In September, two Farmingdale educators were killed en route to band camp when the bus they were traveling in crashed beside I-84. Farmingdale Band Director Gina Pellettiere, 43, and retired social studies teacher Beatrice Ferrari, 77, both members of the Farmingdale Federation of Teachers, were chaperoning hundreds of students on this annual trip when the bus had a blowout and overturned into a ravine. They were the only fatalities.

NYSUT President Melinda Person honored these two educators during today’s RA program and talked about the ways in which educators like Ferrari and Pellettiere impact lives and communities.

“The groundswell of sympathy and support we witnessed in Farmingdale speaks to how significant a teacher’s contributions are. Educators mold minds and build communities. They take individual chords and make music,” Person said.

In a moving video tribute, Farmingdale educators and students described the outpouring of support they witnessed in the days and weeks after the accident. Cards, posters, and care packages streamed in from around the globe. United in grief, people from near and far declared themselves “Dalers for a Day.” RA attendees were then serenaded by the accomplished Farmingdale A Capella and Vocal Jazz chorus.

“Bea and Gina’s legacy cannot be overstated,” Person concluded. “They live on in our hearts, and in the hearts of the generations of students they educated. The energy and dedication they brought to this profession are a lesson for all of us, and one that will not be forgotten.”

Farmingdale Federation of Teachers members David Abrams, Matthew DeMasi, Erica Hartmann, Philip Scanze and Jennifer Tower, all chaperones on the band trip, were listed on NYSUT’s Lifeline Honor Roll. The initiative honors teachers who assisted in saving lives.

Joan Perrini has been a staunch union activist since she began her teaching career in 1960. A social studies teacher at Udall Road Junior High School in West Islip for 38 years, Perrini served first as secretary for her local, and then as building representative. In 1964, she was elected vice president and worked with the local president to join the West Islip Teachers Association with NYSUT, AFT and the AFL-CIO.

For the next 10 years, she served as a statewide delegate and a member of the local’s negotiating committee. In 1984, she became president of the West Islip TA, a post she held until her retirement in 1998. One of the first women to serve as president, she remains the longest serving president of her local.

Perrini remained active in retirement, fighting to protect the rights and benefits of NYSUT retirees. She served as president of her area’s retiree council for 12 years, where she was instrumental in building what is considered one of the most active executive boards and membership of any retiree council on Long Island. Perrini was also a retiree services consultant in Suffolk County for six years, during which time she succeeded in forming many new retiree chapters.

“I want to get more retirees to be active unionists for life. There is a lot of good that they can do,” she said. In 2012, she was elected to the NYSUT Board of Directors for Election District 52, representing one-third of the retirees in the state. As Director, she is keenly aware of the importance of keeping all retiree voices heard, and she strives to make sure their needs are met.

Elizabeth Perez’s education about the union began at home. Her father was a journeyman with the IBEW, Local 3, for over 30 years, and later a union shop steward. Perez and her siblings were encouraged from an early age to be actively involved in preserving the rights and protections afforded by union membership for themselves and those that followed.

Growing up, Perez knew she wanted to be a teacher. From her earliest days playing school, to her first job as a classroom observer at 14, her path was straight and true. “For me, there was no other career I was going to do. It was a call to service, and that’s how I see myself — as a servant leader, called to service,” she explained. She graduated from Brooklyn College with a degree in education and took a job as a bilingual/ESL teacher at PS 160 in Brooklyn.

Perez joined the UFT immediately and was soon elected chapter leader, a position she held for over 18 years. She was recruited to serve as a staffer at the Brooklyn office because of her advocacy for membership. She was promoted to Special Representative, and eventually took on the added responsibility of Political Action Coordinator. She was named Brooklyn Borough Representative in 2015. Perez and her team focus on providing the highest quality service with a personal touch.

“It’s a huge responsibility, but we do it with pride. We do it because we believe in the work we do and the importance of unionism,” said Perez, who serves as a member of NYSUT’s Board of Directors, delegate to the NYSUT and AFT conventions, an instructor at the chapter leader trainings and member of the UFT’s Action Committee.

NYSUT honored State Sen. Robert Jackson Friday afternoon at the NYSUT RA with the Albert Shanker Award for Distinguished Service. Jackson received the award for his persistence and ongoing commitment to fighting for the rights of working people. It recognizes individuals who’ve made special contributions to public education in the United States.

Jackson launched the Campaign for Fiscal Equity lawsuit which found that New York City children were being denied a sound, basic education due to a lack of resources, winning $16 billion in school funding in 2003. Jackson continues to advocate for the working class and is an outspoken advocate for improving pension Tiers 5 and 6.

“I express my deepest gratitude to NYSUT for bestowing upon me the highest honor … but more than that, I want to express my dedication to the cause that we hold dear,” said Jackson. “When it came to reforming Tier 6 and reducing case sizes, we kept hearing it can’t be done … I’m here to say yes we can, and I look forward to working with you!”

In his RA address, Mario Cilento, president of the New York State AFL-CIO said that it was his 12th grade English teacher at Christopher Columbus High School in the Bronx who taught him his first lesson about labor.

He reminisced about a time when he clowned around in class, and how his teacher took him aside and told him was distracting his fellow students and sidetracking their learning.

“I take what I do now, and I recognize that there was a greater lesson in there from Mrs. McGough. Everything we do in this movement is about everybody trying to work off the same page and work out of the same playbook,” Cilento said. “When we do that as a labor union, that’s when we reach our potential.”

Governor Kathy Hochul addressed NYSUT delegates at the 52nd Representative Assembly in New York City on Friday. The governor has worked with NYSUT on a variety of education initiatives, such as addressing student mental health needs, higher education funding, apprenticeship and training for new teachers, including educators in the Workplace Violence Protection law, and securing the largest fix to New York’s broken pension system in two decades.

The governor thanked all of the educators in the room, saying that as we head into Teacher Appreciation Week, “we appreciate teachers every day here in the state of New York.” Hochul also paid tribute to one of her teachers, Peter James, who passed away last year. “He opened up my mind to the power of government.” When Hochul said her goal was to be a staffer for a Senator or member of Congress, Mr. James pushed her harder to aim higher and dream bigger.

In an impassioned speech covering an array of initiatives, politics and emotional appeals, American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten shared her thoughts on the past, present and future of our union and the labor movement.

“When NYSUT fights, NYSUT wins. But it takes intention, hard work, and a union. How do we make this work the norm, not the exception? Nationally we’re doing this through #ReadingOpensTheWorld and community schools and more,” said Weingarten.

Weingarten also shared updates on record-setting organizing wins and how our national affiliate’s strength is helping shape the world of politics, bridging gaps between education advocates and elected officials.

NYSUT members matter. That was the message of NYSUT President Melinda Person’s Friday opening address to delegates at the 2024 NYSUT RA. “You’re the architects, the engineers and the builders of greatness … shaping minds and our future.”

She noted the many wins the statewide union achieved this year thanks to member activism: from getting Proposition 1 approved to supporting small city school districts, to passing the Workplace Violence Prevention Act, to fighting for and winning $430 million in additional Foundation Aid and adding more than $100 million in operating funding for SUNY, CUNY and community colleges.

“We saved SUNY Downstate hospital … again,” said Person. “And in a major win we successfully advocated for the next step in fixing Tier 6!”

Changing the Final Average Salary contribution for Tier 6 members from five to three years is the most significant improvement to public pensions in more than 20 years, Person explained. She pledged to continue fighting for pension equity for Tiers 5 and 6 members. Other policy goals include pushing back against punitive testing, and this year, after 14 long years, finally fixing APPR.

Person also pledged to address the impact of poverty. “Our schools have become the social safety net for our communities, but we can’t do everything,” she said noting that one in five children live in poverty, a statistic that led the union to launch its 1-in-5 anti-poverty campaign, which calls on lawmakers to address the root causes of poor academic performance — childhood poverty and inequality.

With the school budget votes and state and federal elections on the horizon, Person called on members to be politically engaged by getting to the polls and teaching their students about democracy. “You have a pivotal role as educators … teaching critical thinking … teaching how to question what is true … teaching students how to disagree while being civil,” she said.

“Our world needs you more than ever and your participation matters!”

NYSUT members joined together in dance today. A flash mob of 18 retirees hit the exhibition floor to do the Macarena — and to send a message of dynamism and solidarity.

Swinka Richards, NYSUT Program Services Assistant organized the flash mob. “We wanted to show that our retirees are still active and also give in-service members a chance to join in,” said NYSUT Second Vice President Ron Gross. Gross also joined the crew.

Retirees hope that the dance made them more visible to in-service members — and more accessible.

“I just thought it was a thrill to bring attention to the retirees,” said Bev Voos, vice president for Retiree Council 6, and co-chair of the Retiree Advisory Committee. She added that retirees want to improve their relationship with in-service members and offer value to them. “I think this was a way to get in that door,” she said.

“Activities like this make the RA so special,” said Laura Pokorny, RC 17. “We were all helping each other, just like we do in the union.”

“It was a lot of fun,” said Barbara Hafner, RC 18. Hafner, who mostly confines her dancing to her own kitchen, said she and the members had been practicing on their own for weeks, and that it was a joy to finally all come together to show off their moves. The crew, all bedecked in matching Rosie the Riveter T-shirts spun and clapped in unison. “We all got it down pat,” Hafner said with pride.

Dave Chizzonite remembers well the stories his grandmother told him about union bashers. She was a rep at the knitting mill where she worked in Herkimer, NY. When she spoke out, her employers tried to silence her by sending her to the top floor of the factory to work in the oppressive heat — it didn't stop her.

Shelly Chizzonite grew up in a UAW household that enjoyed a great middle-class life thanks to her dad's decades of work at Chrysler's New Venture Gear plant in Dewitt, NY.

Is it any surprise these educators (both proud SUNY grads) found each other and now make up one of many NYSUT power couples?

Both are NYS Master Teachers — Dave is a science teacher and president of the Chittenango Teachers Association and Shelly is a school counselor and VOTE-COPE coordinator with East Syracuse-Minoa United Teachers. Both use their family experiences as the springboard to do good work on behalf of NYSUT members.

Dave serves on the NYSUT Board as ED 8 Director. Shelly helps get out the vote (especially for John Mannion for Congress) as NYSUT’s Political Action Coordinator in SD50.

Together this NYSUT couple is truly #UnionStrong! Do you know a NYSUT power couple? Tell us! #NYSUTRA

Legendary educator and historian Diane Ravitch saluted the work of unions and educators in a Thursday keynote address at the Local and Retiree Council Presidents Conference luncheon. “I’m really pleased to be here because you’re my people — teachers and union members,” said Ravitch, who called unions the key to building a strong middle class. “You are on the right side of history … you belong to a union that protects students, teachers and academic freedom in public schools.”

Ravitch detailed the misguided, decades-long focus on standardized testing and privatization and its negative impact on student and teacher morale. “A student’s home life [not their teacher] is the biggest indicator of their success,” she said. “Students who are well-fed, secure and have access to medical care will do well in school.”

Smaller class sizes, well-resourced teachers and schools and supporting student families through wrap-around services, like those provided by community schools, are also important, she continued.

Ravitch hopes that recent education wins such as the long-sought APPR reform de-linking student test scores from teacher evaluations, negotiated by NYSUT President Melinda Person and Betty Rosa, New York state education commissioner, signal shifts in education policy. “I hope it will be a new day … the beginning of a Renaissance not only of public schools, but of sanity.”

The pre-RA conference kicked off the work of the statewide union’s annual convention, with leaders attending sessions on artificial intelligence in the classroom, experiential learning, APPR reform, and breakouts for School-Related Professionals, higher education professionals and retirees.

The NYSUT RA heads back to New York City — the Big Apple — for 2024 after several years in Albany. Delegates will meet May 3─4 for a packed schedule of elections, resolutions and events both before and after the conference. The convention kicks off with the Local and Retiree Council Presidents Conference, May 2─3.

In addition to setting the union’s agenda for the next year on topics ranging from pre-K through postgraduate education, legislation, healthcare, organizing and retirement, the RA is also a time to recognize the hard work and dedication of NYSUT members. The union will present its highest honor, the Albert Shanker Award for Distinguished Service, to Sen. Robert Jackson. We will also recognize winners of several NYSUT awards including “Not For Ourselves Alone”: The Sandy Feldman Outstanding Leadership Award, the NYSUT Humanitarian Award, the Ken Kurzweil Social Justice Recognition Award and the NYSUT Life Line Honor Roll. Winners of the union’s constituency awards and honors for members’ and locals’ community service and other outreach will also be recognized.

New this year, the RA will include a CALM room and a FUN room, providing delegates the chance to relax and take a break from the action.

For more information on the 2024 RA and the Local and Retiree Council Presidents Conference, visit nysut.org/RA.

NYSUT members from Binghamton to Brooklyn, Peru to Poughkeepsie, stand strong together to improve our communities, secure the resources public schools and colleges need, and protect members' rights.

With one voice we proudly proclaimed: "Together, we are NYSUT!"