This Week’s Focus
Mulgrew calls for more city funding for school programs that directly aid students
UFT President Michael Mulgrew made the case for more funding for school programs that directly support teaching and learning in budget testimony on March 20 to the City Council Education Committee. At the same time, he asked Council members to make sure state funds are not derailed or swallowed up by the city’s education bureaucracy. “Everything we advocate for goes to schools, students and teachers,” he said. The UFT is asking the City Council to push the de Blasio administration to baseline funds for Teacher’s Choice in the city budget this year at the same level as last year. Teacher’s Choice should not be a special allocation by the City Council, he said, because teachers depend on those funds to buy school supplies to enhance learning. The union is also calling for additional funding for the UFT’s United Community Schools, the Positive Learning Collaborative, the union’s anti-bullying program BRAVE and Dial-A-Teacher. Mulgrew praised Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza but lambasted the “Land of Tweed” — the bureaucracy at the city Department of Education — where a “self-serving culture” drags its feet and fails to put students first. “We do not feel there is urgency within that agency to get things done for our schools,” Mulgrew told the committee. “Help us move that bureaucracy.” Read Mulgrew’s full testimony on the UFT website.
Listen to the latest UFT podcast on changing school culture
At a Bronx elementary school, suspensions and disciplinary incidents are down while student happiness, student achievement and parental engagement are up. How? By creating a more positive school culture. Hear more on the UFT’s latest “On the Record with Michael Mulgrew” podcast as the UFT president talks with the educators and the principal at PS 42 in the Bronx about the changes they made by bringing in resources and the joint UFT-DOE program known as the Positive Learning Collaborative. You can also listen to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Play or your favorite podcast app.
Fill out the DOE’s school survey
Each year, parents, staff and students in grades 6-12 are asked to take the NYC School Survey. The DOE’s school survey seeks to paint a realistic picture of every school’s tone and environment. School leaders are supposed to use feedback from the survey to make improvements to their schools and programs. Let your voices be heard! I need all teachers, school counselors and school support staff in our school to fill out the school survey and be honest in your answers. The survey is completely anonymous.
UFT ELECTIONS:
Ballots in the UFT election for officer positions, executive board and an array of delegate positions will be mailed to members’ homes the week of March 25. Completed ballots must be returned to the American Arbitration Association no later than 5 p.m. on Tuesday, April 16. Election materials, including caucus statements and voting instructions, can be found in the UFT Elections 2019 section of the UFT website.
You Should Know
Evaluation
Student roster maintenance verification for MOSL: Teachers should have received an email from the Department of Education asking them to verify their class rosters before Friday, May 3. Roster verification is important because it determines which students are linked to them for the Measures of Student Learning (MOSL) for their final rating as part of the Advance evaluation system. For help with the process, see the DOE guidance on roster verification. If, upon review, the teacher finds an inaccuracy, the change request should be submitted to the school’s STARS administrator. Please note that all teachers, regardless of Advance eligibility, should complete roster maintenance verification in STARS.
Health and Safety
Check out our new school safety Q&A: School safety is a prerequisite for teaching and learning. The mission of the UFT’s Safety and Health Department is to protect all UFT members from safety threats that may confront them and their students in schools. The union provides information about safety regulations and rules, advocates on behalf of members to address unsafe conditions and deal with unresponsive administrators, and works with the Department of Education and the New York Police Department to enforce school safety standards. You can get answers to some of the most common school safety questions that school-based UFT members ask in this new Q&A on the Issues on the UFT website.
Professional Learning Opportunities
Register early for the May 18 UFT’s Spring Education Conference: Online registration has opened for the UFT’s Spring Education Conference, our signature annual conference that celebrates, supports and inspires our work as public school educators. This year’s event is on Saturday, May 18, from 7 a.m. to 3 pm., at the New York Hilton Midtown, 1335 6th Ave., Manhattan. It includes breakfast, a morning town hall, a large exhibit fair featuring CTE programs, workshops and a gala luncheon. Participants can attend a two-hour workshop of their choice on topics including new technology, advancing literacy skills, teaching the new math learning standards and the Student Debt Relief Program. You can read detailed descriptions of the six workshops. The registration fee is $50 per person. For teachers who take a workshop for two CTLE hours, there is an additional $30 charge, for a total of $80. For paraprofessionals and other UFT members who want to take a workshop for two CTLE hours, there is an additional $15 charge, for a total of $65. School Leadership Team members may use funds allocated to the team to pay for registration fees by using the Spring Conference Purchase Order. For more information about paying by purchase order, see the UFT Purchase Order Memo.
Salary and Personnel
More student debt relief program information sessions added: Due to the overwhelming response to the Student Debt Relief Program, the UFT has scheduled additional information sessions throughout the spring. At the information sessions, members learn about the federal public service loan forgiveness and federal Title 1 forgiveness programs. After attending a session, members may then make an appointment to speak by phone with a loan specialist to discuss individual needs and create an action plan. To register for a session, use the online form. Register soon, because these sessions fill up fast.
This Week in Education and Labor News
Students march for Green New Deal: Students in San Diego skipped class on March 15 to join protesters worldwide to demand action on climate change, reports NBC San Diego. Their goal was to urge local government officials to support the Green New Deal, a Democrat-led plan to create jobs in renewable energy to combat climate change through 100 percent clean, zero-emission energy sources. Youth rallies were planned around the world including in the United States, Hong Kong, India, Finland and New Zealand.
Michigan struggles to meet student-retention law requirements: Nearly a quarter of Michigan educators say their schools are not ready to support students held back after next school year, according to the Detroit News. Under Michigan’s controversial third-grade reading law, adopted in 2016, students do not move to the fourth grade if they read a grade level behind on the state’s English Language Arts assessment. Over half of the state’s third graders failed the test in 2018. More than 30 percent of Michigan teachers say their schools have insufficient reading material to meet the needs of students repeating the grade.
Public colleges expand online programs for adult learners: Arizona State University is planning to roll out a for-profit “learning-services company” to forge ties with employers who want to offer workers access to its online programs, reports Education Dive. The decision follows other universities, such as Perdue and the University of Massachusetts, which have begun online programs targeting adults after projecting enrollment declines in their traditional higher education programs as well as reduced state funding and rising costs. The State University of New York is considering online expansion. Public institutions’ brands may give them a recruitment advantage over for-profit colleges.
Upcoming LearnUFT workshops
LearnUFT, the UFT’s professional development institute, offers an array of affordable workshops and professional learning opportunities for UFT members. The cost to register, unless otherwise indicated, is $30 for teachers seeking CTLE hours and $15 without CTLE hours. The cost for all paraprofessionals is $15. Participants will earn two CTLE hours for each workshop, unless otherwise specified.
These workshops will take place at UFT borough offices, unless otherwise indicated:
See LearnUFT courses in the Bronx »
See LearnUFT courses in Brooklyn »
See LearnUFT courses in Manhattan »
See LearnUFT courses in Queens »
See Learn UFT courses on Staten Island »
For a full listing of upcoming LearnUFT workshops, see the LearnUFT page on the UFT website.
If you have any individual questions or concerns, please speak with me. If you have any school wide concerns, please speak with any member of the consultation committee. If no one speaks up and lets me know what is happening, then issues can not be addressed and resolved with Ms. Gardner. We all need to work together.
The District 11 UFT Scholarship Dinner Dance
The District 11 UFT Scholarship Dinner Dance is Wednesday, May 8th at 6:30 pm, at Villa Barone Manor. The deadline for purchasing tickets to this wonderful event is Monday, 4/15. If you are interested in attending, please let me know. The cost of tickets is $85 for cocktail hour, dinner, dancing, and open bar. Raffles will be sold to raise money for the scholarship fund that benefits our students of District 11. I have started making our raffle basket. This year’s theme for Baychester Academy’s basket is wine and chocolates. If you would like to donate money towards the basket, please let me know. Any amount will be appreciated and make our basket that much nicer.
Enjoy this beautiful Sunday!
Fraternally Yours,
Janina
Baychester Academy UFT 