UFT Delegate Assembly October 14, 2020--We Will Survive (at least until June)

UFT President Michael Mulgrew.-- began listening at 4:32--talking about what happened with testing in September. Governor came out with a color coded plan which begins next week. We have already begun testing and get results daily. Our monitoring program tests a certain percentage monthly. Happening same day now, but will be spread out in future. Will hopefully keep virus at bay.

Country now at beginning of second wave and our challenge is to keep city safe. If there's a problem with PPE, cleaning, procedures, let us know. Only way we can fix is if we know. 

Profession and livelihood during bad economy--Fought to get CARES act passed. UFT coordinated different education unions. Gave us a lifeline, helped small businesses and family, but ended September 30th. Hundreds of thousands of layoffs now happening across country. Teachers, teacher aides, paraprofessionals being laid off around state. 

City prepared notices in July for 9,000 UFT members, but were not sent out. City actually needed more teachers. Some with remote settings have been hit harder. Budget cuts are going to get worse. 

We're in mid-election, looking at SCOTUS, and even with stimulus package next few years will be tough. Between city and state no one has seen this sort of number. If state could borrow 30 billion right now, it would still be in red. Every day we go further and further. Our economy doesn't cover expenses on day to day basis. This is longterm challenge.

We are hearing better news on virus. We'll probably go through this entire school year dealing with this, but hopefully next year we can have a vaccine in sufficient quantity. If we can get to that, then it's only the economy.

Lump sum payment--Many of you have written me about it. We always anticipate bad things. We plan for bad days as teachers. Didn't talk to city about it at all, and then on October 2 I asked for confirmation they were processing payment. Asked again. I then called, knowing members would check paychecks. City Hall didn't realize payroll system gave us info a week before. Wasn't processed. We had prepped legal papers, and on Thursday they said they would not process payment. We immediately filed papers.

We signed an agreement in 2014 for deferred wages. Said any issue would go straight to arbitration with mediator for that contract. We went immediately. I was quite angry city just took our money. Knew they owed us. 

Whole premise of city's argument is they're in a difficult fiscal time so they can't make payment. That would mean anytime they claimed a difficult fiscal time they wouldn't have to make a payment. We could not let that stand. We went to arbitration. Was very simple. If they denied us then, they'd deny raise in May and they could keep making this argument. Arbitrator started mediating. I'd prefer just lump sum, but other half was moved into next fiscal year. While that was good for city, we were made whole, and there was a no layoff clause. Possibility of second no layoff year if federal stimulus gets done. Very possible. Could be Title One allotment. 

Even with that package, city and state are in bad shape. Working with MLC on early retirement, got legislation introduced on Friday. City has given us letter of support. First big step in getting to incentive. We've taken steps, but there are many others that have to be taken before we get there. 

We have to look at safety and stay focused on it at all times, If city goes all remote will mean city is overrun with COVID. Meanwhile some geographic areas will be going temporarily remote. 

While we have raise and no layoff clause we're good this year at least.

We have to settle on working conditions. We can't have principal saying you are both remote and in person teacher. We have a system in place. When we needed money for PPE, staffing, we got that done. Issue is DOE says some schools can't get teachers. Some principals say that just so DOE will leave them alone. They don't help. They're only problems. They may have said they were ready before, but now they need staff for all these positions.

That is our fight right now. Every single CL with operational complaint will be getting phone call this week or early next. Many elementary schools have in person teachers also blended remote. We need to know how many teachers we need and go after it. If we have to fight DOE, we will do it. We are gettng it done. All safety work was us. We made sure mandated testing was in place. 

Entire time we were in remote, we talked to only half a dozen people at DOE. Now everyone wants to put their hand in things and we aren't having it. We gave the city time to hire people and get things done but the city isn't doing that. 

SBOs are great but they are not for principals. It's your tool, your power. Not in CSA contract. Principals cannot jam them through. If you don't want SBO you aren't getting one. Principals are being told they can't hire, and that's not what our agreement is based upon. We will put big push on this for two weeks to get this resolved.

What you're doing is amazing. We are moving kids around the city, getting tested, and fighting for our livelihood and profession at the same time. All the central level management are inept and I'm just talking to chancellor. Election Day is a remote learning day, and was made so because we needed to meet our state obligation. We worked with DOE to get this through SED. We're being told now it's up to principal whether teachers have to come in. They say they aren't sure. Why do we have all these people at DOE if all they do is create more problems?

First think we will ask mayoral candidates is how they will dismantle DOE and start system to support schools. November 3rd is remote learning day, and you work remotely. It's a presidential election year. Why would we want you in schools when they are major polling places? At every level we have this frustration. But you get it done. Teachers figure it out. If you're waiting for DOE support, you will wait a long time.

We will stay focused on safety protocols. If there's a problem, let us know. If you have supply issues we can help you quickly. Instructional side can't get it done. 

We wish we could've got whole lump sum, but we'll get half later, no layoffs, and guaranteed raise. 

We're doing a lot of elections, phone banking with NYSUT. We're concerned with SI Max Rose race and Andrew Benardis. We push not for party, but for whether they help teachers. So hard now to ask any of our members to do anything extra because of amount of stress we're under. Thanks those doing the work, and retirees in five different states right now working on national, Senate and Congressional races. Most unions don't have an active retiree chapter. They know what you're going through. 

LeRoy Barr--Make sure you fill out census. Directs billions to schools, public services. Deadline Oct. 16 6 AM. Most of us have done it, but remind friends, neighbors. Hispanic Heritage Month, and we are celebrating around the world. Most important election Nov. 3. Encourage people to vote. Breast cancer awareness month. Consider making donation to American Cancer Society.

Questions--

Q--Our principal not releasing people working remotely. Says even though she got guidance, wants it in writing what people do when they work remotely.

A--She's received it. Just playing games. Speak to DR. File operational complaint or DR will work it out. If not resolved in one day, file complaint. Ridiculous.

Q--SBO last spring for parent conferences same day--Staff doesn't want it anymore. Wasn't calendared. Principal in agreement.

A--Contact Debbie Poulos. We will support your reservation, given calendar came out so late. 

Q--CL tried to coerce me and other teachers into teaching in person and remotely so other person could do less work. 

A--You don't have to do that. Say no thank you. Sounds like there are operational issues. Contact DR.

Q--With NYS in fiscal crisis, how are our pensions?

A--Pensions are fine. Stability tied more to stock market, which has rebounded. 

Q--School not doing SBO. Principal asked for it. Problem now back in her lap. She said now I have a problem. Principal says operational complaint is black mark against school and she will be livid. I can't do it. She says she will take money and hire staff, but it hasn't happened.

A--For me it has to be operational complaint. Many principals ask CLs to file. For principal to say it's black mark is ignorant. You don't get proper support from DOE. Borough rep will follow up.

Q--We have students sent home by nurse, returning next day with no note, no test. Allowed to stay in building, not required to go home. 

A--You need to go to DR and get this done under safety. We can't worry about upsetting parents now. 

Q--What's our position on taxing wealthy in NYS to support communities?

A--We support it. State union campaigning for millionaire's tax. We need a stimulus, or massive borrowing. Can't borrow enough to get out. Will have to be revenue, stimulus, borrowing, or some combination. We don't know when economy will start again. State approaching 36 billion dollar hole. No one knows when economy will come back. Stores boarding up everywhere. Will be rough road. In election, one candidate really wants to hurt NY State.  

We supported last version too.

Q--Spring break pay--Why can't we go to arbitration now, like in lump sum?

A--We had special jurisdiction for lump sum. It's on the radar, and when it's time we'll get to it. Not forgotten.

Q--With remote election day, can we make sure that people are able to vote?

A--Law changed--if you don't have four consecutive hours outside work day, they will give you time. We have time. Wear PPE. You can also do early voting. Hopefully we won't have to stand on line. I want my vote counted on election day. Make sure you stay safe.

Q--Other districts have used remote to make layoffs. If we go fully remote, will it impact no layoffs?

A--No.

Q--Will kids who aren't allowed testing be allowed in buildings?

A--We were upset when they said it wasn't mandated. Caused problems everywhere. This is a health emergency. We owe it to each other that we test if we need to. New guidance says testing is mandated if you want to work or be in a NYC school. We gave some time the first month. Come November, that's it. If safety is first, people have to be tested. Will be done at random. Policy not changed, just confused. Part of state plan.

Q--What's DOE policy on writing up redeployed teachers?

A--No special policy. Some are redeployed, some management, and some are us. If you aren't doing your job correctly you can be written up. If you're written up for no reason, we will utilize due process.

Q--We're a PROSE school, and with everything that's happened, scheduling has gone out window. Should we then just do SBOs under circumstances, just to cover this year?

A--That is a real problem. Whatever you did originally probably doesn't work during crisis. Initially I'd say yes, but I will get back to you. You can perhaps vote to change rules temporarily, as we did here at DA. Will follow up.

Motions-- 

Next month's agenda--Vince Gaglione--In honor of RBG--child of Brooklyn, daughter of Jewish immigrants, NYC public school grad. Part of folklore of community. Represented values of her block--modesty, people living with one another. We need to honor her. 

97% yes. 3% no passes

Hector Ruiz--this month--Hispanic Heritage Month--UFT should continue advocacy for Latino community, especially for teaching staff.

91% yes  8% no passes

Resolutions--

Motion to move #10 to #1 for special election at request of political action committee.

 93% yes, passes

Mary Atkinson--Speaks in support of endorsing Kevin Riley for City Council. Supporter of public ed, public school parent, wants inclusive curriculum at all levels, wants health services in schools, knows public ed. requires funding, supports fully funding foundation aid. UFT members in Bronx think he will be strong ally.

Peter Lamphere--Neutral, but given fiscal crisis, is Riley in favor of raising taxes on rich to create revenue?

Mulgrew--Technically this is out of order. Interviews were done by district members, who make recommendation to exec. board or DA. Debate is for or against. 

Mark Walters--Lifelong resident of district 12, interviewed Riley, believe he's committed to NYC, district 12 and our children. Will support and implement policy to help our children and schools.

Nancy Wigo--For resolution. 

90% yes, passes.

Mulgrew--Asking that three BLM resolutions try to come together into one. We are out of time. Need you to make sure if something is going wrong on safety you let us know. We will push complaints rapidly. 

LeRoy Barr--Asks for extension as resolution relevant to election.

80% yes. Passes.

Mavis Yan--Back in May we asked to support postal service, lifeline for Americans in remote and rural areas. Many false statements from 45. Rushing to put Barret on court. He wants to send election to SCOTUS, and manipulate postal service and use it as scapegoat. Mail in voting important. Any change that negatively impacts postal service puts lives at risk. We are still in middle of pandemic. Lives are at risk and so is right to vote. Trump pefectly willing to sacrifice right to vote and postal service. Please support. 

Cynthia Smith--Supports Mavis and all she said. 

Joanne Genelda--No.

91% yes. Passes.

Mulgrew thanks us. Says keep watching each other's backs. We will take care of these fights. Be well and God bless.

UFT Can't Remain Third Person

 Teachers are incredibly frustrated this year (which is not to say that non-teachers are doing any better). The focal point of my career has always been the classroom. Despite the litany of complaints I've issued on this page about virtually everything, you haven't seen me bitching about kids or classroom work. These days, though, we're not doing what I signed up to do, or what anyone signed up to do.

I'm teaching online, and while there are moments I really feel, they're fewer and further between. It's better than last year, in that our school has pushed for students to show faces rather than avatars. I feel like I'm dealing with people more than pictures. Still, there are those who don't turn their cameras on, and who don't answer when I call their names. This wouldn't be possible in a live classroom.

On top of that, of course, was Bill de Blasio's unilateral decision to stab us in the back, and effectively rob us. If you weren't already freaked out, that pushed you over the edge. On top of that, TDA urged everyone to max out their TDA contributions, and I know teachers bringing home very little on that last paycheck. I maxed out my TDA too, but I've been doing this for a while and I'm not feeling the pain a first year teacher would feel. I know teachers with years of experience who are feeling that too.

I remember people telling me stories of financial emergency and New York City. I remember tales of the last time the city did layoffs. People told me of classes of 50, because during a financial emergency agreements are simply tossed out the window. I heard about teachers being transferred all over the place, because this one got fired, and you teach this, so now you stand in for whomever. It sounded like a huge mess.

Given that, I expected a much worse result than the one we got in the arbitration. I was relieved. Most email I've gotten from members at my school reflected that.

In fact, I came into this profession almost a decade after the financial crisis, and the city was still reeling from its ill effects. Thousands had left, and they weren't coming back. There was no, "Thank you sir, may I have another"" for New York City. I became a teacher because I had a degree, I saw a subway ad, I took a short test, and someone said, "Go teach English at Lehman High School in the Bronx." I was lucky I could even find my way there.

As for teaching, I had no idea what I was doing. I got an observation report, essentially confirming that, on my ninth day teaching. I was advised to be more "heuristic." No matter how many times I look up that word, I still don't understand that advice. When my supervisor suggested I didn't know what I was doing, I said, "Well, I told you that when you hired me."

The union, in 1984 at Lehman High School, was some guy in the men's room asking me to fill out a card. It all seemed very mysterious. In fact there were large union meetings taking place downstairs somewhere, in blatant protest against an abusive principal, but as a newbie I wasn't invited. In actual fact, I didn't get much involved with the union for another twenty years. 

Frankly, not much has changed. People still talk about the union in the third person, as this thing that maybe exists over at 52 Broadway. There's a lot of sound and fury packed into various corners of the internet, but there's still a high level of disengagement. I'm going to go out on a limb and say the disengaged are a large portion of our membership. I haven't got stats, but that's an overarching issue that we have to address when and if we get through the apocalypse.

Whatever you think about the way we resolved de Blasio's brazen holdup, it was handled from on high. Some people are saying we should strike over this, but we shouldn't. For one thing, we wouldn't get the public support we'd have gotten for a safety strike. More importantly, I'm not entirely sure how many were going to be picketing with us for safety. This is the result of the disengagement that infects us like a rot.

Things are not coming up roses in America right now. We need to look seriously at the future. We're going to need to engage a large portion of UFT, we're going to have to let them know we are UFT, not just those who work at 52, and we're going to have to put boots on the ground somewhere, preferably in front of Tweed and City Hall. 

This mayor deserves to feel our collective wrath.

Alternative Facts Are on the Ballot This Year

 I've been rewatching some of NYPD Blue on Hulu, and here's what I noticed. Every single show is about the police getting people to confess without consulting with lawyers. They get these people, read them their rights, and then persuade them to waive them. They make them false offers of getting leniency if they confess, and then send them off to be convicted and go to prison.

The only thing I've really learned from watching this is, holy crap, if I ever get arrested, the first thing I'm gonna do is speak to a lawyer. I'm not telling the police anything, whether I'm innocent or guilty. I'm getting the best advice I can and then protecting myself as best I can. 

America is different. We listen to the same story every time, and we never seem to learn from it. Four years ago, we were horrified by Hillary Clinton's emails. How could she write email to this person or that on her own server? (Now there's a growing list of Trumpies who did the same thing, and it means nothing, what with the President committing a new outrage each and every day.)

Meanwhile, Donald Trump was telling us he'd release his taxes. We all know how that worked out. He said if he were President Hillary would go to prison. We all know how that worked out too. He promised us a new wall, and there is no new wall. He promised us Mexico would pay for this new wall, and there is no payment from Mexico either.

Trump made the worst calculation of his brief political career last week, when he announced that he would not push a COVID relief bill for America until he was re-elected. He finally had a chance to turn things around and show he cared about us, but he blew it. He chickened out of a virtual debate, virtual because the whole world knew he had COVID. If anyone was still on the fence, they've jumped over to the Democratic side. 

Now President Trump is telling us he's cleared for public events. He's telling us he's no longer contagious. He's telling us that he's immune, though in fact there have been people who've gotten COVID more than once. Science is fake news, concludes the President, and he goes out and prepares for more superspreader events. 

Over and over he lies to us, and over and over millions of Americans are fine with it. It's NYPD Blue syndrome. "Trust me," he says, and they do. Over and over again. I have a great medical plan, he says, but we've repeatedly seen he has none. I'll protect people with pre-existing conditions he says, but he's in court right now trying to overturn Obamacare, the only actual instrument that protects Americans with pre-existing conditions. 

And he gets away with it, over and over again, and it doesn't matter how many times he tells the same lies. And there are really very few rationalizations for it better than an old LBJ quote:

If you can convince the lowest white man he's better than the best colored man, he won't notice you're picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he'll empty his pockets for you.

It's racism, bigotry, and xenophobia, pure and simple. Hitler had Germany hate the Jews. Right wing ideologues have long targeted The Other, the foreigner, whoever that may be. We have a neo nazi rally and Trump says there are fine people on both sides. He champions Confederate monuments and generals. He condemns BLM as people are murdered in the streets. 

There is a war on truth in our country right now, and the truth is losing. The only truth that will effectively change things will be an election in which Trump's voted out in overwhelming numbers. It won't change his mind, of course. Maybe he'll start a Trump network to rival Fox. Ever since Kellyanne Conway introduced us to "alternative facts" the truth hasn't mattered that much anyway.

The outlandish nature of Trump's lies, though, repeated over and over, will not pass muster if we stand up to them. This is our chance.

Don't forget to vote, and don't forget to tell all your friends and relatives to do the same.

We Will Get Our Promised Rain in May

I was fairly panicked by de Blasio's disgusting swipe at educators. As for the remedy, I don't generally have a lot of faith in arbitrators. I've seen them make terrible decisions, and more than one of them has left me wondering whether they were hard of reading. So I was a little more than apprehensive when the supposedly liberal mayor of NYC effectively said, "Screw you, I'm not paying you until I'm good and ready."

Yesterday I parodied the chancellor again, though this time he hadn't actually written us. I don't know exactly how this man musters the gall to write to us as though he's our friend. He's shown he doesn't care about us at all, and raised not a peep when his boss decided to rob us at the last minute. Last night I wrote the following to members at my school, including an outrageous typo, but I've decided not to bother correcting it. 

It makes as much sense as anything else in the year of double twenties.

 

In case you haven't heard, and in case you haven't read Michael Mulgrew's letter, we will get our retro. The arbitrator ruled we will get half at the end of this month, and half in July. While that's not what we expected, it is a far better result than we could've gotten. There will also be no UFT layoffs this year, and we will get our promised rain in May. I'd have preferred a full immediate payment, but you never know with arbitrators. This one wasn't perfect, but was very good. If you've maxed out your TDA, it may still be worth it. There are great advantages in being union. I wish you a great three day weekend. Best regards, Arthur

Letter from the Chancellor

Dear colleagues,

It is with great joy that I write you to let you know what a fabulous job you are all doing, under difficult circumstances. I know that you needed to be very nimble last March, when Blaz and I kept the schools open after having closed Broadway. Actually Broadway is still closed, and you are all dragging your sorry asses into school buildings day after day, but I digress. 

I would be remiss if I did not mention the sacrifices you make each and every day for our 1.1 million students. You know, that's a large number. If you were to go anywhere in the country and look at 300 people, one of them could be our student. And if you were to line them up in single file they would stand from here to the Joe Biden Travel Plaza in Delaware. If you were to stand them on top of each other, they would make the largest celestial ladder seen in human history. And if you were to deprive them of thousands of dollars you owed them, they'd come with torches and pitchforks and do serious damage to our fine facilities at Tweed.

This brings me to another point. Now sure, the nay sayers, the Debbie Downers, the Negative Nabobs of Neverneverland will say, hey, that Carranza and Blaz just stabbed 100,000 UFT members in the back, and sure, there will be some validity to that POV, but please try and see it from our side. Look,  I'm a working stiff just like you. Now sure, I make $345,000 a year, and I live rent free in a home the city gave me, but I had to take a one week furlough. Now that right there is 5,000 bucks out of my pocket, so I know how it feels when it's five from yours, or more likely ten. 

I certainly understand your disappointment. I know many of you maxed out your TDA contributions, hoping to save some of this money for the future. Now, not only won't you have that, but you won't even have your regular paycheck. Sure, that's tough, but we New Yorkers are nothing if not resilient. Of course I'm not actually a New Yorker, but I read that somewhere. 

And I understand some of you had this money earmarked for a new home, but hey, isn't part of the adventure of being a New Yorker living in a romantic twentieth floor walkup with a bathtub in the kitchen? Aren't you proud of being so authentic? And hey, if you had that money earmarked for sending your kid to college, are you sure it's worth it? For example, Blaz and I just scammed tens of thousands of college grads out of almost a billion dollars. Would you want that happening to your kid? Of course not.

So let's all just put on our Big Boy Pants. Mine are from Brooks Brothers and cost $600 a pair. And don't get me started on cufflinks. You know you've really made it once you wear cufflinks. I wear them on the sleeves of both my shirts and trousers just to let people know I'm serious. Listen, it's only money.

On the bright side, I'm still here, writing you inspirational letters whenever the mood strikes me. And don't get any big ideas about striking me. I'll be holed up in my office for the next year or so, and you'll have to get past security before I entertain the likes of you. I've got to scrape by on only $340,000 this year, but you don't hear me bellyaching. Of course you can't, because I'm sitting in my fancy office and you won't see me in your school until this current generation of teachers retires. Hopefully by then I'll have scored another gig, maybe on the West Coast, or maybe I can get one of those gigs like I used to see in the Sopranos sitting on lawn chairs and watching people work.

Anyway, I'm always impressed by your great dedication to the children of this city, and I'm certainly glad all of you are out there doing the work because someone has to sit in this office and get pastrami sandwiches delivered from Katz's. Remember, Rich be nimble, Rich be quick, cutting teacher pay is slick.

Please forget about the money, don't go to arbitration, and don't say bad things about us.

In unity,

Richard

Adventures in Remote Teaching

I've had an interesting few days. Sometimes my personal and professional lives overlap in ways that are simply not convenient. For years I've been taking my dog to Petco for vaccines. I've never been persuaded it's a good deal to pay triple the price at the vet. This year, though, I noticed that the apocalypse had affected that as well. I had to make an appointment for my dog, and the only one I could get this month was yesterday at 12:30.

I begged out of a tutoring session I had, drove to Petco, and then, when I checked my appointment, noticed it was today rather than yesterday. As my wife was available, I sent her to do it today. That way I could teach my class. Alas, I no longer carry my house keys routinely, and coming home from a walk, I found myself locked out. I climbed on a chair in the backyard and tried to climb through a window, but I had locked them all. The only burglar I'd saved myself from was me.

I then had to call the school to say I'd miss one of my classes. I can actually make it up on another day, but I was disappointed. I finally figured out how to show a video to my class. First I tried calling Apple to see if they'd sell me a DVD or digital copy or something. When they said they wouldn't, I decided to place two laptops facing each other and show it that way. One of my students said she couldn't hear, so I decided to try something else.

I took my laptop into the living room, where we have a TV hooked up to a sound system. I then moved my dog crate, which we haven't used in years, in front of the TV. I got a good angle, and was able to show pieces of the video, using a remote on the TV. The only real issue was I then had to pick up the laptop, have a brief discussion, and then replace it. But it seemed to work.

I wonder, though, if my attempts at showing the video are cursed. The second time I wanted to show it today, I found myself locked out of my home and sitting forlornly at my own doorstep. I made a bunch of frantic phone calls, trying to get someone to tell my class I wouldn't be there but I'd make it up. Then I sat for a while and remembered The Mad Greek, a takeout joint on the Nautical Mile, blocks from my house. I'd never been there and it was lunchtime.

They had something called a gyro quesadilla that sounded interesting. Actually it's gyro and feta between two pitas. But they also had a spicy tzatziki sauce that was very happening. It's not really what I'd call a quesadilla, but whatever it is it's pretty good. 

So if you ever get locked out of your home, and you haven't got your car key, and all you have is your wallet and cell phone, and if that happens to happen in my neighborhood, I strongly suggest you walk over to The Mad Greek and try them out. It will take your mind off your situation until you figure out a way to get back into your home.

If You Like the DOE, You'll Love Trump

So the DOE now says that testing isn't, you know, mandatory for students, but that those who decline, "may be required to learn remotely" if they don't receive enough forms. Of course, that defeats the entire purpose of the testing program, as random samples are not self-selected. Also, that's absolutely not the agreement they made with UFT. UFT will now have to waste time and energy enforcing yet another agreement the DOE made but doesn't care to understand.

Anyway, if you like agreements that work like that, you need to vote for President Trump. He's out there saying there will be no relief bill until after he's re-elected. I'm old enough to remember 2016, when he said he would release his tax returns if he were elected. I remember him saying Mexico would pay for the wall. I remember him saying he had a great health plan that would protect those with pre-existing conditions. It turned out his plan was for everyone to get sick and die ASAP. 

In fact, he's still saying he has a plan. Meanwhile, 210,000 Americans are dead because he's failed to make a national plan to deal with COVID. Originally, he decided not to bother because it looked to his thugs like it would only affect blue states. That's us, of course. We didn't vote for him so we can all go to hell. I guess if you're sufficiently racist or xenophobic, Trump's willingness to give a wink and a nod and say that's fine is kind of comforting. 

Of course if you're a teacher, there are other reasons not to vote for Trump. Trump is a big supporter of so-called right to work, and if you aren't persuaded of that you need only look at the Janus case, which overturned Abood nationally and made union membership optional. After all, why should you pay dues when suckers like me will do it for you? Why shouldn't you enjoy benefits that the rest of us pay for? That's the Trump way. Who do you think pays for all those golf trips he takes? 

Here's the thing, though--when Abood was in force, individual states could opt out via "right to work." This weakened union and made it difficult for working people to organize. Less union means lower pay and fewer benefits for working Americans. That's precisely what Trump wants, even as he stands in front of MAGA worshipers and pretends to be a working class hero. The unspoken deal is you can hate whoever you want, I'll screw you royally, and we'll all watch Fox and pretend things are otherwise.

Things can always get worse, and four more years of Trump will make that happen. If you believe Trump, who's currently trying to get SCOTUS to strike down insurance for tens of millions of Americans, as well as the only law requiring insurers to cover pre-existing conditions, is going to protect those with pre-existing conditions, I have a bridge in Brooklyn with your name on it. Pandemic, shmandemic, say the Trumpies.

Let's forget about health care for a moment, and look at your interests as a teacher. Do you think Amy Coney Island, or whatever her name is, is going to protect your rights as a union member? Let's take a look at our current situation. NY State has taken steps to ameliorate the overturning of Abood, and limited the time under which freeloaders can dump union. Doubtless the Kochs, the Walmart family, and the right-wing think tanks trying to kill union will bring suit to stop that. 

Of course, that's just the next step. Where do they go from there? You don't need The Amazing Kreskin to tell you that. Just take a look at what Koch sweetheart Scott Walker pulled off in Wisconsin. Subverting democracy was just another step to cripple union. In fact, he eliminated collective bargaining for workers with the exception of police and firefighters. Other Republican governors followed suit, cutting pensions except for police and firefighters.

Why are police and firefighters excepted? Because when thousands of workers stormed the capital, someone had to protect sniveling Scott and his thugs. Walker lied, of course, saying protestors were imported from out of state, but that's the right-wing playbook. Of course working people stood up. Hey, if you want to spend days and week protesting instead of working, Trump is the way to go. We can move just as far back as red states have in no time at all.

Do you know what it's like to live without collective bargaining? Teachers in "right to work" states do. I spent time talking to Texas teachers patiently organizing to work toward the rights we already enjoy. I have a friend in Florida who told me tenure there entails a multi-year contract as opposed to single year contract. If you're tired of having a guaranteed pay scale and due process, Trump's your guy. 

If you're tired of having a fixed pension, something few Americans still enjoy, Trump's your guy. If you're tired of being able to speak your mind publicly, again, you know how to vote. The GOP opposes the rights of working people. In fact, if Amy Coney gets her seat, we'll be facing a whole lot of these anti-union suits, and make no mistake, our rights are on the line.

Joe Biden was not my first choice as a presidential nominee. However, he is head and shoulders better than the raving lunatic sitting in the White House, having his COVID treated in ways working Americans could never afford. Get yourself registered in New York State by Friday. Early voting starts October 24th. If you want to keep the privileges you now enjoy, get out and vote for Biden.

If you believe in the rights of working Americans, there's no other choice.

The Tech Jaguar Catches Me

 My last class was the biggest disaster I've experienced in decades. It seemed like anything that could go wrong, did. I wrote a multi-day lesson based on a great video on Apple TV plus. They have a series I've just discovered called Little America, and the second episode is called The Jaguar. 

The story is about a young woman, undocumented but absolutely fluent in English, who's clearly spent most of her life in the United States. She is fairly lost in the beginning of the show, but finds meaning and future by embracing squash, of all things. She falls into this almost entirely by coincidence. I thought it might be inspiring to my students, and I saw multiple aspects worth writing about. I figured I'd spend a few days working on this and make it into a project I could grade.

The first thing that went wrong was when I went to grab my lesson plan from the printer. I'd printed it out earlier, I thought, but it wasn't there. In fact, not only was it not there, but my printer was not even on. Pushing the power button didn't help at all. I finally figured out that the little Dyson hot/ cool thingie I have in my home classroom had blown the power.

My wife decided to help, and went to play with the circuit breakers. Unfortunately, she played with the wrong one, and my internet simply dropped dead. I lost my entire class for a few minutes until she switched it back on. My printer still wasn't working, though, so I grabbed my second laptop and pulled up the document. My printer was still out for some reason, but at least I'd be able to continue my lesson.

So there I was, ready to begin my first video segment. I had a few issues screen sharing that precluded my getting to Apple TV plus, but I finally figured it out. When I got there, though, it kept directing me to the next entry in Little America. I'd stupidly watched a few more episodes, and it didn't seem to want me to review ones I'd already seen. For minutes I played with it, bringing it up in a different browser and trying everything. Finally I found a small leftward pointing arrow, which led me to the previous episodes.

Everything was solved. I clicked on the arrow a few times, and found the episode that had eluded me, the fast-moving jaguar. I clicked play and thought, here we go. I heard music, but saw a black screen. This was no good. My students were not going to love a video with no video. I knew this from experience.

I read a review of Little America somewhere, and I was really curious to watch it. I have an Amazon Fire Stick that I use to watch video channels, and I'd watched one or two things on Apple TV plus before. The first time I tried to watch Little America though, I saw the same thing my students did--total blackness. I tried a whole bunch of things to fix it, but ended up watching it on my laptop. Then I restarted the Amazon Fire Stick, and everything was fine.

If I were to restart my laptop, though, I'd lose all my students for the second time in one class. It didn't seem like a good idea. I'd given them a chapter in a grammar book to review our various uses of present tenses, and spent what was left of the class doing things in class I'd likely not have done. 

I used to laugh at younger teachers who freaked out because the technology failed. In a classroom, I always had a way to get through without technology. If I couldn't show vocabulary using a PowerPoint or Keynote document, I'd draw pictures on the board and do the best I could. Also, if the technology dropped dead, I could almost always find a student who knew better than I did how to fix it.

Alas, I'm at the utter mercy of the tech jaguar these days. Now I have to decide whether or not to try the A lesson with my PM class or not. I probably will.

Wish me luck. I'm gonna need it. On the brighter side, I've restored power to my printer. I'm hoping my luck has changed. Also, if you get a chance, go watch The Jaguar on Apple TV plus.

Update: I checked the video and it worked, but when I tried it in my class it didn't. One of my students told me that this is what happens when you're streaming. Evidently, since I pay, I can watch it, but since my students don't, they can't.  I now have a three page lesson plan and writing assignments I made up for no reason whatsoever.  I suppose I can use it if I ever get back into a real classroom.

UFT Executive Board October 5, 2020--The Fun Never Stops

 

5:50 Roll Call

Minutes--Approved

UFT Secretary LeRoy Barr--Welcomes us.

UFT President Michael Mulgrew--Asks for moment of silence for Ruth Greenburg, guidance counselor and special ed. pioneer. 

Busy weekend--all schools opened, and now 91 schools and 18 sites going remote. Serious issue. Hoping for fewer last minute dramas. Plan says if zip code goes over 3% they have to do heavy testing, but city was slow to react. Virus emerging in certain communities and cause for concern. There should be quicker testing. After over a week, city tested only 25 schools and not in compliance.

Mayor made right decision. Only one of those schools was in quarantine. Doctors said it was only a matter of time before these schools tested positive. Mayor made right call. Asking state for permission was rather odd, but there was a meeting today, governor, mayor and UFT. Decided to start tomorrow.

Looking at other zip codes. City has to increase testing capacity. We need to increase testing when zip hits three, not 7 day average. 

Some schools doing very well. Ready for any emergency. Other places have challenges. We don't have great leadership in every building, but that will always be a problem in a district of our size.

Mandated monitoring--there will be a clarifying document saying if you want to be in a school building, testing is mandated. You will have to sign consent form or go home. Constant problems with city before they get things better. They now understand with testing and PPE. Next challenge, hopefully, won't be so difficult. 

Testing has to happen every day. Randomization will hopefully be easy and clear as possible. With this virus moving, we need to monitor closely, increase testing, and follow protocols.

National--It's all about the election. Our UFT retirees are doing immense work on FL and elsewhere. NYSUT organizing phone banks for PA. We'll see where this thing goes. Election will take twists and turns no one could imagine. Debate, COVID, all crazy and unprecedented. We know how important this election is. Economy completely wrecked. We need help for city and state. Will take years, won't be easy. 

Staffing problems difficult. Had kept SBO programs shut--didn't want them before city admitted how much staff was needed. We have short term agreement for pay increases for subs who stay. People redeployed from central walk into schools and announce they don't teach.

Live instruction problematic because of staffing. Principals ask for live and remote together. Class sizes are too large. Starting to move through operational complaints. Hope there is relief by this week. Many principals getting constantly conflicting directives. They are rightfully leery. Info from central has been used against them many times.

After one week, 91 schools are going remote, some being open only one week. No answer will make everything right. This is chaotic until we get a vaccine. We have to keep our schools safe, and that's why yesterday was important. Mayor no longer saying all or nothing.

Chaos will continue. Remote learning has issues but fewer than we'd anticipated. Teachers, in person, are doing great job. Told city these are the heroes. They're dealing with things every day for which there's no playbook. Overall, hoping whatever new strategy governor and mayor announce changes things. If not, we'll see more remote, and we're equipped. We will keep monitoring.

Schools are now open, after 6.5 months of talk. Now we have to hold the city's feet to the fire. There is a daily phone call where we discuss all the issues. We were a little irate. Middle management of DOE is back, reinterpreting things and wasting time. They aren't here to reinterpret. They need to implement existing policy.

Economy will keep coming up. Number of layoffs is through the roof in state and country. Next report will be dramatically hire. We need to figure out how to get through next two or three years without a layoff.

Questions--

Don't pass SBOs if school has not met hiring standards. Insist on more staffing. Tell principal to deal with borough offices. If you have different instructional plans, that's fine. If principal doesn't want to be reasonable and hire staff don't do it.

Tests are mandatory if you want to be in the building. If you want to get paid, you need to be tested. It's a non-invasive nose swab. Hundreds were tested in some schools. 

If UFT members think worksite is unsafe, contact Jeff Povalitus. 

With two or more cases, there will be contact tracing. We are notified even if student or staff hasn't been in schools. We get that citywide. 

School secretaries--lack of plexiglass, and secretaries' chapter stood up. 

If we need a meeting, I will call one immediately. Please be on notice. Be safe and have a great night. 6:32

NYC Hybrid Model Designed to Fail

So says City Council member Mark Treyger in a great piece in New York Intelligencer. Why is it designed to fail? Treyger came to the same conclusions I did when I first saw this. Where are the magical co-teachers coming from? How can we send subs and Tweedies out to teach subjects they may or may not be familiar with? How will schools find the bodies to do this, and shouldn't we be looking for something better than bodies as teachers?

UFT endorsed this program, and I think it was specifically because of the need for extra teachers. Right now de Blasio is still talking about laying off tens of thousands of city workers, including 9,000 UFT members. It's certainly better to see the city hiring thousands of teachers than firing them. Maybe, if we allow ourselves to dream, we could imagine those extra teachers hanging around and reducing class sizes. That's the impossible dream, but there it is.

In reality, of course, de Blasio hasn't hired nearly enough teachers. If I recall correctly, one year we averted Bloomberg layoffs but he let our numbers dwindle via attrition, and we're thus down thousands of teachers. This is why classes of 34 are now more the rule than the exception. Of course in the years before the apocalypse crippled our budget, de Blasio never bothered to hire back those teachers. Had he done so, the hybrid model he now advocates might have a snowball's chance in hell. As things stand, such a statement would be overly optimistic.

And now, the very first school in Queens has closed due to COVID. If that's not a harbinger of things to come, I don't know what is. Even when you have a 1% positive rate, if you have 200 students, that rate will be enough to close your school. I'm not exactly sure why anyone would be surprised at this. We've had two reports at our school. One was last summer, and landed us on the DOE list of schools with a COVID case. However, that person reported before the building opened. In the DOE's unlimited capacity for ineptitude, it didn't bother checking dates. The second was last week, from a student who hasn't set foot in school yet. It's inevitable, though, that we're going to see real cases and real closures. 

I don't think the plan was designed to fail. I think it's a stupid design, and I think de Blasio and his people are too inept to even think it through. They evidently paid some crook millions to dream up this nonsense, and maybe they didn't want to look as though they'd just paid for the Brooklyn Bridge. Too late, though. If you were selling the Brooklyn Bridge, de Blasio and Carranza would be your top prospects. 

It wasn't designed to fail. It was designed to make money by pulling the wool over the rubes' eyes. And boy, did the mayor and chancellor pay these crooks off. It's remarkable, because any thinking teacher would come to the same conclusion Treyger did. But the top teacher, Carranza, couldn't be bothered thinking it through. Of course, ever since Carranza demanded the signatures of 108,000 epidemiologists before closing COVID-infested schools, I've seen his mission as doing whatever the hell de Blasio says. 

I hope individual schools can figure out just what the hell they need to do, and I hope UFT chapter leaders and principals can collaboratively work to figure it out. It would really be a shame if we had to rely on all those TFA leftovers as co-teachers. I realize they all spent ten or twenty minutes as teachers before  Bloomberg hired them to sit around Tweed and tell the rest of us what to do.

Still, I'm a lot more confident working with my existing colleagues.

Teaching in the Time of the Pandemic

 It's so absolutely odd to begin the year by seeing students onscreen instead of in person. One of the very worst aspects, for me, is having to actually call attendance weeks into the school year. Some students have made an impression on me, particularly in my smaller classes, but in my classes of 30-34 it's really hard. I have never been this far into a year and still calling attendance.

Now some students oblige me tremendously by not showing up at all. I get to learn their names fairly quickly. After all, I've tried calling their homes to no avail. I can remember they're never here. But I really miss my Delaney pages. I don't use the book, but I lay out the seating chart on the pages, and I can tell by day two who is and who is not here just in a glance. 

There's no seating chart on Zoom, unfortunately, and I haven't figured out how to print out the names of people there. The best I've been able to do so far is to begin the class, do whatever I have to do and then, when there's an activity that doesn't require my participation, go through the list. By then, I remember some students are there, and I only call the names of those I do not recall. It's a lot faster than calling all names. 

Of course, a lot of my students tend to be quiet. I've read a lot about classes in Asia that are very large in which student participation is not considered desirable. Sometimes it's hard to persuade newcomers that I want to hear their voices. I try very hard and get overly dramatic over it. However, there's only so much drama you can effectively pull off while seated in front of a computer screen.

Our school is asking students to show their faces during class. I think that's generally a good thing. Nonetheless, some of the same students who always hid their faces and did nothing last year continue to do the same this year. On the brighter side, most of my students are very cooperative, and turn on their cameras when I ask direct questions. I think the temptation to lie down and take a nap is far less when you know the teacher can see you.

Between classes I no longer hang around offices speaking to teachers and trying to avert disasters with administration. This works because Google Classroom is a real taskmaster. It's a little easier because it now connects to Skedula, so I don't have to write every grade only to rewrite them somewhere else. 

I'm really disappointed to see students submitting paragraphs clearly copied from other sources. I wonder why my students assume I can't tell the difference between Wikipedia entries and writing of beginning ESL students. I posted several sentences into Google and immediately identified plagiarism. I also got one composition from a student who's never shown up that was written in perfect English, clearly by a friend or family member.

It's hard for me to understand why anyone would be in this country and not want to learn English. Sure, it's possible they watched the Trump-Biden fiasco and decided English was some shithole language. But it's not always used like that, and it's pretty practical for getting around in the United States. Next to pants, it's one of the most important things you can bring to a job interview.

My conclusion is that remote learning sucks compared to the real thing. As far as I can tell, the only thing worse is sitting masked with 12 people and a masked teacher in a room in which no genuine interaction can tale place.

A Teacher Should Moderate the Next Presidential Debate

I wasted a good 47 minutes last night watching the presidential debate. My wife, being far smarter than I, fell asleep.  I watched as Trump allowed absolutely nothing of consequence to occur. He spoke over Biden, and he spoke over the moderator. He tossed juvenile insults across the room as though they were meaningful. He insulted Biden's intelligence and his family.

All through the debacle, Chris Wallace sat there trying to moderate, but couldn't manage to do so. He tossed out questions while Trump said whatever he wanted. There was two minutes for this, and two minutes for that, none of which was respected by Trump, and then a free 15 minutes, where Trump could scream and shout about absolutely anything that caught his fancy.

Frequently it looked like the three old men were all shouting at the same time, vying for the attention of the largely lost audience. Biden managed a few good moments speaking directly into the camera. Still, it was mostly an incoherent shout fest.

To me, it was like a class in my first few years of teaching over which I'd completely lost control. I recall teaching music to 50 kids at John F. Kennedy High School when one kids said, "Let's give it the bum's rush," and they all pushed out a few moments before the bell. I would observe older teachers whose classes sat there, doing the work, or doing whatever, and wonder what they had that I didn't.

Well, whatever it is, Chris Wallace hasn't got it. He hasn't even got a little of it. For one thing, when there's chaos, trying to shout above it doesn't really work. I no longer lose my temper, ever, in class. If I'm angry or frustrated, I actually become far less crazy than usual. I become very quiet, and silently focus on how exactly I can make that behavior inconvenient. Should I call the parents? Talk to the coach? Do something utterly diabolical?

My very last option with a student who misbehaves is to remove him from the class. I haven't done that in years. I remember once I had a girl who threatened to beat up a boy, and I really believed she would. I had her removed, and by the next day she had calmed down. It's always better to prevent violence than to stop it.

And yet, scary though this girl was, she didn't happen to be President of the United States. What do you do with a guy like that?

Imagine debating a monkey that just makes noises and throws poop.

— George Conway (@gtconway3d) September 30, 2020

 I actually don't think I've ever had a student quite like that.  I guess you would have to remove the student after a while. Still, decades of being in front of 34 teenagers have taught me coping skills that you wouldn't acquire by sitting around in a Fox studio. I'd try everything I could think of. I did have one thing last night that Chris Wallace didn't--a remote control.

I was thus able to change channels midway to find out whether Rick and Morty was on. In fact, if I didn't have that idea, I could've just gone straight to the mute button. Should the moderator at a Presidential debate have the option to mute a candidate? If you muted Donald Trump, would he then tell one of his groups of thugs to come around and kill you and stuff? 

I wonder if a teacher could manage this feat. Judge Judy is pretty good at getting people to shut up. She screams at people pretty much as well as Trump. Although she's opinionated and offensive, she doesn't just make stuff up on the spot. Still, she's got that bailiff guy to drag people out whenever they get too uncooperative or belligerent.

The reason why this debate was such a fiasco was that there was clearly no one in charge. That's why the first few years of my class were so spotty too. I wonder whether Trump's handlers really want to sent him out to scream and shout like that. It makes as much sense as anything else he does or says, and for all I know, that's his only speed.

Unless the next moderator has the ability to moderate, the next debates will be time wasters just like this one. I guess Biden has to hang around for them simply because that's part of the job, but honestly, it's like watching a train wreck. I know that appeals to some people.

I'm just not one of them.  

Update: Peter Greene makes a great counter-argument.

UFT Executive Board September 29, 2020--Staffing is a Disaster and the Budget Looks Even Worse

Roll Call--5:54

Minutes--approved via email.

 UFT Secretary LeRoy Barr-- Welcomes us. 6:04

UFT President Michael Mulgrew--Thanks members and staff for handling opening of 800 schools. Hotline only had 5 calls, missing plexiglass and staffing. Staffing will continue to be a problem. DOE not handling it well, and its members aren't happy about being redeployed. Thanks members, CLs, for figuring out what schools needed. 

Operational people at DOE have been good at getting PPE to school. Lots of schools test everyone who comes in. That's what I would do if I were on a BRT. Wall monitors work much better than handheld.

CSA did not like agreement on Friday even though they were in the middle of our conversations. MOA is a clarifying document. We considered these issues to be humane, didn't want undue burden on anyone, and didn't want to leave it up to individual schools. Some principals were very considerate and others were not. We understand the frustration of moving dates.

DOE has not responded in a helpful manner. We won't be apologetic about keeping things humane. 

How do we use this agreement to deal with operational complaints? Most are with staffing. We needed the MOA before we allowed SBOs. We didn't want unproductive SBOs. Debbie Poulos is helping schools engage in process. 

I understand some people want to work with all their kids, but I don't want it forced on anyone. We want live and remote separate, especially in elementary grades. We could've gotten one teacher walking around with a mask on broadcasting to 400 kids. 

Thursday HS and MS open. Opt out rate around 70%. 

Concerned over 9 zip codes with high rates. Mayor says rolling average over 7 days is citywide issue. Why should we wait for 9 neighborhoods to put everyone else at risk? They should be remote right now. We can't be putting politics in front of health crisis. 

Our members are wearing masks and following guidelines. I understand hugging, and saw it in lower grades. At least people are washing hands quickly. Heroes today are working UFT members. We did something no one thought could be done. But we won't stay open if we risk safety and will fight mayor again if we have to.

Staffing issues will probably lead to more classes going remote. They are redeploying people who are clearly not motivated.

Questions--We are going to train people to use SBOs for leverage in these times. Chapter Leaders are extremely stressed. Questioner wants shout out to CLs doing great job.

CSA put out vote of no confidence and opposition to mayoral control. That was their executive board. We wouldn't go into schools unless we thought they were safe. Asking the mayor to relinquish control is not the way to make it happen.

If staffing is not done correctly, we will have to do a resolution on school management. If they can't get the plan done, we will have to.

Hazard pay is in CBA. At this moment we're focused on getting schools open. Hopefully we will have vaccine by end of school year. We will deal with worst economies we've ever seen for next three years. Not dwelling on it as much because safety is first, but then we have to look at livelihood. Budget hole is very deep. City and state need to borrow 30 billion just to get even. This will be long struggle for this union. If current guy wins, he'll try to torpedo NY. If other wins, there's only so much stimulus and borrowing that he can do. We need to work on a plan to get through next three fiscal years. We're working on it but not there yet. I don't see a way for hazard pay right now.

I oppose state taking over city schools. They are not the mayor's schools. They are our schools.

Moment of silence for Elizabeth Langiulli. 

Once we get remote instruction--If you combine office, C6 and prep, could they do it at home?

That's what it means, unless there's an emergency. One day we'll have a vaccine and we'll all go back.

SBO has to be clear, and members have to be part of training. 

Debbie Poulos--Training for SBO will be done for internal staff. Will speak to borough reps about training DRs.

Mulgrew--You have to move fast.

Poulos--Will be done by this week, Finalizing guidance tonight.

Mulgrew--It's been a long time since elementary schools were open. Staff has been great, and it was great to see children lighting up and being happy. Good night everyone.

What Can We Do About the New UFT Agreement?

Weeks ago I posted that the DOE had agreed teachers who were giving remote lessons would be allowed to do so from home. There was a huge response to that assertion, mostly on Twitter, and a whole lot of people asked me for a source. I couldn't share my source, but I will tell you that our school has allowed that from the beginning. 

It makes sense to me for a number of reasons. One is it makes for fewer people in school buildings. In our building, we'd need space for 100 teachers to stream from the building, and we simply haven't got it. Of course, we're the most overcrowded school in the city, so that's par for the course. Another is a lot of schools don't have the bandwidth to handle streaming from such a large number of people.

Look, if my home wifi drops dead one day, my students won't get classes from me. If everyone's wifi in the building drops dead, that's a much more serious issue. I heard that happened in a large Queens high school one day, and perhaps that's what pushed the DOE. (I also heard they were upset that this plan was released on blogs, and that their immediate reaction was to take their ball and go home. That's what passes for leadership over at Tweed.)

It's funny, because when I first posted it, people were challenging it as too good to be true, and now that it's a fait accompli, people are shouting about how unfair it is. So there are a few things to be said about that. One is no, it's not perfect. Few things are. There's New York pizza, dogs, The Beatles, the first two Godfather films and a handful of novels like Catch 22.  Beyond that I'm stumped.

Still, I'd argue it's better to keep some people home than make everyone go in. For years, I've argued for universal health insurance and universal college. Some people say, well, I had to pay so you should have to pay too. Some people said that about UFT parental leave as well. That's not perfect either, but a whole lot of members I know are over the moon about it.

There's a story Diane Ravitch told me about two Russian farmers. One has a cow, and one doesn't. One farmer says, "You have a cow and I don't. I want your cow to die." I'd argue we're better moving as many people forward as we possibly can. I'd also argue that having people with vulnerable family members prioritized is not only a step in the right direction, but also something a lot of people in my inbox, and on social media, have been demanding.

As for those who say their principals will have arbitrary and capricious power over decisions on who stays home and who doesn't, there is specific language here. To wit:

Supervisors may require in-person UFT-represented employees to remain on-site if needed.

While it's debatable who is needed, I'd say this requires the principal to demonstrate said need, and if your job as a teacher or paraprofessional entails five online classes this Tuesday, I have no idea how the principal would do so. I'd certainly file a grievance or operational complaint and make it as public as I possibly could if a school leader kept a UFT member in the building for no reason. 

In any case, there's now a new option to deal with overarching issues in your building--the SBO. Why? The DOE, while it awarded our building a plan outside the ridiculous cookie-cutter plans offered us, denied those plans to a whole lot of our counterparts. Our plan involves having all classes taught remotely three days a week, while two days students can get individualized assistance either within the building or online. This means that our teachers without accommodations go in only twice a week. Several other large Queens high schools are using this model.

We will now have to put our plan through an SBO process, and your chapter can propose the same for your building. Or you can come up with a better idea and propose that. I know this is not as satisfying as all remote, and I'd rather propose that for my building too. From where we are, though, this is an improvement. You can dispense with your building's need for 20 magical co-teachers, and put a larger number of classes online.

I'm sorry we can't go all remote. I'm even sorrier we aren't in school doing what we were doing last September. I don't know about you, but this isn't what I signed up for. There's an energy in a live classroom that I really love and miss. The remote classroom is a pale imitation. For my money, the live, socially distanced, masked classroom is even worse, a virtual horrorshow. I predict the more students experience this, the more they'll opt out of the live classroom altogether.

In our building right now, 60% of students have opted for all remote. I hear there are others in which the numbers are over 90%. It's in your hands now to push for a reasonable option in your school. I've got a small modification to our current plan that I'm going to suggest, but all things considered, our plan makes the best out of a borderline impossible situation. 

So now it's in your hands. What are you going to do?

Into the Great Wide Open

I'm in the second week of teaching remotely, and I'm flabbergasted by the challenges. I've been teaching over 30 years and there aren't a lot of situations that surprise me. Nonetheless, these are odd times. 

Most of my students are from Asia, and learning their names is a challenge for me every year. This year, though, it's even more challenging. I have one class with 36 students, and while that won't last forever, it's really hard to keep track of everyone. Today I started taking notes on my class list, but that only makes me recall people at one extreme or another. It's the Great Middle I'm worried about.

As if that's not enough, I'm experimenting with the technology. I've figured out how to use Zoom breakout rooms. They work fairly well when I put students in pairs, but when I tried groupwork today they were a total failure in not one, but two classes. Sometimes I come into a room and see all avatars, with absolutely no one talking to each other. Other times I come in and hear really animated conversation, but in Chinese. 

Now I can't really blame my students. If I were sitting in China and the teacher grouped me with native English speakers, I'd probably lapse into conversation in my native language. In a classroom, if there were a teacher jumping around, I might be more careful. In Zoom, though, you don't actually see the teacher. In fact, you don't even get a warning he's coming. You're just there, having a grand old time, and he appears out of nowhere. That's not really fair, is it?

Last year was quite different. I'd been with the same classes over six months. I knew everyone's names. They all knew just how crazy I was. Now I'm with a bunch of kids who have no idea who I am, and what's more I have no idea who they are either. Will I be able to find out? I'm not sure. For example, I have one student who's heavily into cosplay. You could tell who she was every time she walked into a room. On the computer screen, she looks like you or me. If I hadn't known her previously, I'd be missing out on a huge part of her character.

Today, two students told me they hadn't been in Google classroom. This explained a lot. Now I know why they hadn't done any homework, and now I know why they haven't been participating. What I don't know is how they found my Zoom classroom, because I informed all the students where it was on Google Classroom. The thing is, when you have a class of 36, things like that tend to slip through the cracks. In fact, with a class of 36, a lot of students slip through the cracks, likely more than in an ordinary classroom. 

From everything I hear, conventional live classrooms will be no walk in the park either. Now that the chancellor has backed up on insisting magical teachers would appear out of nowhere, no one knows where the blended hybrid teachers, the ones who will teach those other kids missing from your classes, are going to come from. I'm happy to be a remote teacher and not worry about that, in addition to everything else.

The mayor, of course, is absolutely confident that everything will work out. He was absolutely confident school would open on the 10th, and absolutely confident school would open on the 21st. Now he's confident school will open next week. I wonder what exactly he'll be saying in October. I was at a meeting this morning in which multiple chapter leaders commented their schools didn't have enough teachers. I'm very happy that our school came up with our own plan, one in which actual teachers teach their actual students and we don't have to worry about who teaches them when we happen to be elsewhere.

 

This is going to be a very interesting year. I don't know about you, but I can't wait for things to get dull once again.

The Chancellor Buys Non-Cut and Paste Software

 

Dear Colleagues,

As you know, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a grave impact on our economy and the budge of New York City’s government, including the DOE. However, we’ve notice that someone has been parodying my Very Important Letters. Therefore we’ve taken immediate and decisive action.

For now and going forward, we’re devoting ourselves to a new program in which my email can be neither forwarded, nor copied and pasted. Therefore no one will be able to copy my emails and make fun of them. The cost of this program is in the tens of millions, but we’ve found a way to make up a fraction of the expenses.

All managerial and non-represented City employees—meaning employees who are not union members—will be required to take five unpaid workdays as furlough between October 1, 2020 and March 31, 2021. This means that people like me, who make $345,000 a year will have to get by on maybe 340, and people working hand to mouth with no contract are screwed, but hey, no more nasty parodies from uppity school teachers.

We don’t expect staff to work on furlough day. We are incredibly understanding. Low-salaried non-union workers are free to take day trips and place them on their expense accounts. Excuse me, my secretary informs me they haven’t got expense accounts. Well I’ve got one, suckers, and I’ll be in Vegas for my frigging furlough!

We know that this step is unwelcome for all the losers who actually have to work for a living. But rest assured that people like me and my 200K assistants won’t feel the pinch at all. Amid all your heroic efforts to reopen schools, I hope you feel guilty enough to offer the city a pay cut, or a furlough, or a twenty-year no-interest loan, because we’ve spent the last six months spending millions on consultants who screwed us and the city, and we’ve got little or nothing to show for it.

You have all sacrificed so much already throughout this crisis in service to our students and families. Blaz and I continue to make last moment plans that make no sense and putting them out there as remedies to the previous last moment plans that made no sense. Sometimes it feels like I should get out there and help you, but hey, you should see my office. No way am I stepping out of it and into some filthy school building that isn’t pre-screened.

As always, I remain grateful that you are out there doing things for which I can take credit. I will continue to do everything I can to make it appear that Blaz and I care about stuff like that.

I will be in touch shortly to guilt trip you over having manipulated employees who have neither contracts nor rights, and it is my profound hope that you will all agree to work under the same conditions. It’s no skin off my apple.

In unity,

Richard

The Call of the Blog

 I didn't write anything yesterday, and I feel as though I've violated some sacred oath. But this blog has been my constant companion for over fifteen years, and I can feel it calling me.

It called me in 2005, after years of watching teachers and our union vilified for the crime of serving New York City's 1.1 million students. It called me to stand up and tell people that the stories trashing us in the tabloids and yes, even the sacred cow/ NY Times were nonsense.

I'd just begun a marginal bond with UFT, being published in NYC Teacher a few times, when I saw the 2005 Contract and was absolutely horrified. It looked like a serious degradation of working conditions, especially egregious under virtual education dictator Michael Bloomberg. I was livid and spent hours on the now dead UFT blog Edwize arguing the lack of merit I saw there. This placed me out of NYC Teacher and failed to earn me Christmas gifts from UFT leadership. Surely some are still angry at me for that, but what can you do?

Three years or so into this blog, I ran for and won the job of chapter leader of Francis Lewis High School. It's one of the two most demanding jobs I've held in my life (the other, of course, being teaching). It's really rewarding to actually help people, and I've developed a pretty thorough network of support for those I represent. I have people contacting me from elsewhere as well, and I'm frequently able to hook them up with those who can help. In fact, I'm pretty sure I worked at this job from March right until now, with little in the way of breaks, but I'm good with that. 

I also spent over ten years involved, at various levels, with opposition caucuses. I never aspired to run for UFT President, though. I'm practical. That was a losing proposition. While I have respect for people who did that, I wasn't running around campaigning for a job I was sure to lose. I did run a few times for HS Executive Board. I thought we had a chance of winning. In fact, the second time I tried it, MORE entered into an alliance with New Action, and we actually won. 

Of course, that was before The Great Purge of 2018, when all alliances were burned, when all my friends were kicked out, ostensibly over using bad language or some other such nonsense, but really because a few jackasses needed to establish control. They then ran again, and got their asses kicked fairly well as some of my friends and I ran with Unity, I was pretty surprised they even asked us.

Because some in MORE are involved in some particular sort of socialism or other, and because we aren't, they wrote some ridiculous email labeling us as "right-wingers" and boasting of getting rid of us. Because I'm not a particularly fanatical ideologue subscribing to whatever philosophy they espouse, and I'm not really interested in pretending to, I wasn't going to ask forgiveness, or get in line, or whatever the hell it was they were demanding. Full disclosure--there are a few people in MORE I really like. There are a few others who I really do not.

MORE has a pretty good thing going right now with demands for closing the schools. That's a message that resonates on social media. I can see the attractiveness of that message. Of course MORE was supportive of the potential strike as well, which demanded no such thing. And of course it's still led by the same intolerant jackasses who ejected my friends. Short-term, their message looks good, but long-term, they are not leaders.

Leaders have to tolerate various points of view and bring people together. That's far from an easy task. For example, a good portion of our union are Trump voters. I've heard guesses of 20-30%. While I'm by no means sure of the percentage, you can't just call them right wingers and toss them out of the union. And that's a far cry from calling people who are by no means right wingers and tossing them out of caucuses. I'd argue that Unity is more tolerant of diverse points of view than MORE. I'd also argue that, for all the fervor MORE places in remote learning, that's not the agenda of those who lead the caucus.

Now you don't have to agree with me. That's fine. No one's perfect. But someone is going to improve the United Federation of Teachers. I'd like to be part of that change. Wherever I go, and whoever I follow, it's this blog that's led me there. I'm grateful for all the places it's taken me. 

I have to reflect on everything, simply because the blog forces me to. You can't write about anything you haven't thought about. Here's what I think now--I think a large group of our members pay attention to neither MORE, Unity, nor UFT at all. I think that's a problem for us. I think they have no idea what union even is, and that this is a defect we all need to work to correct. After we get through this crisis, that needs to be a priority.

If you're even reading this, I'm probably not talking about you. There might be a silent majority, or there might not, but being silent ought not to preclude being informed. After the current apocalypse, none of us from any or no faction or caucus can afford to ignore that.

Yet Another Life-Altering Email from the Chancellor

 

Dear Colleagues, 

Seven months after your endless caterwauling forced us to close our school buildings, this morning we began welcoming our  3-K, Pre-K, and District 75 students back for in-person learning. I’ll be sitting here in my office making phone calls, ordering take out, and watching YouTube videos. I have people to do work for me. It’s the best!

Today’s beginning of the reopening process marks a the third time we’ve tried this, which has been a huge disaster not only for the public perceptions of Blaz and me, but also for the more than 400,000 families who look to our schools to anchor their children’s lives. If they don’t get sick, die, or transmit the virus to their families, and manage to survive, I keep clinging to the hope that all of this stuff we pull off at the very last minute—will make our children’s lives better. 

It is also a moment to congratulate all of you noisy bastards for publicizing every damn mistake Blaz and I have throughout this entire ordeal. Maybe that’s why we drove you to the verge of striking, and condemned you to the utter terror you’d feel returning, particularly considering the loss of nearly 80 of our colleagues.  From our luxurious, well-ventilated Tweed offices with multiple air conditioners and purifiers, things look pretty good for us, so we still can’t be bothered with your petty concerns.

Yet through all of our indifference, your restraint is remarkable: no one has thus far bombed our offices or, to the best of my knowledge, burned us in effigy; even as we’ve still failed to hook up more than 300,000 students with devices and Internet connections; and while we pulled off successful creation of Regional Enrichment Centers for children of front-line workers; we’ve wasted thousands of hours of work and neglected countless details to enable New York City schools to safely reopen starting today, as opposed to a month ago. Hey, I did nothing from March until August and I still have my job. How many of you can pull that off?   

Without question, many big challenges remain, and we have no plans whatsoever but to twiddle our thumbs and hope some of you stop calling 311,. But you and your frigging colleagues do not only that, but also call journalists to compel us to deal with the safety of everyone in our buildings, which are still dilapidated and crumbling due to decades of neglect. Hey, we didn’t start it, man, we just continued the proud position.

Because of your incessant nagging, millions of Personal Protective Equipment items have been distributed to our schools. Extraordinary efforts have been taken to assure safe levels of ventilation in the classrooms that are reopening. Many sticks and toilet paper was sacrificed in this process. Your frigging union has forced us to do testing, which will continue throughout the school year, perhaps at the expense of gala luncheons. We have developed clear protocols for social distancing, face covering, handwashing, and staying home when we experience illness. And while those protocols are stolen from a million others who thought of them before we did, I myself wear a Hazmat suit and go through several spray detectors before a specially sanitized robot dresses me in Brooks Brothers, Florsheims, and $200 ties. I sit there for several hours. Afterward, I pass through the machines, get back in my jeans and t-shirt, and  go out with my guitar and sing El Rey on the street for tips. Beats working. 

As we look forward to the return of our elementary school students next Tuesday, September 29, and middle- and high-school students next Thursday, October 1, the sense of excitement and butterflies we have every opening day is no doubt amped up this year. But If you can get your hands on the right drugs, that won’t bother you at all. Works for me, anyway.

In unity,
Richard