GNTA News Blog

Rally in Carle Place: 9.26.13

9/17/2013

Sheila Scimone

Last week I wrote to you about a rally taking place in Carle Place on Thursday, September 26, at 7 p.m. The big issue is a proposed salary schedule that would result in the loss of thousands of dollars in lifetime earnings for new hires. This would create a two-tier salary system, which is inherently unequal and therefore unfair.

The rally is gaining momentum! Two guest speakers will be AFT President Randi Weingarten and NYSUT President Dick Iannuzzi. But the voice of each and every one of us counts, and we must each use that voice, because not to do so would not only abandon our colleagues in Carle Place but would also make us complicit in setting a precedent that could harm us personally.

I URGE YOU TO ATTEND THE RALLY!!! I'll be sending out parking and meeting point information soon, and beautiful blue GNTA t-shirts will be given on a first-come, first-served basis to anyone who commits to going.

To get your t-shirt, call Rosemary Cook at the Cottage (516-829-9070); we have Larges and Extra Larges left over from the Albany rally. You can pick up your t-shirt at the Cottage any time OR at the DA meeting on September 26 at South High School (no fair taking a t-shirt unless you plan to show up!).

BE THERE! IT'S THE FUTURE OF ALL OF US!

GNTA Joins Thousands in Rally for Public Education

6/10/2013

Dick Ianuzzi addresses the crowd

In Albany on June 8, GNTA joined thousands of educators, administrators, parents, and students from across New York State to rally for public education. As NYSUT President Dick Ianuzzi said, the day is not "against anyone - today is FOR children. It is a day for re-examining how we look at testing and the achievement gap; poverty and the wealth gap; and equity and fairness."

The One Voice United rally included music and rousing speeches from AFT President Randi Weingarten, education analyst John Nichols, and many others who denounced the state's obsession with standardized testing and APPR. As Ianuzzi said, "We don't have any concerns about accountability if you do it right and it's fair!"

Visit NYSUT.org for more news from the rally.

GNTA members and friends ready to rally

Diane Ravitch Applauds the GNPS Board of Ed.

6/7/2013

Diane Ravitch, a noted author and professor, has publicly applauded the Great Neck Board of Education for unanimously passing a resolution denouncing the state's over reliance on standardized testing.

Visit Diane Ravitch's Blog for the whole story!

Rally in Albany: 6.8.13

5/7/2013

Sheila Scimone

Recently many of us attended the NYSUT convention and came home feeling slightly more heartened than we have in the last few years. More and more parents are seeing the negative effects of high stakes testing on their children. More and more respected journalists and social critics are writing about the flaws in current approaches to teacher evaluation and to public education in general that are either politically or commercially motivated-or both. We in the field of education, who have been ducking for cover for the past several years, are beginning to find more supporters in the world outside our schools.

As a result, NYSUT is sponsoring what we hope will be a massive rally in Albany on June 8 in support of public education. The logistics are as follows: The rally is planned for noon, ending at around 2 pm. GNTA, in cooperation with NYSUT, has chartered a coach bus for the day, which will leave at 7:30 am from the South High School parking lot, returning some time around 6 pm. Attendees should bring lunch, snacks, etc. All GNTA members who attend will receive our first-ever GNTA t-shirt! Spouses and children are welcome.

I've been in all of your buildings, and I've heard your concerns regarding budget cuts, APPR, and testing. It's not enough to tell me; you have to tell the governor...your legislators...the Regents. They're the ones who have control over these issues. While I'm not always a fan of rallies, in some cases the time is right for gathering to raise one united voice. Think March on Washington...Million Mom March...the recent gatherings in Hartford that helped push the Connecticut legislature into passing ground-breaking gun control measures. The time for this is RIGHT.

To reserve your seat on the bus, please call Rosemary Cook at the Cottage, 829-9070. I hope to see you there!

Great Neck Takes Action!

5/3/2013

Keynote speaker Diane Ravitch

On May 1st Take Action Long Island (TALI) hosted a forum, “Public Education at the Crossroads.” TALI is composed of a group of Nassau and Suffolk teacher union locals who want to address educational challenges facing educators on Long Island today. In attendance from our district were teachers, Board of Education members, administrators and parents. The event was both informative and empowering. The keynote speaker, Diane Ravitch, spoke in depth about the interconnectedness between politics, private corporations and charter schools. She highlighted the dangers of the privatization of public schools and how there has been a rampant increase in this practice across the United States. Ms. Ravitich also provided specific evidence citing the fallacies of a system like APPR that uses testing in a high stakes and non-diagnostic way. In her words, “Testing does not close achievement gaps, it measures them.” She was articulate and extensive in pointing out the many ways in which educational reforms are really “educational deforms.”

Following the keynote speaker was a panel of four individuals who play different roles in a variety of school districts from Long Island. Each panel member spoke about the economic dangers of the tax cap for Long Island public school districts. In fact, if the tax cap was put in place 10 years ago, Massapequa School District would have to be functioning with approximately one-third less of their budget this year. By the end of this forum it was clear that the current reform movement in education is fraught with problems and needs to be stopped. The most effective way we can do this is to unite together: teachers, parents, administrators, and community members. There is an upcoming Rally for Public Education in Albany on June 8th to use one voice to fight for the future of our public schools. - MICHELLE SORISE

Great Neck teachers, administrators, board of education members, and parents taking action!

Political Action Update

3/16/2013

From Christa Griggs, GNTA Political Action Co-Coordinator:

GNTA is really making strides at becoming more politically active and joining forces with other locals to educate our communities about budget cuts in education and the impact of high-stakes testing on teaching and learning. To that end, I am providing some informative and useful sites for you to check out -- they include links to sign petitions to legislators and some useful "how-to-lobby" tips.

http://educationvotes.nea.org/

http://educationvotes.nea.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/FAQ-HowToLobby.pdf

Also, TALI (Take Action Long Island) has been started up by Long Island teachers to brainstorm how we can educate and update our own members and the community on serious issues facing educators right now. They are planning a big event on Wednesday, May 1st, at which Diane Ravitch will speak and information will be disseminated -- tickets will be available soon and Michelle Sorise and I will keep you posted about that. We are hoping we can get some PTA, UPTC, or other parent activists involved in that event as well. Check out TALI's most recent newsletter:

http://www.takeactionli.org/documents/newsletters/TALi_Newsletter-March2013.pdf

Political Action Update

3/2/2013

From Christa Griggs and Michelle Sorise, GNTA Political Action Coordinators:

Check out the links below for more education and union related issues. Please forward when appropriate to people you know in your life outside of the field of education, in an effort to help educate the greater society.

This site provides links for contacting legislators about the dangers of high stakes testing:

http://educationvotes.nea.org/2013/02/12/how-you-can-help-build-the-movement-to-end-testing-mania/

This is a "must-read and "must-share"! Click the link below to read a fabulous article by Diane Ravitch on the problems with current educational "reform" and the trouble with current "reforms" to evaluate teachers based on student scores:

http://www.nybooks.com/blogs/nyrblog/2013/feb/01/holding-education-hostage/

And here is some useful information about the tax cap and NYSUT's efforts to push back against it:

http://blog.timesunion.com/capitol/archives/179030/nysut-will-file-legal-challenge-to-tax-cap-today/

Phone Bank Volunteers Needed!

10/12/2012

It's election time, and we need to make our voices heard in Albany and all across New York State! GNTA will be helping to staff the NYSUT phone banks at their Woodbury Regional Office from 4-7 p.m. on Tuesday, October 30th. Please inform your BRC Chair if you can help out. Dinner will be served.

Forward>>

Rally in Carle Place: 9.26.13

GNTA Joins Thousands in Rally for Public Education

Diane Ravitch Applauds the GNPS Board of Ed.

Rally in Albany: 6.8.13

Great Neck Takes Action!

Political Action Update

Political Action Update

Phone Bank Volunteers Needed!

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