It was so great to see so many of you at Fogarty's (especially the first-timers and the new teachers

See you at Fogarty's on Friday starting at 3.  We deserve it!

See you there!

I'll see you in the cafeteria Wednesday, April 23 at 3ish for an update on negotiations and other issues.  

NYSUT: inBloom’s closing a victory for grassroots activism

ALBANY, N.Y. April 21, 2014 — New York State United Teachers said today’s announcement that inBloom would shut down its operations demonstrated the power that parents and teachers hold when they work together and fight for what’s best for students.

 NYSUT, in coalition with parents’ groups and other allies, had demanded that New York state cancel its contract with inBloom, a nonprofit funded by $100 million in Gates Foundation grants which had planned to collect, store and manage troves of highly sensitive, personal data on every student.  At legislative hearings, rallies and through its lobbying clout, NYSUT repeatedly stressed that inBloom’s cloud-based data storage portal threatened student and teacher privacy and represented a costly — and unnecessary — expense for school districts.

 NYSUT President Karen E. Magee noted that teachers and school districts use data responsibly and securely on a daily basis to ensure that students receive the support and services they need to succeed in the classroom.

 “The inBloom project was exploitive. It sought to collect and store 400 different data points on every student, with no guarantee that highly sensitive information about students and their families would remain private and secure, and not be sold or misused,” Magee said. “InBloom was invasive. It was costly. It was unnecessary and, because parents and teachers stood up together for kids, inBloom is no more.”

 NYSUT Executive Vice President Andrew Pallotta said students and their families will be well-served by existing BOCES and school district services, which are less expensive and offer stronger protections.  “This is a clear victory for the privacy and confidentiality of students and educators,” Pallotta said. “Our voices were heard.”

 New York State United Teachers is a statewide union with more than 600,000 members in education, human services and health care. NYSUT is affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers, the National Education Association and the AFL-CIO.

I received the below from NYSUT seeking member feedback on APPR.  If you get the "Members in the Field" document back to me, I'll compile information and send the "Local President's Summary Field R

April 10, 2014
Draft Recommendations for Changes in APPR: Submit your feedback by May 16
Source: NYSUT APPR Workgroup & NYSUT Policy Council

NYSUT local presidents are asked to weigh in by May 16 on draft recommendations for changing APPR developed by the union’s APPR Workgroup.

Formed in response to an April 2013 RA resolution, the APPR Workgroup was charged with recommending changes in state requirements for teachers’ Annual Professional Performance Reviews (APPR). To further this work, NYSUT surveyed local presidents on problems with the current APPR process and held focus groups of teachers and parents to supplement survey findings. The workgroup, comprising local presidents from around the state, developed five recommendations calling for significant changes in the state’s approach to APPR. Those recommendations were reviewed by the NYSUT Policy Council and will go to the Board of Directors after input from locals.

Local presidents are asked to share the draft recommendations with members and convey their feedback to NYSUT Research and Educational Services by May 16. (Download the documents below for details and feedback forms; forms for presidents and members are editable PDFs.)

• Draft Recommendations and Q&A 
• APPR: Local President's Summary Field Report 
• APPR: Members in the Field: Feedback Report 

Member feedback is the foundation of everything we do: It drives the work of our committees, our Policy Council, our Board of Directors and our ongoing advocacy with the Legislature and the Board of Regents.

Please get the word out: NYSUT wants to hear from members on crucial next steps regarding APPR.

Additional Resources

• 2013 Survey of Local Presidents on APPR Implementation 
• Statewide Focus Group Series with Teachers and Parents on APPR Key Findings 

NYSUT locals in our region are getting together on May 10 for the second annual Race for Solidarity (click here for the details).  It's a 5K at FDR Park in Yorktown.  Come for the race, come for the food, come for the solidarity, or just come to support the Maria Fereri Children's Hospital (that's where the funds raised are going).  

Let Stephanie Grohowski know if you are interested in joining our BTA team.

Some Open Leadership Positions for 2014-2015

The BTA is in need of a few good members to take the lead on a few committees:

The Making Strides Walk

Social Justice

VOTE COPE

PTA Liaison

BTA Communications

2 members of the Executive Council

If you are interested in more details about any of these, ask!  We need your leadership!

Click here for a link to NYSUT's website and the article introducing Harrison Association of Teachers (now former) president