Dear parents, grandparents and education activists,

We had a wonderful Bronx parent summit on Nov. 12. More than 400 Bronx parents, education activists and community members gathered to network and attend informative workshops. Thank you to everyone who made the conference such a success. See more photos from the summit »

I also want to wish you and your family a happy and healthy holiday season.

Check out the upcoming events and news you can use below.

Sincerely,

Nicholas Cruz
UFT Parent-Community Liaison

Upcoming events

• Sunday, Dec. 11: The Museum of the City of New York will hold a free seminar day for educators on health and fitness from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. This will be at the museum at 1220 5th Ave. in Manhattan. Register online now »

• Tuesday, Dec. 13: Chancellor Carmen Fariña invites parents and students to a town hall event for District 7 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at PS 5, 564 Jackson Ave. in the Bronx. Interpretation services are available. Don't miss this chance to bring up your issues and concerns. See the flier in English » and in Spanish »

• Saturday, Dec. 17: Come to a cops and kids basketball game from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the South Bronx Academy for Applied Media at 778 Forest Ave. These friendly games will be held every first and third Saturday of the month from now until May. See the flier »

• Friday, Jan. 27 and Saturday, Jan. 28: Sportsnet New York, The Mets and other sponsors invite families to the annual SNY invitational high school basketball tournament on Jan. 27 at 6 p.m. and Jan. 28 at 2 p.m. at the City College of New York Nat Holman Gymnasium in Harlem. Contact me at ncruz@uft.org for ticket and travel information. See the flier »

Political action

• School-choice activist is Trump’s choice for U.S. education secretary: President-elect Donald Trump on Nov. 23 chose school-choice activist, philanthropist and Republican mega-donor Betsy DeVos to lead the U.S. Education Department. The choice is a sign that Trump plans to pursue his campaign pledge to enact sweeping school choice, including spending $20 billion on block grants to expand charter and private school options for low-income children — almost as much as the country now invests in schools serving poor kids and special education programs combined. Add your name to this open letter »

News you can use

• Free library hotspot program for families without internet: If you don't have internet access at home and your child is a student, you're eligible to "check out" internet service from your local library. The hotspot you bring home will be free and available until July 5, 2017. For more information, download the flier in Spanish and English »

• The Bronx Children's Museum "Museum on the Go" bus takes kids on tours of Bronx waterways: The Bronx Children's Museum's big purple bus takes children and families on tours of the borough to explore flora and fauna native to the Bronx. See the flier »

• Bronx Health REACH is hiring a community health worker: The Institute for Family Health and Bronx Health REACH are hiring a full-time community health worker to assist with projects to make healthy fruits and vegetables available at more grocery stories and bodegas in low-income neighborhoods. Candidates must be fluent in English and Spanish with strong communication and organizational skills. See the job listing »