Union Leadership

President

Michael Mulgrew has served as the president of the United Federation of Teachers since August 2009. In that role, Mulgrew has strengthened the partnership between the union and the city's communities and led campaigns to increase education funding beat and beat back the former mayor’s efforts to privatize education, lay off teachers and strip educators of fundamental rights.

Secretary

Emil Pietromonaco is UFT secretary, working as the liaison to the field staff and the Department of Education. Emil previously served as District 31 representative and then Staten Island borough representative. Emil is co-chair of the union’s governance committee.

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Assistant Secretary

LeRoy Barr is UFT assistant secretary and also serves as co-staff director, overseeing the daily operation of the union’s extensive field organization and both the pedagogical and non-pedagogical staff at its central office. As staff director, LeRoy plays a pivotal role in ensuring that the union operates at the highest caliber.

Treasurer

Melvyn Aaronson is the UFT treasurer. He is considered one of the nation’s leading authorities on pension matters and has made a lifetime commitment to building a secure retirement not only for UFT members but also for public employees across the country.

Assistant Treasurer

Mona Romain is the UFT assistant treasurer and has served as an elected trustee on the board of the Teachers’ Retirement System of the City of New York since 1998. Mona shares, with her fellow board members, the fiduciary responsibilities of overseeing the policies, funding and investments of the retirement system.

VP for Elementary Schools

Karen Alford is vice president for elementary schools. Having distinguished herself with her strong union advocacy, Karen was selected as the UFT District 23 representative in 2005 and was elected to her current post three years later. Karen spearheads the union’s Community Learning Schools Initiative.

VP for Middle Schools

Richard Mantell is vice president for middle schools. From 2006 to 2013, Richard served as district representative for Brooklyn’s District 18. As a district rep, Rich proved masterful at mobilizing union members for political action. He also gave extraordinary support to chapter leaders.

VP for Academic High Schools

Janella Hinds is vice president for academic high schools. She also serves as secretary-treasurer of the New York City Central Labor Council. In her work at the UFT, Janella has championed equity for students and a more meaningful voice for educators.

VP for Career and Technical Education High Schools

Sterling Roberson is vice president for Career and Technical Education. After serving as a violence prevention facilitator and school safety specialist at the union, he became the UFT director of school safety. In his current post, Sterling has worked tirelessly to expand high-quality CTE learning opportunities for students.

VP for Education

Catalina R. Fortino is vice president for education and the director of the UFT Teacher Center, where her broad experience in professional development, curriculum, assessments and program development helps advance the teaching profession.

VP for Special Education

Carmen Alvarez is vice president for special education. Since her election to the post in 1990, she has been a key voice in the UFT’s efforts to improve education for children with disabilities. In 2013, Carmen spearheaded the creation of the Institute for Understanding Behavior.

VP for Non-DOE Members

Anne Goldman is the UFT's vice president for non-DOE members, a newly created officer position in the union. A registered professional nurse, Anne was an early leader in the movement to win collective-bargaining rights for nurses in New York City.