I worked with both Christina McGrath and David Kazansky when I served as the union’s Bronx borough representative over 17 years ago. Both are great people committed to serving our members with knowledge and empathy for their needs.

UFT Assistant Secretary Michael Sill delivered testimony before the New York City Council Education Committee on the implementation of the New York State class size law in city schools.

Gov. Kathy Hochul signed into law three state bills in December that incrementally improved UFT members’ pension benefits.

Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Lyle Frank on Jan. 11 issued a preliminary injunction against the city, EmblemHealth and GHI that temporarily bars them from charging any of the copayments in the GHI Senior Care plan that went into effect on Jan. 1...

More than 500 members and their guests turned out to celebrate educational excellence in the Bronx at the seventh annual District 11 Scholarship Dinner.

Students learn how to combat climate change at eco-friendly, solar energy-powered school on Staten Island that has become a model for the Carbon Free and Healthy Schools campaign.

Public school educators across the city have stepped up to address the educational, socio-emotional and economic needs of the 6,000 migrant students, shipped from Texas, who have arrived in city schools this fall.

UFT members have an opportunity to connect with like-minded colleagues on a deeper level, thanks to a unionwide invigoration of UFT professional committees and a new enrollment process that makes it much easier to participate.

Union leaders and representatives from the union’s private, nonprofit and Department of Education functional chapters gathered at union headquarters on Jan. 16 to kick off a new union initiative intended to showcase and amplify the work of members in...

The state’s new UFT-backed cellphone ban is getting rave reviews from educators who say students are more engaged in class — and rediscovering “old-fashioned” pastimes like reading, playing board games and simply talking to one another.

Educators from schools across the city exposed their students to a variety of career and college pathways at three fairs hosted this fall by the UFT's Academic High School Division. The Future in Focus event highlighted careers in which the workers...

The United Federation of Teachers endorses Carl Wilson as the next City Council Member representing District 3 in the special election on April 28.

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...

UFT members across the city were proud to wear pink on “Pink Day,” Oct. 12, the second Wednesday in October, to raise awareness about breast cancer, celebrate survivors and remember colleagues lost to the disease.

The Department of Education has recently encouraged special education and integrated co-teaching teachers to prioritize targeted small-group instruction, including station teaching. That shift has meant that I’ve had to learn new classroom management...

The UFT’s Spring Education Conference began with a panel discussion called “Speak Up” at which a half-dozen teachers spoke about what New York City public educators and students need to thrive.

See exemplary teaching strategies and instructional tools to support newcomers.

The UFT has accused Mayor Adams and the city Department of Education of trying to sabotage the implementation of the state law lowering class size in New York City public schools.
The state has significantly increased aid for city schools to finance...

The UFT's effort to get back funding for the city's 3-K and pre-K programs begins to pay dividends with the restoration of some of the cuts made by Mayor Eric Adams in time for the start of the 2024-2025 school year.

New teachers may erroneously believe that effective classroom management comes from being stern and no-nonsense. But veteran educators know that there are better ways to establish a calm classroom. Here are some tips.

From professional development to help finding child care and support for mental health challenges, the UFT has educators covered all summer long.

The UFT has forged a partnership with CUNY’s School of Labor and Urban Studies and Monroe College to provide affordable professional learning opportunities for mid-career teachers seeking credits towards their 30-plus differential.

The UFT’s COPE — Committee on Public Education — program is one of the benchmarks of Sonja Hill’s chapter leadership.
Hill, a 5th-grade teacher in her 31st year at PS 41 in Brownsville, Brooklyn — and the school’s chapter leader for more than half of...

When Catrina Como became chapter leader at PS 376 in Brooklyn, she faced a tricky situation: The principal was demanding, and staff did not know their rights and were reluctant to speak up for themselves. “I work with a lot of amazing teachers who...

A shoutout to Jason Bentsen, the first-year chapter leader at IS 72 on Staten Island, for solving the safety issue of doors at the school that had no locks and sometimes even no doorknobs.

September is a great time to set your intentions for how you’d like the school year to proceed and put strategies in place to help you achieve your goals.


This Friday, 2/6, thousands of New York City public school educators are turning up the heat for pension reform by sharing their personal stories about why it's needed.

As a class, we read the book “Just Ask!: Be Different, Be Brave, Be You,” by Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. We learned about how everyone is unique even if you don’t see it.

The UFT has an automated system to refund excess dues deducted from the pay of retirees who return to work for the DOE.

UFT founder George Altomare and longtime Bronx district representative Patricia Filomena -- both former chairs of the UFT Italian-American Heritage Committee -- were honored at the committee's first in-person event since before the pandemic.

Medicare Part B premiums and the annual deductible will be reduced in 2023 for the first time in 11 years, the Biden administration has announced. A 3% reduction in the premiums will reduce the monthly payments by $5.20, from $170.10 to $164.90.

Along with police officers and EMTs, teachers must deal with gun violence and its aftermath and should have the opportunity and the time to develop meaningful curriculum around the issue, education activist Amina Brown said at a UFT-sponsored...

The UFT African Heritage Committee Awards Dinner restored music and festivity to its 20th annual event on Feb. 3, reflected in its theme: “Thriving Into Our Future.”

Some 500 UFT members celebrated Educators Night on Broadway on March 11 at a performance of “Sunset Boulevard” at the St. James Theatre.

UFT members took part in the 40th annual AIDS Walk in Central Park and raised more than $5,000 for research and lifesaving programs for those living with HV/AIDS.

About 25 school staff gathered on Dec. 3 for a "Demystifying Dsability" workshop led by special education teacher David Friedman from PS 69 in Jackson Heights.