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Managing stress

April is National Stress Prevention Month. Learn ways to manage stress that can benefit you all year round. You may not be able to fully eradicate stress from your life, but you can lessen it.

Switching schools

The Department of Education’s Open Market Transfer System gives UFT members the opportunity to transfer to a different school.

Organizing for a fair contract

Schools across the city led by Contract Action Team (CAT) members joined together during the week of Jan. 30 to hold contract teach-ins that both informed and activated our membership on a whole new level.

Battle to preserve premium-free health care

UFT President Michael Mulgrew warned at the Oct. 12 Delegate Assembly that the UFT and its fellow unions are entering a fierce battle to protect their premium-free health care.

Fostering fellowship on the fairway

Retiree Ann Mackey founded the Coastal New Jersey Chapter of the LPGA Amateurs, the recreational amateur arm of the Ladies Professional Golf Association, fostering fellowship on the fairway and empowering women, one golf swing at a time.

Kindness, the cure that costs nothing

“Be kind, rewind” is a slogan that disappeared with VHS tapes, but it succinctly illustrates the basic elements of kindness: Even a small, seemingly trivial act can make life a little better for someone you don’t know.

Still fighting the good fight

The UFT’s Retired Teachers Chapter hosted a celebratory luncheon on March 6 to recognize 68 educators who have been union members for 50, 60 or more years. 


Summer thrills

Running through a sprinkler on a hot day. The taste of corn fresh from the grill. Swimming in a river, lake, ocean or pool. These are but a few of the joys of summer. Make sure to be in the moment and savor the simple pleasures of these long, bright...

Stitching together the pieces in retirement

Louise Naples, a retired school secretary, has become an avid quilter in retirement. Her quilts were recently on display at The Center, a communal gathering space at the Maple Grove Cemetery in Kew Gardens, Queens.

Soak up the sun safely

Days are longer and the sun’s rays don’t only help flowers bloom — they also have a way of making us feel happier and more energized. So embrace your inner sun worshipper and enjoy the benefits of the season.

Teaching financial literacy

Financial literacy is a foundational life skill, yet too many young people reach adulthood without it. Here are several comprehensive, nonpartisan resources teachers can trust.

Raising our voices for special education

UFT Vice President for Special Education MaryJo Ginese writes that our special education teachers, paraprofessionals and related service providers do incredible work supporting children with IEPs, but the DOE too often has not fulfilled its part.


Some advice for handling challenging situations

As a new teacher, you are bound to encounter situations with students that are challenging to navigate. If you find yourself in one of the following situations, here is some guidance for making a plan of action.

Become politically active

All teachers, even brand-new ones, have a stake in political matters. Consider the ways in which you might deepen your engagement with issues outside the classroom that matter to public school educators.

Working relationships with colleagues are vital

Whether you co-teach on a regular basis or sit on the same grade or subject team as other educators, you have a host of colleagues who can be your allies and support network.

Hard times put benefits at risk

Far right legislators see raising the debt ceiling as an opportunity to push an ideological agenda that could advance their cause.

Bronx school just says no

A coalition of parents and teachers at PS 28 in the Mount Hope section of the Bronx, drawing on the expertise of UFT organizer Betty Zohar, formed in December to prod the police and local officials to clean up the school's entrance, where drug users...

‘A shining light’

PS 20 in Flushing, Queens, paid tribute to beloved physical education teacher Scott Brower, 42, who died March 20 after being struck by a speeding motorcyclist on Long Island.

Harvest new beginnings

With the shift from summer to fall, now is the time to reap the benefits of a likely change in routine, to make decisions about what’s really important — and to develop whatever new habits you’ve been meaning to.

Mulgrew shares post-election outlook

UFT President Michael Mulgrew predicted that the Trump administration will attack unions and public education.

Mapping out a path to learning

The latest online mapping tools can do much more than get us from point A to B. With features such as data collection and media integration, online maps can be used in the classroom to take student activities in completely new directions. 


Getting in SHIP-shape will cover out-of-pocket costs

For $120 a year, UFT retirees who are members of the Retired Teachers Chapter can obtain supplemental benefits that reimburse them for some out-of-pocket expenses, including ambulance rides, dental work, hearing aids and private-duty nursing.

The importance of being ‘seen’

Educators' extra efforts working collaboratively and leading their students at Francis Lewis HS in Queens paid off with an extra special Black History Month celebration featuring a number of high-profile speakers, including film director Malcolm Lee...

Tech tools to bring the arts to class

While technology tools cannot and should not replace hands-on art making, these digital resources can be used to bring the arts, which may be otherwise lacking in your students’ school day, into your curriculum in meaningful ways.

HERstory celebration

About 175 members and guests attended this year's HERstory brunch in celebration of women’s role in the UFT and the broader labor movement.

Transit programs

If you travel to work by public transportation, you can save money by taking part in the City of New York Commuter Benefits Program, which enables you enables you to pay for allowable commuting costs in the city and the tri-state area with tax-free...

Nature journaling brings science to life

Nature journaling not only boosts students’ attention, sense of well-being and joy, but also strengthens their scientific, mathematical and critical-thinking skills. 


Embracing abundance

November can be a time of joy, generosity and togetherness. Yet it can also arrive bundled with stress, comparison and a sense of lack — whether financial, emotional or social. Cultivating abundance thinking and gratitude can transform not only how...

UFT Teacher Centers are friends indeed

UFT Vice President Mary Vaccaro writes that Teacher Center specialists with extensive teaching and coaching expertise in New York City public schools offer support, professional development, collegial advice and access to resources and materials that...

Why I am an avid reader

UFT Vice President for Academic High Schools Janella Hinds encourages high school educators to continue to expand their own knowledge base through reading a variety of texts. Being an avid reader, she writes, helps educators better guide their...

We’re your home for professional learning

UFT Vice President for Education Mary Vaccaro writes that the UFT Teacher Center has been a leader in providing New York City public school educators with high-quality professional learning for more than 40 years. The program recently has begun...

Time to lay it on the line with lawmakers

President Michael Mulgrew reminds members the UFT stays in the fight for the things that matter to educators, students, their families and our communities. As the budget process gets underway at the state and city level — the UFT is geared up to...

A chance to speak out on mayoral control

For too long, we have been at the whim of whatever agenda the current mayor decides to pursue. The school budget cuts we are now fighting is a perfect example. What our schools need is not always aligned with what the mayor wants. What is the purpose...

Homework: what's helpful and what isn't

If you haven’t already developed a personal homework philosophy, it can be helpful to devote some time to considering the practical value of the homework you plan to assign and the logistics around its submission and grading. As you do so, keep in...

One stride at a time

UFT members in all five boroughs and on Long Island participated in this year’s American Cancer Society Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walks on three separate weekends in October, raising thousands of dollars for breast cancer research...

The summer of our discontent

In the months leading up to November's momentous presidential election, we can remain on the sidelines and let the bad guys make the decisions, or we can enter the political fray, enlist our friends and allies in the battle and forge victories.