Although Christine Beck is a veteran 1st-grade teacher at PS 32, she’s brand new as a chapter leader and already making the union more of a presence at her Staten Island school.

“With the threat of Janus upon us,” she said, “I want the chapter to understand how important it is to be part of a union and to understand all the ways the union represents us and makes our lives and our jobs easier.”

Especially focused on engaging younger teachers and heightening their awareness of the protection and support the UFT provides, Beck invited two teachers who had never attended a UFT Lobby Day in Albany to attend this year in her place.

“I wanted them to get a sense of the political presence and power the union has in the state Legislature,” she said.

Keith Hahn, the school’s new physical education teacher, felt that power among the 1,100 UFT members who made the journey with him that day. “That experience really drove home the importance of unity and how critical it is for all of us to be in this together as we face some big decisions ahead,” he said.

With the help of the UFT’s Chapter Advocate Program, Beck has rebuilt the PS 32 chapter. She holds regular, well-publicized monthly chapter meetings, to which she often invites guest speakers. She sends an email to staff every Monday to update them and welcome them back for a new week, and she will call members back on Saturday if they have a pressing problem or question.

She credits her chapter’s new vitality and cohesion with “strengthening our voice at monthly consultation meetings” with the principal. It’s all part of her goal to make PS 32 “more a professional community than just a place to work.”

Beck appreciates the union’s chapter leader training weekends, the Chapter Advocate Program’s support team and the networking opportunities with other chapter leaders. These supports, she says, help her succeed as she shoulders her new responsibilities.

“I don’t know everything, but I know where to go for answers,” she said.