The deadline to submit proposals for the 10th volume of NYSUT's academic journal Educator's Voice is June 13. The volume will feature practices that bring back the joy of teaching and learning in social studies, science and other subject areas that invite students to think, inquire and probe, while building a more intricate understanding of the world, its peoples, and systems. Articles should showcase best practices in content area instruction, including integrated teaching, from pre-K-12 educators, content specialists and faculty in higher education. For more information and to submit a proposal, go to www.nysut.org/callforproposals.
STUDY: Public pensions healthy, less costly
The New York State Teachers' Retirement System runs one of the nation's best-funded public pension plans, according to a report by the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems (NCPERS).
The NCPERS Public Retirement Systems Study report, released in November, found public pension funding levels increased while costs to manage plans decreased. Private sector and hybrid plans didn't fare so well in the study.
The study researched funds from 179 public retirement systems. Nationally, public pension funding levels are at 74.1 percent, up from 71.5 percent in 2014. NYSTRS is 92.9 percent funded. The average cost to administer the plans was 60 cents for every $100 managed, down from 61.1 cents a year earlier. The cost to manage the NYSTRS plan? About 24 cents per $100.
The average cost to manage most private sector equity and hybrid funds was 70-78 cents for every $100 managed, according to the NCPERS report.
The report found three of every four dollars in public pension system revenue can be attributed to investment income. For the state Teachers' Retirement System, about 85 percent of total income is generated by investments. Member and employer contributions made up the rest of the plans' funding.
For more information, or to view the full report, visit http://bit.ly/1KvJNNF.
CELEBRATING OUR NBCTS
NYSUT Vice President Catalina Fortino and teachers from the Roosevelt Union Free School District celebrate newly designated National Board Certified Teachers at a NYSUT-sponsored event at Adelphi University.
NEA President Lily Eskelsen Garcia, AFT President Randi Weingarten, NYSUT President Karen E. Magee, NEA–New Hampshire President Scott McGilvray, AFT–New Hampshire President Laura Hainey and NYSUT Vice President Paul Pecorale joined scores of activists from AFT and NEA locals in New Hampshire and the Northeast to show their support for Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton.