Dear parents, grandparents, guardians and education activists,

We had an amazing 10th anniversary UFT Brooklyn parent conference this past weekend. Hundreds of parents, grandparents, guardians and advocates spent the day supporting each other and learning about how to empower public school families. There were wonderful student performances, a teen summit and many more surprises. Thank you especially to the parents on the conference planning committee who worked tirelessly for eight months to make this event a success!

See more photos from the conference »

We hope you have a great Thanksgiving.

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

Sincerely,

Betty Zohar
UFT Parent-Community Liaison
bzohar@uft.org

Upcoming events

• Thursday, Nov. 21: Come to a free "School Colors" discussion from 6 to 8 p.m. at Marcus Garvey Elementary School, 432 Monroe St. "School Colors" is a narrative podcast from Brooklyn Deep about how race, class and power shape American cities and schools. Learn more and register »

• Friday, Nov. 22: There will be a mental health first aid training from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Kurt Hahn Expeditionary School at 5800 Tilden Ave. This free course will help you identify signs of anxiety, depression and other mental illnesses and teach you how to respond. Register now »

• Monday, Nov. 25: Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams invites you to a parent-teacher association (PTA) leadership training from 6 to 8 p.m. at Brooklyn Borough Hall, 209 Joralemon St. Learn about your PTA's rights and obligations and learn how experienced parent leaders organize at their schools. RSVP by emailing jlowell@brooklynbp.nyc.gov. You can also see the flier »

• Thursday, Dec. 12: Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams invites school community members to an information session about how to apply for capital funding from 4 to 6 p.m. at Brooklyn Borough Hall, 209 Joralemon St. Learn more and register »

• Saturday, April 4: The UFT will host our fifth annual Men in Education Symposium from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at UFT headquarters, 52 Broadway in Manhattan. There will be workshops about mentoring, fatherhood and empowerment. For a flier and to register, see the event listing »

Take action

• Census grants and organizing: Help get out the word about the 2020 Census! The Census will "determine how hundreds of billions of federal dollars are distributed for basic services, including for hospitals, schools, roads, affordable housing, nutrition programs and more," according to City Council Speaker Corey Johnson. That's why there's a massive effort underway to make every New Yorker count.
  
  The New York City Complete Count Fund is allocating $19 million in grants for community efforts to educate and mobilize around the 2020 Census. Find out more »
  
  The city is also looking for volunteer Census ambassadors to do community outreach and improve the city's response rate. Find out more »

• Tell the DOE not to share your contact information: The UFT worked with parent activists to win parents the right to protect their children's privacy. Now, if you don't want charter schools to have your mailing address, name, child's name and child's grade level, you can withhold this information. In December, schools will send home a paper opt-out form you can fill out and return to your child's school. You also can opt out by filling out an online form. You'll need your child's student ID number. If you don't have your child's student ID number, you can call your child's school to get it. Fill out the online opt-out form »

• Help the effort to have a full-time counselor in every elementary school: Most public elementary schools in the city have a school counselor only part-time or don't have a counselor at all. If you want to be part of a UFT campaign to get a full-time school counselor in every elementary school to assist with bullying, anxiety, concerns about school work or other issues, please fill out the UFT’s short survey and sign up for the campaign. Take the survey »

• Get a free anti-bullying workshop from the UFT: The UFT BRAVE Campaign offers many anti-bullying resources to parents, students and educators. Those resources include free anti-bullying workshops for PTAs, students or staff. Request a BRAVE workshop now »

• Student MetroCard time extension survey: Student MetroCards are only valid for use between 5:30 a.m. and 8:30 p.m. State AssemblymanHarvey Epstein's Youth Council is partnering with the Campaign for Student Transportation Justice in an effort to extend student MetroCard time limits. Please help the campaign by filling out an online survey »

Opportunities

• Apply for scholarship money from the UFT: The UFT invites students to apply for the Armando Blasse Scholarship, spearheaded by the UFT African Heritage Committee. High school students are eligible to earn a $1,000 college scholarship. Elementary and middle school students can win funding for their schools. Applications must include a letter of recommendation, an essay and, for high school students, a report card. The deadline is Friday, Jan. 10. Download the application »

• Apply for a job with the U.S. Census Bureau: The U.S. Census Bureau is looking for employees to assist with the 2020 Census count, including Census takers making $25 per hour. These are temporary jobs with flexible hours. Learn more and apply »

• College help for undocumented students: The New York State Dream Act allows undocumented and immigrant students to apply for state-funded financial aid and in-state tuition at SUNY and CUNY schools. To learn about eligibility and how to apply, see the flier in English and Spanish »

• Summer law internship for high school students: The Thurgood Marshall Summer Law Internship Program is accepting applications from public high school students until Friday, Jan. 3, for its paid summer law internships. Learn more and apply »