Organize members for May 24 contract rally in your borough

We have been working without a contract for eight months now. It’s time for the city to give us the contract we deserve. As negotiations heat up, we need to take our fight for a fair contract up a notch and come together in boroughwide rallies. After school on Wednesday, May 24, we will hold five simultaneous rallies:

• Brooklyn Borough Hall, 209 Joralemon St.
• Queens Borough Hall, 120-55 Queens Blvd.
• Staten Island Boardwalk, Father Capodanno Boulevard, exact location TBD
• Manhattan Borough President’s office, 163 W. 125th St.
• Virginia Park (across from the Parkchester train station in the Bronx)

Members will start gathering at 3 p.m. in Queens and the Bronx and at 3:30 p.m. in the other three boroughs. Encourage your members and others from your school community to come out so we show up strong! Organize a sign-making activity at your school to prepare and build momentum. It’s not too late to register for our mobilization meeting for chapter leaders and Contract Action Team members next Tuesday, May 9, at 4 p.m. to discuss strategies to mobilize members and make sure they attend.

State budget includes school aid increase but more charters

Gov. Kathy Hochul and the state Legislature passed a final state budget this week that includes another substantial increase in state aid for city schools. City schools will receive an additional $525 million, a 4.2% increase over last year. The budget also maintains funding for Teacher Centers statewide and includes a $450,000 grant for the UFT’s United Community Schools. State lawmakers rejected the governor’s proposal to lift the charter school cap but the final budget revives licenses for 14 defunct charters in New York City, despite nearly 40,000 empty charter school seats in the five boroughs. According to the budget bill, the schools that receive these “zombie” charters cannot be placed in a community school district, such as Harlem’s District 5, where more than 55% of students are already enrolled in charter schools. The final budget also includes a $20 million fund to help pay rent for the new charters in an effort by state lawmakers and the governor to reduce or eliminate new co-locations with city public schools. The UFT redoubled its call for state legislation to hold the charter sector more accountable. "Now it’s time for the governor to listen to New York parents who want accountability and transparency from the charter sector and an end to loopholes that benefit corporate charters at the expense of our public schools," said UFT President Michael Mulgrew.

Mayor seeks to cut city education budget again

Even as the state increases its support for public schools, the Adams administration wants to further cut its funding for public education. The mayor, on April 26, released an executive budget for the coming fiscal year that includes a $652 million reduction in city education aid – roughly a 4.5% cut. Adams pledged there would be “no service reductions, layoffs or cuts” to school budgets next school year. Half of the DOE’s total cut comes from the Adams administration’s decision to pause the planned expansion of free preschool for 3-year-olds. “At a time when the state is investing more in public education and city schools, the city is cutting back,” said UFT President Michael Mulgrew. “City Hall went on record saying the money was not coming from the classroom. Given the cuts schools faced this year, parents and educators are skeptical, to say the least. We are working with the City Council to protect our school communities.” The City Council and the Adams administration must pass a city budget by July 1.

Hip-hop icon Kurtis Blow to appear at the Spring Education Conference

The UFT Spring Education Conference has always blended professional learning with inspiration and entertainment. This year, to mark the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, Kurtis Blow, a founding artist of this musical genre, will make a guest appearance at our conference. Our students and their talents will also be on display. Voices of 130, the student chorus from PS 130 in lower Manhattan, will be performing at the gala luncheon, and in the exhibit hall, CTE high school students will show off their expertise in the culinary arts, graphics, dentistry, cosmetology and more. We’ll gather at the New York Hilton Midtown on Saturday, May 20, from 7:30 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. Participants can earn two CTLE hours by attending two of the four timely and relevant workshops. There will also be a chance to win raffle prizes. The registration fee is $50. There is an additional cost of $30 per CTLE hour for teachers and $15 per CTLE hour for paraprofessionals and other UFT members who attend workshops for credit. Organize a group of members from your school to attend this year's premier conference that celebrates, supports and inspires our work as public school educators.

Register now

Show your appreciation for teachers and nurses

Teacher Appreciation Week begins on Monday, May 8, and National School Nurse Day is Wednesday, May 10. It's a chance to acknowledge these hard-working members of your school community. If you are organizing an activity next week to show appreciation (or if your school organized something on May 2, which was observed as Teacher Appreciation Day in some schools), please send your best photo (large-size resolution) with caption information, including your school, neighborhood and borough, to uftphotos [at] gmail [dot] com (subject: ) (uftphotos[at]gmail[dot]com) so we can share it on the UFT's social media platforms. Use the hashtag #ThankATeacher when posting Teacher Appreciation Week photos on your own social media accounts. Tag the UFT on Instagram (@uftny) or Twitter (@uft) on these posts.

Second stipend for chapter leaders will come in June

In late June, you will be receiving your end-of-year chapter leader stipend in recognition of all the hard work you have done to support your members this school year. Unlike your base stipend, which was calculated based on the number of members in your chapter, the amount of this second stipend will be calculated based on points that are earned for all of the tasks you perform as a chapter leader throughout the school year. We want to give you credit for the work you do to strengthen our union. Did you submit your monthly consultation summaries in the Chapter Leader Hub? Have you enrolled nonmembers in the union? Are your chapter’s members contributing to COPE? See this comprehensive list of the many ways you can earn stipend points while helping your chapter. Points will be tallied on May 26. If you were elected chapter leader after Sept. 15, 2022, your stipend may be prorated.