More than 200 participants at the New York City Association of Foreign Language Teachers/UFT’s 22nd annual conference left UFT headquarters in Manhattan “with a repertoire of materials that will keep them busy for the next few months of teaching,” said teacher Nunzia Manginelli of Esperanza Preparatory Academy in Manhattan, the group’s vice president and the conference chairperson.

The UFT’s first LGBTQ Youth Empowerment Dinner drew more than 300 people to union headquarters and raised nearly $21,000 for the Daniel Dromm Scholarship Fund, which awards scholarships to graduating seniors from New York City public schools to honor their LGBTQ activism.

“There’s something so rewarding and magical about starting with nothing and making something amazing,” said teacher Mary Agramonte of Origins HS in Brooklyn, a presenter at the 38th annual conference of the New York City Art Teachers Association/UFT.

Ten years, 50 conferences! Every fall since 2010, public school parents and community leaders in each borough have flocked to five Saturday conferences, courtesy of the UFT. This year, the borough-specific events had an especially festive atmosphere as they marked their 10th anniversary.

“The same way parents ask questions about class size, I want every patient to ask questions about the staffing ratio in hospitals,” UFT President Michael Mulgrew said as he welcomed nurses to the Westin Grand Central in Manhattan on Nov. 22 for the 40th annual Professional Issues Conference of the Federation of Nurses/UFT.

“I’m just here to say thank you,” Queens District Attorney-elect Melinda Katz told the Delegate Assembly on Nov. 20. “It was obvious the work you did.” 

“It feels good to be appreciated,” said Elise Daniel, a school psychologist at PS 197 in Queens.

Nearly 500 students from city public high schools attended the  fourth annual Future in Focus career fair on Oct. 31 at UFT headquarters in Manhattan, where they learned the benefits of unionized careers.

Dr. Larry Norton of Memorial Sloan Kettering comes to UFT headquarters in Manhattan every year to share the latest information in the medical treatment of breast cancer as part of the UFT Welfare Fund’s Medical Learning Series, a series of seminars open to all members.

The UFT's Middle Schools Division, in partnership with the city Department of Education, hosted a Thanksgiving Luncheon for 200 students who live in transitional housing on Nov. 23 at UFT headquarters in Manhattan.