If you have a professional period in your teaching program, your principal will give you a preference sheet listing the appropriate menu (this is the same preference sheet for choosing your program). You must prioritize three of the activities and the principal will make the final decision. Selection will be based upon the established criteria for the requested activity and the availability of the item. If you are not given one of your three choices, you may select three other menu items.
See updates from the 2023 DOE-UFT contract regarding professional activity options »
If the principal assigns you to an administrative assignment (e.g., lunchroom, hall or yard duty), voluntarily or involuntarily, he or she cannot assign you to any administrative duty the following year unless you voluntarily agree to do it. Principals must make all involuntarily administrative assignments on a rotational basis in inverse seniority order. Before the end of the current school year, your principal must notify you in writing as to which professional activity you’ve been assigned for the coming school year.
If you are new to the school system or in danger of a “U” rating, the principal can assign you to either professional development or common planning as your professional activity, regardless of your preference.
To see what the contract says about professional activity procedures, see Article 7U.