New York TeacherSeptember 5, 2024
Some 1,500 new teachers proudly sign up to become members of the UFT on the opening day of the DOE’s New Teacher Week. The UFT rolled out the welcome wagon, informing new educators of all the benefits and support union membership confers.
Cover Story
New teachers join UFT’s ranks
About 1,500 new teachers became proud new members of the UFT at the opening day of the Department of Education's annual New Teacher Week.
"This one-on-one connection is where it starts," said UFT Vice President Karen Alford, the head of the union's new member initiative. "We tell our members who we are, how we can support them and how they can be part of something bigger than themselves."
New teachers began lining up at 7 a.m. on Aug. 27 to enter either Fiorello H. LaGuardia HS of Music & Art and Performing Arts in Manhattan or the Martin Luther King Jr. Educational Campus across the…
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Feature Stories
High school teachers win Fulbright award
Two high school teachers will be bringing a global perspective to their classrooms this school year since getting to travel and teach abroad after winning a Fulbright award.
Lisa-Erika James, who teaches theater at Talent Unlimited HS on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, and Marc Martorana, an ELA and social studies teacher at Pathways to Graduation HS in Harlem, were the only two New York City public school teachers to receive the Fulbright Teachers for Global Classrooms Program award for the 2023–2024 school year.
The Fulbright recipients got to travel abroad for two weeks as part of an international educational exchange program, with the opportunity to study, teach, conduct research and exchange ideas with their educator counterparts overseas. James and Martorana were part of a cohort of 65 educators from across the United States chosen to receive the honor, which was awarded based on academic merit and leadership…
High school teachers win Fulbright award
A real class act
Member Spotlight
Kudos to Leah Lin, PS 85, Queens
Leah Lin, chapter leader at PS 85 in Queens, keeps her fellow educators informed and engaged about union and contract matters with the short, fun and easy-to-follow Morning Rush videos she posts regularly on her Instagram account.
Christina Setkoski, physical therapist
Around the UFT
Staten Island Back-to-School BBQ 2024
Harlem Week 2024
Your Rights and Benefits
Know Your Benefits
Extended child care leave
Know Your Rights
Parent engagement
Your Well-being
Set goals for success
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.
Q&A on the Issues
The rules regarding teacher evaluations
Secure Your Future
UFT pension services
Opinions
President's Perspective
Inviting our members to a seat at the table
Oftentimes the leaders of this union are the faces in the media, but we know the real work happens when our members drive the change. This school year, we will again be joining together to form citywide union committees to tackle some of the most significant issues on the horizon.
VPerspective
Share your truths to gain students’ trust
UFT Vice President for Academic High Schools Janella Hinds writes that we can guide our students to more fully examine who they are and where their passions lie but doing so requires us to bring our truest selves to the classroom.
Editorials
Pre-K, 3-K still a fight
Editorials
Harris for president
Editorial Cartoons
Teaching Resources
Learning Curve
Teaching civics in every classroom
New York City’s Civics for All initiative, started in 2018, provides project-based and culturally responsive civics programs that prepare students to participate in democracy and become positive forces for change.
Linking to Learning
Build vocabulary with tech tools
Teacher to Teacher
Helping students become analytical readers
Building Your Career
Inside My Classroom
Request a selfie
Kindergarten teacher Samantha Shekia created a “request a selfie” station to give students the chance to request a photo of themselves and the work of which they are proud. Then she sends the photo to their parents.
New Teacher Articles
Union membership has its privileges
New Teacher Profiles
Creating a ladder of learning
New special education teacher Emily Hang Duong, who teaches math and science at IS 234 in Brooklyn, motivates her students by never letting them forget that they have every opportunity to grow.
Retired Teachers News
Welcome to the new RTC
Though I’ve been retired for several years, the school calendar still shapes the rhythm and pace of my life. Jan. 1? In my mind, that’s the end of the winter break. The day after Labor Day? That’s the real start of the new year. No matter what I’m up to, no matter where I am, I feel the school calendar in my bones, from the arrival of the students on Day 1 to the last day of summer vacation.
Speaking of summer vacation, the new RTC officers and I spent much of ours meeting the UFT personnel who run the programs and services that UFT retirees depend on. Everyone has been wonderfully collaborative, and we are grateful for their help.
Our chapter’s voice is more powerful than it’s ever been, and the RTC is poised to be more active and engaged than ever before. Longtime retirees’ wisdom and experience combined with newer members’ energy and ideas is a…
Save money with UFT member discounts
