Mulgrew blasts the city's "shenanigans" in budget testimony

In testimony on the mayor's preliminary budget before the City Council, UFT President Michael Mulgrew asked Council members to intervene to stop City Hall from using increased state aid as an excuse to reduce its own investment in public schools. Despite an ever-growing city budget surplus, he said, "We are still debating a budget that shortchanges our students and seeks to undermine the new class-size limits designed to rectify years of inequity." Mulgrew rebuked the city for its false claims of scarcity and impending financial doom. He noted that the city's estimate for the cost of the influx of new immigrant families plummeted by more than $5 billion in just seven months and that the city continues to seriously underestimate overall city revenue and overestimate city expenses in its budget. "New York City has the funding it needs to properly support public education — City Hall has simply chosen not to do so," he said. 

Mulgrew said it's time to revamp the city budget process, which allows the mayor to set the terms of the debate. He called on the Council to work with the UFT to enact reforms to the budget process that will enhance transparency, accountability and consensus. The union offered a set of practical, short-term recommendations to retire the budget-scare tactics employed by every mayor.

Read the testimony

Time to consult on professional activities for next year

Principals and chapter leaders in high schools, middle schools and elementary schools with eight periods a day must meet by April 15 to consult on the professional activity menu for teachers at their school for the 2024–25 school year. Under the 2023 contract, the menu of available options greatly expanded. Review the full menu with your principal and discuss the professional activities that teachers would like to see on the menu at your school. The principal must also consult with you on the number of positions for each menu choice and the qualifications and duties for each activity. All of this information must be included on the final menu (see this sample professional activity menu). Once the principal has created your school's menu, which must include a minimum of six activities from the contractual menu only, teachers will select three activities in order of preference. If the teacher is not assigned one of their choices, they should have the opportunity to select another three choices. See the Professional Activity Contractual Guide for Middle and High Schools and the Professional Activity Contractual Guide for Elementary Schools with eight periods. If you have any questions, reach out to your district representative.

Members on leave must notify the DOE of their plans by May 15

UFT-represented employees who are currently on leave must notify the DOE about their plans for the next school year by Wednesday, May 15. If a member fails to notify the DOE about their plans or fails to apply for a leave extension by that date, the DOE will view that member as having voluntarily resigned from their position. The UFT and the DOE are emailing these members to remind them of this deadline. Members with questions should call the UFT at 212-331-6311 .

National Paraprofessional Appreciation Day is April 3

This past Saturday, nearly 700 paraprofessionals and their supporters gathered for our annual Paraprofessionals Awards Festival and Luncheon at the New York Hilton. The event was a wonderful celebration of the important work these school related professionals do to support students. View the event photo gallery . Next Wednesday, April 3, is National Paraprofessional Appreciation Day — another opportunity to thank paraprofessionals at your school for everything they do for the school community.