The expectations that society puts on teachers are as old as time, but this year, it’s gone to a whole new level. I knew going into this year we would have our work cut out for us.

The Public Service Loan Forgiveness program will temporarily become easier to access for teachers and other public servants, the Biden administration announced on Oct. 6. The federal Education Department estimates that more than 550,000 borrowers, in...

Teachers and staff at PS 377 in Bushwick, Brooklyn, came together to help a school family that lost everything when their apartment flooded in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida.

California will become the first state in the U.S. to require public and private school students receiving in-person instruction to get vaccinated against COVID-19, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced on Oct. 1, once the FDA gives full approval for COVID...

Dial-A-Teacher, the UFT’s homework help line that offers K–12 students free assistance from city Department of Education teachers in all school subjects in seven languages, is back for its 41st year.

Nearly two dozen UFT members participated in the union-sponsored CaringKind Alzheimer’s Walk on Oct. 10 in Central Park.

Mauri Small is a school social worker at the Williamsburg HS for Architecture and Design in Brooklyn, where she handles all the mandated counseling for students with IEPs as well as crisis intervention and mediation.

It started with a bag of used clothing that Bambi Falvo meant to donate. Now Falvo, who retired in 2019 after 32 years of teaching, is an online entrepreneur who specializes in reselling new and used clothing.

RTC members from New Jersey made calls to more than 3,000 UFT members, both retirees and in-service members, to help get out the vote for Gov. Phil Murphy in the governor's race on Nov. 2.

Communication is fraught with miscommunication. Presenting the New York City Medicare Advantage Plus Plan to retirees is tough. We have tried to offer the best and most comprehensive information so retirees can make their own informed choices.

Because of the disruptions caused by the pandemic in the 2020-21 school year, participating in “Go Pink Day” this year was a hopeful return to a cherished tradition for many UFT members across the city.

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.

Enjoy your Halloween weekend!

Incorporating popular culture in the classroom is a way to make what I am trying to teach immediately more relevant and engaging for my students. In my classroom, “texts” can be lyrics, music videos, films, comics, TV shows, graphic novels or even...

The pandemic has been traumatic for everyone. That’s why the UFT successfully advocated for more social workers in schools and social-emotional screenings for all students at the end of October. Here are some other tips to achieve a compassionate...

The American Cancer Society's Making Strides Against Breast Cancer fundraising walks in all five boroughs and on Long Island were canceled last year due to the pandemic, and UFT members showed their support through virtual events. This year, members...

Podcasts can be used as a novel way to introduce or reinforce subject matter with our students. For those of us concerned about screen time, podcasts are an antidote, and they help sharpen listening skills, too.

The multiple layers of protection against COVID-19, including the vaccination of all staff and eligible students, are serving our school communities well.

UFT Vice President for Elementary Schools Karen Alford writes that it’s been a stressful year, and the pandemic is still affecting all our lives. Some UFT members have gotten a jump-start on their own social-emotional wellness, with training in...

We are operating in a constantly changing environment. You’re teaching and supporting children while enforcing social distancing and mask-wearing, conducting instructional lunches and navigating partial classroom closures. As flexible as we’ve all...

Erica Boyce, a 4th-grade special education teacher at PS 677 in Brooklyn, turned to the UFT Peer Intervention Program (PIP) to help her adjust to her integrated co-teaching classroom. Since 1988, PIP has helped educators reexamine, refresh and...

After weeks of negotiations, the DOE agreed to change its position that the lack of ratings in 2019–20 should be a determining factor in the number and type of observations that teachers are required to have this school year. Any tenured teacher...

The UFT is backing Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams for mayor and other candidates for citywide and borough offices and City Council in the Nov. 2 general election in New York City.

How many children are missing from our schools? That’s the question the city Department of Education refuses to answer.

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.

On Oct. 8, with just three months left in his term, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced plans to phase out the gifted-and-talented program in New York City public schools. But Eric Adams, de Blasio’s likely successor, has ideas about the program that...

The recent revelation from a Facebook whistleblower that the company chooses profits over safety should come as a surprise to no one. But the notion that Instagram was worsening body image issues among teenagers caught my attention.

These observations are too much pressure and mostly a waste of time for teachers and administrators alike

I remember teaching at PS 94 in Little Neck, Queens. When we started to hear about the Twin Towers, the staff was confused, shocked and then horrified. 


The story about the teacher reunited with her former student is a truly beautiful story — a story of a woman who was a dedicated teacher.

As early as March 2020, headlines warned of the “learning loss” that students would experience as a result of disrupted and remote schooling. But that phrase misclassifies the real issue and obscures how teachers can best support their students.

UFT President Michael Mulgrew discussed partial classroom closures, the 3-foot rule and other topics at the October 2021 Delegate Assembly.

The dispute between the UFT and the DOE over spring break pay in 2020 will now proceed to arbitration, with a hearing before a neutral arbitrator likely to take place in mid-December.

Two hundred chapter leaders on Sept. 22 returned to Shanker Hall for the first time since the start of the pandemic to attend the annual citywide chapter leaders meeting. Another thousand participated remotely in the event.

Public servants, including public school educators and nurses, may be on their way to a reduction or elimination of their crushing burden of debt thanks to a landmark settlement announced Oct. 13 between the U.S. Department of Education and the...

In 2000, after several frustrating years, the UFT, NYSUT and the rest of the state’s labor movement convinced New York State to provide an annual, permanent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) to retiree pensions.