In presenting the Cogen Award to UFT Treasurer Debra Penny, UFT President Michael Mulgrew spoke of her compassion. “It’s the humanity she brings to her job at all times,” he said. “She’s just a person who never stops caring.”

UFT members celebrated past, present and future union leaders on Teacher Union Day by mourning founder George Altomare on the anniversary of the union’s first strike and honoring the new school-based Contract Action Teams and others who carry on his legacy.

Some 160 students living in temporary housing attended the UFT Middle Schools Division’s Thanksgiving Luncheon on Nov. 18 at UFT headquarters. At the end of the event, the children left with brand-new winter coats and accessories donated by UFT members or staff.


More than four hundred UFT members attended the annual Psychologists Appreciation Day professional development on Nov. 10 at union headquarters. “The sense of unity and community that the union brings is really valuable," said one school psychologist.


The three UFT parent conferences offered in the fall shared an organizing aim: to make sure parents are aware of the state law to lower class size and the importance of getting the Department of Education to comply with it.


As they learned about the latest treatment protocols and other workplace issues at their annual union conference, Federation of Nurses/UFT members vowed they would continue fighting to make the state enforce the landmark 2022 safe staffing law and hold hospitals accountable.