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SRPs look to future November 5 , 2003 NYSUT's Alan Lubin and Ann Gentilin talk with Beverly Fisher and Cathy Tumia, both of the recently affiliated Association of Greece Educational Professionals in Monroe County, about the advantages of being in a union. School-Related Professionals celebrated their 25th anniversary conference this year by looking forward. "We've come a long way, but we've got too much work to do for the future," Ann Gentilin told participants at New York State United Teachers' annual SRP leadership conference. The agenda is long and deep, said Gentilin, president of the Onteora Non-Teaching Employees Association. Gentilin chairs the union's School-Related Professionals advisory committee, which planned the three-day conference in Albany in mid-October. High on the list is getting more training for support staff. To support that, the conference featured 19 workshops tailored to different job titles in the range of support staff. SRP leaders learned strategies for preventing diesel fuel exposure, bargaining strategies for a bad economy and using Individualized Education Programs to support student instruction. They learned ways to identify and report child abuse and ways to make decisions when they are not in charge. Many speakers addressed how changes to the federal Title I program affect those who work in classrooms. NYSUT's First Vice President Antonia Cortese gave SRP leaders a first draft of a publication the union is developing to help members understand the intricacies of changes in the law. (See the next issue of New York Teacher for more details.) It is confusing, said Janet Duncan, president of the Ossining Support Staff during a question-and-answer session with Cortese. "What makes a Title I teacher or a Title I school? What's the difference?" she asked. Cortese explained that schools receive Title I funds for the education of economically disadvantaged youngsters. Districts can hire specific teachers to run specific programs, in which case children are identified to be in the programs, or districts can run school-wide programs where all children receive services. The No Child Left Behind act leaves a lot to be desired, said keynoter Lorretta Johnson, a Baltimore paraprofessional and vice president of the American Federation of Teachers. In fact, the original version of the law cut all funding for paras supporting classroom instruction. But that was before the AFT and statewide affiliates like NYSUT successfully lobbied to retain funding. "It may not be a good law, but it's up to us to take it and turn it into something good," Johnson said, urging New York's SRP members to support requirements such as taking more college courses. "Each of us is never too old to learn," Johnson said. "All of us have a legacy to leave." Participants honored Denise Crawford of the Mount Vernon Federation of Teachers, who received NYSUT's SRP Employee of the Year award, and six locals for outstanding support of VOTE-COPE, NYSUT's voluntary political action fund (see related article for more on VOTE-COPE awards). - Betsy Sandberg |
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