Wednesday, June 17, 2015

NYSUT STATEMENT & DIMINO RESPONSE ON REGENTS VOTING FOR NEW EVALUATIONS FOR TEACHERS

New York State United Teachers has issued a statement (see below) in reaction to the New York State Board of Regents voting 11-6 to approve rules for another new evaluation system for New York State teachers and principals.

For New York City, this will make it three straight years where we are working under a different evaluation system unless we get a waiver.

It is likely the UFT will work out local details on implementation with their buddy Chancellor Carmen Farina in a timely manner.  When they reach agreement on whatever details are left for negotiation, you can bet UFT President Michael Mulgrew will say how we negotiated a set of local rules that are a yet another UFT triumph.

At least NYSUT didn't call the new system a victory.  I guess that is progress for our state union. I haven't seen any reaction from President Mulgrew yet.

Beth Dimno from NYSUT opposition caucus Stronger Together wants NYSUT President Karen Magee to take a much tougher position. Below is the NYSUT press release followed by Beth's reaction on Facebook.

NYSUT statement on SED regulations

Source: NYSUT Media Relations


ALBANY, N.Y. June 15, 2015 — New York State United Teachers today issued the following statement on State Education Department regulations adopted today by the Board of Regents:

“In concert with parents, we will not rest until New York state education policy supports tests and evaluations that are good for students and fair to teachers. We will continue to press the Regents and the Legislature to remedy the ‘test-and-punish’ agenda pushed by Gov. Cuomo to the detriment of students. While today’s Regents discussion created a small amount of necessary breathing room for districts, New York nonetheless is still moving to make tests count before making them work. The Regents who voted for the State Education Department’s narrow interpretation of the governor’s plan did not go far enough to heed the voices of hundreds of thousands of parents who are fed up with high-stakes testing, and educators who support fair, research-based evaluations that strengthen teaching and learning.

“We applaud those courageous Regents who listened carefully to parents and educators, worked tirelessly to carefully develop regulations that conform to the law while advancing learning, and who are strongly advocating for a system that is fair and meaningful, uses multiple measures and fosters the professional dialogue and collaboration that is essential to helping New York’s already strong teaching force become stronger.

“Continued over-reliance on standardized testing can only make it harder for school districts to attract and retain the excellent teachers that students need and deserve.”

New York State United Teachers is a statewide union with more than 600,000 members in education, human services and health care. NYSUT is affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers, the National Education Association and the AFL-CIO.


The response from NYSUT opposition Stronger Together leader Beth Dimino:

Karen Magee... As per the IREFUSE resolution that was passed at the NYSUT RA this year....You must publicly state that all teachers should refuse to allow their children to take these tests!



Starve the data beast!  That is how we win.





3 comments:

Anonymous said...









Jeanette Brunelle Deutermann‎Long Island Opt-out Info



WE HOLD THE POWER TO VETO!!!

Here's where we stand. Legislators voted against children by passing Cuomo's revenge policy with the bill. They tried to pass the buck to the regents to fix their mess, and 6 of the regents voted to break this new law and vote with their conscience. It was not the majority, but it was enough to make a HUGE statement that the board is now ALMOST equally divided. It also showed loud and clear that the current law is so screwed up that our own BOR came very close to voting historically to refuse to regulate a morally unjust law. Our disappointment must not overshadow that action. A large and growing group of superintendents have stepped in front of their state organizations, and come out swinging not for themselves, but for our children. Union groups like ST Caucus and MORE, are challenging the current UFT/NYSUT/AFT leadership and speaking for TRUE rank and file members and putting kids at the forefront. We must continue to add fuel to those flames and turn it into a bonfire. Coalitions and opposition are growing in the most important places, with parents leading the way and defining what is important. The 4 month extension on the new APPR regulations was important because it takes the enacting of the new APPR law into the next legislative session. Guess what? Next session is an election year. This means our legislators will be stumbling over each other to be the hero and save the day. APPR changes will not take place until September 2016. As it stands now, 50% will be based on state test scores. If a district choses a local assessment, it will be 25% and 25%. We will continue to get more information on the local component (kind of tests, who sets target scores etc...) Through all of these regulation changes, remember: WE HOLD THE POWER TO VETO!!! Through opting out, we will veto Cuomo's new APPR plan. We will veto CC test prep. We will veto high stakes testing. When we veto, the system will fall. We are the last line of defense between Cuomo, the reformers and privatizers, and our children. WE WILL HOLD THE LINE!!!

Anonymous said...

You just weren't looking hard enough for Mulgrew to call this another union win.

“While there are still many points in this evaluation system that don’t benefit children or help schools, the Board of Regents did make many of the changes educators called for,” city teachers union president Michael Mulgrew said in a statement.

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