GNTA News Blog

GNTA Book Drive Delivers the Goods

4/20/2016

A Note from Cindy Pavlic, Chair of GNTA's Internal Organizing Committee:

A HUGE thank you to everyone for making our "Gift of Reading" book drive a great success!! We donated a total of 328 books with 192 books going to COPAY of Great Neck and 136 books going to CLASP Children's Center. A few IOC Committee members got together to deliver the books, and both organizations were thrilled and surprised with the amount of books donated--they were not expecting us to come in with boxes and boxes of books for the children. It was an incredible afternoon and one that I, myself, will not soon forget.

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GNTA Voices Support for Lunar New Year Holiday

4/3/2016

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Below is the letter from Sheila Henchy, GNTA President, to the Great Neck Public Schools Board of Education:

On January 11, 2016, the Great Neck Chinese Association petitioned the Board of Education to formally recognize the Lunar New Year by declaring it a school holiday. At its February 25th meeting, the Delegate Assembly of the Great Neck Teachers Association voted unanimously to support this request.

Lunar New Year celebrates traditions dating back thousands of years and is a time to reunite with family. It is celebrated by millions of people worldwide, including a significant percentage of our Great Neck community. This fact alone provides ample reason to consider it a school holiday: our students should not have to choose between school attendance and observance of this important celebration.

There is a broader reason to recognize Lunar New Year, however. The Board of Education’s Statement of Educational Philosophy pledges that “[t]he staff, with the Board’s full cooperation, will strive to make it possible for each child...[to] achieve respect for individuals and their differences and for the relationships that exist on a personal, local, national and international level;....” Our public school community here in Great Neck provides our students with rich opportunities to experience firsthand a wide variety of cultures and customs. Adding Lunar New Year to the school calendar would signal the district’s recognition that this holiday, along with the other school holidays celebrated here, provides an opportunity to enrich ALL of its students, regardless of their cultural background.

We urge you to adopt Lunar New Year as a school holiday.
________________

At its meeting on March 14, the Board of Education unanimously approved Lunar New Year as an official school holiday beginning in 2017. Read the story in Newsday.

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Sign Up. Show Up.

2/4/2016

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We're mobilizing our members to attend Board of Education and UPTC meetings. Wear your blue GNTA t-shirt and let's show everyone that GNTA is involved, informed, and union strong! Please add your name to our sign up sheets right here!

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Join GNTA in the Fight against Breast Cancer

9/10/2015

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Walk with GNTA on Sunday, October 18 at Jones Beach to Make Strides Against Breast Cancer. Get the details, and we hope to see you there!

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Great Neck Teacher Honored by FASNY

6/16/2015

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GNTA's Paul Ziring

The Firemen’s Association of the State of New York (FASNY) invites communities and schools across the state to honor their best fire prevention educators with a nomination for Teacher of the Year. Each year, the FASNY Fire Prevention and Life Safety Committee recognizes one teacher with dedication to fire prevention and the safety of students and their families.

This year’s Teacher of the Year is Paul E. Ziring, the Special Education Outdoor Education Coordinator for the Great Neck School District, in Nassau County, on Long Island.

Paul Ziring has made it his life’s mission to create a better life for his students who are members of the Special Education program of the Great Neck School District. This mission incorporates a special emphasis on the fire safety and the wellbeing of these young, often vulnerable students.

Identifying and inventing unique methods that can effectively teach survival and other skills to severely disabled students, Paul Ziring created, honed, re-tooled and virtually perfected the fire-safety curriculum to provide the students with the training to stay safe in the event of a home or other fire. The effectiveness of Paul’s program has been recognized by area educators who are advocating for its widespread implementation.

Mr. Ziring, currently serving as the Special Education Outdoor Education Coordinator for the Great Neck School Distric has worked in the school district since 1995. He began as a health education teacher and in 2005 took the helm for the Special Education Outdoor Program. Since his appointment to this position, Paul has expanded the program to include 15 groups of special education students throughout the district, working with students K-12 and a transition group which is made up of older students. The program teaches more than math and social studies; Paul implemented field experiences outside of the schoolroom to successfully help build students’ self-confidence and expose the students to a wide range of stimulating, life skills activities.

As part of the program, Paul Ziring brought his classes to the Nassau County Firefighters Museum & Education Center to learn about fire prevention and safety. During one of Paul’s many visits to the Firefighters Museum, he explained the curriculum’s benefits to Museum instructors and recommended its expansion. Paul then helped Museum instructors adjust the program and develop a new curriculum and reservation guidelines to improve teaching classes for all special needs children. He spent countless hours at the Museum, developing curriculum and fine-tuning them with his classes. After each class, he would debrief and analyze what worked and what could be improved. Paul got everyone involved with the project, from his superintendent, principal, local fire departments and even the art classes. It was a group effort, but began and ended with Paul.

Paul has presented to numerous organizations about the program he began at the Museum, including local SEPTA groups. He has also as presented it as a STEM field trip.

Earlier this year, the Museum and Paul were recognized for his teaching curriculum as they were featured on WABC-TV’s annual Operation 7 Save-a-Life program which provides news and education on fire safety to television and online audiences in the Tri-State area.

Through Paul’s efforts, awareness has been raised about fire prevention in general and for students with special needs specifically, and their most effective ways to prevent and survive a fire.

Paul Ziring is an exemplary teacher. Not only does he care about “his” kids, he treats them with respect and dignity and helps them see their own self-worth. While that particular achievement may not be quantified in dollars or as numbers on a spreadsheet, it is a priceless accomplishment, as Paul works with severely disabled children and gives them the gift of hope. He safely and smartly pushes their limits and allows them to do things they didn’t think were possible.

On any given day you may find Paul interacting with his students on the bus, taking field trips and in the class room. His passion for his students is evident; he is their advocate and it is clear that they appreciate his efforts. Paul Ziring is most deserving of FASNY’s Teacher of the Year Award for his tireless dedication to fire prevention and life safety for his special students and their families. He has done so in a very creative fashion and in collaboration with volunteer firefighters from Nassau County, NY.

By honoring his efforts and accomplishments by selecting him as the Firemen’s Association of the State of New York’s Teacher of the Year, it is hoped that those who may benefit from this special needs curriculum will have it brought to their attention. Parents and educators should know that Nassau County has awarded a grant to the Nassau County Firefighters Museum & Education Center in order for all special needs students to visit the museum free of charge.

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GNTA Meets with New Superintendent

4/20/2015

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Dr. Prendergast, Board Pres. Barbara Berkowitz, GNTA Pres. Sheila Scimone

On Wednesday, 4/15, the GNTA Executive Board--as well as the leadership from several of our affiliates--met with Great Neck's new Superintendent, Dr. Teresa Prendergast. In the hour-long meet and greet, Dr. Prendergast reaffirmed her belief in the value of public education and vowed to work collaboratively with GNTA and the community as a whole to continue the tradition of excellence that we have all come to expect from the Great Neck Public Schools. Learn more about Dr. Prendergast from the GNPS website.

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Join GNTA in the Fight against Breast Cancer

9/27/2014

Walk with GNTA on Sunday, October 19 at Jones Beach to Make Strides Against Breast Cancer. Get the details, and we hope to see you there!

Our Financial Aid Fund: There for You

11/23/2013

In times of need, the GNTA Financial Aid Fund has been there to help our members recover from theft, fire, and damaging weather. Last year, the Fund substantially assisted no fewer than 10 members who suffered devastating losses from Hurricane Sandy. The Fund is separate from our dues and relies on non-tax deductible donations from our members. The GNTA Executive Board is asking for your help in replenishing the Fund. Please send your check, made out to the Great Neck Teachers Association Financial Aid Fund, to the Cottage. Thanks in advance for your generosity.

GNTA Book Drive Delivers the Goods

GNTA Voices Support for Lunar New Year Holiday

Sign Up. Show Up.

Join GNTA in the Fight against Breast Cancer

Great Neck Teacher Honored by FASNY

GNTA Meets with New Superintendent

Join GNTA in the Fight against Breast Cancer

Our Financial Aid Fund: There for You

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