Dear parents, grandparents and education activists,

Education advocates and parent leaders from across the state are setting out on Sunday, Oct. 2 for a 150-mile walk from New York City to Albany to call attention to a glaring injustice: Albany’s failure to provide public schools with the funding they are owed. The nine-day walk will mark the 10th anniversary of the Campaign for Fiscal Equity case in which the state’s highest court ruled that New York State was underfunding its public schools.

There will be three events in Manhattan throughout the day. The first stop will be a 30-minute press conference at Tweed Courthouse at 52 Chambers St. at 9:30 a.m. Then, a group of us will march uptown to Riverside Church at 122nd St. and Riverside Ave in time for its annual cookout at 1:30 p.m. Finally, we'll head to Juan Pablo Duarte School, 185 Wadworth Ave., arriving at 3:30 p.m. If you'll be joining us for the march through the city or for any of these events, please email me at fstreich@uft.org. Download the flier » See the walk website »

You can also show your solidarity with the walk to Albany by organizing a march around your school on Oct. 6. Contact your principal, UFT chapter leader or parent-teacher association to get started. Contact me if you plan to organize a walk at your school, and I will help you in any way I can. You can also download a fact sheet about the Campaign for Fiscal Equity case and the money that NYC schools are owed in English » or in Spanish »

Unfortunately, registration for this year's UFT Manhattan parent conference is now closed. Thank you to those of you who registered — we had an overwhelming response. And to those of you who did not get the chance to register for the conference, remember we will continue to offer parent workshop throughout the school year. Keep an eye on these newsletters for details.

Speaking of the conference, the UFT Manhattan parent outreach committee will be meeting at UFT headquarters, 52 Broadway next Wednesday, Oct. 5 and Thursday, Oct. 6 at 6 p.m. to stuff conference bags. Please join us! It will be a fun chance to meet other parents, eat dinner and volunteer to help a great cause.

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

Sincerely,

Francine Streich
UFT Parent-Community Liaison

Upcoming events

• Wednesday, Oct. 5: There will be a forum about police-community relations from 7:30 to 9 p.m. at 647 Fulton St. in Brooklyn. Speakers will include activists, scholars, police and community members. This event is free and open to the public. RSVP online now »

• Wednesday, Oct. 5: Catch a free preview screening of the new documentary series America Divided at the School of Visual Arts Theater, 333 W. 23rd St. from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. An excerpt from the new series that looks at housing discrimination will be shown, followed by a panel discussion from producers and reporters. See the event listing »

• Monday, Oct. 10: The Museum of the City of New York invites families to a Native American heritage celebration from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Hear folk stories from different Northeast tribes, try your hand at traditional craft projects and eat snacks from the White Corn Project. This is one of many upcoming events at the Museum of the City of New York at 1220 5th Ave. For information about this and other events, visit the museum's online calendar »

• Friday, Oct. 14: The Department of Education invites middle school students and families to its college access for all conference for middle school from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at Tweed Courthouse, 52 Chambers St. in downtown Manhattan. There will be workshops about life planning after high school as well as activities and games. Interpretation services and child care are available. RSVP online now »

• Sunday, Oct. 16: Parents are invited to join UFT members in the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. in all boroughs. Join a preexisting UFT team or start your own with other parents from your school. For more information and to register, see the event listing »

• Friday, Oct. 21: Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer invites you to a disaster preparedness event at 1752 Park Ave. in Manhattan from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Participants will learn how to prepare for and cope with common types of disasters, and leave with a free disaster preparedness kit. RSVP online now »

• Saturday, Oct. 22: The Department of Education invites parents to its special education family conference from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 333 7th Ave. This free event will offer workshops about how to support your child with disabilities and the opportunity to network with other special education families. Continental breakfast will be served. Child care is available for children over the age of four. Interpretation services are available. To RSVP, email manhattanparentsaspartners@strongschools.nyc. For more information, download the flier in English, Spanish, Haitian-Creole, or Chinese.

• Saturday, Oct. 29: Middle school students and parents should check out the career and technical education high school fair from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at George Westinghouse High School, 105 Johnson St. in Brooklyn. Learn about high school programs in finance, construction, health care and more. For more details, see the career and technical education website »

News you can use

• Register to vote by Oct. 14: Friday, Oct. 14 is the last day to register to vote in the Nov. 8 general election. Find out whether you're registered, where your polling place is, who's on the ballot in New York and more by visiting Voting.NYC »

• Submit your comments on new state standards for math and English language arts: The New York State Education Department has released a draft of new learning standards for math and English language arts. You are invited to review the standards and submit comments. Public comments will be accepted until Nov. 4. Find out more »

• Get involved with participatory budgeting: Participatory budgeting gives New Yorkers the chance to decide how public funds will be spent to benefit their community. Find out how to get involved »

• High school internships and other opportunities at the District Attorney's office: Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. invites NYC youth to get involved in the many programs he's made available for them to learn about the judicial system. There are courthouse tours, mock trials, high school internships and more. Download a fact sheet about these educational programs »

• Billionaire Gap founder is bankrolling charter schools: According to a report from Capital and Main, Doris Fisher, the co-founder of Gap, is pouring dark money into the California charter lobby — and investigations have found that her donations contribute to campaigns that undermine public education. Find out more »