“We make a difference” was the theme at the UFT’s Paraprofessionals Festival and Awards Luncheon on March 5, celebrating paraprofessionals for rising to the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Last held in person in 2019, the luncheon was held at UFT headquarters and streamed online.

A high school where students do maintenance work on airplanes. A student-created clothing brand that sells out of a student-run, brick-and-mortar store. These were just a few of the innovative Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs represented by the honorees at the UFT’s CTE Awards Ceremony on March 15 at UFT headquarters in Manhattan.

It was a night of food, festivity and recognition as members of the UFT African Heritage Committee gathered in Queens for the group’s 19th annual Awards Dinner Dance on Feb. 4, honoring the UFT’s Sterling Roberson with the Trailblazer Award, Queens Assembly Member Alicia Hyndman with the Frederick Douglass Award for Civil and Human Rights, and special education teacher Diamond Skinner with the Mary McLeod Bethune Award for Teacher Excellence.

The courage and hard work of members during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic was recognized on Nov. 7 at the UFT's annual Teacher Union Day celebration, held in Shanker Hall at UFT headquarters in Manhattan and online via Zoom.

Cogen Award winner Ellie Engler made a habit of keeping UFT members safe, from her work with the union’s Safety and Health Department, where she created the Health and Cancer Helpline and the Member Assistance Program, to her early warning about the danger of COVID-19.

"You have all gone above and beyond the call of duty," UFT President Michael Mulgrew said at the UFT's annual Teacher Union Day on Nov. 7 that honored the courage and hard work of members during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Teacher Union Day is back — and UFT members are invited to join the celebration remotely! The annual event takes place each year on the first Sunday of November in recognition of the first UFT strike on Nov. 7, 1960. A hybrid version — with honorees and their family attending in person in Shanker Hall and other union members joining via Zoom — will take place on Nov. 7.

New York State Attorney General Lititia James was honored at the UFT's Spring Education Conference on May 15 with the John Dewey Award for Excellence in Education, the highest honor the UFT bestows.

The New York City Art Teachers Association/UFT (NYCATA) challenge asked art teachers and their students — from elementary to high school — to create visual images of their feelings and concerns this school year. 


The UFT Speech Improvement Chapter's annual Better Speech and Hearing Month Celebration, held virtually on May 20, honored 34 members for creative projects as well as students and retiree Lisa Arian.