Executive Leadership Institute Receives Full Funding From City

March with CSA!
Back to School
Labor Day Parade Sept. 12
September 2009*
Volume 43, Number 1
Local 1, American Federation
of School Administrators,
AFL-CIO
SEE PAGE 3
CSANEWS
COUNCIL OF SCHOOL SUPERVISORS AND ADMINISTRATORS
CSA AT WORK
Parking
Permit
Victory
COMMITMENT
Executive Leadership Institute
Receives Full Funding From City
Council Gives $620,000 Grant in Support Of ELI Programs
BY ANNE SILVERSTEIN
BY CSA STAFF
I
n a major victory for the union, an
arbitrator ruled on Aug. 7 that the city
violated the CSA contract when it overhauled the city’s parking permit system
last year and reduced the number of
parking permits issued to CSA members.
The arbitrator, Ralph S. Berger, also
told the city that reducing the number
of parking permits for union members is
a negotiable item and cannot be done
unilaterally.
“This decision validates the union’s
contention that the DOE can’t just
change a term or condition of employment without prior negotiations with
the union,” said CSA Counsel Barbara
Jaccoma, who handled the case. “The
fact that the arbitrator returned the situation to what existed before was an
appropriate remedy and extremely good
news,” she said.
The New York City Council passed
its 2010 budget on June 19 and
included a $620,000 grant to the
union’s Executive Leadership Institute,
which provides cutting edge professional development to school leaders
throughout the city.
Given the current economic environment, CSA’s leadership feared deep
cuts, but CSA’s in-service and retiree
members helped prevent that from happening with their tireless outreach to
city legislators. Funding was restored at
the same level as last year.
“These funds enable us to continue
providing the extensive number of
workshops and programs which have,
DOLCH: Vital funding for professional
development.
MCNALLY: ELI
provides unique
opportunities.
as their goal, increased student achievement through improved supervisory
skills,” said Ada Dolch, ELI’s Executive
Director.
“I wish to thank all of our members,” said Executive Vice President
Peter McNally, “who advocated on
behalf of ELI. Our members truly appreciate the programs ELI provides, often
telling us that we’re the only ones providing this level of professional development. We’re as pleased as we can be.”
Founded in 2002 as CSA’s professional development branch, ELI offers
numerous programs as well as singletopic workshops during the school year
and in the summer. In July 2009, for
the first time, ELI offered a Principal
Institute, with professional development designed solely for Principals. In
addition, since last year, ELI has been
working with the NYC Leadership
Academy to design workshops that are
aligned with the DOE’s School
Leadership Competencies. (For fall workshops, see Page 11.)
New! Principal Institute
Survey
How Principals
Will Cope
with Cuts
Networking breakfast for Assistant Principals.
BY CSA STAFF
I
n late June, CSA asked Principals to tell
us how the budget cuts were affecting
them. Nearly 325 of you responded to
our informal survey.
In addition to gathering information for CSA’s internal use, CSA
wanted to know who was having
unusual problems with cuts above the
5 percent that the Department of
Education said was typical of schools.
Where Principals reported high numbers, Executive Vice President Peter
McNally has interceded with the DOE
to get to the bottom of the issues.
Some results of interest: Nearly half
of the respondents said they will have
to drastically reduce afterschool/weekend programs; half will
have to drastically reduce extracurricular activities; around 40 percent will
have to significantly reduce professional development and around 35
percent will have to significantly
reduce art programs.
YURIDIA PEÑA
LEADERSHIP WORKSHOP ABOVE: High School Principal
Santiago Taveras, Deputy Chancellor.
Stephen Noonan focuses during the workshop,“Supporting Students
Struggling with Literacy: Case Studies in Motion”offered on July 20, the first
day of ELI’s newest offering, the Principal Institute.TOP LEFT: Also in July,
ELI’s School-Based Intermediate Supervisors Institute began its year-long
journey with a new cohort. An early breakfast for Assistant Principals preceded greetings (BOTTOM LEFT) from Santiago Taveras, Deputy Chancellor
for Teaching and Learning. More photos, story, see PAGES 10-11
HONORS
SUMMER
INTRODUCTION
Education
Update Cites
School Leaders
First-Time
Meet Your CSA
Officers and
Representatives
3
Hindi Program
Draws Students
8
12
STARTS ON PAGE
2
CSA NEWS
September 2009
PRESIDENT’S PAGE
A Breath of Fresh Air
in Education Dialogue
Council of School
Supervisors & Administrators
American Federation of School
Administrators, AFL-CIO, Local 1
16 Court Street, Brooklyn, NY 11241-1003
Phone: (718) 852-3000
Fax: (718) 403-0278
www.csa-nyc.org
President
Ernest A. Logan
Executive Vice President
Peter J. McNally
First Vice President
Randi Herman, Ed.D
Secretary
Mark Cannizzaro
Treasurer
Laverne Burrowes
Vice Presidents
Robert Kazanowitz,
Richard Oppenheimer,
Nilda J. Rivera
Nancy Russo,
Irwin Shanes, Retiree Chapter
Advisory Committee, Members At Large
William Pinkett, Retiree Chapter,
Myrna Walters, Ronald Williams
Executive Director Operations
Anita Gomez-Palacio
General Counsel
Bruce K. Bryant
Counsels
Barbara Jaccoma
David Grandwetter
Controller
Phil Fodera
Executive Director Field Services
Audrey Fuentes
Field Directors
Juanita Bass, Stephen Bennett,
Phyliss Bullion, Bernard Lopez,
Lena Medley, Kathleen Murphy,
Daisy O’Gorman, Steven M. Rosen,
Margaret Williams
Assistant Field Directors
Mary Aloisio, Mildred Boyce,
Mark Brodsky, Charles Dluzniewski,
Joanne Frank, Aura Gangemi,
Pat Glassman, Ray Gregory,
Ellie Greenberg, Robert Jeanette,
Kate Leonard, Christine Martin,
Bill Meehan,Thelma Peeples,
Cynthia Sanders, Shelli Sklar
Grievance Director
Robert J. Reich
Assistant Directors
Carol Atkins, Robert Colon,
Marlene Lazar, Ph.D,
Phyllis Casolaro Williams
Director of Communications
Chiara Coletti
Assistant Director
Antoinette Isable
Director of Governmental Relations
Noah Franklin
Assistant Directors
John Khani, Alex Voetsch
Director of IT
Egal Sanchez
CSA Conference Chairman
Pierre Lehmuller
CSA Retiree Chapter
Neil Lefkowitz, Chair
Gary Goldstein, Director
CSA Historian
Jack Zuckerman
CSA NEWS
Editor Anne Silverstein
Editorial Assistant Yuridia Peña
Production Consultant Michele Pacheco
Production Assistant Christine Altman
Design Consultant Louis Silverstein
CSA News (004-532) is published 10 times
a year for $35 per year per member by
CSA, 16 Court St., Brooklyn, NY, 11241.
Second Class Postage paid at Brooklyn,NY
and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to CSA NEWS,
16 Court St., Brooklyn, NY, 11241.
School Districts Are Trying to Do Too Much Too Fast By Ernest A. Logan
“The 1990s saw several approaches to
the idea of ‘systemic’ reform. A word of
caution here: Anytime anyone in this
discourse invokes the magic word ‘systemic,’ the wise will gesture as if to
ward off evil; garlic has been known to
help. If the word means anything in
these conversations, it seems to mean
‘Let’s pretend to do on a grand scale
what we have no idea how to do on a
small scale.’“
—CHARLES M. PAYNE
D
uring the politically turbulent
summer, as we wondered if we
would have a Department of
Education or a Board of
Education, Deputy Chancellor Chris Cerf
addressed a session at our Principal Institute, a professional
development program offered in July through our Executive
Leadership Institute. “If you don’t read anything else this summer,” he began, “read So Much Reform, So Little Change,” a publication with the subtitle The Persistence of Failure in Urban
Schools, written by a University of Chicago professor and veteran school teacher, Charles M. Payne. Mr. Cerf’s recommendation said something about his open mind because the book
takes issue with many DOE practices. The personal historical
knowledge and research that went into Dr. Payne’s book are so
impressive and uncompromising, it’s surprising that Dr. Payne
emerged saying he’s “guardedly optimistic” about the future of
urban education. As we begin the school year, I think it’s worth
looking at a few points from Payne’s stunningly honest work.
• • •
H
e starts with a premise that most of
you, and certainly I, have shared for
a long time: that most education policy
discussions take place at altitudes so far
above what’s happening on the ground
in urban schools, that it’s a miracle we’ve
seen any progress at all. Without an
understanding of the social and environmental infrastructures of inner-city
schools, especially those in poverty
Dr. Charles Payne
zones, no amount of theory and money
can break down social and political barriers. Yet, while Dr.
Payne is tough, and sometimes very funny, in his critique of
school reform, he says that since the 1990s, we have begun to
sow the seeds of modest change. He suggests that reform calls
for at least four imperatives: attention to the intellectual, social
and emotional needs of children; leadership; continuity; and
time.
A major point here is about “the ideal of trying to strike a
balance between academic demands and social supports.” I
couldn’t agree more with Dr. Payne when he says that in focusing to distraction on test scores, we may have forgotten the
social dimension of teaching children: “Another part [of the
job is helping them feel reconnected to larger social worlds.”
The more uncertain young people are about their place in society, he says, the more important the social aspects of their lives
will be, and that includes keeping part of the emphasis on their
cultural identity, extracurricular activities, and high expectations about behavior, not just about learning.
• • •
A
s Dr. Payne sifts through something like the Heinz 57
reform programs – including Success for All, America’s
Choice, and the Comer Process – he points to the way many
were introduced to school systems, with good leadership on
the ground that included high-quality design teams and effec-
tive school Principals. But in too many cases,
the superintendent was recruited away or
kicked out and a new leader arrived, abandoning one program for another. With this
kind of churn, there has been little hope of
discovering if the original program would
have succeeded, and “reform fatigue” has
become further entrenched, especially
among teachers. Dr. Payne cites, as a prime
victim of such churn, the NYC public schools
in the 1990s, when “the widely respected
Ramon Cortines was forced out” and the
next chancellor, Rudy Crew, hailed by a New
York Times Magazine article as the last best
chance for public education, was sent packing.
Even without the kind of churn at the top
that’s been endemic to urban school systems,
Dr. Payne believes there can be no overnight successes.
“Perhaps the safest generalizations one can make about urban
schools or school districts,” he says, “is that most of them are
trying to do too much too fast, initiating programs on the basis
of what’s needed rather than on the basis of what they’re capable of.” He attributes this to outside forces or special interests
that include foundations, political leaders, and even parents.
All of this ramping-up has been happening while educators’
buy-in has often been insincere or slow.
• • •
S
o Much Reform, So Little Change spares almost nobody from
criticism, not teacher nor administrator, parent nor elected
official, liberal nor conservative. But I think it’s a breath of
fresh air, partly because it also gives everybody some credit for
a resurgence of energy and concern. Dr. Payne says he tries to
view educators the way they view “troublesome students,
acknowledging the problem but not letting them obscure the
potential.” You’ll probably find some of yourself in these pages,
some of your own triumphs and frustrations, and find a few
good reasons to start the school year with hope.
Editor’s Note: Dr. Payne is the Frank P. Hixon Professor in the
School of Social Service Administration, University of Chicago
Congratulations Graduate!
YURIDIA PEÑA
CSA President Ernest Logan was the guest speaker at PS 224, D19, Brooklyn’s sixth grade “graduation”. Mr.Logan is an alumnus of
the East New York School.He told students about his fourth-grade
teacher, Rose Albert, who became his mentor and encouraged him
to pursue a career in education.“Find that adult that you trust…
and it can make a difference in your life,”said Mr.Logan. Principal
George Andrew, left, and Mr.Logan presented a student with CSA’s
Blanche Schwartz Special Award for Special Children.
September 2009
CSA NEWS
3
AFSA CONVENTION 2009
Diann Woodard Elected President
BY CHIARA COLLETI
The American Federation of
School Administrators elected
Diann Woodard, President of
Local 2, Detroit, as its leader
during the 12th Triennial Constitutional Convention held in
Las Vegas July 30-Aug. 2.
Other officers elected were
Executive Vice President James
Dierke, Local 3, San Francisco;
Secretary Wendi Caporicci, Local
83, Oakland; and Treasurer
Ernest Logan, Local 1, New York.
Mr. Logan is the CSA President.
Outgoing President Jill Levy
congratulated members for their
hard work over the past three
years and profusely thanked the
AFSA staff for their efforts on
behalf of the union. She was
answered with a standing ovation.
The new President, Ms.
Woodard, told members: “Our
primary objective is wages,
hours and working conditions.
We want to gain the right to
collectively bargain for those
who do not have it. And we
want to improve the contracts
for those affiliates who have
contracts.”
AFSA unanimously passed
resolutions and amendments to
its Constitution, one of which
CSA held its end-of-the-year
Executive Board and District
Chair meeting at Russo’s On The
Bay, Queens, on June 9. Two
AFSA scholarships were presented
and retirements among District
Chairs and Executive Board
members were announced.
The American Federation of
School Administrators gave five
scholarships to members’ children this spring, each worth
$2,500. Two of the recipients are
children of CSA members: Joseph Kim of Little Neck is the
(
)
Events are at CSA’s Brooklyn
Headquarters,16 Court Street
unless otherwise noted.
SEPT 2, 4:30 PM: CSA
District Chairs
SEPT 3, 10 AM:
Retiree Chapter
Advisory Committee
SEPT. 8, 5 PM: ABENY
Executive
Committee and
Executive Board
SEPT. 12, 11 AM:
Labor Day Parade
ELEANOR GOLDSTEIN
Left,John Sweeney, AFL-CIO President.Right, AFSA President Diann Woodard and Treasurer Ernest Logan.
strengthened AFSA’s presence
and involvement with the AFLCIO. Of national note were
strong resolutions in support of
the Employee Free Choice Act,
health care reform, and early
childhood development.
On July 30, Linda ChavezThompson, Executive Vice
President Emerita, AFL-CIO,
kicked off events with lively
greetings. The following morning, Dr. Pedro Noguera, Professor
at NYU’s Steinhardt School of
Education, spoke about the
achievement gap, with great
humor but only a modicum of
hope. He said, that Americans
have not focused on “obvious
strategies and have, instead, concentrated on those that are
important but less significant,
like devising new data systems
…” Although a supporter of
President Obama, he lamented
the President’s emphasis on
data. At a PAC luncheon later in
the day, AFL-CIO President John
Sweeney celebrated President
Obama’s election as one of the
greatest events of his lifetime. As
a result, he believed, there was
a good chance that health care
reform and the EFCA will
become law.
Newly elected to the General
Executive Board was Domingo
Madera (Puerto Rico).
Re-elected were: Crystal
Boling-Barton (Buffalo), Clarice
Berry (Chicago), Carver Farrow
(St. Thomas), Roch Girard
(Connecticut), James Gittings
(Baltimore), Janie Pertiller
(Hartford), Leonard Pugliese
(Newark), Dominic Sacchetti
Boston), James Smallwood
(Prince George’s County MD),
Charles Whelan (Yonkers),
Cynthia Warren (St. Louis) and
Florida Woods (New Orleans).
Dinner Fêtes High-Achieving Students
BY YURIDIA PEÑA
COMING
EVENTS
son of Lena Kim, an Education
Administrator from Queens; and
Erica Leavy from Seaford is the
daughter of Brian De Vale,
Principal at PS 257, D-14,
Brooklyn. Mr. Kim will attend
Dartmouth College; Ms. Leavy
will attend Fordham University.
The following CSA members’
retirements were announced:
Alex Castillo, Diane Jones, Ken
Lombardi, Mercedes Qualls,
Nilda J. Rivera, Solomon Long
and Virginia Berrios. They were
recognized for their service to the
union as elected and appointed
representatives.
SEPT. 14: Education
Administrators
Association
SEPT. 15, 9:30 AM:
Retiree Chapter
Outreach Program:
Welfare Fund
Benefits
SEPT. 16, 5 PM: CSA
Executive Board
SEPT. 17, 9 AM:
Retiree Chapter
Executive Board
OCT. 5, 4:30 PM:
Education
Administrators
Association
OCT. 7, 4:30 PM: CSA
District Chairs
OCT. 8: Day Care
Workshop
OCT. 13, 4 PM:
NYCESPA Executive
Board
Please check with the
event organizer to confirm
these times and dates.
YURIDIA PEÑA
Left, Education Administrator Lena Kim and her son, Joseph.Right,
Principal Brian De Vale Leavy, and his daughter, Erica.
March with CSA on Sept. 12 in the NYC Labor Day Parade
C
SA will march, once again, in NYC’s
Labor Day parade on Sept. 12.
Hundreds of in-service and retired
CSA members and their families are
expected to march up Fifth Avenue with
other union members.
NYC is the nation’s birthplace for
Labor Day festivities. Labor Day was first
celebrated by NYC workers in 1882
when thousands took off an unauthorized day from work to honor the rights
of working men and women. The original parade started at City Hall, followed
Broadway past Union Square and then
merged onto Fifth Avenue. By late afternoon, around 25,000 people attended a
grand picnic at Wendel’s Elm Park at
West 92nd Street. To register, go to the
CSA website at www.csa-nyc.org.
SEPT. 14, 4:30 PM:
NYCESPA Executive
Board
NY State
Organization
Elects Officers
BY CSA STAFF
The first Labor Day Parade in the nation took place in New York City, 1882.
CULVER PICTURES
The New York State Federation of School Administrators
elected new officers during an
Executive Board meeting in Las
Vegas. NYSFSA representatives
were in the city for the AFSA
Triennial Conference.
Re-elected as President was
Peter McNally who also serves
as CSA Executive Vice President.
Crystal Boling-Barton of Buffalo
was elected Vice President; Eric
Mayus of Yonkers was elected
Secretary and Audrey Fuentes
of NYC was elected Treasurer.
Ms. Fuentes is also the Executive
Director of Field Services at CSA.
Each term is for three years.
4
CSA NEWS
September 2009
The Grievance Corner
Bob Reich
New Year Is A Good Time to Review Your Pay Check
he school year is just beginning. You
may be a little overwhelmed right
now, planning for your students and
staff, but don’t forget to take care of
yourself as well.
Whether you’re a Principal, an Assistant
Principal or an Education Administrator, the
following items are important and the beginning of the year is a good time to follow
some of the advice as offered below.
1) Upon receiving your first paycheck of
the school year, check to make sure you are
receiving the correct salary. Are you receiving
the longevities due to you? Go to the CSA
website, (something you should do regularly
in any event), click on contract and download
a salary schedule. If you believe your salary is
incorrect, e-mail me immediately with your
name, position and file number, and clearly
explain your issue. I will immediately contact
Human Resources at the Department of
Education (with a copy sent to you) to verify
your salary. Please note: The five year
longevity is paid AFTER you have completed
five years as an Assistant Principal. The 22year-Department of Education longevity is
based upon total years of service with the
department in ANY capacity.
2) If you are considering applying for a
sabbatical, you must review Personnel
Memorandum #6 issued on Feb. 5, 2009. The
circular delineates the requirements and
times for submitting a sabbatical request. CSA
members may request a sabbatical for continuing education or restoration of health. You
T
If you are
asked for
official
papers,
you must
provide
them.
must apply in a timely manner and submit
the required documentation. Be certain to
maintain a copy of your submitted application and documentation. If your request is
denied, you must contact me immediately.
(The memorandum is available on the DOE
website.)
3) If you performed per session work during
the 2008-2009 school year, during the summer
of 2009 or plan on performing it during the
A letter to the file should
be reviewed with the CSA
Grievance Department.
2009-2010 school year, be certain to submit
the Per Session Unused Sick Time Transfer
Form (DHR/OP 175S) to your payroll secretary.
For every 20 sessions of per session work performed without a break in service, you are
entitled to the equivalent time for use as sick
leave in the activity or to be credited to your
Cumulative Absence Reserve. Submission must
be at the completion of the activity, not at the
end of the school year.
4) If you are employed in an “F” status
position, you accrue vacation pay only after
completing 60 days of employment.,
5) A letter to your file should be reviewed
with the CSA Grievance Department. If the
letter violates a term of the collective bargaining agreement, you can file a grievance. You
may also attach a response to any file letter
you have received. Please send both the letter you received and a draft of your response
to me. I, or a member of my staff, will review
the letters, and we’ll contact you. Letters in
the file can serve as a basis for disciplinary
action.
5) Should investigators from the Special
Commissioner of investigation, the Office of
Special Investigations, the Office of Equal
Opportunities or any other office contact you
in person or by mail, you should respond
that you will speak to them only with a
union representative present. You should
then IMMEDIATELY contact me either by email, telephone or online at the CSA website
by completing the contact form. A CSA representative will contact both you and the
investigator and will be there with you before
the interview, during the interview and after
the interview to answer any of your questions
and address remaining concerns.
If the investigator asks you for documents,
you are required to provide them. Make
copies of everything you give him or her,
and, if originals are requested, insist on a
signed receipt. Further, the investigator may
ask to speak with staff and students without
you, and you must comply with this request.
Please note: If you are the complainant, you
should provide the investigator with the
information requested.
If you have any questions, e-mail me at
[email protected]. Have a great year.
Bob Reich is the CSA Director of Grievances.
Letters
‘Even the Weather
Cooperated’ at
Retiree Fall Retreat
To the Editor: It was a balmy
fall afternoon at the newly
renovated Villa Roma Hotel
nestled in a scenic, pristine
area of the Catskill
Mountains, near the town of
Callicoon, which is reminiscent of rural
America in
the 1920s.
The colorful foliage and
the aroma of
burning wood
emanating
Isman
from fireplaces served to introduce CSA
retirees and their guests to a
well organized, well attended
Fall Get-Away. After checking
in, we were welcomed cordially by CSA members who
informed us of the variety of
activities and entertainment
being provided by both the
CSA Retiree Chapter and the
hotel.
The atmosphere, accommodations, facilities, food and
service left little to be desired.
The CSA program, which was
comprised of competitive
events, social activities and
lectures including a wine-tasting session conducted by the
Member
incomparable wine connoisseur Ron Attivissimo and his
lovely wife, were outstanding.
Even the weather cooperated.
How could it not, with so
many supervisors present!
This writer believes he
speaks for all of the attendees
when he says, “Thank you for
a job well done.” Looking forward to the 2009 fall retreat.
—ARTHUR ISMAN
Retired, Bayside, NY
Frank Mickens: He
Will Be Missed
To the Editor: It was with
great sadness that I read about
Frank Micken’s funeral service
in the Daily News. As the
Council of School Supervisors
and Administrators High
School Director, I first met
Frank in 1995 when I visited
his school. It was clear from
this visit that Frank had turned
around Boys and Girls High
from a school that was mostly
known for its violence to one
that was safe and secure.
Students were in the classroom
learning, the halls were free of
loiterers, and most importantly, the students were motivated and happy, despite having to follow a stringent dress
code.
Through the years I served
CSA, I continued to visit Boys
and Girls High to see and talk
to my friend, Frank, a true icon
and legend in his own time.
And with each visit, I never
wavered from my initial
impression: Frank truly cared
about the students and staff
and they in kind truly cared
about him.
Frank was as tough as
nails, but did he ever run a
great school. I truly valued his
friendship and counsel over
the years I worked at CSA.
Frank, rest in peace, knowing
you were one hell of a principal.
—NORMAN SHERMAN
Retired CSA Director and
High School Assistant Principal
(Editor’s Note: An obituary
for Mr. Mickens appears on
Page 15.)
An Assistant Principal
Says ‘Thank You CSA’
To the Editor:
I am writing to publicly
express my heartfelt gratitude to
CSA. I had the misfortune of
being involved in some legal
issues last year. Although I was
comforted by friends and family during this difficult time, my
sanity and positive attitude were
made possible by CSA Director
Steve Rosen and CSA General
Counsel Bruce Bryant.
Mr. Rosen was the first person to contact me from CSA. His
calm disposition and reassuring
words allowed my blood pressure to stabilize without medication. Even during his vacation, Mr. Rosen called me to see
how I was doing and give me
any new information.
I was then introduced to CSA
Grievance Director Bob Reich.
He and Mr. Rosen walked me
through the process and gave
me a summary of what to expect
during the next few months.
My case was assigned to Mr.
Bryant. He did a fabulous job
representing me, leading to a victorious outcome. Mr. Bryant displayed humanitarian qualities,
giving me the confidence and
reassurance he knew I needed.
He involved me in preparing for
the case and considered my feelings in the process.
My view of CSA is one of
much respect and admiration for
the work it does and the people
behind it. Thank you CSA. I will
be forever grateful.
—R. CHEN
Assistant Principal
Brooklyn
Send Letters to the Editor to
Anne Silverstein, CSA News
Editor, 4th floor, 16 Court St.,
Brooklyn, NY 1124, or e-mail
her at [email protected]
U P D AT E
State Restores
8.25% Interest Rate
The NYS legislature has extended the 8.25 percent annual
interest rate for the Fixed Return
Fund. This rate is retroactive to
July 1 and is applicable through
June 30, 2010, when it may be
renewed or reset in accordance
with applicable laws. (Earlier in
the summer, the interest rate
had dropped to 7 percent as of
July 1 because the state legislature had not acted to extend the
rate. However, the state’s recent
actions supersede that change.)
John Jay Principals’
Reception Sept. 15
Principals are invited to join
CSA officers and CUNY officials
at a cocktail reception at 4:30
pm at John Jay College’s new facility at 58th Street and 8th Avenue to honor a number of high
school Principals who have
made important contributions
to CUNY and to learn more
about the new opportunities
that John Jay College is making
available to public school students. Principals may be accompanied by one of their Assistant
Principals. This is an RSVP-only
event.
September 2009
CSA NEWS
5
Political
Agenda
Political Training
Noah Franklin
CSA Gets Ready for
2009 City Elections
ver the past several months,
CSA members have interviewed
candidates for endorsements,
participated in political training
workshops, organized a local
candidates’ debate, made phone calls and
volunteered to help elect candidates who
will support CSA’s agenda.
With the mayor’s race, the city comptroller’s race, the public advocate’s race,
and dozens of City Council races, CSA
members have a lot at stake in the
November city elections.
For in-service members, we need to
protect schools against further budget
cuts; increase transparency and accountability in the DOE budget; and reach an
agreement with City Hall on new contracts for Day Care Directors and school
leaders. For retired members, we need to
ward off potential cuts to retiree health
benefits.
To accomplish our goals, we must be
at the table to help make critical decisions. Here is what we have done to get
ready for Election Day:
CSA members screened candidates and
made endorsement recommendations to
the union leadership. CSA also plans to poll the membership to
help guide a possible endorsement in the mayoral election.
Following the candidate screenings, CSA staff organized handson political training for nearly 200 members. At the workshops,
members learned about volunteering on campaigns and took part
in simulated campaign activity in which participants designed TV
commercials for candidates. CSA members also hosted a debate
among candidates for City Council District 19 in Queens. About
65 people showed up to hear from three candidates running to
represent the neighborhoods of Bayside, College Point and
Whitestone in Queens.
O
YURIDIA PEÑA
CSA held several political training workshops this summer for in-service members
as well as retirees. Above, the July 22 session at CSA’s Brooklyn headquarters. Left,
City Council candidate (District 33,
Brooklyn) Steve Levin speaks with CSA
Vice President Richard Oppenheimer.
Official Notice of Elections
BY CSA STAFF
According to the CSA Constitution and
Bylaws, elections shall be held every three years.
2009 is a CSA election year.
Nominations for President, Executive Vice
President, First Vice President, five Vice Presidents,
Secretary and Treasurer of Central CSA (included
in Article IV, A, Section 1 of the CSA Constitution
and Bylaws), shall be submitted to the CSA office
no later than Oct. 31, accompanied by an official petition form signed by at least 150 CSA
Members (Article IV, Section 2).
The official nominating petition is available
from Anita Gomez-Palacio, CSA Executive Director
Operations, CSA, 16 Court St., 4th Floor, Brooklyn,
NY, 11241-1003 during regular business hours.
It is required that candidates for the offices of
President, Executive Vice President and First Vice
President run on a single slate.
As a single slate, candidates for the offices of
President, Executive Vice President and First Vice
President shall be nominated jointly, and shall
be voted upon and elected jointly on a single
ticket (Article IV, A, Section 3).
Executive Board
Elections for CSA Membership Classification
Representative(s) to the CSA Executive Board shall
be held within one month of the last acceptable
date for receipt of ballots for the election of CSA
officers. (Article IV, B, C, and D)
Balloting for the Membership Classification
representative(s) to the Executive Board shall be
conducted by the Central CSA Election
Committee, as approved by the Executive Board.
A call for nominations will appear in the
November CSA News and on the CSA website,
and are due by mid-December. Each membership
classification may also elect alternative representatives who shall represent the unit at Executive
Board meetings in the absence of the elected representative(s).
Districts/Offices
The officers of a CSA unit shall be a Chair, a
Representative who shall be a member of the CSA
Executive Board, a Secretary, a Treasurer and other
officers as the district/office may determine.
The CSA Chair is appointed by the CSA
President. The Assistant Chair, which is not a
mandatory position, is also an appointment filled
by the CSA President. Prior to the February
Executive Board meeting, each CSA district unit
and the Retiree Chapter shall submit to CSA, in
writing, pertinent information with respect to its
representative(s) on a form which will be furnished by the CSA central office.
CSA Endorsements
For the Primary Election Tues., Sept. 15, CSA endorses the following candidates:
NY City Comptroller: Melinda Katz
NY City Public Advocate: Bill de Blasio
District Attorney: Charles Hynes (Kings
County); Leslie Crocker-Snyder (NY County)
Borough President: Ruben Diaz Jr. (Bronx);
Marty Markowitz (Brooklyn); Scott Stringer
(Manhattan); Helen Marshall (Queens)
City Council: Maria del Carmen Arroyo (D17), Charles Barron (D-42), Gale Brewer (D-6),
Leroy Comrie Jr. (D-27), Elizabeth Crowley
(D-30), Inez Dickens (D-9), Erik Martin Dilan
(D-37), Julissa Ferreras (D-21), Lewis Fidler (D46), Helen Foster (D-16), Daniel Garodnick
(D-4), James Gennaro (D-24), Vincent J.
Gentile (D-43), Alan Gerson (D-1), Sara M.
Gonzalez (D-38), Frank Gulluscio (D-32),
Vincent Ignizio (R-51), Robert Jackson (D-7),
Letitia James (D-35), G. Oliver Koppell (D11), Karen Kozlowitz (D-29), Brad Lander (D39), Jessica Lappin (D-5), Stephen Levin (D33), Melissa Mark-Viverito (D-8), Rosie
Mendez (D-2), Kenneth Mitchell (D-49),
Michael Nelson (D-48), James Oddo (R-50),
Annabel Palma (D-18), Christine Quinn (D3), Domenic Recchia (D-47), Diana Reyna (D34), Joel Rivera (D-15), James Sanders Jr. (D31), Larry Seabrook (D-12), Helen Sears (D25), James Vacca (D-13), Peter Vallone, Jr. (D22), James Van Bramer (D-26), Mark Weprin
(D-23), Thomas White Jr. (D-28)
We must
be at the
table to
help make
critical
decisions.
• • •
ast and most important, CSA staff and member volunteers will
continue to work to educate and mobilize in-service members,
retirees and their families to get to the polls and elect CSAendorsed candidates. This work will involve phone banks and
fundraisers that serve as opportunities for other members to meet
CSA-endorsed candidates.
Through our actions, CSA members will send a message to
every elected official in city government: Stand up for the issues
that matter to school leaders or we will support someone else who
will. Our power can come from the checks that we write to campaigns, but even more so from our ability to organize and to convince members to vote on Election Day for CSA-endorsed candidates. I would like to urge all members to vote on Primary Day,
Sept. 15 and be sure to support CSA-endorsed candidates.
CSA members are using our unified strength to advance the
union’s agenda. It remains as important as ever for our voices to
be heard.
Noah Franklin is the Director of Governmental Relations. If
you would like to become involved with the union’s political activities, contact him at (718) 852-3000 or at [email protected].
L
Mayoral Control of Schools
Extended for Six More Years
Gov. David Paterson signed legislation on Aug. 11 that extends
control of the city’s schools to the NYC mayor for six more years.
The bill changes little from the original 2002 school governance law
although it does grant more oversight to the Independent Budget
Office and includes some changes in how contracts are awarded.
The Senate also passed four amendments that aim to satisfy some
concerns about the lack of oversight of the NYC Department of
Education as well as parental involvement. Although, at this writing,
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver has not agreed to pass those amendments, Mayor Bloomberg has agreed to put them into effect.
The original school governance bill passed in 2002 and expired
on June 30.
6
CSA NEWS
September 2009
The Welfare
Fund
Day Care Award Dinner
Easy Transition When
You Change Unions
Q
The Professional Association of Day
Care Directors honored Muriel H. Mapp,
the Director of the East Children Center
on May 15 at the Astoria World Manor,
Queens.
Ms. Mapp has been the Director of
the East Harlem Center for more than 40
years as well as a staunch advocate for
preschool students and early intervention services.
Ms. Mapp received a bachelor’s degree
from Ohio’s Wilberforce University and
her master’s degree in early childhood
education from New York University. A
number of CSA representatives attended
the dinner including CSA Executive Vice
President Peter McNally, First Vice
President Randi Herman and Vice
President Richard Oppenheimer.
Douglas V. Hathaway,Ph.D.
UESTION: I have just been appointed as
an Assistant Principal. Last year I was a
teacher. What do I have to do to transfer my
health benefits to the CSA Welfare Fund.
ANSWER: Your employer-provided basic
health plan (such as HIP, GHI or Aetna)
remains as it was before. There is no change
to this coverage because you have become a
member of a different union.
Your Welfare Fund coverage will, however,
change. You will now be covered by the CSA
Welfare Fund for prescription drugs, supplemental and catastrophic medical, hearing
aids, and optical benefits. However, since it
usually takes the Department of Education
a few payroll cycles to change your status
from a teacher line to a supervisor line,
continue to use the UFT Welfare Fund benefits until you receive your first check as a
supervisor. When this happens, we will
receive notification from the DOE that you
are a supervisor and receive a monthly contribution for your benefits. If you use UFT
Welfare Fund benefits at the time you are
switched to the supervisory line, the UFT
will notify you with a bill. Please send us a
copy of the bill and we will make our reimbursement directly to the UFT. As always, please call the Fund at
(718) 624-2600 if you have questions about your new Welfare Fund
benefits, (or visit the website at www.csawf.org.)
New CSA
members
should
familiarize
themselves
with new
benefits.
UESTION: I am covered by the SIDS dental plan. My 4 1/2 yearold crown fell out. My dentist replaced the crown and sent the
bill to SIDS. They denied the claim saying it was replaced before the
five-year time limit expired, and I wrote them a letter explaining
why I needed the crown replaced. They denied the claim again. This
is terribly unfair, and my next step is to take SIDS to small claims
court. Is there anything else I can do?
ANSWER: Yes, read the fine print on your SIDS explanation of
benefits. You will see that you are entitled to an appeal to the
Welfare Fund to override SIDS decision. The appeal procedure is
detailed in each Fund’s benefit booklet, and involves writing a letter
of appeal to the Welfare Fund. Either the administrator or, if necessary, the Board of Trustees will hear the appeal, and you will be notified of the result.
Undertaking litigation against SIDS is both improper and unnecessary. First, the “SI” in SIDS stand for “Self Insured”, meaning that
when SIDS pays a claim, it is following the parameters of the dental
plan created by the Board of Trustees, and it is Welfare Fund money
that is being used to pay either the dentist or the member. If you
take legal action against the Fund, you are basically suing yourself,
and any costs incurred by the Fund to answer the legal action takes
that money away from paying benefits to members and dependents.
Q
UESTION: I am a Medicare-eligible retired Principal, and received
my Medicare Part B reimbursement. I had over $120 per month
deducted from my Social Security check in 2008 to pay for Medicare
Part B, but only received reimbursement for $96.40 per month. Why
didn’t they give me the full amount? How can I get what is owed me?
ANSWER: You received the basic reimbursement that goes to
everyone, but you are also correct that you are owed money. The
extra amount is referred to as IRMAA (Income Related Medicare
Adjustment Amount), and to get it back means a little bit of paperwork. On your check stub were instructions for claiming the IRMAA
amount. You’ll have to submit documentation showing that you
were informed of the extra amount as well as the 1099-SSA form you
received since January showing how much you actually paid. You
can download instructions from the Office of Labor Relations’ website, www.nyc.gov/html/olr/downloads/pdf/healthb/irmaa.pdf or
call (212) 306-5263.
Dr. Douglas Hathaway is the CSA Welfare Fund Administrator. You
may contact him at [email protected].
Q
Visit the CSA Welfare Fund website: www.csawf.org
Muriel Mapp Honored at Annual Event
BY CSA STAFF
NEAL TEPEL
Above, Day Care Director Muriel Mapp receives her award. Below, guests at the dinner included City
Comptroller William Thompson, City Councilwoman Diana Reyna and City Councilman Robert Jackson.
Schools Celebrate Removal from
State’s List of Schools Under Review
BY YURIDIA PEÑA
This spring, more than a dozen NYC
schools were removed from the Schools Under
Registration Review list (SURR) and were honored for that achievement at the 14th Annual
Awards Ceremony at the Brooklyn Marriott.
“You are taking one of the toughest challenges in our society,” said Schools Chancellor
Joel Klein to the crowd of educators who
attended the May 28 morning program.
In addition, 55 NYC schools were removed
from the state’s list of Schools in Need of
Improvement (SINI). These schools have made
adequate yearly progress for two consecutive
years and as a result were removed during the
2008-09 school year.
Special Honoree Dr. Edison O. Jackson,
President, Medgar Evers College-CUNY,
received this year’s award for exemplary K-16
collaborative efforts. “Education for me has
the capacity to transform,” he said. Dr. Jackson
praised those educators who told him, when
he was a student, to ignore segregation and
aim high. “My teachers taught us that we are
somebody,” he added.
The following NYC schools have been
removed from the SURR list: HS of Graphic
Communications Arts, Manhattan, Jerod
Resnik, Principal; JHS 13, D-4, Jacob Michelman, Principal; JHS 161, D-7, John Piazza,
Principal; JHS 22, D-9, Linda Rosenbury,
Principal; MS 302, D-8, Angel Rodriguez,
Principal; IS 232, D-9, Neifi Acosta, Principal;
JHS 57, D-16, Celeste Douglas, Principal; IS
291, D-32, Sean Walsh, Principal; IS 349, D-
32, Rogelio Parris, Principal; IS 246, D-17,
Bently Warrington, Principal; PS 12, D-17,
Nyree Dixon, Principal; CIS 339, D-9, Jason
Levy, Principal; and JHS 123, D-8, Virginia
Connelly, Principal.
“I work this hard so my
students can go to college.
Then I know I have done
my job.” —JUAN MENDEZ, PRINCIPAL
The state also honored outstanding early
childhood programs including the city-funded
Gwendolyn B. Bland Day Care Center in the
Bronx. Phyllis Forde is the Director.
The daylong program included musical
selections by the Parkchester Chorus from PS
106, D-11, Bronx. Also, a “conversation” with
the audience was moderated by Dr. Marcia V.
Lyles, former Deputy Chancellor, and Dr. Shelia
Evans-Tranumn, Associate NYS Commissioner,
Office of School Improvement and Community
Services. The discussion focused on the challenges of maintaining upward momentum.
“If it’s not good enough for your sons and
daughters, it’s not good enough for your students,” said Juan Mendez, Principal, High
School of Enterprise, Business and Technology.
“I work this hard so my students can go to
college,” he said. “Then I know I have done
my job.”
September 2009
7
CSA NEWS / PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Education Update Honors Nine Principals
Alyce Barr
Jeanne M.Fish
Paula Holmes
BY YURIDIA PEÑA
On June 8, the publication Education Update honored
NYC labor leaders, educators, and college administrators
at the Harvard Club in Manhattan.
Among the honorees were CSA President Ernest Logan
then-UFT President Randi Weingarten, and Alfred S.
Posamentier, Dean, CCNY, School of Education. All
received Education Update’s Distinguished Leader in
Education award.
Jay Hershenson, CUNY Senior Vice Chancellor, delivered a keynote address that praised Mr. Logan for his
service to CSA members. Mr. Hershenson compared Mr.
Logan’s success with newly appointed Supreme Court
Justice Sonia Sotomayor who, like Mr. Logan, came from
a low-income housing project in New York. “I am just
an average guy who has been blessed,” said a humbled
Mr. Logan during his acceptance speech.
Eighteen educators were named Outstanding
Judy Mittler
Educators of the Year. The
following are the Principals
who were honored:
Alyce Barr, Principal,
Secondary School for Collaborative Studies; Brooklyn;
Jeanne M. Fish,
Principal, PS 277, D-22;
Brooklyn;
Paula Holmes, Principal, Dr. Susan S. McKinney Secondary School
Mary Scarlato
of Arts, Brooklyn;
Judy Mittler, Principal, IS 125, D-24, Queens;
Dr. Laverne Nimmons, Principal, PS 335, D-16,
Brooklyn;
Mary Padilla, Principal, PS 5, D-7, Bronx;
Mary Scarlato, Principal, PS 31, D-14, Brooklyn;
Dr.Laverne Nimmons
Mary Padilla
Josephine Viars
Joan Washington
Josephine Viars, PS 380, D-14, Brooklyn; and
Joan Washington, Principal, PS 811, D-75.
Education Update is a monthly publication that was
launched in 1995 by Editor-in-chief Pola Rosen.
Member News
Retirements
KATHY BATTISTE AND TERRY
EGAN, Assistant Principals at the Richard
H. Hungerford School, D-75, Staten Island
will celebrate their retirements on Oct. 14
at 6 p.m. at the Staaten, 697 Forest Ave.,
Staten Island. The cost per person is $75.
Please make checks payable to the
Hungerford School Social Committee and
send to Mary Ann Laurino, c/o Hungerford
School, 155 Tompkins Ave., SI, NY, 10304.
Please RSVP by Oct. 2
After 35 years of dedicated service to the
children of NYC, Principal SCOTT M.
FELTZIN retired July 1. Mr. Feltzin began
his career as a high school English teacher
at Canarsie High School, moving on to
Sheepshead Bay High School, Springfield
Gardens High School and Newtown High
School. In 1986, Mr. Feltzin became
Assistant Principal Supervision, English, at
Jamaica High School where he spent 19
years supervising the Departments of
English, Speech, Fine Arts and Library. In
2005, Mr Feltzin was appointed Principal of
the High School of Art and Design. A party
in his honor is planned for the fall.
Information can be obtained by contacting
Robin Paquette, Principal's secretary, at
(212) 752-4340 x 2033.
STEVE M. SATIN, the Principal of
Norman Thomas High School for seven
years, has retired. During his 37 years of
service with the NYC public schools, Mr.
Satin served as a math teacher at both Eli
Whitney Vocational and DeWitt Clinton
high schools; the program chair/math
teacher at Fort Hamilton High School; an
Assistant Principal at both Stuyvesant HS
and the High School of Economics and
Finance; and as Principal at Norman
Thomas HS. The party is on Oct. 18 at the
Dyker Beach Golf Course, 86th Street and
Seventh Avenue, Brooklyn, from noon to 4
p.m. The cost per person is $80. Please
make checks payable to: Norman Thomas
High School, and in the memo area, write
Steve Satin’s name. Send to Marilyn
Federman, Treasurer, NTHS, 111 E. 33rd St.,
Room 130, New York, NY 10016.
Questions? Call Assistant Principal Lou
Matta at (212) 576-0500, x 1128, or Ms.
Federman, Treasurer, x 1130.
After 34 years with the city school system, MARILYN SMITH has retired. She
has been a bilingual and monolingual
teacher, ESL/Bilingual Coordinator, Early
Childhood Coordinator, Staff Developer
and AIDP facilitator in District 10. In
District 7, she was an Assistant Principal
and Principal. In District 5, she was an
Assistant Superintendent. Moving to
District 12, she became a Principal. Her last
position was as Network Leader with the
Leadership Learning Support Organization.
Ms. Smith was the CSA Assistant Principal
representative in District 7 and also a delegate for NYCESPA while in D-12. She was
certified as a Quality Reviewer in 2008 and
2009. Her retirement will be held on Sept.
11 at the Davenport Club in New Rochelle
at 6 p.m. Contact CSA District 7 Chair
William
Hewlett,
Jr.
at
[email protected] or Mary Padilla
at [email protected].
Save the Date: PAMELA MONTAGUE,
Supervisor of Psychologists CSE 6, is retiring. A party will be held on Nov. 10.
Contact Arlene Birnbach at (718) 968-6246
for more information.
Retirement information may be sent to
Anne Silverstein, CSA News Editor, at
[email protected], or faxed to (718) 4030278.
Principal’s Trip to S.
Korea: Bridge-Building
Chrystina Russell, Principal of Global
Technology Preparatory, D-4, Manhattan, traveled in June to South Korea as
a participant in the Korean Studies
Workshop for American Educators. The
Korean Studies Workshop for American
Educators is designed to enhance mutual
understanding between the people of
Korea and the United States.
New President of CCNY
Alum Association
Patricia Black was elected President
of The City College of New York Alumni
Association. Ms. Black is the former
Principal of Jane Addams High School,
Bronx, and the former superintendent
of Manhattan High Schools.
Three CSA Members
Travel to Japan
Three CSA members were among 10
middle and high school educators
selected for a three-week trip to Japan
this summer through the Japan Society’s
Educator’s Study Tour program.
They are: Joel Lowy, Assistant
Principal, The NYC Museum School;
Darlene H. Miller, Principal of the NYC
Museum School; and Deborah Isom,
Assistant Principal of the Queens
Gateway to Health Sciences Secondary
School. The program is open to middle
and high school educators, librarians
and school administrators for the cost
of $500.
PS 312: Time to Take a Bow
PS 312, D-22, Brooklyn had a lot to sing
about last spring. Above, from left, Robert
Howe and Michael Mann were the third
and fourth place winners of the
Dimension M Math Megabowl. Center,
Alan Samanov was the winner of a bookmaking competition.Right, Julissa Perez
and Rebecca Barbarovich make music
during the school’s Spring Concert.Left,
Samantha Blafford, Bart Rosenzweig and
Lexi Murman perform in“Annie”. Linda
Beal-Benigno is the Principal.Laura
Donofrio and Diane Denning are APs.
8
CSA NEWS
September 2009
Hindi
Spoken
Here
Summer Program
Polishes Native Skills
BY YURIDIA PEÑA
S
ixty-five high school students spent
three weeks this summer studying
Hindi through an inventive program
designed by a CSA member.
The Summer Concentrated Hindi
Program was offered at Thomas Edison High
School in Queens and offered Hindi lessons
as well as an introduction to Indian art, history and culture. Sushma Malhotra, Assistant
Principal at The Mid-Manhattan Learning
Center, wrote the program proposal and
received the OK from STARTALK, a federal
program that aims to ensure instruction in
strategically important world languages not
widely taught in the US.
“I have a passion for language and students,” said Ms. Malhotra who collaborated
on the curriculum with Gabriela Ilieva,
Clinical Associate Professor at NYU’s South
Asian Languages Department.
Students studied the customs and wellknown sites of each region in India. They
learned how to dance to the folkloric
rhythms of kathak, felt the textures of a silk
sari and sang India’s national anthem in
Hindi. Students also visited the Rubin
Museum of Art where Himalayan textiles,
paintings and sculpture are exhibited.
“We want to learn more about our cul-
YURIDIA PEÑA
Students,above,practice their writing.The three-week program provided language skills as well as an introduction to the culture.
Left,Anu Kapoor works with Palak Preet,a junior at Queens Gateway,on a crafts project.Right,Kamini Mehta explains bandhani, a tiedye process used in making clothing.These two photos were taken in an intermediate-level Hindi class.
ture,” said Palak Preet, a junior from Queens
Gateway. Other students said they wanted to
learn how to communicate better with their
parents, family members and friends who are
native speakers.
“I know how to speak, but not how to
read and write,” said Ajeet Singh, a junior at
the Bronx High School of Science.
The program first enrolled 45 students
but due to the high demand, Ms. Malhotra
added 20 seats. She has been overwhelmed
with phone calls and e-mails from parents
and educators trying to get their kids a seat.
“I’m getting phone calls but I cannot accommodate them,” she said. She hopes to add
more classes next summer.
Although the class was non-credited, students received $100 and college-level foreign
language credits.
The program was also used as a preparation tool for ELL student who will be taking
the New York State Languages Other Than
English (LOTE) Regents Exam, a requirement
for high school students to earn an
Advanced Regents Diploma.
The teachers at the summer Hindi program at Thomas Edison High School.Assistant Principal Sushma Malhotra is at far right.
September 2009
CSA NEWS
Wildcat Academy
High Marks for Bronx Charter School
9
N AT I O N
Education
GEORGIA:
Phone Detectors
School officials are exploring cell
phone detector technology to help
teachers identify when cell phones
are in use in classrooms. The detectors buzz when a call is made or a
message is sent from inside the
classroom. Critics point out that the
detectors do not solve the problem
of finding the phone, which will take
time away from instruction.
(Chattanooga Times Free Press)
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA:
Swine Flu Readiness
A state-of-the-art industrial kitchen attracts students into the culinary arts.
BY YURIDIA PEÑA
W
hile many charter schools
appeal to specific populations – the gifted and talented, artists and musicians,
business or science students – the John V.
Lindsay Wildcat Academy Charter School
in the Bronx has a different mission – giving a second chance to young adults who
have been less than successful in their educational careers.
When a student first arrives at John V.
Lindsay, chances are that he or she has
A day-to-day challenge
for the school’s staff.
been to, not one, but several high schools.
For example, Miguel Jimenez, who now
works at the school as an internship monitor, tells his story, which is fairly typical
of the student population. He arrived at
the age of 20 with a few credits from three
high schools. “I started realizing my
friends around me were thugs,” he said;
his parents were threatening to kick him
out if he did not change. “I was going to be
in the streets doing nothing good,” he
said.
Mr. Jimenez credits Principal Marc
Donald with providing him with a second
chance. Mr. Donald, who was Mr. Jimenez’
English teacher at the time, encouraged
and worked with him. Mr. Jimenez says
The Obama administration held a
summit with health and education
officials from every state to verify
their readiness for handling anticipated vaccinations and to determine procedures for schools dealing with outbreaks of the virus. On
the list of topics that were discussed were finding workers for
vaccination campaigns and helping
communities decide when schools
should close. (Associated Press)
YURIDIA PEÑA
bluntly that the school “made me a successful person. If not, I would be right in
the streets trying to make illegal money.”
Mr. Donald, a South Carolina native,
moved to NYC in 2000 and began teaching English at John V. Lindsay. After three
years, he felt claustrophobic in the classroom. “I found particularly, as I started
teaching, I was never as effective as I
wanted to be,” he said; he wanted to reach
more students and have more of an impact. So, in 2003, Mr. Donald became Assistant Principal and was appointed
Principal a year later. “It’s a day-to-day
challenge. That’s what drives me and most
of the staff,” he said.
The students are a challenge. Some
have serious emotional issues, have criminal records, or were at one point in foster
care or homeless. Others are teen parents
or supporting a family. “A lot of these kids
have my cell phone,” Mr. Donald said.
Tough calls have included those that reported the murder of a student. “You do
get heavily involved,” he said. Inevitably,
given the students’ backgrounds, attendance is a constant struggle not the least
of which is that many students “have to
put food on their own table,” he added.
One way the school fights flagging attendance is to find students paid internships. Students work at
Day Care Centers, pharmaceutical
companies
and construction firms.
“It’s a prime motivator,”
said Mr. Donald. They
From left,Miguel Jimenez,Internship
Monitor,and Principal Marc Donald.
also have the option of enrolling in the
culinary program (started in 2004), the
school’s in-house internship. Hospitality
and the restaurant business are taught in a
nearly $1 million state-of-the art industrial
kitchen and dining room modeled after
the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde
Park, NY.
“I saw the kitchen and fell in love,” said
Maigan Rivera, who came to John V. Lindsay after failing in numerous high schools.
Ms. Rivera now has a 90 average and expects to graduate high school by next
spring. “The teachers, they don’t give up
on you,” she said. Ms. Rivera hopes to attend SUNY-Delhi to earn a bachelor’s degree in culinary arts program.
Leslie Magallanes, school secretary and
John V. Lindsay alumna, was ready to quit
high school a few years ago. “I was going to
go for a GED before a friend told me about
this school,” she said. Ms. Magallanes enjoyed the school’s personalized program.
“This school is like a family,” she said. Now,
she attends Laguardia Community College
and is majoring in business administration.
NEW JERSEY:
Increasing Public
Pre-School
State aid of $596 million is slated for
preschool programs this year. New
Jersey supports the expansion of
preschool programs and Gov.
Corzine proposed spending $25 million more to expand public preschool to low-income children.
Though that money was slashed in
the fiscal crisis, some districts plan to
forge ahead with expanding preschool reasoning that it will save
money in the long run with higher
graduation rates and fewer special
education placements. (NJ.com)
MASSACHUSETTS:
Readiness Schools
North Middlesex Regional School
District may be one of the state’s
first 16 districts to open a “readiness school”, an in-district, chartertype school. There are three types
of readiness schools: Advantage,
Alliance and Acceleration which
develop innovation plans, involve
external partners in the innovation
plans, and convert underperforming schools, respectively.
Reportedly, teacher and administrator pay may be based on school
performance. Funding is yet to be
determined by legislation to be
filed by Gov. Patrick. (Lowell Sun)
CALIFORNIA:
Summer School
Summer school at John V.Lindsay Wildcat Academy.Wildcat Academy’s
Bronx campus is primarily for freshmen and sophomores.Upper classmen
transfer to the sister school in Wall Street.The Principal there is Ron Tabano.
John V.Lindsay
Wildcat Academy is
located in the BankNote building,a landmark in Hunts Point.
Last spring,the school signed a 12-year lease to remain in the
building.
Santa Ana’s summer enrichment
program has served to replace
summer education classes that
were eliminated due to the
budget crisis. The program, which
is serving 11,200 students, is free
of charge for Pre-K through 8th
grade. The summer program is
funded mainly by the 21st Century
Supplemental Grant that provides
$2.3 million yearly for five years.
(Orange County Register)
— COMPILED BY
CHRISTINE ALTMAN
10
CSA NEWS/ PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
September 2009
‘New Principal’ Program Leads ELI Su
BY YURIDIA PEÑA
Information Initiatives
T
he Executive Leadership Institute
launched its Principal Institute this
summer with four days of workshops.
About 100 Principals participated in the program held at Fordham University’s Lincoln
Center campus during July.
The Principal Institute offered 18 different workshops during the four days.
Among the topics were Quality Review,
Excel for the School Executive, Emotional
Intelligence and a host of Differentiated
Instruction workshops for all grades.
Deputy Chancellor Chris Cerf was a
guest speaker on the final day and spoke
about the changes in the school system
resulting from mayoral control. He
emphasized the need for increased support for Principals and discussed the
teacher evaluation process as well as the
current teacher hiring policy – only teachers from the current pool may be hired
due to the economic circumstances.
He complimented current CSA members – “I think the quality of the leaders
in the system is at an all-time high” – and
also outlined three DOE shortcomings.
1. “We overburden schools with paperwork.”
2. “This pressure of accountability can
have collateral consequences … It can create fear and crush collaboration in some
schools.”
3. “Our single biggest failure is we have
not yet gotten [Principals] to understand
how important it is to manage the people
you hire …” firing staff when necessary.
During a Q&A, one Principal asked Mr.
Cerf, “U-rated teachers always find their
way back … How can we educate kids with
this happening?” Mr. Cerf said that
although the number of teachers removed
permanently has increased, this remains a
challenge the administration is addressing.
Mr. Cerf said that he wanted to create a
task force on this and other issues “so you
can advise us how to make this better.”
ELI Coordinator Michael Schlar makes a point during“Teacher Data Initiative: Analysis, Strategies and Conversations” on July 20, the first day of
the Principal Institute. ELI’s Coordinators ran many workshops throughout July – the Principal Institute, SBISI and Single-Topic Workshops.
Excel for Leaders
Q&A
“Excel for the School Executive”remains a popular workshop
among CSA members.
Feedback
Chris Cerf, Deputy Chancellor, spoke on July 23, about systemic changes
since mayoral control in 2002, and challenges that remain.
Networking Breakfast
(Members Respond To ELI Workshops)
As for Series I (SBISI),it should
be required for every Assistant
Principal…Millie Goodman (ELI
Coordinator),she’s fantastic.She
supported the Principal through
me, and the whole school.
—ANTONIO HERNANDEZ
AP, PS 72, MANHATTAN
After the past four days, during which
ELI provided thought-provoking,practical
professional development, giving feedback is the least I could do to show appreciation for ELI’s effort.
In addition to your excellent speakers, I commend the two presenters who delivered an immeasurable amount of practical
information and number of tools to us, Carol Ildebrando and
Michael Schlar. Not only were they expertly prepared, but the
passion and patience they exhibited set the tone for four motivating, invaluable sessions. As new APs, we often feel that there
is no time to allow our own shadows to catch up with us. Carol
and Mike equipped us with strategies, and more importantly,
the confidence to set a course in which we can be productive,
yet cognizant of our own well-being.Thank you for an extremely
rewarding opportunity to improve and reflect upon my own
practices as a NYC AP.
—MITCH KATCHER
ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL, PS/MS 146, QUEENS
AP Hernandez
CSA President Ernest Logan spent time with CSA members during a“networking breakfast”on the first day of the
Principal Institute on July 20.The CSA leadership strongly supports professional development for all its members and
was delighted with the strong response from members who attended.
September 2009
CSA NEWS/ PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
ummer Offerings
Institute for Assistant Principals
July 13-16
Data Strategies
AP Esther Farrell, PS 34,D-29, Queens,focuses
during the“Using Data as a Leadership Tool to
Promote Student Achievement.”
Registration
ANNE SILVERSTEIN
First day of registration for the School-Based
Intermediate Supervisors Institute (SBISI).
About 150 Assistant Principals participated.
Plenary Presentation
11
CSA to Partner with
Fordham in Training
BY CSA STAFF
Fordham University’s Graduate
School of Education will receive
$299,313 annually for three years from
the NYS Department of Education to
help train tomorrow’s school leaders
from the ranks of today’s teachers.
Among Fordham’s partners in this
endeavor are District 4, District 10 and
CSA. The union will provide mentoring
and workshops through its Executive
Leadership Institute, the union’s professional development branch.
“We, of course, are delighted to be
working with Fordham on this meaningful program. Training experienced teachers to be school leaders is an ideal situation,” said CSA Executive Vice President
Peter McNally.
The grant, distributed in partnership
with the Wallace Foundation, is part of
a plan to develop a cohesive school leadership system in the state. The state
awarded funding to six institutions of
higher learner, including the Graduate
School of Education.
The Graduate School of Education
(GSE) will create a 12-month program
that will provide authentic clinical experience for future leaders as well as tuition
support for those working towards a mas-
ter’s in administration and supervision.
Recruiting begins this month, and the
first cohort of 15 students will begin next
January, said Anita Batisti, Ph.D.,
Associate Dean.
Program candidates will be selected
from teachers already working full-time
who are ready to be leaders, Dr. Batisti
said. In addition to taking 30 class credits at Fordham, the students will do a
clinical internship of 420 hours. An integral aspect of the program is provision
of "teacher recovery time" – the grant
pays for a substitute teacher one day per
week so that working teachers may participate in the internship. The same sub
will return each week to provide continuity in the classroom.
As part of the program, GSE has partnered with two high-need school districts, District 4 in Manhattan and
District 10 in the Bronx. Both districts
have very large populations of English
language learners.
A partnership with Fordham
University at Lincoln Center will give
potential school leaders extra support in
literacy and math. Each year of the grant,
the program will accept another cohort
of 15. "At the end of three years, 45 people will become certified school building
leaders," Dr. Batisti said.
ELI’s Fall Workshops
Open for Registration
The Executive Leadership Institute’s
fall single-topic workshops as well as its
Children First Leadership workshops are
open for registration online at the CSA
website.
The classes will be given at the
Brooklyn Educational Leadership Center,
16 Court St., Brooklyn. Class times vary
so check the website, www.csa-nyc.org,
for specific registration information.
Each morning, SBISI began with a plenary session and a speaker before the Assistant Principals
broke out into the various workshops. St. John’s University (Manhattan campus) hosted the
Institute’s program.The speakers during the daily plenary sessions were Dr. Jerrold Ross, Dr. Kevin
McGuire and Dr. Jonathan Hughes all from St. John’s University; and CSA’s Director of Grievances
Bob Reich and David Brodsky, Director of Labor Relations, NYC DOE, who presented together.
Executive Leadership Institute
Moving Leaders Forward
Leadership Competencies
SEPT. 22
Using Data to Improve Instruction
Progress Reports, Parts 1 and 2:
SEPT. 23
Quality Review, Parts 1 and 2:
– An Overview of Changes
– The Road to School Improvement
SEPT. 24
– Leading Changes: Developing
High Performing Teams
– Use of Data Analysis for Strategic
Planning
ANNE SILVERSTEIN
ELI Coordinators Ann Irrera and Nick Apostolo, led a workshop on the School Leadership
Competencies/Continuum on the first day of the SBISI summer program. The Assistant Principals
attended workshops in the morning and in the afternoon with an hour for lunch.
PHOTOS BY YURIDIA PEÑA
SEPT. 29
– Effective Communication to
Move Your Instructional Agenda
– Time Management
SEPT. 30
Scheduling and Programming to
Facilitate Student Achievement
OCT. 1
Emotional Intelligence,
Emotionally Intelligent Leadership,
Building a Healthy Organization
OCT. 6
Using Data to Improve Instruction
Progress Reports, Parts 1 and 2:
OCT. 7
Special Education: Compliance
and Supervision
OCT. 8
Excel Advanced: Needing a
Working Knowledge of Basic Excel
OCT. 28
Time Management
Space is limited in each of these workshops and registration is online only. For
information about any of these classes,
contact the Executive Leadership
Institute at (718) 852-3000 or e-mail
For a complete description
of these classes and to register,
visit www.csa-nyc.org
12
CSA NEWS
September 2009
Who’s Who: CSA’s Elected Officers
BY ANNE SILVERSTEIN
CSA Advisory Committee
W
elcome back to a new school
year and the fall, a time of
the year when hope springs
eternal and many things seem possible.
At CSA, we take a moment in the
September issue to introduce the
elected and appointed representatives as well as the CSA Field Staff to
the membership. On these pages,
and Page 14, you’ll “meet” the men
and women who work on your
behalf to ensure that the CSA contract is enforced, who bring news
TOP ROW: (From left) CSA President
Ernest Logan; Executive Vice
President Peter McNally; First Vice
President Dr. Randi Herman;
Secretary Mark Cannizzaro,Treasurer
Laverne Burrowes; Robert Kazanowitz,
Ronald Williams.
SECOND ROW: Vice Presidents
Richard Oppenheimer and Nilda J.
Rivera; Special Vice President
(Retirees) Irwin Shanes; Members-atLarge William Pinkett (Retirees),
Nancy Russo and Myrna Walters.
Continued on next page
Executive Board Representatives
Queens
District 75
Barbara
Hanson
(From left) John Lavelle, D-24; Valerie Sawinski, D-25; Naomi Drouillard, D-27;
Jermaine Garden, D-28; Sandra Johnson, D-29; Laura Prente, D-30.
Not pictured: Andrea Dapolito, D-26
High Schools
District 33
Top:
Angela
Carey
Adams
District 31
FIRST ROW: (From left) Samuel Akel, Manhattan; Martin Fiasconaro, Brooklyn;
William Quintana, Bronx; Myrna Walters, Brookyn; Dr. Ramon Namnun, Bronx.
SECOND ROW: Elizabeth Fong, Manhattan; Barbara Vellucci, Staten Island
District 79, Membership by District, is vacant.
THIRD ROW: Representing HS AP – Supervision,
Tracy Atkins, Lisa Pollari and Nelson Acevedo;
Elementary School Principals, Virginia Berrios,
Paulette Foglio; Supervisors of … and Assistant Coordinators
of Adult Education Amoye Neblett.
FOURTH ROW: HS Principals and Alternative HS Principals,
Jacqueline Foster; Middle School Principals, William Moore;
HS AP – Special Education, Joanne Epstein; Assistant
Principals, Special Schools and Citywide, Elena Talamo;
Middle School Principal, K-8, Sonia Nieves.
NOT PICTURED: Representing Principals - Special Schools,
Adrienne Edelstein; Aspiring Principals/NLNS, Ravonda Oden;
Howard Needleman, represents EAs and CSE Chairs.
Bronx
Joseph
Mennella
Not pictured: Lantigua Sime, Manhattan; Robert Yanez, Queens.
Membership Classifications
THIRD ROW: Mary Barton, D22; Debra Pierce, D-23; Robert
Flores, D-32.
Not pictured: Modupeola
Foluke-Adero, D-16, Frantz
Lucius, D-17, and Andrew
Frank, D-20.
Not
pictured:
Karen
Anderson.
SECOND ROW: Representing Day Care
Directors and Assistant Directors Williesteen
Moore and Sheila Willard; Education
Administrators and CSE Chairs Orlando Rodriguez
and Luz Torres; High School Assistant Principals –
Administration Zona Gurian and Ronald Williams.
FIRST ROW: (From left) Mitra
Lutchman, D-13; Lizabeth
Caraballo, D-14; Ramona
Adorno, D-15.
SECOND ROW: Leslyn Ward,
D-18; George Andrews, D-19;
Mark Goldberg, D-21.
Bottom:
Bonnie
Seiler.
FIRST ROW: (From left) Representing Assistant
Principals, Sandy DiTrapani, Eugenia Ellsworth,
Juanita Johnson, Eva Proctor, Evelyn Santiago;
Debra Handler, Leslie Pagliaro.
Brooklyn
FIRST ROW: (From left) Roxan Marks, D-7; Elvira Maresca, D-8; Ezra
Matthias, D-9; Luis Liz, D-10; Benjamin Soccodato, D-11
Not pictured, Winston Simmonds, D-12.
Retiree Chapter
Neil Lefkowitz,
Retiree
Chapter Chair.
Manhattan
FIRST ROW:
(From left)
Loretta
Caputo, D-1;
Nancy SingBock, D-2;
Eileen Perez, D-4.
SECOND ROW: Deborah Payne, D-5.
Luis Malave, D-6.
September 2009
CSA NEWS
13
and Appointed Representatives
Continued from facing page
from the field to the leadership and
return to the field with union policy
and advice.
If you haven’t met your union
reps, take a moment to e-mail the
appropriate District Chair or
Executive Board member and introduce yourself. When a district meeting is scheduled, try to attend.
You’ll learn important information
relating to your contract and DOE
issues. If you have a question, please
e-mail your Field Director or
Assistant Field Director. The union
staff works with you and for you to
make sure your rights are not violated. They’ll answer questions, or
direct you to the appropriate staff at
union headquarters.
Pictured on these pages are members of the Advisory Committee, the
District Chairs and Assistants
Staten Island
Day Care Borough Chairs
TOP ROW: (From left) Pedro Cordero,
Manhattan; Lois Lee, Queens; Cheryl
DeWitt, Bronx; Lorna Johnson,
Brooklyn.
SECOND ROW: Griselda Velasquez,
Brooklyn/Staten Island.
TOP ROW: (Left to right)
Marlon Hosang, D-1; Kelly
Shannon, D-2; Charles
DeBerry, D-3; Sandra
Gittens, D-4; George
Young, D-5.
SECOND ROW: Wanda
Soto, D-6; Assistant
Chairs Dean Ketchum, D2; Mary Acosta, D-3;
Roxieann Johnson, D-5;
Dalma Gonzalez, D-6.
TOP ROW: (From left) Kristina
Beecher, D-13; Brian De Vale, D14; Cynthia Holton, D-15; Karen
Hambright, D-16, Valeria
Godbred, D-17; Neil J. McNeill,
D-18.
SECOND ROW:
Joseph Costa, D19; James Harrigan,
D-20; Sandy
DiTrapani, D-21;
Linda Singer, D-22;
Beverly Logan, D23; Mabel Sarduy;
D-32; Assistant Chair Sharyn
Hemphill, D-13.
THIRD ROW: Assistant Chairs
Celina Napolitano, D-14; Roderick
Busey, D-19; Raquel Oechsner,
D-20; Joelene-Lynette Kinard, D21; Shirley Wheeler, D-23; Wilma
Kirk, D-32.
TOP ROW: (From left) Joseph
Lisa, D-24; Fran Walters, D-25;
Sheelia Twomey, D-26; Dorothy
Morris, D-27; Eleanor Andrew,
D-29.
SECOND ROW: Anne GordonChang, D-30.
Assistant Chairs Suzanne
Scalcione, D-26; Eugenia
Ellsworth, D-28, Dolores Reid
Barker, D-29, Sharon Sanders,
D-30.
Rose Kerr, D-31;
Assistant Chair Deborah
Appello, D-31.
Manhattan
Brooklyn
Executive Board and the District
Chairs and the Assistant Chairs.
The Advisory Committee of CSA
consists of the elected officers of
CSA, three members-at-large and
the Special Vice President for
Retirees. The Executive Board is the
union’s legislative body. It consists
of CSA’s elected officers, the elected
representatives of each membership
classification, the elected representa-
tive from each CSA district or high
school borough and two retiree
member representatives. The CSA
President appoints a Chair for each
District, and may, at his discretion,
appoint an Assistant Chair. The
Executive Board meets the third
Wednesday of every month; the
District Chairs meet the first
Wednesday.
Have a good year!
NOTE: Names without titles indicate District Chairs.
The Bronx
TOP ROW: (Left to
right): William Hewlett,
D-7; John Hughes, D-8;
Lauren Wilkins, D-9;
Robert Mercedes, D-10.
SECOND ROW: Susan
Barnes, D-11; Peter
Oroszlany, D-12;
Assistant Chair Jeremy
Kabinoff, D-11.
TOP ROW: (From left)
Assistant Chairs Orlando
Rodriguez,
Marcia Buckhout, Renee
Raines, Rosa Denoon.
SECOND ROW:
Assistant Chairs
Rosemarie Sinclair,
Danette McGaney,
Roseann Napolitano.
Not pictured: Assistant
Chair Glen Rasmussen.
District 33
High Schools
TOP ROW: (From left) Donald Sexton, Bronx; Yvette
Allen, Bronx; Ralph Santiago, Queens; Grace
Zwillenberg, Stephen Duch, Queens.
SECOND ROW: Tessa Austin, Rosalie David, Stephen
Noonan, Manhattan; Ira Weston, Fran Karul, Brooklyn.
THIRD ROW: Zona Gurian, Brooklyn/Staten Island.
Queens
District 75
From left: Jacqueline
Keane; Assistant Chair,
Elizabeth DeFrancisco
District 79
Victor Gathers
14
CSA NEWS
September 2009
CSA Field Teams and How to Reach Them
BY ANNE SILVERSTEIN
Audrey Fuentes, Executive
Director Field Services
The beginning of the school year is a good
time to introduce CSA’s field staff of skilled
administrators and supervisors to CSA’s membership. Many of you are already familiar with
these representatives as they are your former colleagues. Each of them, in his or her turn, has
been a successful school leader who has a deep
knowledge of the CSA contract. The union’s officers have designed specific field teams comprised
of former school leaders who are familiar with
your schools, districts and boroughs.
CSA’s field teams will be there during good
times and in stressful ones. Sometimes, a community issue can become more than a school
leader can handle alone. We’ll be there if you
need us.
High Schools
D-79, D-75, Charter Schools, and
Non School-Based Administrators,
MANHATTAN AND DISTRICTS 7, 8,
9, BRONX HIGH SCHOOLS
QUEENS AND DISTRICTS 10, 11,
12, BRONX HIGH SCHOOLS
BROOKLYN AND STATEN ISLAND
HIGH SCHOOLS
RIGHT: Joanne Frank, Assistant
Director, [email protected]
RIGHT: Christine Martin, Assistant
Director, [email protected]
RIGHT: William Meehan, Assistant Director,
[email protected]
LEFT: Juanita Bass, Director
(718) 852-3000, x 1026,
[email protected]
LEFT: Bernard Lopez, Director
(718) 852-3000, x 1027,
[email protected]
One final point: If an investigator appears in
your office, you have the right to union representation while you speak to him or her. Even
if you are not the subject of the investigation,
tell the investigator you will be happy to discuss
the topic at hand but only with a union representative by your side. Then call the union
immediately at (718) 852-3000 or e-mail Director
of Grievance Bob Reich at [email protected].
LEFT: Lena Medley, Director
(718) 852-3000, x 1028,
[email protected]
LEFT: Patricia Glassman, Assistant Director, Non
School-Based Administrators; D-75; [email protected]
CENTER: Ray Gregory, Assistant Director, Charter
Schools, [email protected]
RIGHT: Ellie Greenberg, Assistant Director, Non SchoolBased Administrators and D-79, [email protected]
Manhattan
Bronx
Brooklyn, Staten Island
Districts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
Districts 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Districts 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 31
LEFT: Daisy OʼGorman, Ed.D., Director
(718) 852-3000, x 1031, [email protected]
RIGHT: Shelli Sklar,
Assistant Director, [email protected]
LEFT: Stephen Bennett,
Director (718) 852-3000, x 1025, [email protected]
LEFT: Kathleen Murphy, Director
(718) 852-3000, x 1030, [email protected]
RIGHT: Aura Gangemi, Assistant Director, [email protected]
RIGHT: Charles Dluzniewski, Assistant Director,
[email protected]
CENTER: Robert Jeanette, Assistant Director,
[email protected]
Queens
Brooklyn
Districts 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30
Districts 13, 14, 15, 16, 19, 23, 32
Early Childhood Education
LEFT: Phyliss Bullion, Director
(718) 852-3000, x 1029, [email protected]
LEFT: Steven M. Rosen, Director (718) 852-3000, x 1032,
[email protected]
RIGHT: Thelma Peeples, Assistant Director
[email protected]
RIGHT: Kathleen Leonard, Assistant Director,
[email protected]
CENTER: Mary Aloisio, Assistant Director
[email protected]
CENTER: Mildred Boyce, Assistant Director,
[email protected]
In Memoriam
MARGARET (PEGGIE) DONOVAN
SULLIVAN, 78, died on May 3 from
complications after heart surgery.
A resident of Manhattan and Sea
Girt,NJ,she received her bachelor’sdegree from Fordham University
and a master’s degree from NYU.
She worked for the NYC public
schools for more than 40 years.
Among the subjects she taught
were speech, drama and ESL. She
served as an Assistant Principal
Supervision/Speech at John Jay
High School, Newtown HS and
William Cullen Bryant HS. Later in
her career, she supervised children
with special needs.She also worked
as an adjunct professor at Bronx
Community College. Ms. Sullivan
was a member of the IrishAmerican Cultural and Heritage
Association. Condolences may be
sent to her husband of 48 years,
Dan, at 11 Riverside Dr., Apt. 9EW,
NY, NY 10023.
LIZ BUTLER, 56, passed away on
April 6 after a four-year battle with
cancer. Ms. Butler worked at the
Mayor’s office as Deputy Director of
Contracts for 18 years. She then
worked for 11 years as a Project
Manager for Electronic Data
Systems. Her husband, Thomas
Butler, retired as Principal of IS 111,
former Chancellor’s District in 2001.
Condolences may be sent to him at
5601 College Rd.,#205,Key West,FL
33040 or [email protected].
CATHERINE TREGLIA, 84, died on
June 8 after an illness that lasted
two years. She was a former
Principal at PS 212, D-21, Brooklyn,
as well as an active member of the
CSA Retiree Chapter serving on the
Executive Board. (She also served
on the Executive Board of the
Retired School Supervisors Association,which merged with the CSA
Retiree Chapter.) She retired in
January 1981. Condolences may be
sent to her husband,Andrew,at 865
73rd St., Brooklyn, NY 11228-1901.
DONALD ROTH died on July 10
after a long battle with cancer. His
career spanned more than 35
years in the NYC schools, beginning as a biology teacher at
Brandeis High School, then
Assistant Principal at Murry
Bergtraum High School, Executive
Assistant and then Assistant
Superintendent in the Brooklyn
High School Office.
LAWRENCE F. LARKIN, JR., 72, of
Collier Township, PA, who served
for 35 years in the NYC school system, died June 12 after a short illness. Mr. Larkin began his career as
a teacher and retired as the
Director of Special Projects of the
central Board of Education in
CENTER: Mark Brodsky, Assistant Director
[email protected]
LEFT: Margaret Williams, Director
(718) 852-3000, x 1005,
[email protected]
RIGHT: Cynthia Sanders, Assistant Director,
[email protected]
1993. He received his bachelor’s
degree from Fordham University
in 1958 and his master’s degree
from Yeshiva University in 1967.
Condolences may be sent to his
wife, Rita, at 2103 Cambridge
Drive, Presto, PA 15142.
DR. HILL WILSON BRINDLE, 74,
died May 18 at Nyack Hospital after
suffering a major heart attack. He
served the NYC Board of Education
for 37 years beginning as a teacher
in 1956 at Frederick Douglas JHS in
Harlem and becoming an Assistant
Principal there in 1969. After nine
years, he became Principal at John
Phillip Sousa JHS. He also was an
adjunct professor at Purchase
College, York Community College,
the College of New Rochelle, and
CCNY. He served in the Army from
1957-59. He is survived by two
daughters, Darlene Waties and Lisa
Talbot. Contributions in his name
may be made to the Rockland
Negro Scholarship Fund, Inc., PO
Box 143, Nanuet, NY 10954.
FRANK MICKENS, 63, the wellknown Principal of Boys and Girls
High School, who turned the school
from one of the city’s worst to a
model of urban education, died in
his sleep on July 9. He served as the
Principal of Boys and Girls HS for 18
years, retiring in 2004. During his
long tenure with the NYC schools,
he worked as a teacher, dean,
Assistant Principal, Principal and
Assistant Superintendent for high
schools. He was also a Charles H.
Revson Fellow at Columbia. After
retiring, he taught at several colleges and universities.He published
two books: It Doesn't HaveTo BeThis
Way and My Way: The Leadership
Style of an Urban High School
Principal. Condolences may be sent
to the family at 50 Midwood St.,
Brooklyn, NY 11225. Contributions
may be sent to: Frank N. Mickens
Boys and Girls HS Scholarship Fund,
1700 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, NY
11213. Attention: Mr. Christopher
Smith, Assistant Principal.
September 2009
CSA NEWS
15
NYC Students Hold Their Own in Debate
BY CSA STAFF
Students from NYC public schools
excelled at the state championships in
debate last spring, sweeping one division
and winning first place in another.
The New York Urban Debate League
teams from NYC competed against private
schools and elite public schools from across
the state.
“To understand what some of these students have to overcome just to get to these
tournaments really places in context what
they did,” said Will Baker, the CEO of the
Impact Coalition, which runs the Debate
League. The IMPACT Coalition provides
debate training in urban schools. Below are
team results:
Varsity Debate
Quarterfinalists: Carl Belizaire and
Gregorio Livingston (Metropolitan Corporate Academy); Delmar Dualeh and
Ronnie Kennedy (Manhattan Center for
Science and Math); Miguel Deliciano and
Damiyr Davis (Beacon High School).
Speaker Awards: 2. Delmar Dualeh
(Manhattan Center); 3. Ashley Bernard
(Beacon).
Intermediate Policy Debate JV Finals: 1.
Henry Osman and Evan Sweet (Beacon); 2.
Brooklyn Pension and Leo Rayfield (The
Institute for Collaborative Education).
Semifinalists: Eric Marte and Victoria
Pasktriku (Bronx School for Law,
Government, Justice); Gino Salano and
Marcelo Jimenez (Baccalaureate School for
Global Education).
Quarterfinalists: Rudy Fuzaylov and
Daranee Nashongkhla (Baccalaureate); Duke
McMorris and Antonio Welch (Benjamin
Banneker Academy); Daniel Frankel and
Sinny Lavina (Stuyvesant).
Speaker Awards: 1. Viktoria Pashtiku
(Bronx); 2. Jodie Ann Geddes (Secondary
School for Law); 3. Erika Marte (Bronx Law);
4. Evan Sweet (Beacon).
Novice Policy
Debate: 1. Tyler Lure-Spicer and Natalia
Sucher (Beacon).
Semifinalists: Rafiel Mandley and Denzel
Jobson (Brooklyn Tech) .
Quarterfinalists: Jackie Chan & Natalie
Nikolic (Bronx Law); Anita Chen & Betty
Mahmud (ICE).
Speaker Awards: 2. Tyler Lurie-Spicer
(Beacon); 3. Natalia Sucher (Beacon); 5.
Nathan Nikolic (Baccalaureate).
In addition, Beacon High School
received the second place sweepstakes trophy, and Baccalaureate School for Global
Education finished fourth.
GARY GOLDSTEIN
Cruise Around the World
T
wo new programs to offer this month. We’re
heading to Alaska next summer as well as
the Mediterranean. The major cruise lines offer
their best rates as early as 15 months prior to
sail date, and once our allotment of seats is
gone, we must re-contract which means higher
rates. (Early bird specials available. See details
below.)
In response to member requests, we are
prepared to offer a comprehensive trip to a
US National Park during August 2010.
Interested? E-mail me at [email protected].
Sail on The Pearl, Norwegian Cruise
Line’s newest masterpiece. Informality
with elegance is the tone. This is an early
offering and the rates, as listed below,
won’t last. We depart Feb. 13 from Miami
and sail to Samana, St. Thomas, Tortola
and Great Stirrup Cay returning to New
York from Florida on Feb. 20.
RATES include roundtrip air fare
from New York to Florida:
Inside, $1,149 per person, double
occupancy; window, $1,349; balcony,
$1,499; mini-suite, $1,699. Add $216 per
person for port and government charges.
Optional insurance is available. (Visit
www.ncl.com to view the vessel.)
South America
March 13 - 28, 2010
Fly from NYC to Santiago, Chile, on
March 13. Sail March 14 from Valparaiso
on Celebrity’s Infinity to La Serena, Arica
Chile, Manta, Ecuador, transit the Panama
Canal, Cristobal, Panama, Cartagena,
Colombia and disembark in Fort
Lauderdale for the return flight to NYC.
Pay Freezes
School administrators around the
state have accepted pay freezes or
cuts and now talk has turned to
the same scenario for teachers.
Delays in state payments are
adding an additional burden to
districts, making it harder for
them to balance their budgets.
According to administrators, pay
freezes for some might lessen the
need for layoffs. (MinnPost.com)
NEW YORK:
Settlement For
Illegal Immigrants
Job Outlook Mixed
The stimulus package is expected
to put some 14,200 youth to work
this summer in parks, community
colleges, hospitals and public
schools. But the stimulus money
alone will not be enough to launch
education reforms that are tied to
the state budget. Many districts
are just trying to stay afloat, retain
programs and teachers and avoid
large layoffs. Cleveland plans to
offer 200 near-retirement teachers
the opportunity to stay and serve
as teacher coaches or tutors to students. (Boston.com)
Oct. 24 - Nov. 2, 2009
Feb. 13-20, 2010
MINNESOTA:
OHIO:
Outstanding Cruise Value
President’s Week Sail
Labor
Settlements totaling $3.85 million
were recently awarded to three illegal immigrants who were injured
on construction jobs. The cases
sent a clear message to undocumented workers that they should
not be afraid to stand up to their
employers if the situation warrants.
The court ruled that illegal workers
have the same rights as other
workers. (New York Times)
Travel Desk
Sail the Caribbean Princess from the
Brooklyn piers to San Juan, Puerto Rico,
with stops in Bermuda, St. Kitts, Antigua
and St. Thomas.
RATES per person include one-way
return airfare and transfers in San Juan:
Inside, $899; balcony, $1,099; minisuite, $1,398. Add $198 per person for
taxes and government fees. Fuel surcharge
included. Optional insurance available.
N AT I O N
Outside Cairo at the Pyramids. CSA members rode in a caravan.
RATES include cruise amenities and
airfare: Inside, $2,374 per person; window, $2,549; balcony, $3,079; balcony
with concierge, $3,449. Suites, triple, singles available upon request. Optional
insurance is available. Add $298 port and
government charges.
Alaska by Land and Sea
July 16-23, 2010
A brand new program! Alaska by land
and sea, if you so desire. We’re offering a
seven-day cruise through magnificent
scenery, but we’re also offering a four-day
land trip prior to our sailing for those who
want a longer visit. The four-day “add on”
bus tour runs from July 12-16 to Denali
Park, Fairbanks and Anchorage. Then
we’ll head down to Seward where we’ll
board Celebrity’s Millenium on July 16 to
Skagway, Icy Strait Point, Ketchikan,
Juneau, and the Hubbard Glacier. You will
disembark in Vancouver for flight home.
RATES: Cruise only, and airfare:
Inside cabin, $1,898; window, $2,249; balcony, $2,998.
Cruise, land tour and airfare: Inside,
$2,848; window, $3,198; balcony, $3,948.
Add $200 to balcony rate for concierge
service. Add $198 for port and government
ELEANOR GOLDSTEIN
charges. Optional insurance is available.
EARLY BIRD – Save $100 per person
for window and balcony cabins if you
deposit by Nov. 15.
Mediterranean Cruise
Aug. 21-29, 2010
Another brand-new offering to the
Mediterranean. We’ll fly from NYC on
Aug. 21 to Barcelona where we board
Royal Caribbean’s Voyager of the Seas the
next day. We’ll sail to Naples (Capri),
Rome, Florence, Nice, Marseilles and
return to NY from Barcelona on Aug. 29.
Voyager offers a major shopping arcade,
ice skating shows and skating, and rockclimbing. (See website for details at
www.royalcaribbean.com.)
An option for those who would like
to spend some time in Barcelona: For
$575 per person, you’ll arrive on Aug. 20
for a two-night pre-cruise stay.
RATES, including airfare: Inside
cabin, $2,599; window, $2,899; balcony,
$3,199; junior suite, $3,799.
EARLY BIRD – Save an additional
$100 per person if you pay a deposit by
Dec. 1. Add $198 for port and government
charges. Optional insurance available.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA:
AFT: Work With Us
The AFT has challenged the Obama
administration to work with teachers. The union has gone so far as to
say it will post a “collaboration
meter” on its website to measure
teacher involvement in education
reforms. Obama supports some
initiatives that are not always popular with teachers, such as performance pay and the expansion of
charter schools. (Education Week)
NEW HAMPSHIRE:
Task Force Works To
Sell New Hampshire
A task force recently set out to
examine how best to promote New
Hampshire as a place where young
people have ample opportunities to
find good (and good paying) jobs.
The task force hopes the state will
develop and market a NH brand. It
also plans to develop a youth leadership program and expects to
reach out to people through a new
web portal that will be launched,
www.stayworkplaynh.org.
(Nashuatelegraph.com)
— COMPILED BY
CHRISTINE ALTMAN
16
CSA NEWS
September 2009
Registration Opens for 2009
CSA Leadership Conference
The theme is set, workshop
proposals are arriving, and at
CSA, we’re heading into the final
months of preparation for the
45th CSA Educational Leadership
Conference on Nov. 7 at the
Hilton New York.
This year, in keeping with the
past, we are once again designing
the workshops and activities with
CSA members in mind to encourage as many supervisors and
administrators to come. As
always, in between the multitude
of workshops and panels, we provide you with plenty of time for
networking, catching up with old
friends and meeting new colleagues.
Our professional development
sessions start at 9 a.m. and are
aimed at meeting the needs of
those serving in schools, in support offices and in Day Care
Centers. A plenary session featuring a nationally-known speaker
(to be announced in September)
will highlight the morning program.
Other highlights of this year’s
conference include:
A special reception for
members of the President’s Club,
those who give $8 or more a paycheck toward the Political Action
Committee
Exclusive exhibitor viewing
time built into the conference
program. The usual full complement of text and multi-media
exhibitors will be present.
A special meeting with a full
breakfast for retired CSA members. (This has proven to be one
of the highlights of the day as former colleagues meet once again,
reconnecting with old friends.)
The opportunity to pre-register for workshops so that you
are guaranteed admittance to the
sessions of your choice.
An end-of-the-luncheon raffle featuring a slew of prizes and
coupons including a night at the
Hilton NY!
DOE members may reserve
tickets by using the ticket form
on this page. Use FAMIS to create
a purchase order for your school’s
Teachers’
Retirement
System
July 2009 Unit Values
Diversified Equity: 44.033
Stable-Value: 19.446
International Equity: 7.319
Inflation Protection: 8.980
Socially Responsive
Equity: 7.768
Visit the TRS website at
www.trs.nyc.ny.us/
supervisory staff. The DOE transmits completed purchase orders
to CSA overnight.
As a precaution, you should
fax a copy of the purchase order
to my attention to ensure the persons covered by the PO are listed.
If you create a SIPP payment, you
must fax a copy of the names and
a copy of the check request since
SIPP payments arrive without any
identifying data.
Please note: Day Care member and Retiree Chapter members will receive a mailing in
September that includes their
registration materials.
For information, contact Mr.
Lehmuller at [email protected].
Registration at last year’s Conference at the Hilton NY.
ANNE SILVERSTEIN
Ticket
Ticket Reservation
ReservationForm
Form
(Active DOE members only)
The 45th CSA Educational Leadership Conference
Great Schools Begin with Great Leaders:
Keeping the Promise in Challenging Times
SAT., NOV. 7, 2009 | THE HILTON NEW YORK | 8AM
TO
3:30PM
Return completed form and payment by Oct. 23 to:
CSA Conference Tickets, 16 Court St., 4th Fl., Brooklyn, NY 11241-0102
NOTE: Reservations made with a purchase order may be faxed to: (718) 403-0278
CSA MEMBERS ATTENDING:
1.
Last Name
First
Title
E-Mail Address
Check if this is your
first CSA Conference
¡
BY PIERRE LEHMULLER
CSA CONFERENCE CHAIRMAN
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
NON CSA MEMBERS ATTENDING (NAMES ONLY):
Total Number of tickets__________ @$99 = Total $ _________
PLEASE NOTE: Returned checks are subject to a $25 fee. NO REFUNDS will be given after noon, Nov. 5.
CSA Vendor No. 112024569. (Use sole vendor tab.)
I
Personal Check/Money Order
I
SIPP or School Fund Check
I
Purchase Order Number________________________
Seating/Special Meal Preferences_____________________________________________________________________________
Send tickets and related information to:
NAME
TITLE
E-MAIL ADDRESS
TELEPHONE
SCHOOL
DISTRICT
SCHOOL ADDRESS
CITY, ZIP CODE
For in-service DOE members only. Registration forms for Day Care and Retiree Chapter
will be mailed to members, or may be downloaded from the CSA website, www.csa-nyc.org.
September 2009
CSA NEWS / RETIREES
17
RETIREE
Chapter
CHAIR’S MESSAGE
Neil Lefkowitz
Devil Lurks in the Details
in Health Reform Debate
A
s of this writing, Congress is still
debating whether all the citizens
of our nation should have a
national health insurance program. With
individuals, employers and local governments grappling with the ever-increasing
cost of health insurance as well as with
health care, many Americans believe
some action at the federal level is
needed. Both Medicare and Medicaid
have certainly proven their worth as
effective programs for older, disabled or
indigent Americans, and it is time that
this nation of ours addresses the needs of
the millions of people in between who
are uninsured or who pay hefty premiums.
Obviously, a plan that provides insurance to millions of Americans is a costly
proposition, and we must find ways to
pay for it. But we must be careful about
what we wish for: Included in the discussions is a proposal to tax
health benefits; the employer-paid premium would be considered
taxable income adding to our already burgeoning tax burden.
Although I support universal health care, I cannot accept taxing health benefits. Over the years, the city’s unions negotiated
health insurance and other contractual benefits based upon a
total “pot” of money. The dollar amount was set, and how it was
divided up was part of the negotiations. In other words, salary
increases were reduced to pay for welfare benefits.
This is a local issue as well. We recently dodged a bullet when
the NYC Central Labor Council reached an agreement with the
city in June: while co-pays and other fees rose, we do not have to
pay for our health insurance premiums. (The agreement is
expected to save the city $400 million over the next two fiscal
years. In addition, Welfare Funds received a one-time payment of
$200 for each active and retired member, effective October 2009.)
With any luck, by the time the agreement expires in 2011, the
city and nation’s economy will be on the road to recovery, and
the city will not repeat its demand that city employees and
retirees pay a percentage of health premiums.
I cannot
accept taxing
health
benefits that
we earned.
• • •
I
n another important matter, the CSA Retiree Chapter has
played an important role in the Sept. 15 primary by interviewing candidates and helping with the endorsement process. (For a
list of endorsements, see Page 5.)
Last, but not least, our membership gathering at the Villa
Roma take places at the end of this month, and if you haven’t
registered, there’s still time. (See registration form on Page 18.) You
will not only have fun, you’ll have the opportunity to listen to
panel discussions and guest speakers as well as visit our annual
health fair. In addition, our CSA leaders will attend and provide
an overview of the state of the union. I hope to see you there.
Information about the upcoming CSA election
as well as the Retiree Chapter election, Page 5.
Sam Zilberzweig helps a student at PS 20 make a picture frame from scraps of materials.
YURIDIA PEÑA
The Story of ‘Mr. Z and Dr. G’
Retiree School Leaders Still Working on Lower East Side
BY YURIDIA PEÑA
At a Lower East Side elementary school, children use Styrofoam trays from the school cafeteria, recycled pieces of fabric and
scraps of cardboard to make picture frames during an arts and
craft workshop led by Sam
Zilberzweig.
Mr. Z, as the PS 20 community calls him, is a retired school
leader. In addition to his teaching duties, he serves as the
school’s historian, mentors
beginning teachers and works
on various school improvement
projects. Mr. Z finds affordable
ways to create art with his students. He can transform a milk
carton into a train station or
convert discarded aluminum,
wood and popsicle sticks into a
model of the Staten Island Ferry.
He uses these materials
because he doesn’t have the
money to go to a craft store and
buy expensive supplies. “The
money has dried up,” said Mr.
Z, in reference to the city budget
and how it has affected his job.
Mr. Z taught only nine days last
year and, as of this writing, he’s
budgeted for one day a week this
fall. Although work is scarce, he
maintains a relationship with
the students and staff. “It’s a nice
atmosphere,” he said.
He came to PS 20 shortly
after retiring as Assistant Principal from JHS 22 in Manhattan.
Dr. Leonard Golubchick, thenPrincipal of PS 20, hired him to
teach arts and crafts four days a
week. (Mr. Z also has taught per
diem at Brooklyn’s Mark Twain
School for the Gifted and
Talented, teaching social studies
and English.)
“Sam demonstrated that in
retirement, one’s contribution
and devotion and dedication to
the children of New York can
continue,” said Dr. Golubchick,
now the Director of Educational
Initiatives for City Councilman
Alan Gerson.
Dr. Golubchick – who everybody refers to as Dr. G – says Mr.
Z’s teaching approach blended
perfectly with the school’s
theme at the time: a social studies curriculum integrated with
the arts. Many beautification
projects were completed during
Dr. G’s tenure. Mr. Z recalls of
Dr. G: “He was a prolific grant
writer.” Mr. Z, as a member of
the schools improvements’ planning committee, helped decide
hands-on projects for students.
Today, the school, led by
Principal James Lee, features student-made murals and artistic
displays all around the building.
Even the columns in the cafeteria sport paintings and ceramics
designed by students.
Mr. Z’s role as the school historian is invaluable during social
studies classes, and he leads students on tours around lower
Manhattan pointing out the
Municipal Building on Chambers Street, the African Burial
Ground National Monument
on Duane Street and the various
courts. Other buildings on his
tour include Tweed and City
Hall, the Woolworth building
and St. Paul’s Chapel.
Shifting Populations
he Lower East Side is historically known as the center of
immigration in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Uneducated, poor immigrants crammed into tenements and
earned their living any way they could – from pushcarts and
piece work, to small stores that lined the streets.
Gentrification in the past 20 years has caused neighborhoods like the Lower East Side to become popular among
young, single New Yorkers. All-night lounges, cyber cafes and
bars featuring live music are commonplace. The construction
of luxury condos and the conversion of affordable housing
into expensive co-ops has pushed out the disenfranchised as
well.
According to Mr. Z, who has worked in the Lower East Side
for 45 years, this change has affected the enrollment at PS 20.
The school once served about 800 students. Today, it has about
450 neighborhood kids due to the loss of affordable housing
and bilingual programs for English Language Learners.
T
CSA NEWS / RETIREES
18
September 2009
Retirees Call for Health Reform in DC Rally
BY DEE-DEE GOIDEL
The Legislative Corps of the
Retiree Chapter is comprised of
volunteers from the city and area
Regional Units. Each member,
when he or she was in active
service, was a leader in his or her
field or school. Some retired after
25 or 30 or 40 years of service.
They earned the right to enjoy
their free time to pursue hobbies,
to travel, or to volunteer.
Some continued to work, of
course, at colleges and universities, teaching in educational programs and mentoring younger
teachers and supervisors in their
schools. And many of these retirees are also generous with their
time, volunteering at the Retiree
Chapter so that CSA as a whole
is enriched with their years of
experience and proactive involvement in the legislative process.
Rally in Washington
On June 25, nine Retiree
Chapter members joined officers
and staff from our national
union, the American Federation
of School Administrators (AFSA),
at a Health Care Reform Rally in
the nation’s capital. Taking an
early morning train, we arrived
for the noon start-time. After the
rally (in a park adjacent to the US
Capitol) our delegation – Pat
DeMeo, Ron Jones, Joe Quinlan,
Jewel Moolenaar-Marsh, Susan
Rapp, Patricia Weston-McNabb,
Marvin Goodman, Emerson Spry
and yours truly – were accompanied by Alex Voetsch, CSA’s
Assistant
Director
of
Governmental Relations, to visit
legislators in the Senate and
House. (We thank the staff at
AFSA for making senate and congressional appointments for us.)
Former AFSA President Jill
Levy greeted us warmly and
thanked us for attending the rally.
Ms. Levy assigned members of
her staff to accompany each
group as we made the rounds.
(Editor’s note: Ms. Levy’s term
ended in July and a new President
was elected. See Page 3 for story.)
Among the lawmakers’ offices visited were representatives from
New York state, Florida, Maryland
and California, states in which
many of our retirees live.
During our visits, we stressed
the need for health care reform
and the need to revisit the
Modernization Act of Medicare
2003 especially the notorious
“doughnut hole” – a coverage
gap within the defined standard
benefit in Part D. At 5 p.m., we
boarded the train to New York,
debriefing as we rode home,
invigorated, inspired and yes, a
little tired.
On City Hall Steps
On June 3 and 10, our retirees
mounted the steps of City Hall to
meet City Council members as
they entered the building for a
Retiree Chapter Get-Away
Sept. 29 – Oct. 2, 2009
Villa Roma Hotel and
Conference Center, Callicoon, NY
A FULL ARRAY OF ACTIVITIES WILL TAKE PLACE
INCLUDING: Three meals per day; reception each evening;
variety of sports activities; daily evening entertainment; CSA
events to include guest speakers, seminars, CSA Leadership,
and Executive Board meetings; health fair; complimentary
green fees and carts (nine holes) on Sept. 29; Caesar’s Night
Extravaganza.
ALL INCLUSIVE RATES: Double (two per room), $398
per person; triple, $375 per person; single, $467 per person.
Book now by completing the coupon below and sending a
deposit. Make checks payable to Villa Roma in the amount of
$50 per person and sent to: CSA Retiree Chapter, 16 Court
Street, Rm 711, Brooklyn, NY 11241 Attn: Alana Segura.
year for its continuation. The law
prevents contract negotiators
from diminishing retiree health
benefits unless the benefits of
those in active service are also
diminished. This makes retiree
health benefits the subject of collective bargaining. The law was
signed by Gov. David Paterson in
May. We thank Assemblywoman
Helene Weinstein (Brooklyn) and
Sen. Diane Savino (Staten Island)
for their dedication in introducing and expediting the passage of
this legislation.
In the meantime, CSA and its
retiree legislative committee will
continue to urge passage of permanent protection.
Ron Jones, Marvin Goodman, Emerson Spry, Susan Rapp, Jewel
Moolenaar-Marsh and Joe Quinlan hold the AFSA banner during the
AFL-CIO Health Care Reform rally on June 25 in Washington DC. Not pictured: Pat DeMeo and Patricia Weston-McNabb.
general meeting. In these informal “stair-meetings”, the retirees
emphasized the need for continued funding of the Executive
Leadership Institute. As former
supervisors and administrators,
we bear witness to how important ongoing training is for
school leaders to succeed. We
stressed that school leaders today
are younger than ever and in
need of practical training to meet
the changing demands of schools
in today’s society.
Our efforts paid off! The City
Council will fund ELI without
any cuts, a particular feat in
today’s environment. Right on
retirees! Your time was well spent.
Candidate Interviews
Members of the Legislative
Committees of the city’s boroughs were part of a CSA panel
that interviewed candidates for
Manhattan District Attorney, the
City Council, City Comptroller
and Public Advocate. (The Democratic primary is Sept. 15. The
general election, Nov. 3.) After
each session, an open discussion
was conducted to arrive at
endorsements. (For union endorsements, see Page 5.)
Protection Extended
Ever since 1994, when the
Protection for Retiree Health
Benefits was first written into law,
CSA Retirees have lobbied each
Chain of Giving Back
Current retirees hope that
their commitment of donated
time will inspire future retirees to
give back their time to CSA when
its their turn. By offering time,
retirees create an unbroken chain
of supervisory expertise, which is
a way of thanking and remembering those who worked on your
behalf when you were in active
service. Giving back is a way of
thanking those who were there at
the union’s beginnings as well as
all of those unionists who,
through the years, have strived to
protect all members at work and
in retirement. We must never take
for granted what we have gained.
CSA wishes to thank the following people for their work as legislative volunteers: Paul Arden, Larry Becker, Alicia Brafman,
Eathelle Clay, Mary Covington, Pat DeMeo, Harriet Fortson,
Irma Godlin, Ira Goldstein, Marvin Goodman, Ron Jones, Sydell
Kane, Florence Klein, John Leary, Gayle Lockett, Claudia Loftis,
Lara Lucks, Jewel Moolenaar-Marsh, John Oricchio, Joe Quinlan,
Susan Rapp, Joe Rosenberg, Irma Schonhaut, Emerson Spry, Neil
Wasserman, Patricia Weston-McNabb, Stanley Wilson,
Irwin Shanes, Mike Schwartz, Susan Serrano, Norm Sherman, Len
Sturman, Cheryl Summerville, Connie Testa,
Nick Venezia and Leona Zeplin.
Name(s)
Telephone
Address
City
State
Zip
E-mail
Enclosed is my check in the amount of $
for
room(s)
I wish to be seated at meals with:
Visit the CSA website, www.csa-nyc.org for more information
or call the Retiree Chapter (718) 625-3434.
ABOVE LEFT: At City
Hall in June, City
Councilwoman
Melinda Katz greets
Irma Godlin, a CSA
retiree. In the background, CSA interns
Chris Baba-tope and
Dan Feeley.
ABOVE RIGHT: City
Councilman Joel
Rivera with RC
Assistant Chair Gayle
Lockett.
LEFT: City Councilwomen Helen Sears
and Inez Dickens, third
and fourth from left.
YURIDIA PEÑA
September 2009
19
CSA NEWS
RC Regional Units
Borough Briefs
Continued from Page 20
Manhattan (DIST. 1-6)
Street
Smarts
Students from PS 4, D6, designed traffic signs
which were placed on
the corner of Amsterdam
Avenue and 160th Street
and on the corner of
Broadway and 160th
Street. The Principal is
Delois White.
ELEANOR GOLDSTEIN
END OF THE YEAR LUNCHEON: New Jersey’s Regional Unit held its end of the year luncheon on
June 9 at the Forsgate Country Club.Several Retirees – Aaron Stern, Don Juliano and Gayle
Lockett – joined the festivities as did CSA Retiree Chapter Director Gary Goldstein and Outreach
Coordinator Felice Hannah. (See story below for more information about the Unit’s plans.)
ROCKLAND, ORANGE, BERGEN
LONG ISLAND
The Unit held its final meeting in June
and a fantastic time was had by all! The
food was great and our speaker, RC
Chapter Assistant Treasurer Don Juliano,
gave us some great information about the
TRS Passport Funds and the money that
many of us will receive in December as a
result of the recently settled UFT lawsuit.
(See June 2009 CSA News.) Our fall meeting will be held on Oct 20 at the Nanuet
Library at 10:30 a.m.
—ARLENE SHAPIRO
June is the traditional time for end-ofthe-season activities for NYC educators and
former educators. Our May 12 museum trip
was a success. We all bought new outfits
for the gala luncheon at the Woodbury
Country Club on June 16! Seven officers
and staff members from Central CSA
attended. We exchanged anecdotes, congratulated ourselves on another successful
year and made merry the entire afternoon.
For more information, communicate with
Norman Watnick, (516) 747-6291, or email me at [email protected].
—NORMAN WATNICK
GEORGIA AND THE CAROLINAS
Gary Goldstein,RC Director and Neil
Lefkowitz, RC Chair, will attend meetings
of Georgia (Oct. 13) and North and South
Carolina (Oct. 14). If you live in these
states, you’ve already received an invitation to these meetings. Through their
Units, California, Arizona and Florida have
been in the loop for many years and
received visits from union and Welfare
Fund personnel. (The Retiree Chapter
receives numerous requests from members
outside the New York area to form new
regions. We can only entertain such
requests if a large number of retirees live
in a state and if they will attend at least
two meetings a year.) Ella Ivy of North
Carolina (917) 589-2566 and Georgia
Harrison of Georgia (770) 693-2399 have
volunteered to be the Unit Leaders.
Demonstrate your support – please attend:
October 13 at 11:30 a.m.
Holiday Inn Airport-South
4669 Airport Blvd.
College Park, GA. 30337
October 14 at 11:00 a.m.
350 Ashville Ave.
Cary, N.C. 27518.
Lunch will be served
NEW JERSEY
At a well-attended luncheon meeting
of our Unit at the Forsgate Country Club
on June 9, we feasted, danced and shared
information. Steve Porter and Steve Poris
were (again) introduced as the new Leader
and Assistant Leader along with an
expanded Executive Board. We announced
the establishment of Cultural Committee
headed by Robin Small. The excitement
continued with the proposal of creating a
Political Action Committee and an
Outreach/New Members Committee. Accolades were given to retiring New Jersey
Leader Les Golden for his dedication and
service. RC Director Gary Goldstein brought
several staff members to provide us with
information. We now look forward our
annual breakfast meeting on Sept. 16.
—STEVE PORTER
LOWER HUDSON VALLEY
Bronx (DIST. 7-12)
Student
Protest
The Student Council of MS
399, D-10, attended a June 4
City Council hearing on
school governance.The students were there to protest
the phasing out of their
school; two middle schools
will open in MS 399’s building this fall.Earlier last year,
the school community held a
rally to protest the plan.
YURIDIA PEÑA
Brooklyn (CONTINUED)
their talents at the school’s sixth
annual evening of the arts, which
included an art exhibition, a bookmaking workshop and performances
by the chorus, guitar and recorder
clubs. The drama club also performed
several selections from a teacher-written musical, Vacation on Mars.
The halls and classrooms of PS 120,
D-14, were converted into different
regions from around the United
States. Regional art, literature, music
and food were exhibited. Some of the
states highlighted were Maryland,
New York, California, Delaware, New
Jersey, Idaho, Nevada, and
Pennsylvania.
Principal Celia Kaplinsky hosted a
planning meeting to design an “edible schoolyard” at her school, PS 216,
D-21. Through PENCIL’s partnership
program, movie producer John Lyons
has supported the school and is
among the garden’s supporters. Super
YURIDIA PEÑA
Making books at PS 250, D-14, Brooklyn.
chef Alice Walters, president/founder
of the Chez Panisse Foundation, promotes healthy living through organic
nutrition and selected PS 216 as a possible location in NYC. Through her
program, Edible Schoolyards, students
learn about gardening and cooking.
Learning the Ropes
This Unit will hold its gala luncheon
at the Half Moon Restaurant in Dobbs
Ferry on Sept. 15 from noon to 3 p.m.
Details to follow.
—JOHN GENTILE
Reservations Required for Optical Van
Retirees attending the annual Fall Get-Away must make an appointment to
visit the GVS Mobile Optical Van on Oct. 1. Welfare Fund staff will print vouchers
for those eligible for an optical benefit, and special discounts are available to those
who are ineligible during this time period.
This may be, for some Get-Away attendees, the only chance they have to use a
participating provider. Those who have pre-registered will be contacted prior to
the event to arrange for a 15-minute appointment to see the doctor and select
your frames and glasses.
Call the Welfare Fund at (718) 624-2600 to ensure your choice of appointment
times. Glasses will be shipped to a General Vision corporate-owned store of your
choice for pick-up, or are mailed directly to you. The new General Vision supplemental optical benefit will also be available at this time.
YURIDIA PEÑA
tudents in the Young Sailors’
Program were feted aboard the
Peking, docked at South Street
Seaport.Councilman Alan Gerson,
Retiree Chapter member Dr. Leonard
S
Golubchick runs the program,funded
by Councilman (above) Alan Gerson’s
office. Dozens of District 1 and 2 students have studied NYC’s harbor
through the program.
Periodicals
US POSTAGE PAID AT
Brooklyn, NY 11201
and Additional Mailing Office
S E P T.
2009
Council of School Supervisors & Administrators, NYC
New York State Federation of School Administrators
Local 1 AFSA, AFL-CIO
16 Court Street, Brooklyn, NY 11241-1003
Borough Briefs / In The Schools
Compiled
by Yuridia Peña
Continues on Page 19
Queens
STATEN ISLAND
(DIST. 24-30)
A Fifth-Year
Anniversary Party
PS 254, D-27, celebrated its fifth
anniversary with a ceremony that featured student performances. Parents,
teachers, elected officials and community members filled the auditorium to
watch the morning show. A special performance by Nuttin’ But Strings had the
audience dancing in the aisles. The
Principal is Naomi Drouillard.
Students from the
Young Women’s
Leadership Academy
created sculptures
using recycled materials including wire,
tissue, and tape. The
girls worked with
artist Jonathan Gail
each
YURIDIA PEÑA
A student from PS 254,D-27, performed
during the school’s anniversary party.
JUDY GRUBER
Acts of Student Kindness
aking a difference! That’s what
students at JHS 189, D-25,
Flushing, are doing. Last year,
each class selected a community project to undertake. Some classes visited
nursing homes, others read to local
kindergarten students, and still others
M
Assistant Principal Fran Walters are
both veterans. Former CSA President
and current historian Jack Zuckerman
who is a board member of the
Whitestone Memorial Veterans
Association also attended.
week after school. The Principal is Laura
Mitchell.
PS 79, D-25,
dedicated a new
playground on June
15. Many local dignitaries were present including a
color guard from
the Whitestone
Memorial Veterans
Association, who
were there to celebrate Flag Day
(June 14.) The
father-in-law of
Principal Paula
Students from the Women’s Leadership School of Astoria show off
Marron and the
their sculptures made with recycled materials.
husband of
collected coats and food for the
homeless and hungry. Other projects
included raising money for UNICEF,
St. Jude Childrens’ Hospital, and a
needy family from Africa. Principal
Cindy Diaz-Burgos plans to continue
the program this year.
Brooklyn (DIST. 13-23,32)
‘Live’ Volcanoes,
Edible Gardens
and Book-Making
PS 37, D-75, sent CSA a picture of its
Artists in Training Program, held on
Saturdays at the school. As reported in the
May CSA News, the school received a grant
from the Center for Arts Education to train
teaching artists in how to instruct students
with autism and multiple disabilities.
annual MST Fair. Students did an array
of projects including a scale solar system and erupting volcanos. Students
used classroom-taught skills including
how to research a topic, make observations, analyse data and create an
experiment.
High School of Medical
Professions’ student celebrated the
completion of their internship program “Project Assist and Learn” with a
presentation that showcased their
experiences. Students were given
healthcare related tasks and had to fulfill 50 hours of service at their assigned
community-based organization.
Students at PS 250, D-14, showed
On June 15, IS 383, D-32 performed
a one-act play at Fidelity FutureStage’s
gala season finale at Broadway’s
Imperial Theatre. Fidelity FutureStage
Continued on Page 19
is a music and theater education program that bring
professional theater people
into the classroom to teach
acting, directing, and playwriting. Earlier in the
spring, actor Frankie Faison
visited IS 383 and spoke to
students about the acting
profession. The Principal is
Students at PS 255, D-22, Brooklyn, show their science
Barbara Sanders.
PS 255, D-22, held its
projects exhibited during the MST Fair.