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Kudos to Catrina Como, PS 376, Brooklyn

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...

Kudos to Sonja Hill at PS 41, Brooklyn

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...

Kudos to Dan Wever, Sunset Park HS, Brooklyn

Art teacher Dan Wever said he ran for chapter leader at Sunset Park HS in Brooklyn in 2021 knowing that at some point the union chapter would have to organize to demand the removal of the school’s longtime principal, Victoria Antonini.
 Less than two...

Kudos to Beverly Greene, PS 55, Bronx

As a math coach, Beverly Greene knows every problem has a solution. And that’s been her motto in her role as the chapter leader at PS 55 in the Bronx.

Kudos to Maria Ponciano, PS 280, Queens

Maria Ponciano, the chapter leader at PS 280 in Jackson Heights, uses social media, email, WhatsApp, Google Slides and other technology to keep her members engaged and informed.

Kudos to Kristin Golat-Defendis, MS 51, Brooklyn

Kristin Golat-Defendis, the chapter leader at MS 51 in Park Slope, Brooklyn, stood up to an abusive principal. On Jan. 30, 2023, the principal was transferred out of the school.

Kudos to David Ephross, PS/IS 308, Brooklyn

David Ephross secured much-needed bathroom repairs at PS/IS 308 in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, after repeated requests to the principal were unheeded.

Kudos to Ramona Abraham-Coley, NYC Museum School, Manhattan

Museum School Chapter Leader Ramona Abraham-Coley successfully used the school-based option process in the DOE-UFT contract to organize her members and arrive at a new staff schedule for this school year that works for both her members and the...

Kudos to Faiza Khalid, PS 36, Manhattan

Faza Khalid, the chapter leader at PS 36 in Harlem, used the consultation process to get some unwelcome guests kicked off school grounds this year: a troop of rowdy raccoons.

Kudos to David Smoke, PS 315, and Cindy Lerner, PS 19, in Manhattan

When PS 315, the East Village Community School, moves on Sept. 8 into the First Avenue building that houses PS 19, the chapter leaders for the two Manhattan schools can take a bow for their work in ensuring a smooth merger that meets the needs of...