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Delegates make action plan for coming year May 25, 2006
One day after approving the unification of New York State United Teachers and the National Education Association of New York, convention delegates set priorities for the new organization in speaking out more forcefully than ever for each of the constituencies it serves. Recognizing the value of early childhood education, delegates threw their support behind a recent policy statement by the state Board of Regents that calls, among other things, for full-day kindergarten in all districts, and a lowering of the compulsory kindergarten attendance age from 6 to 5. They also supported a measure calling for a Sept. 1 birth cutoff date for kids entering kindergarten. Delegates called on the state Legislature to provide a stable, long-term funding mechanism to assure that all districts can provide a sound, basic education to all kids pre-K through 12. As the state stalls in implementing a series of court orders to reform school funding, delegates — in a series of resolutions — urged NYSUT and its locals to recommit themselves to actively and publicly support a statewide solution to the issue of school funding. With closing of the achievement gap a priority for the statewide union, delegates recommended NYSUT continue to seek ways to direct more funding to poor rural and urban districts to help recruit and retain the best-qualified teachers. Delegates repeated a call for more clarity in regulations on the development and funding of Academic Intervention Services. Among those who are shortchanged by current practices, delegates agreed, are English Language Learners and students with disabilities. Backed by reams of research linking small classes with better classroom behavior and academic achievement, delegates called on NYSUT to work with the State Education Department to limit class sizes, particularly in elementary grades. In a resolution noting the positive effects of smaller classes on students of color and those in big-city districts, delegates agreed the initiative is another means to reduce the achievement gap "both in the years attending small classes and later on into high school and college." NYSUT and its national affiliate, the American Federation of Teachers, should ensure that class-size reduction programs are emphasized for grades pre-K-12 as the federal government works on reauthorization of its No Child Left Behind Act, the resolution stated. Expressing frustration with aspects of NCLB, delegates called on NYSUT to work with AFT to convince Congress to fully fund the federal program. They urged a delay in the deadline for schools to make sure their students achieve academic proficiency under NCLB until funding and testing issues are resolved; called for more equitable ways to assess English Language Learners; and urged tighter standards for private providers of remedial services under NCLB. Delegates agreed to have NYSUT seek to have classes in elementary and middle-level school suspended for a week to help teachers who need to administer and score annual tests in grades 3-8 under NCLB. Delegates committed NYSUT to seeking tighter controls on new charter schools, including measures that would: limit enrollment to no more than 5 percent of a district's total enrollment; require public hearings and voter approval of charter proposals; and ban any more charter schools in Albany, which now gives over more than 10 percent of the city's education budget to charter schools. For teachers of languages other than English, delegates approved two resolutions supporting LOTE, including incentives for college students to become teachers of Languages Other Than English and a bill in the Legislature that would provide funding for foreign language programs in elementary schools. They also voiced their support for school counselors, psychologists and social workers as the best-qualified professionals to provide mental health support services for students. Higher ed Delegates recommitted NYSUT and its higher ed locals to a public campaign seeking more financial support from the state and less reliance on raising tuition. The measure calls for additional funding for community colleges, full-time faculty lines and the Tuition Assistance Program. Concerned with the growing number of part-time college faculty, delegates committed NYSUT to seek salary equity and short-term disability coverage for all part-timers. However, a measure seeking improvements in calculating pensions for adjunct professors at CUNY was referred to the Board of Directors for further study. Delegates called for more funding for services to give students with disabilities a better chance to attend the college of their choice. Noting that nationally the average ratio of college students to counselors is 1,500-to-1, delegates agreed to look at the ratios at CUNY and SUNY campuses. They also renewed NYSUT's opposition to the so-called Academic Bill of Rights, described last year as a "subversion of academic freedom." Health and safety Concerned about proper care of students with diabetes, many of NYSUT's health care professionals lined up to support a resolution that opposes training non-medical personnel in schools to treat diabetic students as a substitute for hiring adequate numbers of school nurses. "You need to alert everyone at your schools to this challenge that is coming and don't compromise," said Anne Goldman, a New York City nurse who represents health care professionals on NYSUT's Board of Directors. The measure also calls for at least one full-time licensed registered nurse in every school building. Delegates called for ways to designate a person to make health care decisions for those without health care proxies. They pledged union support in encouraging school districts to prepare avian flu emergency plans; more home care choices for medically fragile students; and recommending classroom temperature maximums. Delegates passed resolutions affirming support for the state Occupational Safety and Health Training Program and asking NYSUT to develop a workplace violence prevention program for health care locals and a model workplace violence policy for health care employees. They supported use of compact fluorescent light bulbs to reduce energy use and pressed for changes to OSHA's indoor air quality standards for schools, which are based on adults, not children. A measure aimed at protecting teachers from students who are not immunized was referred to the Board. Delegates also called for a review of safety in school science labs and urged NYSUT to seek legislation to control student-teacher ratios and lab class sizes. SRPs In addition to calling for an annual School-Related Professionals recognition day, delegates called on NYSUT to work with State Ed to require that all districts provide training programs for teaching assistants. They directed the union to seek laws mandating student-to-adult ratios for SRPs supervising students in play areas and other out-of-classroom activities, and agreed the union should work to ensure that all SRPs receive a "living wage." NYSUT was requested to seek amendments to laws to give civil service employees the same protections tenured teachers receive under Section 3020-A of Education Law. Delegates also called on NYSUT to: create a mentor program for teaching assistants and others; consider creating a leadership institute for SRPs; look at recruiting and training SRPs as labor relations specialists; and consider hiring full-time facilitators from SRP ranks for SRP professional development. BOCES Delegates called for a more equitable state reimbursement rate for 12-month BOCES services and approved resolutions calling for restoration of the former BOCES expense-driven aid formula; offering wide support for BOCES as an education service provider; and asking NYSUT to seek legislation requiring BOCES districts to fill School-Related Professionals vacancies more quickly. Reacting to a problem at many BOCES, delegates recommended NYSUT continue a longstanding effort to protect therapists, counselors and others against the growing practice by some districts of contracting out their jobs. Military issues With intensity, delegates debated two resolutions touching on national issues: military recruiting and the war in Iraq. The first resolution calls on NYSUT to support the confidentiality of student records and lobby colleges to publicize a student's right to prohibit release of personal information to recruiters. It also calls for colleges to ensure that recruitment protesters are not denied constitutional rights to freedom of speech and assembly. Delegates passed an amendment so that the resolution omitted a statement that NYSUT opposes the use of schools and colleges as sites for recruiting. Delegates also passed a resolution seeking NYSUT's support for withdrawal of military forces from Iraq. It calls on NYSUT to work with its national affiliate, the American Federation of Teachers, and the AFL-CIO "to end the war in Iraq and bring our troops home rapidly." Pension and retirement Delegates urged NYSUT to continue its vigorous defense of traditional defined-benefit pensions from growing pressure to replace them with private accounts. They outlined measures to correct deficiencies in Medicare's Plan D prescription drug program, including allowing Medicare to negotiate lower prices with manufacturers. With the Medicaid drug program under way, delegates moved for protection of existing programs in the state, including the Elderly Pharmaceutical Insurance Coverage program. NYSUT was directed to fight for: additional service credit for teachers who contributed 3 percent of their salaries to the state retirement system beyond 10 years; improvements to the permanent Cost-of-Living Adjustment the union helped secure from the state Legislature; domestic partner benefits; pension credit for summer programs and Peace Corps service; and the elimination of accrued interest for buying back ERS service credit. Delegates voted for resolutions to push for legislation that would: allow military credit to be purchased under the same terms as non-military credit; let teachers apply unused sick leave to service credit; and change ERS service years from 25 to 20 with half pay. Delegates referred to the NYSUT Board resolutions aimed at changing retirees' designated pension beneficiaries, and holding TIAA-CREF responsible for its investment policies. Social justice After a presentation from members of the state Labor-Religion Coalition and listening to a coffee plantation operator from Peru, delegates urged NYSUT members and their employers to purchase fair trade products — particularly coffee, tea and chocolate — whenever possible. Citing Wal-Mart's failure to provide many employees with affordable health insurance, delegates urged their statewide union to support legislation that would require such large employers to follow an industry standard for providing benefits or reimburse taxpayers for the costs of providing health care to their employees. In resolutions condemning the retail giant for its business practices, delegates called on NYSUT to urge members to patronize only union stores. They also requested the union work with the AFL-CIO to publish a list of anti-union corporations and governments. Delegates heartily endorsed a pair of resolutions honoring the memory of civil rights icons Coretta Scott King and Rosa Parks. Looking to protect the rights of immigrant workers, delegates urged the union to oppose a state policy that would deny a driver's license to immigrants who cannot produce a Social Security number or prove they are in the U.S. legally. They also approved a special order of business supporting the AFL-CIO in its campaign for "the responsible reform of immigration laws that must protect the working conditions for all workers in the U.S." Defeating an amendment from the floor that called for the need to protect U.S. borders, delegates agreed with members like David Israel of East Williston TA, who reminded them: "Under current laws, my grandparents would have been illegal immigrants" as would many ancestors of his fellow delegates, he suggested. Miscellaneous Delegates called for NYSUT to consider creating a task force to look at dealing with recalcitrant school boards that stall contract settlements, and looked to NYSUT to encourage development of contract language to enhance teacher autonomy and prevent administrative "micromanaging." They directed NYSUT to look further into the issue of domestic partner benefits and seek to ensure that all public employees be guaranteed those benefits "as a matter of human and civil rights" whether in-service or retired. Delegates called for federal legislation to remove the $5,250 annual cap on employer-provided tuition remission benefits for those seeking graduate degrees. Looking to enhance adult literacy, they urged NYSUT to encourage its locals to provide some type of stipend for members who complete literacy volunteer training programs. At the direction of delegates, NYSUT will seek changes in State Ed regulations to allow districts to actively promote passage of school budgets. Proposals to put school budget approval in the hands of boards of education — as in the state's Big Five cities — rather than by vote of district residents, were referred to the NYSUT Board. Delegates passed resolutions asking NYSUT to lobby for legislation that would: renew the National Voting Rights Act of 1965; improve neighborhoods around schools; provide supplemental military leave, reimbursable by the state; and enhance 3014A and B protections to certain school employees not currently covered. Of the 118 resolutions considered, 88 were approved, 15 were referred to the NYSUT Board of Directors, two were tabled and 13 were replaced by others or withdrawn. |
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