Testimony in support of the "RESPECT check" bill for paraprofessionals
Testimony delivered before the City Council Committee on Civil Service and Labor and the Committee on Governmental Operations, State & Federal Legislation
Michael Mulgrew, UFT President
My name is Michael Mulgrew, and I am the president of the United Federation of Teachers (UFT). On behalf of the over 200,000 members in our union, especially the 26,000 paraprofessionals, I thank Chairs Carmen De La Rosa and Lincoln Restler, as well as the members of the Civil Service and Labor and Governmental Operations committees, for holding this hearing today.
On Jan. 30, 2025, I stood on the steps of City Hall with members of this City Council as they proposed legislation to provide paraprofessionals with an additional $10,000 annually. In the months since that announcement, the UFT has advocated tirelessly for the “RESPECT check” legislation to become law, gaining the support of council members, borough presidents, the public advocate and Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, who has pledged to support this bill when he takes office. This legislation has received so much support, not just because it’s time to fix the unjust pay gap that has arisen for paraprofessionals due to the city’s use of pattern bargaining, but because for all of us, this is deeply personal.
Anyone who has ever worked in or attended a New York City public school has felt the profound impact of a paraprofessional, including me. I began my teaching career as a special education teacher at William E. Grady Career and Technical Education HS in Brooklyn, and I was lucky enough to work with a classroom paraprofessional who taught me what it meant to go above and beyond for our students. At that time, most special education students graduated with IEP diplomas, which were based on meeting IEP goals, rather than passing Regents exams. This paraprofessional believed that our students could take the Regents and graduate with the same diplomas as their general education peers. She dedicated her free time to helping our students prepare for the Regents, coming to school early each morning and working through her lunch periods. She poured her heart and soul into ensuring our students succeeded, and I will never forget that.
This is just one of the many stories of the remarkable work that paraprofessionals do daily. Paraprofessionals give more than just their time and energy to our students. They often use their own money to buy whatever their students need, including winter coats when children come to school without them or a child’s favorite food to celebrate developmental milestones. They spend more than they get through Teacher’s Choice just to make sure their students have the school supplies they need. During the COVID-19 pandemic, paraprofessionals kept classrooms running so learning did not stop. When teachers were unfamiliar with how to use Google Classroom or run breakout rooms on Zoom, paraprofessionals showed them so that they could teach and students could learn. Although schools were practicing social distancing, that wasn’t an option for paraprofessionals who needed to be next to their students to change and feed them. We recently averted a bus strike in New York City, but if we hadn’t done so, I guarantee it would’ve been paraprofessionals who showed up to accompany their students to and from school each day.
Paraprofessionals are not required to do all this, but they choose to because from the moment they meet their students in September until the end of the school year, they treat their students as their own. However, that choice comes with personal sacrifice.
The truth is paraprofessionals are not paid enough to survive in New York City and are being pushed out of the profession they love. Many paraprofessionals are working two to three jobs because it’s too difficult to survive on their Department of Education salary alone. Others have left the profession entirely. Some have moved in with family members or are sleeping in homeless shelters because they are unable to pay their rent. This is shameful, especially when it is within the city’s control to change this reality.
The paraprofessional shortage we face has been created by the city’s adherence to the practice of pattern bargaining — giving percentage-based raises to employees. Although contractual raises increase everyone’s take home pay, pattern bargaining has put the Department of Education’s lowest-paid workers at a disadvantage. Under pattern bargaining, the same percentage wage increase translates to vastly different dollar amounts for different titles. A 3% increase for a starting paraprofessional is roughly $900, while for the highest-paid school-based administrators it is roughly $6,500. This disparity is only compounded over time. From 2005 to 2025, the starting salary for a paraprofessional has gone up by $12,000, while the salary for the top school-based administrators has gone up by $86,000. This gross pay gap is the reason that we are unable to recruit and retain enough paraprofessionals within our schools.
To get ourselves out of this predicament, we must do two things. First, to address the acute paraprofessional shortage at hand, we must pass the “RESPECT check” legislation, which was carefully crafted to fall outside of collective bargaining. Paraprofessionals need economic relief now. If things continue as they are, we will lose even more paraprofessionals, putting our most vulnerable students in danger of missing out on the education they are legally entitled to and deserve. This $10,000 check will improve recruitment and retention efforts, making the position more attractive to prospective educators and making it possible for our current paraprofessionals to stay in their current roles. It will also send the message that we recognize, value and appreciate these educators who devote themselves to their work and our students daily.
Second, we must break the city’s reliance on pattern bargaining. At the start of last school year, the UFT found that there were at least 1,600 paraprofessional vacancies throughout the city. Later, the Department of Education confirmed that that number was closer to 3,000. We immediately began hosting hiring fairs and helping candidates navigate the complex hiring process. As a result of these efforts, hundreds of paraprofessionals were nominated and hired, yet we still have many outstanding vacancies. Until we fundamentally change the way we pay paraprofessionals, we will never have enough of these educators in our schools.
It’s time to properly fix the paraprofessional shortage in New York City and to show our appreciation for the essential workers who keep our schools running and our students safe, cared for and inspired. We must pass the “RESPECT check” legislation today to begin moving in the right direction once and for all. Thank you for holding this hearing and I look forward to working together to support paraprofessionals.
Priscilla Castro, Chapter Chairperson for the UFT Paraprofessionals
My name is Priscilla Castro, and I am the chairperson of the Paraprofessional Chapter at the United Federation of Teachers (UFT). I represent 26,000 paraprofessionals who work in New York City Public Schools every day. On their behalf, I want to thank Chairs Carmen De La Rosa and Lincoln Restler and the members of the Committee on Civil Service and Labor and the Committee on Governmental Operations for holding this hearing. Today, I am full of hope that we are about to take an important step toward providing paraprofessionals with the recognition they so deserve.
I cannot express how much the “RESPECT check” legislation has meant to my colleagues and me. The day that Council Member Keith Powers introduced the bill in April, we were filled with gratitude and disbelief. To reassure my members that yes, this was real, I printed out copies of the legislation and handed them out at our next chapter meeting. The possibility of an additional $10,000 annually felt like a lifeline and an opportunity for the financial freedom so many of us need.
I have proudly served as the chair of the paraprofessional chapter for the past three years. During this time, I have been inspired and moved by the work of my fellow paraprofessionals, who show up with dedication and love for their students daily. But I’ve also felt heartbroken as I have listened to the stories of paraprofessionals who have struggled to make ends meet.
As it stands now, the take-home pay for a paraprofessional is often as little as $1,000 every two weeks. To pay rent, buy groceries, clothe one’s children and stay afloat with this sum is nearly impossible in any city, let alone one of the most expensive cities in the world. I’ve received emails and phone calls from paraprofessionals living in homeless shelters because they cannot afford to pay their rent and from others who don’t get home until 10 p.m. because they are working two or three jobs. Many of these educators are forced to resign from the job that they love, not because they want to, but because they have to in order to survive.
This is unacceptable. We cannot allow the educators who devote themselves to our most vulnerable children to suffer because of the noble and necessary career path they chose.
We also cannot afford to lose more paraprofessionals than we already have. Although the Department of Education has refused to provide us with the exact number of paraprofessional vacancies this school year, we know that the number is likely in the thousands. All these vacancies put our students and schools at risk.
Without paraprofessionals, school becomes an unsafe and daunting environment for students with mental and physical disabilities. These students rely on paraprofessionals to ride the school bus with them, feed them, change them, encourage them and support them throughout the day. For students and families whose home languages are not English, multi-lingual paraprofessionals are their bridge to the school community. They enable families to communicate with teachers and administrators about their children and how they are faring at school. Teachers also depend on paraprofessionals. When students experience emotional distress or frustration in the classroom, it is the paraprofessional who calms them down so that the teacher can complete their lesson and dedicate time to the other students in their class.
The role of the paraprofessional is vital to the school community, and the cost of losing even more of them will be much higher and more damaging to our students than providing them with an extra $10,000 each year. To make certain that our schools have enough paraprofessionals, we must pass the “RESPECT check” legislation.
Once again, thank you for this opportunity to speak about the experience of paraprofessionals in New York City. I urge you to vote in favor of Int. 1261 and ensure that there are still paraprofessionals in our schools in the years ahead.
John Kamps, Second Vice Chairperson for the UFT Paraprofessional Chapter
My name is John Kamps, and I am the 2nd vice chairperson for the Paraprofessional Chapter at the United Federation of Teachers (UFT). I would like to thank Chairs Carmen De La Rosa and Lincoln Restler, as well as the committee members, for holding this hearing today. I am grateful for the opportunity to speak in favor of the paraprofessional “RESPECT check” legislation.
Paraprofessionals are often described as an extra set of hands, and it’s true that we are willing to jump in and assist with anything and everything. However, we are so much more than that. We are an essential part of the school system.
Paraprofessionals make sure that students get on the school bus every morning and are changed and fed throughout the day. We calm and support over-spirited students so that teachers can devote attention to the other children in their classrooms. We slow lessons down and reset our students when they get frustrated to ensure that they keep moving forward. And, although this work is difficult, it is worth it. The best feeling in the world is getting to watch a student begin to understand something after struggling and to see the glimmer in their eyes. It is this feeling and the love for our students that keeps paraprofessionals in our profession, even if it means we and our families have to make sacrifices.
While the Department of Education has not disclosed the exact number, we know that we are short a couple of thousand paraprofessionals in New York City. This shortage forces us to take on multiple jobs within the school building, creating challenges for paraprofessionals and students alike. Rather than caring for just one student, we are often left to look after three to four additional students. For students who need a 1:1 paraprofessional, this causes them to fall even farther behind since they don’t get the undivided attention they need. And it leads to paraprofessional burnout.
Many paraprofessionals also work additional jobs outside of the school building. Members of our chapter work as many as three jobs just to keep their heads above water financially. And still, they find a way to show up for their students every day with care and dedication. We are willing to take on extra work, but there is only so much we can take before it takes a toll on us and our families.
For many paraprofessionals, the mental and financial stress that comes with this position is untenable, and they leave the profession altogether. While no one can blame them for making that decision, this creates a vicious cycle. The more paraprofessionals that we lose, the more work there is for those who remain in the profession, making it more likely that they will leave too. We need to break this cycle, and passing the “RESPECT check” legislation is a crucial step in the right direction.
This “RESPECT check” would give paraprofessionals across the city a sense of relief and the ability to take a deep breath. It would allow us to put more food in the refrigerator, potentially work two jobs instead of three, throw our child a birthday party and spend more quality time with our families. This additional $10,000 would encourage paraprofessionals to stay in schools and attract new educators to our profession as well. It would show that the essential service we provide is appreciated and recognized.
Additionally, making the “RESPECT check” a reality would prove that the city is listening to us – its constituents. Last spring, members of the UFT paraprofessional chapter had the privilege of meeting with our City Council representatives to share what this “RESPECT check” would mean to us. We had the chance to explain what a paraprofessional actually does throughout the day. Seeing council members’ names appear on the list of bill sponsors after we spoke with them made us feel proud that we had used our voices and they mattered. It assured us that we were seen, and it felt so empowering to be heard. Now, as I speak at this hearing today, I feel reassured that our stories made an impact. I urge you to vote in favor of the “RESPECT check” to further prove that constituents’ voices do, in fact, make a difference. Again, I thank you for holding this hearing and listening to the paraprofessionals of this city.
Christi Angel, President of the Citywide Council for District 75
My name is Christi Angel. I am the president of the Citywide Council for District 75, and I’m here alongside the United Federation of Teachers (UFT) and the families, educators and advocates of District 75, who are standing up for our city’s most vulnerable children.
Every day, paraprofessionals step into classroom environments that demand extraordinary patience, compassion and strength. They are the calm during a meltdown, the voice of comfort when a child is overwhelmed, and the steady hands that make learning and safety possible.
And yet, despite this sacred work, many earn just over $30,000 a year. Even after 15 years, many still make under $50,000. That’s not a living wage in New York City. It’s a moral failure. These are the people supporting our most vulnerable children, and they are among the lowest paid in the system.
I stand with the UFT and city council members fighting for a $10,000 permanent annual increase for paraprofessionals. This isn’t generosity. It’s justice. It’s how we show that we value the people who make inclusion and dignity possible for students with disabilities and complex needs. It’s about valuing the people who lift up our children with disabilities, including our nonverbal learners, our medically fragile students and those who cannot feed themselves, and who walk into the toughest situations with steady hands and open hearts.
We have a shortage crisis. There are classrooms without enough support and children waiting for help that never comes. If we don’t pay paraprofessionals what they deserve, we lose them, and when we lose them, our students suffer most.
So today, we’re calling on our legislators to do the right thing. Pass the bill. Fund the increase. Close the pay gap. Because when we invest in paraprofessionals, we invest in stability, in safety and in every child’s right to be seen and supported. Our students can’t wait. Their paraprofessionals can’t wait. Let’s do the right thing — now.
Anthony Barnes, Assistant Secretary for the UFT Paraprofessional Chapter
My name is Anthony Barnes, and I am the Assistant Secretary for the UFT Paraprofessional Chapter. Imagine every time you get paid, you’re still behind because your pay doesn’t cover the cost of living. Imagine walking to and from work because you didn’t have enough left from your paycheck to buy a weekly Metro Card. Imagine your lights are turned off by Con Edison because, again, you couldn’t keep up with your bills or your payment plan. Imagine not being able to pay your bills on time, to boost your credit score, or to move to a safer and bigger place for your family. Imagine keeping this all to yourself because you’re embarrassed that you have a professional job that doesn’t treat you like a professional.
I experienced those things as a paraprofessional who has worked in schools for more than 30 years, and, unfortunately, paraprofessionals still get caught up in the” never having enough money scenario”. The RESPECT check would mean relief and satisfaction for thousands of New York City paraprofessionals. This money will relieve members of many burdens that can be solved by simply having more money. It will mean they can pay their mortgages, get the roofs and floors in their homes fixed, and get their broken cars fixed. This money could be saved and invested and put towards a down payment for a home or a child’s college tuition.
This RESPECT check will start to make up for the disrespect we have endured by those that do not see us as important educators or see us as someone who can easily be replaced. This RESPECT check will greatly close the gap between the lowest-paid paraprofessionals and the top-paid school administrators. It’s time to show up for paraprofessionals like we show up for the children in the New York City public school system every day.
TreVaughn Taylor, Queens paraprofessional
My name is TreVaughn Taylor and I am a paraprofessional in Queens. Today I stand before you not as someone extraordinary, but as someone who knows what it feels like to give everything and still be unseen and as someone who knows this injustice cannot persist.
I stand here as a paraprofessional in the New York City Public Schools, proudly serving our District 75 — one of thousands who show up day after day, quietly holding the heartbeat and being the backbone of every classroom. I’ve been the one who comes in early, stays late and still finds the strength to show up again tomorrow, the next day and the day after that— not because it’s easy, but because I care too much for our students, especially those in our district. As I stand here before you, with my union family, we represent thousands of voices and thousands of hearts who know this same story all too well and who are right behind us.
I’ve been the one guiding a child through a meltdown, catching them before they fall and teaching them to read when the world said they couldn’t. I’ve been a mentor, a counselor, a peacemaker — and sometimes, the only safe space that child has all day. But let me be honest. I’ve also been the one counting pennies at the gas pump, checking my bank account before buying groceries and necessities and lying awake at night whispering, “Lord, how am I going to make it to the next check?” There were times I was one paycheck away from eviction, times I worked two or even three jobs just to keep my head above water, and times I walked into school with an empty stomach but a full heart.
And yes, I’ve had nights where my car became my shelter and I still got up before sunrise to show up for my kids at school. I’ve smiled through hunger, encouraged others through my own heartbreak and pain and prayed that my strength wouldn’t run out before that last bell rang. That’s what it means to be a paraprofessional. We don’t just work — we pour. We pour our time, our patience, our energy, our souls and our hearts into a system that too often gives us so little in return.
So, when we talk about this $10,000 RESPECT check, understand that this isn’t about luxury. It’s a lifeline. This is about lifting the weight that’s been pressing down on the very people who hold our classrooms — and our children — together. It’s about the paraprofessional who skips lunch to cover a class; the paraprofessional who comforts a crying student while silently fighting back tears of their own; and the paraprofessional who still shows up, even when their body aches and their spirit is tired. Because when you invest in us, you invest in every student we serve. When you honor us, you honor the foundation of education itself. And when you pay us fairly, you give us the strength to keep doing what we do best — changing lives. We’re not asking for favors. We’re asking for fairness. We’re not asking for applause. We’re asking for respect.
Today, let this moment be the start of something different. The moment that the unheard are heard. That the ones who pour into others, from a place of emptiness — finally get poured into. I am not just one paraprofessional. I am the voice of many. And today, I stand with all of them with pride, with power, with purpose, and with hope. It only takes one person to start a movement; one person to raise their voice; one person to say YES; and one person to say enough is enough. If that one person has to be me, then let it be me. Because I am one, but I stand for many, and our time is now.
Undrea Polite, Brooklyn paraprofessional
My name is Undrea Polite. I am a concerned Brooklyn resident and New York City paraprofessional of 29 years. I spent 18 years as a paraprofessional representative and two years as a chapter leader. I am here to testify on behalf of Int. 1261, or the “RESPECT check” legislation, which would rectify some of the damage that the unfair practice of pattern bargaining has done to paraprofessionals.
Every year at my school, we have a Thanksgiving feast for the students. Normally, I would participate and budget money for it each year, even though I was not bringing home a lot of money. Two years after my father passed away, I couldn’t take part. I didn't have the money to buy the extra food for the feast, pay my rent and pay my student loan payments for the month. This was one of the lowest moments in my professional life. I felt like I failed my students because I wasn't financially able to participate. It was especially disappointing because I am the type of paraprofessional who would pay for my students to go on a field trip and buy them lunch if their parents didn’t have money. This $10,000 would have helped me in this situation.
If this bill is passed, it would allow me the freedom to take care of my students and myself. I would never want anyone to feel the level of disappointment that I felt when I informed my principal that I could not partake in the feast. This “RESPECT check” would really help.
Thank you, Chair De La Rosa, Chair Restler and committee members for considering my testimony.
Tonia Calvo, Queens parent and paraprofessional
My name is Tonia Calvo, and I am the District 25 paraprofessional coordinator at the United Federation of Teachers (UFT). My journey began back in 2002, when my own child was referred for several special education services. At that time, I did not even know what the initials "EI" meant in the special education world. However, it did not take long to get acquainted with them. Fortunately, for me, my child was able to receive the services he needed to flourish, and I can say with all certainty that that would not have happened without his paraprofessionals.
He smiled getting on and off the school bus each day. He learned to do things that I did not think possible at the time. Speech was one of the services he needed, and he had difficulty telling me what he wanted. It was a frustrating time for all of us. He had several paraprofessionals in his classroom, and they would explain to me that he just communicated differently, using visuals and hand signals. He also had sensory issues that made a day at the park or eating a meal overwhelming. The paraprofessionals would encourage him to climb and jump at the park with his peers and snack time became a time to explore by touching and eating new foods. His teachers and academic experience were exceptional, but he thrived because of the nurturing and inspiration that he received from the paraprofessionals. They taught me, as a parent, that children do not learn in the same way, and that is ok. They taught him that it was ok to do things differently, and they did that because they performed their jobs with devotion and passion.
I will never forget their names: Eva, Yessica, and Bonchi, to name a few. What they did for him and all the other students in their classroom was invaluable, and this RESPECT check is just one way to show that.
In addition to my experiences with my son, I too am a paraprofessional. The aspect of my work that I am most proud of is the personal connection I create with the students. When I can make a child laugh because I understand them and can engage with them on a topic that is interesting to them, that makes my day. I am reminded of why my job is so important when I work with a child remotely and can sense that she is having a difficult time learning, and I say, "Let's take a break and watch Shimmer and Shine," her favorite show, and she lights up with wonder. Or when I suggest using colored pencils to do math just because it's fun, and the student looks at me like, “Wow, I can do that?”
If a student comes to school hungry, I go searching for something for them to eat in the cafeteria and suggest that we complete their work while they eat. When a child has soiled herself and is ashamed to leave her desk to get changed, I coax her into going to the bathroom and encourage her to change herself — with assistance — so that instead of feeling helpless, she feels empowered. I love seeing the lightbulbs go off when my students learn something new, and I thrive off the fact that they trust me enough to support them during the school day. Gaining that trust takes patience and empathy. While our students come to school to learn their ABCs and 123s, there is more to the world than that. I believe that if I can get them to let me into their world, I will be able to amplify it.
To me, the RESPECT check means that the role of paraprofessionals in schools and classrooms is acknowledged and valued. It means that the work we do does not go unrecognized. We are not asking for this check because we want a pat on the back for a job well done. It's about recognizing the fact that without paraprofessionals, some students could not, and would not, be able to have a truly enriching and successful academic experience.