New York TeacherJune 17, 2025

Volume LXVI, Number 7

After schools received funding to hire 3,700 new teachers, the DOE is on track to meet the state law’s requirement that 60% of classrooms citywide be under the new mandated class-size limits by the 2025-26 school year.

Cover Story

Schools enact class size plans

With the class size reduction funding that their schools received this spring, more UFT members will have optimal teaching conditions next school year and are confident that students will benefit from the additional time and attention they receive.

The city Department of Education notified about 750 public schools on April 9 that their funding applications were successful. The DOE says the additional state funds earmarked for class size reduction will pay for a total of 3,700 new teachers to reduce class sizes in the 2025-26 school year. The funds will be ongoing from year to year, barring a citywide financial crisis. …

Latest News

News Stories

UFT sits out mayoral primary

At the June 11 Delegate Assembly, UFT President Michael Mulgrew indicated that the union was leaning toward not making an endorsement in the Democratic primary for mayor. “There is no clear consensus among the membership,” he said. “It’s one of the most polarizing races we have ever seen inside the union.” 

News Stories

Demanding what they’re owed

Fed up with the DOE’s delay in reimbursing them for travel expenses, itinerant related service providers went public with their frustrations in April. Occupational and physical therapists also called out the DOE for long delays in tuition reimbursement for coursework they need to maintain their licenses.

Feature Stories

Counting the benefits

Math teacher Maria Dela Cruz at Newtown HS in Elmhurst, Queens, loved math contests as a child and hosted similar contests at her school for about a decade until COVID-19 struck. So she was ready this fall when her principal presented her with the opportunity to host a national math competition for Newtown’s students.

“Students sometimes need a venue or activity where they can show other students ‘I like doing this because it interests me,’” said Dela Cruz, who has been teaching math for 34 years, 22 at Newtown. “And seeing other students’ interest in a subject motivates them.” …

A ‘hidden’ jewel

Wadleigh Secondary School for the Performing and Visual Arts, described by its staff as a “hidden gem” in Harlem, has overcome two threats of closure. Today the revitalized school, which won a Team High School Award at the union’s Academic High School Awards on April 25, boasts a 100% graduation rate.  

‘Crafting’ her lessons

UFT Excellence in Education Award-winning teacher Stephanie Edwards of Brooklyn's International HS at Prospect Heights taps into her English language learning students' creativity to effectively teach them social studies and economic concepts.

Member Spotlight

Chapter Leader Shoutout

Kudos to Debbie Strack Cregan, PS 69, Queens

Thanks to the efforts of Chapter Leader Debbie Strack Cregan, the members of PS 69 in Jackson Heights found their voice and their collective power in their successful organizing effort to push back against a new and overbearing principal.

What I Do

Pasha Durr, home instruction teacher

Pasha Durr teaches Brooklyn high school students in their homes when they’re unable to physically attend school.

Around the UFT

Spring Education Conference

UFT President Michael Mulgrew didn’t mince words about the current threats to public schools and public school communities at the union's 2025 Spring Education Conference. He asked the more than 1,600 members who packed the New York Hilton Midtown to steel themselves for the battles to come, promising victory in solidarity.

Albert Shanker College Scholarship Awards

The UFT gave out $5,000 college scholarships to 200 high school seniors and nine graduate students at the 56th annual ceremony on June 3 at UFT headquarters.

Awards & Honors

Middle School Awards Night

Twenty-five middle school educators were honored at the UFT’s inaugural Middle School Awards Night on May 15. Some 200 members and guests attended as members' roles in students' lives at at key stage of development were highlighted and celebrated.

Awards & Honors

Academic High School Awards

About 250 UFT members from the city's academic high schools gathered on April 25 at union headquarters to honor outstanding educators and schools and to celebrate 10 years since the UFT's first Academic High Schools awards.

Early Childhood Conference

More than 300 educators in grades 3-K though 2 enjoyed a day of inspiration, camaraderie and professional development with an emphasis on how important a strong start is to a child’s educational achievement.

Your Rights and Benefits

Know Your Benefits

Member-only discounts

UFT members can save money by taking advantage of these discounts on merchandise and services that the union has negotiated on their behalf. 

Know Your Rights

The grievance process

If you feel your contractual rights have been violated, it’s time to speak up and seek a fair resolution. If informal measures don’t fix your issue, your chapter leader can assist you in preparing and filing a grievance, which is the formal way that members object to the Department of Education’s violation of the DOE-UFT contract or of established DOE policy and practice. 

Your Well-being

Get some fresh air

Something as simple as being outside can improve your frame of mind. Seeing the world around you — clouds, birds, children and adults — can help you refocus away from yourself, which is helpful for anyone struggling with depression and anxiety. Brief interactions with storekeepers and neighbors can also lift your mood. 

You Should Know

Grants, Awards & Freebies

Grants, Awards & Freebies

See our list of current opportunities for educators to receive funds and recognition for their hard work and dedication.

For Your Information

Switching schools

The Department of Education’s Open Market Transfer System gives UFT members the opportunity to transfer to a different school.

For Your Information

Extra day added to the winter break

Thanks to the UFT’s advocacy, the Department of Education is extending next school year’s winter break to include Friday, Jan. 2, 2026.  All students and staff will now report back on Monday, Jan. 5.

Q&A on the Issues

The ins and outs of state certification

Summer is a good time to check on any outstanding items needed for state certification or to review state education policies if you are being appointed under a different license this upcoming school year. Read answers to common questions below and be sure to log in to your New York State TEACH account to check your progress.

Secure Your Future

Retirement fund loans

One of the many benefits provided by the Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS) and the Board of Education Retirement System (BERS) is the ability to borrow against your Qualified Pension Plan and your Tax-Deferred Annuity (TDA) savings.

Secure Your Future

Green and blue arrows and circles showing a circular process

BERS to TRS transfers

UFT members who are currently enrolled in the Board of Education Retirement System have the option to transfer into the Teachers’ Retirement System, under a new state law signed by the governor.

Opinions

President's Perspective

A health care reset

We can all agree that our health benefits need a reset. For the past two years, the city and the MLC have been involved in a negotiated acquisition process for a new in-service and pre-Medicare retiree health care plan, which we hope will be the reset we need. The new plan that emerges from this process must provide better benefits and reduce costs for city taxpayers.  

VPerspective

Union voice ensures quality patient care

UFT Vice President Anne Goldman writes that in today’s health care settings, the willingness of nurses to speak up for their patients is the essential factor in safeguarding quality care. Nurses who belong to the Federation of Nurses/UFT can advocate for patients and a work environment that ensures optimal patient outcomes because they belong to a strong union. 

Editorials

One big, ugly bill

President Donald Trump’s so-called “One Big, Beautiful Bill,” which the U.S. House of Representatives passed on May 22 and is now under consideration in the Senate, would spell disaster for public education and critical social services including Medicaid and food stamps, all in service of a whopping $4.5 trillion in tax cuts.

Editorials

Let our students go

Two New York City high school students have been detained by federal immigration enforcement agents following what should have been routine immigration hearings. Although these arrests did not take place on school property, they have nonetheless been deeply felt in our school communities.  

Editorial Cartoons

Who will pay for the 'big beautiful bill'?

At the billionaires club, there's just the small matter of the big beautiful bill.

Comments

Teaching Resources

Learning Curve

Stop shelving school libraries

Approximately 30% of New York City schools don’t have libraries, and there are only 250 certified school librarians throughout a system with more than 1,800 schools. School libraries are needed more than ever.

Linking to Learning

Helping students identify real vs. fake

If someone possesses “information literacy,” they can find, evaluate and effectively use sources of information. With the advent of social media and AI, it’s become easier and easier to spread mis- and disinformation. How can we help our students differentiate between reliable sources of information and those with ulterior motives?

Teacher to Teacher

Three helpful strategies for teaching math

I have tackled the challenge of implementing Illustrative Mathematics, the Department of Education’s new mandated algebra curriculum, by embracing the pedagogical practices in “Building Thinking Classrooms," developed by Peter Liljedahl.

Building Your Career

Inside My Classroom

Dry-erase tables make collaboration easy

Math teacher makes innovative use of dry-erase tables inside her Brooklyn classroom.

New Teacher Articles

Roll with the UFT all summer long!

From professional development to help finding child care and support for mental health challenges, the UFT has educators covered all summer long.

New Teacher Profiles

Creating a safe Nest for students

Third-year special education teacher Britni Maddocks takes a strengths-based approach to assessing her students’ needs in her NEST classroom at PS 59 on Staten Island to help build students’ confidence and assure them that the classroom is a safe, supportive space.

Retired Teachers News

RTC Service

Don’t retire from the union. Become an RTC member

Membership in the Retired Teachers Chapter confers many benefits — from supplemental health insurance to member-only discounts — but retirees must sign up to remain UFT members and enjoy the perks.

RTC membership keeps retirees active and engaged in the union, RTC Chapter Leader Bennett Fischer said. “Whether it’s by meeting new friends and learning new things in a Si Beagle course, or by supporting our labor partners through the RTC Labor Solidarity Project, or by phone-banking and canvassing for UFT-endorsed candidates, RTC members keep our union vibrant and alive,” he…

RTC Chapter Leader Column

Meeting the challenges

Our country now feels like a dangerous and scary place. And yet, I don’t despair. I’m encouraged to see UFT members taking to the streets and uniting in protest with our fellow union members on a grand scale.

RTC Second Act

Stitching together the pieces in retirement

Louise Naples, a retired school secretary, has become an avid quilter in retirement. Her quilts were recently on display at The Center, a communal gathering space at the Maple Grove Cemetery in Kew Gardens, Queens.