Pedagogues — teachers, school counselors, school secretaries, school psychologists and social workers, and lab specialists — who are injured or made sick on the job are covered by the Line of Duty Injury provision of the DOE-UFT contract. Other UFT-represented DOE titles, such as full- or part-time paraprofessionals, occupational and physical therapists, school nurses and administrative employees, are all eligible for workers’ compensation if they are injured on the job.

In either case, you should notify your immediate supervisor as soon as possible. If there was danger to you and/or other staff and students, also alert your UFT chapter leader and make sure to file a UFT incident report online so you can get needed support and assistance. Administrators must also report the violation or incident on the DOE’s online system, including, in some cases, the disciplinary action taken.

The deadline for completing DASA training depends on the expiration date of your certificate; you must complete your training before applying for a new certificate.

Yes. If, for example, you are a professional certificate holder and want an additional certificate, you will need to complete DASA training for your additional certificate.

You must complete six hours of coursework from a provider approved by the New York State Education Department. You can find a list of approved providers at the NYSED website. The UFT is an approved provider and offers this course in its borough offices; see the UFT Courses page for dates, times and registration information.

Upon completion of the workshop, the provider will give you a copy of the Certification of Completion. In addition, the Certification of Completion form will be electronically reported to the State Education Department within 21 days of workshop completion by the provider. If you do not see that the workshop is recorded in TEACH after 21 days of the workshop date please contact us at (212) 701-9413.

School professionals (teachers, paraprofessionals, counselors, psychologists and social workers) who are applying for state certification must take this six-hour course. This includes members who are applying for new certificates (for example, paraprofessionals going from a Level 1 to a Level 2 or 3).

Members who meet the following criteria do not need to take the course: a) permanently or professionally certified; b) hired prior to 2004; c) Level 3 certificate holders (paras) and applicants for certification prior to Jan. 1, 2014.

If you are not sure if you require this workshop, contact the UFT certification department at 212-331-6311.

Having tenure means you may not be disciplined or terminated without due process. As a tenured teacher, you have the right to a hearing before an independent arbitrator regarding any charges brought against you. These due process rights protect you from being fired for personal, arbitrary or political reasons.

​​​​​​​Under New York State law, appointed teachers achieve tenure after completing a probationary period of usually four years and fulfilling all the requirements for a professional certificate. In New York City, tenure is granted in your license appointment area. Principals determine whether or not to make a tenure recommendation to the district superintendent, who officially grants tenure.

The process for determining whether or not you will get tenure is rigorous, and tenure is not automatic at the end of the probationary period. You must: 1) be recommended for tenure by your principal; 2) be granted tenure by your superintendent; 3) have a record of acceptable service during your probationary period; and 4) be on track to complete all your state certification and city licensing requirements.

Tenure achievement is based on three milestones. Meeting these three milestones makes an individual eligible for tenure, but does not guarantee tenure. Principals will make their recommendation to the superintendent of the district, who will make the final determination. 

Eligibility for tenure is based upon: 

1. Permanent or professional state certification: An individual must be appointed with a NYC license that matches their New York State Education Department (NYSED) permanent or professional certification. The school grade specified on the certification must match the level at which someone is appointed. 
2. Service evaluation: An individual's service throughout the entire probationary period preceding their tenure must demonstrate sustained effective or better performance. The DOE considers multiple measures to assess performance including, but not limited to, overall ratings.​ 
3. Principal recommendation to complete probation: An individual must successfully complete their probationary period, to their principal's satisfaction, before they can be considered for tenure. 

As of the 2023 contract, the DOE will have to provide reasons, in writing, for the need to extend a UFT-represented employee’s probationary period if the employee makes a written request to their supervisor for an explanation. Principals can no longer extend someone’s probation without giving them any clue as to why.

Tenured educators may not be disciplined or terminated without due process and have the right to a hearing before an independent arbitrator regarding any charges brought against them. This due process right protects the employee from being fired for personal, arbitrary or political reasons. 

See more information about tenure »

If you are considering resigning from the DOE, we strongly suggest contacting the union at 212-331-6311 to speak with a representative about your options. 

Resignation 
Provide an official letter (as a PDF or Word doc attachment) with your effective date of resignation or retirement, file number and signature, also include in the letter whether you will transfer to another city agency or be leaving all city services. This will ensure resignations are processed correctly.  

A resignation letter should be written at least 30 days prior to the effective date of resignation. Email it to your principal or administrator and copy your personal email address for your records. You may not receive a letter or email confirming your resignation. After your termination is processed, you will no longer have access to your DOE accounts.

• A resignation letter can simply state: “I (name and file number) am resigning my position from the DOE effective on ___ (at least 30 days from the date the email is written)." 
• This email is sent to your principal who then forwards it to the DOE.   
• If a resignation letter is written with an effective date of less than 30 days, a problem code can be generated, which will make it difficult to return to the DOE in the future.  
• Reach out to TRS and inquire about your pension and/or TDA accounts.  
• When resigning, fill out an OP44 form to get paid out for any remaining CAR or vacation days.  
• If a person is facing termination, resignation does not usually make it better. 

Summer Resignation 
If a member resigns on the last day of school, they will receive their summer pay throughout the summer; however their health benefits will end in July, at the end of month.  If health benefits need to be maintained throughout the summer, resigning in August (and providing 30 calendar days notice) will ensure health benefits to the beginning of September. 

After resigning, you will lose access to your DOE email, so be sure to forward a copy of the resignation email and letter to your personal email address so you have proof of resignation if needed.