Category Archive
A new dayNov 06, 2008
We will be better able to face the challenges to come secure in the knowledge that President Obama and Vice President Biden are well equipped to lead us to a better tomorrow.
The leader we need nowOct 23, 2008
Education has taken a back seat in the presidential campaign, and that is unfortunate. However, it is clear that it is an important issue for Barack Obama.
Teaching is a team sportSep 25, 2008
Perhaps Sen. Obama put it best when he told the AFT convention in Chicago this summer, “Reform must be done with teachers, not to teachers.”
Letter to the membersSep 12, 2008
We will continue to broadcast the message that teachers in classrooms are the linchpin to giving our kids the world-class education that is their right.
Letter to the membersSep 12, 2008
We will continue to broadcast the message that teachers in classrooms are the linchpin to giving our kids the world-class education that is their right.
A message from UFT President Randi WeingartenAug 07, 2008
The state's fiscal situation has deteriorated, and our governor has been sounding the alarm. Plus, a special message for new colleagues.
What's good for the gooseJun 05, 2008
Come the end of the school year, it seems almost everybody gets evaluated except those who run the school system.
2008: A year of milestonesMay 22, 2008
The need for permanent, independent advocacy — to strengthen the parent-teacher connection and to ensure an ongoing voice for the community in education — was the point of my Spring Conference speech, which is excerpted here.
Supporting school safetyApr 24, 2008
Tenure: Mine, yours and theirs
Apr 10, 2008
I made the decision to run because the threats nationally are more challenging even than here.
360-degree accountability - March 27, 2008Mar 27, 2008
The public school system has always lacked an accurate, fair and transparent accountability system that takes into account all the aspects of good education. We have a solution.
A simple message — but loud: March 13, 2008Mar 13, 2008
Advocacy groups and elected officials have rallied around our Keep the Promises campaign.
Seeds of knowledgeFeb 28, 2008
We will continue to stand up for a well-rounded education, which is why we have begun airing a new television ad, “Seeds of Knowledge” to illustrate the importance of educating the whole child.
Keeping our promises to kidsFeb 14, 2008
Facing the new challenges
Jan 31, 2008
In her semi-annual letter to members, UFT President Randi Weingarten says the challenges educators now face are coming from "both Tweed and from our worrisome economy."
Why we’re for HillaryJan 17, 2008
One need spend only a few seconds with her to see that her vintage line about making America better so that “everybody has the opportunity to live up to their God-given potential” is really her moral imperative.
City needs to show respect for educatorsDec 06, 2007
What do teachers need most of all? Respect and the support to do their jobs.
One step forward, two steps backNov 15, 2007
Accountability is important, but shouldn’t we be building upon and fixing the New York State and federal NCLB accountability systems rather than inventing a totally new one?
Welcome to the UFTNov 01, 2007
It is thrilling to see the UFT promoting in such a big way our core mission of organizing working people to collectively fight for a better life, not only for themselves but for the children of needy families they serve.
Turning negative to positiveOct 18, 2007
We have shut the door on individual merit pay and we have paved the way for others to see working together as a team and respecting teacher voice as the keys to successful schooling.
Fixing NCLB — the right wayOct 04, 2007
The proposal to mandate individual test-score-based performance pay has gained broad support from both sides of the aisle, despite a full-court press against it from the AFT and the NEA.
Mutual admiration societySep 20, 2007
Perhaps the old lawyer’s admonition, “Don’t ask a question whose answer you don’t already know,” slipped the mind of former U.S. Justice Department Attorney Joel Klein when he decided to survey parents, teachers and students about their views on our public schools.
Opportunities and challengesSep 06, 2007
Principals who don't yet understand will have to learn pretty quickly that they need you as partners if they want their schools to work.
New school year brings...Opportunities and ChallengesSep 06, 2007
Principals who don’t yet understand will have to learn pretty quickly that they need you as partners if they want their schools to work.
A message from UFT President Randi WeingartenAug 09, 2007
You are at the gateway of the most rewarding experience of your lives: becoming a teacher in a New York City public school.
A message from UFT President RandiAug 09, 2007
Your new job will not be easy, but don’t lose faith. As you navigate the road ahead, remember that your union is here to support you throughout your career as an educator in New York City.
Right makes mightJun 07, 2007
Some years you are ready to pull your hair out. Then, once in awhile, while nothing is perfect, there’s a year like this one.
A marriage of missionsMay 24, 2007
Whatever else I accomplish in my life, I think I will never be more proud than the day that Gov. Spitzer announced his executive order to give 60,000 home child-care providers in New York State the right to unionize.
Build it and they will comeMay 10, 2007
If we are to close the achievement gap, we must make sure that the children who are furthest behind have the teachers they need to help them catch up.
A voice for parents and teachersApr 26, 2007
When people are not paying attention, sometimes the only way to be heard is to raise your voice. It may not be considered good pedagogy, but it is an integral part of collective action, and the truth is, it often works.
The Dayenu budgetApr 12, 2007
The basic foundation for a more equitable school funding system that meets the mandate of CFE has been laid.
Assessing teacher qualityMar 29, 2007
One thing I have learned after years of advocacy work is that it’s very hard to change people’s belief systems.
The power struggleMar 15, 2007
Guest columnist Diane Ravitch says it was a departure for her when she attended a protest rally on Feb. 28 in New York City, called “Put the Public Back into Public Education.”
Is there any there there?Feb 15, 2007
The plans revealed last month by Gov. Spitzer and Chancellor Klein reflect starkly different values and approaches.
Here we go againFeb 01, 2007
As I listened to the mayor’s announcement of yet another reorganization in his State of the City address, I started outlining the letter I hope many of you have received at home by now. We’ve reprinted it here.
Back in the political arenaDec 07, 2006
The latest — and hopefully last — court decision in the 13-year-old Campaign for Fiscal Equity case is one of those classic “Is the glass half empty or half full?” tests. The answer depends on your outlook.
Two windows, two winsNov 16, 2006
This was surely a week worth savoring.
Ask teachers what they needOct 27, 2006
The folks on the front line – teachers – are rarely asked what they need to strengthen our schools. A nonpartisan advocacy organization called Common Good recently did just that and published a report based on diaries kept by eight teachers recounting their workday experiences. The study makes a compelling case that time spent on student assessments and testing, mandated teaching procedures, student discipline, school management and paperwork is overtaking the school day and preventing educators from actually teaching.
Sweat the small stuffOct 05, 2006
As you probably have noticed — or at least I hope you have — the UFT has launched a new online reporting system to make it easier for members to report threats to the safety and security of students and staff.
A voice for usSep 21, 2006
UFT President Randi Weingbarten is taking a page out of Al Shanker’s book. Starting this month, she's writing a monthly column in The New York Times “Week in Review” section.
Focusing on what mattersSep 07, 2006
Teachers always remember what I call that “Ah-ha!” moment — the instant when you get through to a student and open a mind or change a life.
A message to new teachers from Randi WeingartenAug 17, 2006
Welcome! You are at the gateway of the most rewarding experience of your lives: becoming a teacher in a New York City public school.
Bridging differencesJun 08, 2006
I thought this dialogue between Diane Ravitch and Deborah Meier, who are renowned education thinkers from different camps, would make a fitting final column.
Common sense about class sizeMay 25, 2006
The UFT President used the occasion of this year’s Spring Conference to launch our new campaign to lower class sizes once and for all.
A matter of timeMay 11, 2006
In my conversations with members and visits to schools I am noting lately a growing awareness of the need to build our union’s capacity for what I call collective activism to meet the challenges ahead.
Carpe DiemApr 27, 2006
The spring break and a couple of plane rides helped UFT President Randi Weingarten catch up on reading some news publications that have been piling up. Here’s what she garnered from the marathon news catch-up.
Taylor Law not tailored to workersApr 13, 2006
At a recent City Council hearing, I outlined some of the problems with the Taylor Law, the state’s 39-year-old collective-bargaining law, and two commonsense proposals to fix it.
Parents and teachers: The beginning of a beautiful friendshipMar 30, 2006
Tim Johnson, the chairman of the Chancellor’s Parent Advisory Council, is guest columnist for UFT President Randi Weingarten in this issue.
Blowing the whistle for kidsMar 16, 2006
What happens to those who shine the spotlight on just plain bad practices — educational practices that aren’t good for children, for example?
20/20 with blinders onMar 02, 2006
“20/20’s” broadside against public education, “Stupid in America,” which aired last month, should have come as no surprise.
Whose contract is it anyway?Feb 16, 2006
If the chancellor, when it suits him, is going to call the UFT/DOE contract OUR contract, then we should fight to make it ours.
Making budget choicesFeb 02, 2006
Here are some excepts from UFT President Randi Weingarten's speech at the union's annual breakfast with state legislators last month.
