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.

Enhanced student achievement based upon high standards and expectations must be the driving force behind every activity of New York City public schools. To accomplish this, we must reinvent schools so that decision making is shared by those closest...

Our scholarship program, which began in 1969, was renamed in Albert Shanker’s memory in 1997. He was the New York City teacher who became president of both this union and our national affiliate, the American Federation of Teachers. More than anyone...

Enhanced student achievement based upon high standards and expectations must be the driving force behind every activity of New York City public schools. To accomplish this, we must reinvent schools so that decision making is shared by those closest...

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.

The Peer Intervention Program has successfully helped thousands of teachers in schools throughout New York City. Why not you? It is a proactive step toward professional growth! Here are some common questions and their answers.

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.

Enhanced student achievement based upon high standards and expectations must be the driving force behind every activity of New York City public schools. To accomplish this, we must reinvent schools so that decision making is shared by those closest...

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...

As the UFT’s fourth president, serving from 1998 to 2009, Randi Weingarten led the union through a period of economic instability, two contentious city administrations and mounting attacks on the labor movement and public education. She relished...

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...

Contact information for UFT headquarters, borough offices, departments and hotlines. Use it to find email addresses, phone numbers and maps for key locations.

Speech teachers have seniority and excessing rights in their schools. Members cannot be moved from a school unless there is a compelling reason for the excessing situation. If there is more than one speech teacher in the school, the senior teacher in...

Brilliant and articulate, no one ever doubted that Rebecca Simonson had a way with words. But it wasn't so much poetry as strategy that led the leader of the Teachers Guild in the 1940s to compare organizing to "opening a flower one petal at a time."

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

Edward Skyler Deputy Mayor for Operations August 26, 2008 Ms. Randi Weingarten President United Federation of Teachers 52 Broadway New York, NY 10004 Dear Ms. Randi Weingarten, As you know, Mayor Bloomberg announced earlier this year that the City of...

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.

Learn about the health and wellness programs the UFT supports with our partners and about our partners in promoting the health of our students, colleagues and communities.

EDWARD SKYLER Deputy Mayor for Operations August 26, 2008 Ms. Randi Weingarten President United Federation of Teachers 52 Broadway New York, NY 10004 Dear Ms. Randi Weingarten, As you know, Mayor Bloomberg announced earlier this year that the City of...

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.