Mayoral candidate Bill Thompson, accompanied by UFT President Michael Mulgrew and AFT President Randi Weingarten, stopped in at two Ozone Park, Queens, schools on Sept. 3 to greet teachers as they arrived to prepare for opening day.
 
Wearing blue T-shirts saying “Thompson for Mayor,” 30 teachers welcomed the candidate outside the building at PS 65 and talked about their hopes for a new school year.

Chapter Leader Joan Doctor said teachers were “just a little bit” nervous about the new evaluation plan. “But we are more than an evaluation school — we are a Community Learning School,” she said proudly, noting that PS 65 is one of 16 schools in the UFT’s CLS network.  

Thompson supports the initiative. “This Community Learning Schools model is something I believe is going to make your lives better,” he told the teachers. “As the next mayor of New York City we’re going to bring this model into our school system.”
 
Also, Thompson promised, “We’re going to get you an educator as chancellor,” a vow that won him a burst of applause.

At nearby John Adams HS, another three dozen teachers in blue were on hand outside to greet the visitors. A year ago the staff at Adams was told that the school was failing and half of them would be replaced. However, a UFT lawsuit halted the move.
 
“This school is going to look a lot different this year,” Mulgrew said. Once Thompson is elected, he said, the strategy of closing schools to save them will be over.
 
Thompson told teachers that when he was the president of the Board of Education he helped to start the Chancellor’s District, which directed extra resources to struggling schools and turned them around.
 
Weingarten added that Thompson treated all educators and parents with dignity and respect.  If he is elected, she said, “why you went into teaching will actually matter again.”