Repurposed time and school counselor hours

• School counselors work 6 ½ hours, five days a week exclusive of lunch. Our workday is predicated on the length of the school's lunch period.
• Additionally, school counselors who work in single-session schools schools are not involved with professional development on Mondays and parent engagement on Tuesdays. These are for teachers. We work our contractual time five days a week.
• Please review the current guidance on repurposed time and hours for school counselors. You can make sure that you are working your contractual time based on your school’s lunch period. If you work in a single-session school, you can review the times that school counselors are required to work for the four annual parent-teacher conferences.

New over-the-phone interpretation (OPI) local phone number for schools

• All school-based staff seeking over-the-phone Interpretation (OPI) services to communicate with students and families may now dial the new local phone number: 929-552-7103.
• You should update your speed dials and desk aids to reflect the new local number. The 1-800 number is still active and available for use through the DOE’s contracted vendor, Linguistica International.
• As a reminder, this service is for internal use only and should not be shared with parents or anyone outside your school’s staff.

UFT Website

• I regularly update our chapter's web page with information from the UFT and the DOE. Please periodically check the website to answer any questions you may have. It has pertinent information for all school counselors.

I hope this information helps you. If you have any questions, please email me at RThompson@uft.org.