Testifying on the proposed city budget on May 24, UFT President Michael Mulgrew had a simple request: Help us “make this a better city for our children.” He appealed for additional funding for three programs and initiatives he said could accomplish that: Teacher’s Choice, the Positive Learning Collaborative and Community Learning Schools.

In written and oral testimony before the City Council committees on finance and education, Mulgrew asked that the City Council restore Teacher’s Choice, which reimburses teachers for out-of-pocket expenses, to prerecession levels.

The average teacher, he said, spends $500 out of pocket on classroom supplies each yea, with some topping $1,000.

“We are not just talking about glue sticks, crayons, markers and construction paper,” he said. “Teachers buy printer cartridges, children’s headphones, flash drives and computer software. Teachers help students with their personal expenses.”

Mulgrew said the union was appreciative of the annual support the City Council gives the program. “The reality is that teachers are spending more and more every year,” Mulgrew told the Council members. “We would like to work with the City Council to make this a permanent part of the city budget.”

Another funding priority for the union is the Positive Learning Collaborative, a UFT-DOE initiative that Mulgrew said “teaches students to treat each other and the adults in the building with respect. Teachers learn strategies to manage stress and calm a situation before it spirals into crisis.”

Dozens of schools are on the waiting list for the program, Mulgrew explained.

“We are hearing a lot right now about school discipline and climate and culture,” Mulgrew said. “The Positive Learning Collaborative has been proven now in 15 schools: suspensions are down, teachers feel the schools are safer, children feel the schools are more welcoming.”

In four years, the Community Learning Schools network has grown to 27 schools that provide school-based health and social services to students and their families. Mulgrew asked for help to continue to expand and enhance the initiative.

“We’re giving our teachers more support and more tools to help their students in a holistic way,” Mulgrew said. “Among the dozens of new services are food programs, health and mental health services, dental and optical exams, college and career counseling, and programs for parents.”

Now, he said, “everybody from New York City to Albany to Washington, D.C., talks about” the work the union started and the need for more community schools.

Read the full testimony »