NYSUT's diverse constituencies have a new direct link. That's NYSUT Vice President Kathleen Donahue, who said the reorganization of officer responsibilities was made to ensure the varied groups would receive the visibility and the service that they deserve within the union.
Improved communication includes redesigned constituency newsletters and more visibility in New York Teacher.
Constituency group members have filled close to 30,000 classroom seats at regional and statewide training programs this year. Attendance at the Professional Issues Forum on Health Care mushroomed to 190 participants from 50 just three years ago. The annual conferences for BOCES staff, community college faculty and School-Related Professionals are also growing. Special programs are geared toward newer members, and the department helped launch a Small and Rural Locals Advisory Council to focus on issues unique to that constituency.
NYSUT's more than 80,000 SRPs have a particular challenge, presented by the federal No Child Left Behind Act, Donahue said. "Like too many other mandates ... Washington has dictated what it wants, but it has failed to provide the resources or the clear direction on how to get there."
BOCES members, as fierce advocates for funding reform, made real progress this year in ensuring there were budget restorations for vitally important special ed pre-school programs, she said.
Vital services
NYSUT recognized the vital services of its health care professionals by creating a voting seat for them on the Board of Directors. Health care workers rallied May 2 at the Capitol to advocate for minimum staffing levels, to fight against mandatory overtime, to protect the scope of practice and for other critical issues.
Health and safety successes this year include a teen worker safety curriculum and the passage of legislation that requires all New York schools to use environmentally sensitive, non-toxic cleaning products beginning this fall. NYSUT is also helping districts implement "green cleaning" techniques.
NYSUT's 151,000 retirees, Donahue said, are "a rational and passionate voice for issues like Medicare, Social Security and the integrity of our pensions.
"So, yes, we are a powerful teachers union. But we're also a powerful SRP union. We're a powerful health care union ... a powerful retiree union ... a powerful union of new and experienced members ... of locals large and small," she said. "But, at the end of the day, we're one union working toward the same goals of equity, justice and fairness for working men and women and for the families of New York state."