Dear NYSUT members,
This year, I’m thankful for the opportunity to listen.
Over the past few months on NYSUT’s Common Ground Over Chaos bus, I’ve had the great privilege of meeting many of you around the state as you’ve shared your ideas, struggles, triumphs and hopes for the future.
Listening to one another is how we find common ground. These conversations with educators and workers from all walks of life showed me that most of us want the same things. We want to create better lives for our families, our members, and the students and communities we serve.
I’m grateful to each of you who work tirelessly to do that every day. Your hard work matters — to children, to the most vulnerable, to individual communities, to our state, and to me.
I am proud of the common ground we share. And while we cannot all fit around the same Thanksgiving table, I hope you know I’ll be saying thanks for the honor it is to listen to you, to stand with you, and to fight for you.
Wishing you and your family a joyful and peaceful Thanksgiving.
Melinda Person
NYSUT President