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Tom Brown, the assistant treasurer of the UFT, was reelected in May to serve his fourth three-year term as a trustee on the board of the Teachers’ Retirement System. Brown was appointed chairman of the board in January after Debra Penny, the UFT treasurer, stepped down from the post.

Following passage of a state budget that allows 14 new charter schools to open in New York City, the UFT and other public education advocates are demanding more transparency and accountability from the charter sector.

The state budget adopted on May 2 includes a substantial increase in state aid for New York City schools. City schools will receive an additional $525 million, a 4.2$ increase over last year.

Former Brooklyn elementary school teacher Andy Pallotta, who led the New York State United Teachers for six years, stepped down as union president at the annual Representative Assembly in Albany in April, while the convention honored UFT members with five of its 10 NYSUT awards of excellence.

Priscilla Castro was elected on May 25 as chapter chair of the Paraprofessionals Chapter for the term ending June 30, 2024. Castro had been serving as interim chapter chair since Shelvy Young-Abrams retired in October 2022.

In a major reset, New York City is overhauling how reading is taught in early childhood and elementary school settings in public schools throughout the city. Over the next two years, elementary schools will be required to adopt one of three evidence-based literacy programs that are grounded in phonics.