New York TeacherOctober 4, 2018
Cover Stories
A Bronx visionary
Alhassan Susso, who teaches global history at the International Community HS in Mott Haven, has been named the 2019 New York State Teacher of the Year. He draws on his own personal history of overcoming challenges to inspire and motivate his immigrant students.
UFT to offer more pension clinics
Because your pension is one of the most important benefits you have as a UFT member, the union’s Pension Department is expanding its outreach to help today’s in-service members better understand their pensions and plan for retirement.
Latest News
UFT pick Tish James wins primary
UFT-supported candidate Letitia “Tish” James won the Democratic nomination for state attorney general on Sept. 13, setting her up to make history as the first black woman to hold statewide office in New York should she win the general election in November.
Stepping up for labor
More than 1,200 exuberant UFT members turned out in force to show union strength and pride at the city’s Labor Day Parade.
McDonald’s workers strike against sexual harassment
As the #MeToo movement gathers momentum, workers at McDonald’s deployed a potent tool from the labor movement to combat sexual harassment: a strike.
57 Detroit schools’ water tainted with lead, copper
The drinking water at 57 Detroit schools has tested positive for high levels of lead and copper. This means more than half of the 106 schools in Michigan’s largest school district have water unsafe for consumption. T
UFT has new treasurer, VP for special education
Two longtime UFT legends stepped down as officers of the union and their replacements were voted in by the Executive Board on Sept. 24. Mel Aaronson, who served as treasurer of the union since 1998, will be replaced by pension trustee Debra Penny, while Mary Jo Ginese, until recently the leader of the Supervisors of Nurses and Therapists Chapter, will take over for Carmen Alvarez, who has been the vice president for special education since 1990.
Member Spotlight
What I do: Gloria Weiss, Consortium for Worker Education teacher
Gloria Weiss has worked for 20 years at the Consortium for Worker Education (CWE), the workforce development arm of the New York City Central Labor Council.
Kudos to Sandra Amede, MS 61, Brooklyn
Equilibrium has returned to MS 61, a well-respected Crown Heights school in with a strong gifted-and-talented program, after its relentless chapter leader took steps to get a bullying principal removed.
Around the UFT
Around the UFT
West Indian Day Parade 2018
Nearly 100 UFT members and parents accompanied a UFT float Sept. 3 at the 51st West Indian Day Parade, an annual celebration of Caribbean culture in Crown Heights, Brooklyn.
You Should Know
Grants, Awards & Freebies
Grants, Awards & Freebies
See our list of current opportunities for educators to receive funds and recognition for their hard work and dedication.
You Should Know
Dial-A-Teacher phone lines open
Tell your students: If they need homework help, the UFT’s award-winning Dial-A-Teacher service is open for business. The help line, beginning its 38th year, assists students and parents struggling with homework assignments from 4 to 7 p.m. every Monday to Thursday when school is in session.
You Should Know
City pays incentive for waiving city health benefits
Are you covered by a New York City health benefits plan but also covered by the non-city health insurance plan of your parent, spouse or domestic partner, or through other employment?
You Should Know
New ID procedures at UFT offices
A new procedure has been established for UFT members who visit UFT headquarters in Manhattan or one of the union’s borough offices.
Secure Your Future
6 investment choices lead to peace of mind
Members of the Teachers’ Retirement System or the Board of Education Retirement System have a voluntary, supplemental savings plan, the Tax-Deferred Annuity, that can help ensure their retirement security.
Opinions
VPerspective
In praise of the District 15 diversity plan
How can we ensure that the middle school experience benefits and uplifts every New York City public school student, regardless of race and income level? The District 15 Diversity Plan, which the city approved on Sept. 20, is an important step toward that goal.
President's Perspective
The limits of testing
New York State has begun to undo the legacy of lost instruction and parental anger brought about by the testing craze championed by the school “reform” movement. But it still has a ways to go to create a genuine culture of support for the schools and teachers that our children need.
Editorials
Editorials
Fleeing fossil fuels
Reducing the use of fossil fuels that lead to carbon pollution is one of the most important strategies for rescuing the planet.
Editorial Cartoons
Teaching Resources
Learning Curve
Report card alternatives
Teachers know that their students are more than just a set of grades. But the DOE’s standard single-page report card doesn’t give them the opportunity to demonstrate it. That’s why some elementary schools have turned to alternative progress reports.
Teacher to Teacher
Honing nonverbal communication skills
In my pre-K classroom, I strive to strengthen my students’ nonverbal communication skills because understanding facial expressions and gestures allows for communication to be fluid, natural and meaningful. For English language learners, these skills are just as important as listening, speaking, reading and writing English when it comes to acquiring English language skills.
Building Your Career
Building Your Career
My students are the real champs
My students are the real champs! C- Cooperative, H- Honest, A- Accountable, M- Motivated, P- Polite!
New Teacher Diaries
Teaching is a calling— and I was called to teach
I couldn’t sleep the night before school. As a third-year teacher and a career changer, I sometimes still can’t believe I’m a special education teacher at the same public high school my daughter once attended.
Retired Teachers News
Legacy, monuments, grief
Legacy is a concept that resonates with retirees. We often reflect on our personal lives, our careers and, for many of us, the fate of our union. Today, across the country, we are struggling with an evaluation of our past in the context of where we are and where we go from here.
Monuments, grief and mourning have been in the forefront in the public forum lately as a result of the death of Sen. John McCain and the ongoing efforts in some states to remove or modify confederate statuary.
What’s it all about? We who are of a certain age are more familiar than most when it comes to losing friends, family and colleagues, and it engenders some questions:
Who should be remembered and how?
What should be remembered and why?
Winston Churchill once said that he would be remembered since he intended to write the history…