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The right time
PICTURED: In October, with his wife by his side, Tom receives a standing ovation by members of the NYSUT Board of Directors for his years of service to the union.
When the merger agreement for United Teachers of New York and the New York State Teachers Association was signed March 30, 1972, Hobart said: "We have made a commitment to working together instead of working at cross-purposes. By joining together, and forming the largest employee organization in New York state, teachers will now have the power to improve the quality of education for every child and to raise the status of the teaching profession."
Looking back, Hobart is content to know NYSUT met those goals.
"This is the right time for NYSUT and for me to move on," he says with a smile. "NYSUT's success on behalf of half-a-million members is the greatest accomplishment and satisfaction of my union life.
"I haven't lost the passion or the drive. I still get pumped up when I hear 'Solidarity Forever.' It's just that the union is ready for the next generation of leaders."
Text by Betsy Sandberg with editing by Deborah Hormell Ward and Frank Maurizio. Photos courtesy of the Hobart family and New York Teacher archives. We thank Dennis Gaffney for sharing taped interviews.
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