too much curriculum to kids who are not developmentally ready to handle it. We do our best to help our kids feel safe and loved. We do it without enough money for materials and supplies, without enough parental support and without support staff (like teacher aides). We do it for such a low salary that we worry about paying our basic bills each month. We are constantly told we have to do more and accomplish more but we don't get extra funds, additional staff or additional time to reach these lofty goals. Yet, no matter how downtrodden we are, we show up the next day with a smile for each child and do it all over again!"
—Michele McCoy, Volusia (Fla.) Teachers Organization

""I would like the candidates to become a "road scholar" with me as I drive Oregon's highways from one college to another to teach a class for which I am paid one-third of what a full-time colleague earns. Like many of the contingent faculty accross America, my labor is not compensated or recognized."
—Teri Pastore, Portland (Ore.) Community College Federation

"I would like the candidates to see how much paperwork is required in classrooms. This time could (and should) be spent planning meaningful lessons and teaching my students. There is too much emphasis placed on scores and numbers, and we lose sight that it should be about the students."
—Leann Prunty, Caddo (La.) Federation of Teachers & Support Personnel

"I would like the candidates to see the petty harrassment teachers have to put up with on a daily basis. I have to sign in and sign out, have a 35-minute lunch, deal with bus duty, lunch duty, ask permission to leave the workplace and, in general, be treated as if one were not an adult. No one who has ever taught in public school has any idea of what really goes on."
—Rosemary Miranda, AFT Texas Retiree

"I would like to invite the candidates to watch me while I work. I want them to see that I am, indeed, "highly qualified," with 31 years of experience, a master's degree, a wealth of knowledge and a ton of love from what I do."
—Deborah Hutchin, East Baton Rouge (La.) Federation of Teachers

"I would like the candidates to see my students' anguish and hear their words as they tell about home situations that hinder their progress with homework, attendance and school in general. I would like them to attempt to comply with the mandatory paperworkthat is often an additional burden to an already packed work day andis more of an exercise in compliance than any help with instruction or behavior management.I love teaching and care deeply about the proper education of my students, yet I amsaddled with ridiculous constraints and activities of accountability that usurp time that is much needed elsewhere for the things that will REALLY help my students."
—Sydney Gilbey, Windham (Conn.) Federation of Teachers

"I am a teacher in Houston, Texas, with English as a second language students. Everything we do is focused on passing the TAKS test, and the pressure on students, teachers and administrators is crippling. If the candidates visited my school they would see dedicated and experienced teachers and a wonderful group of students desperate to pass a series of secret and life-determining tests."
—Susan Michael, Houston Federation of Teachers

"I would like the candidates to see frustrated teachers who know there are other ways to reach children but must stick to the activities outlined in the curriculum. Hopefully after visiting schools they will see that there is notone "fix-all" solution to the problems in education. Each school campus is unique."
—Nina Couch, Louisiana Professional Educators Group

"I would like the candidates to see how low-achieving students are robbed of their electives in order to be placed in two math and two English classes in an attempt to increase their standardized test scores. I would like them to talk to these students and learn why they drop out. What has happened to vocational education in this country?"
—Victor Malo-Juvera, United Teachers of Dade (Fla.)

"I would like the candidates to see that English Language Learners need more time in American schools before they have to participate (and count) in high-stakes state testing."
—Eva Skardal, Nashua (N.H.) Teachers Union

"I would like the candidates to see the effects of NCLB on education. Too many children are being left behind because of the law. There is no room to individualize instruction for the children. Teachers have to teach to the test in order to fulfill the law's requirements so that the school will not be sanctioned."
—Ellen Schneider, Chicago Teachers Union

"I would like the candidates to look at the number of schools and areas that police officers have to patrol without the resources required to make them a safe environment."
—Jess Trujillo, San Antonio (Texas) Alliance of Teachers & Support Personnel

"I would like the candidates to see where my students come from and the daily challenges children in large urban settings have to deal with."
—Jan Drewek, Detroit Federation of Teachers

"I would like the candidates to see how difficult it is to create a proper learning environment with 33 to 46 students in a single class and no consequences or accountability for student misbehavior."
—Jeffrey Price, Philadelphia Federation of Teachers

"I would like the candidates to see the deterioration readily evident everywhere one looks. School buildings are in a shoddy state [and] restrooms are seldom clean; that results in teachers who lack motivation and enthusiasm for the job they've been called to do."
—Jeanetter Genoway, Texas Federation of Teachers PEG

"I would like the candidates to see the condition of school buildings, including the extensive use of portable buildings. It is pitiful that children go to school in run-down, old, out-of-date and temporary structures. The message this sends to teachers and children is that our country does not value education enough to provide comfortable buildings."
—Karen Johns, Albuquerque Teachers Federation

"My school is under construction and we have no shade, playground or toys, limited water and bathroom faciliites and no cafeteria. We have no facility that can handle our growing population of students and yet we try to teach our kids under these circumstances."
—Angela Durham, Albuquerque Teacher Federation

"I would like the candidates to see how I need to wear an N95 respirator due to working in a sick building that is contaminated with mold."
—Valerie Madeska, United University Professions (N.Y.)

"I would like the candidates to see how little counseling and student services are valued by my school system. It would rather pay the three highly trained counselors to do paperwork and answer phones than hire full-time clerical help. The biggest losers are the children."
—Orlisa DePhillips, Tangipahoa (La.)Parish AFT

"I would like the candidates to see the crime in the area where I work. I never feel safe. I was robbed outside of my workplace. I'm afraid to walk my pre-school children to the library because someone was murdered in the park that we would have to walk past."
—Veronica Walker, Philadelphia Federation of Teachers

"I would like the candidates to see the challenges that teachers face with the increased number of students in every classroom. Behavioral issues increase and the one-to-one contact time with each student becomes impossible. In the end, no student's issues in education are fully addressed."
—Linnea Hackett, Minneapolis Federation of Teachers & Education Assistants

"I would like the candidates to see what it is like to begin the day teaching early morning classes on one campus and ending with evening classes on a third campus, using my car as an office/cafeteria. I hope the candidates will see that being a part-time instructor is not only hard on me, but it also impacts the time and attention I am able to give my students."
—Phil Jack, Green River (Wash.) United Faculty

"I work in a public school library media center and my challenge is to provide a multitude of materials at various reading levels. Thereare limited funds to provide students with all the materials they need."
—Judy Schram, Lamphere (Mich.)Federation of Teachers

"I would like the candidates to see the good things we do for students at Owens Community College, even with huge cuts in state funding for higher education. I think this speaks well for the dedication of our frontline staff and faculty, who are dedicated to students every day while still dealing with low pay and a college that is whittling away our healthcare."
—Michael Schmitz, Owens (Ohio) Support Staff Union

"As public employees, we are taken for granted, paid lower wages than private sector workers and often the scapegoat for what is wrong with government. Public employees need to be recognized as doing important jobs and valued with decent salaries."
—Charlene Lojewski, Public Employees Federation (N.Y.)

"I would like the candidates to see the challenge of meeting the individual needs of students when there are too many students in each class."
—Linda Tremml, United Federation of Teachers, New York City

"I would like the candidates to see how adjunct or part-time faculty are working at wages sub-standard to their positions and background due to decreased federal and state funding of higher education. We are being asked to subsidize college tuitions by being paid less; colleges are saving considerable money by employing large numbers of adjuncts and part-time faculty."
—Hank Pomerantz, Adjunct Faculty Federation (N.J.)

"I would like the candidates to see that my school has highly trained teachers, teaching quality programs that have a strong research base. Reading Recovery® and the Literacy Collaborative Model, for example, are proven programs. However, inadequate funding means that we are stretched too thin. We have the skills and knowledge to help our students, but not enough money to keep these programs going."
—Judith Lindquist, Thief River Falls (Minn.) Education Association

"Very few elected officials realize how pervasive healthcare issues are forpart-time or non-tenure track faculty. As a large majority of postsecondary faculty are now part-time, non-tenured faculty, we often see tired, run-down and mildly ill faculty coming to work every day because they have no sick leave or paid health insurance."
—Susanna de Falla, TVI Employees Federation (N.M.)

"I would like the candidates to see the lack of resources available to the mentally ill. Daily we discharge clients back to inappropriate residences,whether an unfit home, an insufficient group home or a "friend's house"—aka the street. The mentally ill in this country are still very much stigmatized and there are not enough resources to help these individuals."
—Rebecca Hopper, University of Medicine & Dentistry (RNs), New Jersey

"I would like the candidates to see how difficult it is to provide quality healthcare in an emergency setting. Too many people use the emergency room for routine healthcare because they have no insurance. No one is turned away from the emergency room, but it drains our resources and staff."
—Michelle Silvio, Health Professionals and Allied Employees (N.J.)

"I would like the candidates to see a busy reproductive health clinic. The clinic that I work in combines services (family planning, STD, and HIV testing and counseling). This clinic is often the only link to healthcare that many people have. Any decrease in funding to local health departments has the potential to hurt the healthcare to this sometimes fragile population."
—Penelope Goodenough, Md. Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals

"I would like the candidates to see the patients who cannot receive the proper care due to the constraints of their insurance. So much disease can be prevented today with the proper counseling on lifestyle, diet and nutrition, as well as alternative healthcare, but none of this is available to those with a limited income."
—Eileen Burke, HPAE Pascack Valley (N.J.)Hospital

"I would like the candidates to see the serious health and psychological problems students in the public schools have today. School nurses deal with far more complex issues now than ever before. Yet some districts do not have nurses in every building, others have one nurse with 1,500 students.
—Kathleen Unger, Bellmore Merrick (N.Y.) United Secondary Teachers

"I would like the candidates to see administrators who divide and conquer instead of fighting for the same things as us—the education and preparation of our country's future."
—Carmen Orozco, United Teachers of Los Angeles

"Every administrator in the building seems to have something that must be done immediately by teachers, and sometimes what they want done doesn't directly benefit the students."
—Sandy O'Neill, Timberlane (N.H.) Teachers Association

"I would like the candidates to see the daunting hurdles that management puts in front of well-meaning employees. Within the government lurk many talented and motivated public servants who are eager to do the work of the people, but are shackled by management."
—James Close, Public Employees Federation (N.Y.)

"I would like the candidates to see how important it is to have paraprofessionals in every classroom. Each child is unique and comes to us with varying degrees of need—be it learning disabilities, physical handicaps, medical issues (the most prevelant being autism) or behavorial issues. Without the help of the paraprofessional in the classroom, the teacher will have to lose vaulable teaching time to address these needs and you will be doing a disservice to every child."
—Leslie Talamini, Woonsocket (R.I.) Teachers Guild

"I would like the candidates to see the caring, collaboration and fellowship that occurs at the school where I work. It takes a team to run a school. Yes, we need teachers, but we also need lunchroom workers, janitors, school clerks, bus drivers and paraprofessionals."
—St. Tammany (La.) Federation of Teachers &School-Related Personnel

"I would like the candidates to visit our local residents who were recent victims of a flood and had their home completely destroyed. Presidential candidates need to visit disaster areas and residents need to know they care."
—Robert Greenwood Jr., Kansas Assn. of Public Employees

"I would like the candidates to see that we have an elevator that has not worked since Hurricane Katrina and our disabled students are still at home, unable to attend school because it has not been repaired. We are leaving an entire group of children out of our educational system because of their disabilities."
—Judy Demarest, United Teachers of New Orleans

"I would like the candidates to see how poverty and lack of decent jobs and wages are affecting the students whose parents are unable to provide a stable home situation for their children. The working poor should be rewarded for their initiative and efforts with a decent minimum wage and health insurance so they do not have to work more than one job to provide a decent life for their families."
—Suzanne Jordan, Kingston (N.Y.) Teachers Federation

"I would like the candidates to see my students' anguish and to hear their words as they tell about home situations that hinder their progress with homework, attendance and school in general. I love teaching and care deeply about the proper education of my students, yet am thwarted at every turn when trying to implement improvements that will work and saddled with ridiculous constraints and activities of accountability that usurp time needed elsewhere for the things that will really help my students."
—Sydney Gilbey, Windham (Conn.)Federation of Teachers

"I would like the candidates to see that the students deal with challengessuch as poverty, violence and lack of familial support in their communities. Often, the students come from single-parent homes in which the parent must work long hours and the children are alone when they come home from school."
—Lena Burrows, Pinellas (Fla.)Classroom Teachers Association

"I would like the candidates to see the many children who are returning "home" when school opens. Our school has become a shelter, offering more than academic instruction. We are the main source of love, safety, healthy meals and stability in many of our students' lives. The staff of urban American schools are miracle workers. I see it every day and I would love to share that experience with our political leaders."
—Catherine Deponty, MEA-MFT (Montana)

"I would like the candidates to see children who come to school hungry, unkempt, tired and glad to be anywhere but home. Trying to teach a child to read and write when he or she is struggling with daily survival skills at home is a real challenge."
—Lahoma Jones, Roseville (Mich.) Federation of Teachers

"I would like the candidates to see the number of students who are being raised by their grandmothers. There needs to be a national effort to assist the many grandmothers who are raising their grandchildren."
—Meryl Johnson, Cleveland Teachers Union

"I would like the candidates to witness how hard it is for single mothers to earn a degree when they have little to no support from family or the father of their child. One of my students carted her newborn to class because she didn't have a babysitter. And I would want them to follow the progress of one student who entered the university through a special admit program like the one I serve. Watch that student struggle and push herself to succeed in her classes; watch her teachers and tutors support her in her journey; and witness her pride and absolute joy on graduation day."
—Bonnie Amesquita, University Professionals of Illinois

"I would like the candidates to see how my students struggle financially. I teach college remedial English. I have students who are deeply in debt after only one quarter of college! They are sometimes helping to support their families at home, working part- and even full-time, while they are enrolled full time in college. Help them!"
—Cynthia Tuell, University of California Riverside

"I would like the candidates to see how valuable collective bargaining rights are to a productive and positive school district. I would like them to see the value of a union voice in making educational institutions stronger. Our union has an outstanding relationship of cooperation with the administration of the school district. We have done much together to make our district one of the premier districts of New York state."
—Paul Wolski, Herricks (N.Y.) Teachers Association

"I would like the candidates to see how hard it is to convince smart, thoughtful, educated young people to work in early care and education settings. The field, which is already struggling, will devolve further without incentives to invest in education and see early childhood as a viable career path. All future education rests on healthy early childhood experiences."
—Liisa Hale, Child Care Workforce Alliance, California