Art teacher Dan Wever said he ran for chapter leader at Sunset Park HS in Brooklyn in 2021 knowing that at some point the union chapter would have to organize to demand the removal of the school’s longtime principal, Victoria Antonini.

The problems mounted. Antonini diminished the role of the Center for Family Life, the effective community-based organization that helped start the school. She didn’t permit recognition for sports teams’ successes or honor roll students. “Her excuse,” Wever said, “was that some students could feel left out.”

Staff grew demoralized, he said, as safety issues went unaddressed, the school’s daily attendance was 10% below the citywide average, and students with Individualized Education Programs routinely did not receive their mandated services.

In the summer of 2022, Wever made UFT buttons with the school name and asked members to wear a button to show their support for a no-confidence vote in Antonini.

During the 2022–23 school year, the number of members wearing buttons grew each day. “The momentum took away fear among the staff,” Wever said.

The final straw — and Wever’s signal to call the vote — came in March 2023, when Antonini announced at a staff meeting that the school had been out of compliance for years on special education staffing and disruptive adjustments would have to be made — but she had no answers on how this would be done, Wever said.

In the secret ballot later that month, 97% of 113 UFT members voted no confidence in Antonini.

Wever called the day “powerful.”

“It felt like the chapter accomplished something huge,” special education teacher Colin Marshall said.

Wever and his UFT district representative, Jason Goldberg, brought the vote results to Superintendent Janice Ross and City Councilwoman Alexa Aviles. Sunset Park HS members spoke about the no-confidence vote at a meeting of the local Community Education Council.

The day before Labor Day, out of the blue, Wever received a text from Antonini informing him that she would be taking a leave. An interim principal was installed, and the Center for Family Life has been allowed back at the school.

“The mood now that there’s a new principal is hopeful,” school social worker Brian Oestreich said. Staff, he said, “are energized to collaborate in ways we were unable to under our old leadership.”

Goldberg praised the chapter members — and especially Wever — for their resolve. “I’ve never had a chapter leader like Dan,” Goldberg said. “He’s one of a kind.”