Students with Disabilities

Dear Educators, 

Teaching students with disabilities is a responsibility that touches every teacher’s career. In fact, nationally, nearly 95% of students with disabilities aged six to 21 spend part of their school day in general education classrooms. This brings both exciting opportunities and unique challenges. While teachers are committed to helping all students succeed, they may sometimes feel unprepared to meet special needs. 

How the UFT supports you 

The UFT's special education department, led by Vice President MaryJo Ginese, is here to provide the support and resources you need. On this website, you'll find valuable information tailored to every special education teacher and service provider. By sharing knowledge, we can better teach and advocate for our students with disabilities. 

Our work in two key areas

1. Creating the right conditions for effective teaching: 

• We provide information on special education laws, regulations, and policies through the annual DOE-UFT schoolwide compliance training, school meetings, town halls, and this website. 
• We help resolve compliance issues in schools via school-based special education committees and the special education complaint process. 
• We offer tools like the Initial Planning Conference Guide to support your work. 

2. Enhancing skills and knowledge: 

• We collaborate with the UFT Teacher Center, Learn UFT, and the Department of Education to deliver professional development and continuing education (CTLE) hours. 
• We provide resources on evidence-based practices through workshops and our website. 
• We advocate for systemic improvements, such as strengthening the Special Education Intervention Teacher’s role and ensuring pre-K students with disabilities and the staff who serve them have the resources they need. 

Need Help or Have Questions? 

• Contact your school’s chapter leader with any concerns about special education in your building. 
• Additional support is available from your UFT district representative and special education liaisons in the UFT borough offices. 
• Parents of students with disabilities can use this website to learn about the special education process and access the UFT Special Education Complaint process for assistance with school-related issues. 

Contact Me: For more information, reach out to Vice President MaryJo Ginese at mginese [at] uft [dot] org (mginese[at]uft[dot]org) or call 212-598-7706.