Incorporating strategies used by occupational, physical and speech therapists into classroom teaching can not only greatly benefit students with disabilities, but can also improve learning for all students. And the more teachers normalize using these...

For the new classroom teacher, the sheer volume of related service providers in a school can be a little bewildering. But it’s important to get to know these colleagues and the services they provide to students with disabilities.

Chanisse Wade, a second-year social worker at Bronx Legacy HS in Mott Haven, strives to create a "culture of celebration" at her school. She publicly celebrates all student achievements, large or small — from high grades to good attendance to...

Nagella Al-Balushi, an occupational therapist at PS 340 in the Bronx uses the equipment in her therapy room to work on a variety of motor skills with students in a typical 30-minute session.

Nearly 180 children living in temporary housing gather at UFT headquarters for the union's annual Thanksgiving Luncheon. They enjoyed the dozens of activity tables and an early Thanksgiving dinner before leaving with a new coat, gloves and hat. 


About 70 people learned about online student safety, special education resources and more at the UFT's Staten Island Family Partnership Summit held on Nov. 9 at PS 20 on Staten Island.

Roughly 350 new retirees gathered for the New Retiree Luncheon at the New York Hilton Midtown on Dec. 5 to toast their life after retirement. 


Tikkun olam — Hebrew for “repairing the world” — was the theme for the UFT Jewish Heritage Committee Awards dinner for a second straight year. The event, which was held at Russo’s on the Bay in Queens on Dec. 5, was “joyous and festive, with the...

UFT volunteers transformed Shanker Hall at union headquarters into a wonderland of candy-cane balloons, games and crafts for the union's annual holiday party and toy drive for students in need. Organized by the UFT Elementary School Division, the...

Nurses take an oath to act in the best interest of their patients, but the corporatization of health care and the focus on profits have made it increasingly challenging to keep that vow. Nurses grappled with that challenge and took workshops to...

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...

About 500 middle schoolers from 31 schools throughout the city learned ways to combat bullying during the UFT's annual anti-bullying conference led by BRAVE, the union's anti-bullying initiative.

Parent empowerment was the objective at the Queens Power Summit, which drew more than 80 parent leaders, students and UFT members to the UFT’s Queens borough office on Nov. 23.

Italian cuisine and culture were on the menu when the UFT Italian American Heritage Committee hosted its annual fall dinner on Oct. 22 at Mario’s Restaurant in the Bronx.

More than three dozen UFT members turned out for fun and games at Bingo Night at the union’s Queens borough office on Nov. 22 to raise awareness of COPE, the union’s political action arm.

A related service provider drowns in paperwork.

By accumulating college credits, paraprofessionals can significantly increase their pay. Whether your career path as a paraprofessional leads you to earn a bachelor’s degree or to earn a master’s degree and become a certified teacher, several UFT...

If you want your mental health resolutions for the new year to last, focus on self-care and get specific. Experts have identified eight dimensions of wellness, which provide a great framework for creating achievable resolutions.

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...

Hundreds of staff and students from Curtis and Ralph R. McKee Career and Technical Education high schools on Staten Island, along with parents and community members, participated in a walk against violence on Nov. 26 in response to two gun-related...

Paraprofessionals have the security of knowing they will receive a pension check every month for the rest of their lives after they retire as members of the Teachers' Retirement System. Learn all you need to know about this key benefit.

The DOE’s failure to adequately staff our schools is unacceptable. We have long known that our related service providers were stretched thin, but the numbers from the survey show how untenable the DOE has let the situation become.

The salaries of UFT-represented employees covered by the Department of Education-UFT contracts will increase by 3% on Jan. 18, 2025.

This fall, the UFT rolled out a new interactive digital tool to simplify the task of determining how much parental leave an expecting parent can take.

Paraprofessionals play an instrumental role in schools as part of a team providing educational and support services to children. Here are some of the rights and responsibilities that paraprofessionals should know about.


Workers’ compensation is insurance paid for by the employer. It covers medical costs associated with an on-the-job injury or illness, and it pays a portion of lost salary if you miss work. Full- or part-time paraprofessionals, occupational and...

This school year, as outside consultants took over most of the training, teachers grew increasingly frustrated with their lack of voice and the lack of support. So we headed to the bargaining table to demand changes. The revised curriculum policy...

As the DOE's mandated Algebra I math curriculum has expanded from a few hundred high schools last year to citywide this school year, so have teachers’ concerns that it is a mismatch for city schools and is hampering their students’ academic progress.

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

Take principals out of play. A school counselor counsels the DOE about how best to address the paraprofessional shortage.

Regarding a Nov. 1 article about UFT Welfare Fund members having special access to the Hospital for Special Surgery, thanks to a new partnership between the UFT Welfare Fund and the hospital

I remember when we didn’t get any preps AND had lunch duty AND had to physically turn in a lesson plan book every Monday for principals to comment on and mark up in red AND many other since-rectified issues.

I am a retired senior citizen who searched for his 4th-grade teacher to say thank you for many years. I found your article (“At 100, still embracing the challenge,” Dec 21, 2023, issue), and there she was, Mrs. Miriam Krinick, at 100 years old — and...

The UFT's first-ever Pension Expo on Oct. 26 gave 400 UFT members the information and tools they needed to plan for retirement. “We provided members a place where in one day they could take care of all these things they were concerned about and never...

As the Dec. 20 deadline approached, several hundred New York City public schools were working on their applications for funding to reduce class size next school year. In late October, principals were invited to create a plan and apply for funds...

In-service members enrolled in the UFT Welfare Fund gained two benefit improvements in November: an increase in the weekly short-term disability benefit and more coverage of a special formula for newborns and others with nutrition-intake deficiencies...