UFT-DOE COME TO AGREEMENT TO BRING BACK MARATHON MONDAYS AND TUESDAYS BUT SBO OPT OUTS ARE AVAILABLE

Below is the latest from the UFT on the school day for 2021-22. There is finally an agreement with the DOE to continue marathon Monday and Tuesday as the default time schedule for single session schools.

Apparently, going back to Article 6A, as we reported on last week, where schools would use a default schedule with two dismissal times for different groups of students each day, was not practical. The DOE decided to negotiate to provide some real, viable options. 

The main problem now is if a Principal and UFT Chapter don't agree on the schedule, it is then up to the principal to make the decision to use the default one.

Dear UFT Member, With the resumption of fully in-person learning next school year, the city Department of Education and the UFT have agreed to go back to the normal collective bargaining agreement and re-establish the “pilot” workday agreement that was in effect from 2014 until the pandemic hit. The only changes are:   Parent teacher conferences will now be held remotely. There are two additional school-based options (SBOs) that your school can consider for the school day if you work in a single-session school.   In September, single-session schools will again have a default school day of six hours and 20 minutes Monday through Friday, with 80 minutes for professional development on Monday afternoon and 75 minutes on Tuesday comprised of 40 minutes for parent engagement and 35 minutes for Other Professional Work (see Default Workday Configuration for Teachers for details). Four three-hour parent teacher conferences will be held over the course of the school year; the DOE will communicate the dates of the September and May conferences. Multi-session schools will return to a standard school day and workday of six hours and 50 minutes. Teachers in both single-session and multi-session schools will now be able to conduct all evening parent-teacher conferences remotely, and they will be able to conduct the afternoon conferences remotely if their commute allows. School chapters and principals may use the SBO process in the DOE-UFT contract to modify certain contractual provisions governing the workday at their school. With this agreement in place, the SBO process can begin to move forward. SBO votes will take place electronically.   Pre-approved SBO options Pre-approved SBOs have already been okayed by the DOE and the UFT, but they must be approved in an SBO vote by 55% of the members of the chapter who actually vote. Two new pre-approved SBOs for single-session schools: ·     Six-hour and 50-minute school day: The school day will be 6 hours 50 minutes for teachers, paras and students from Monday through Friday. Under this option, there is no 155 minutes of extended time for professional development, parent engagement or Other Professional Work. There are two 40-minute conferences (faculty and grade/department) each month between October and May, which will now be scheduled during the school day or held remotely at an agreed-upon time. If held during the workday, these conferences would replace either a lunch or a prep. If held during a prep, teachers will be expected to complete the work of a prep remotely. There will be two afternoon and evening parent teacher conferences instead of four. ·     Six-hour and 50-minute workday including 30 minutes without students: The school day will be 6 hours and 20 minutes for students. Teachers and paras will spend another 30 minutes each morning on common planning, professional learning and/or office hours. Schools must determine how each 30-minute session will be used at the time of the SBO. There will be two afternoon and evening parent teacher conferences instead of four.   The following pre-approved SBOs remain in effect:   ·     100/55 option: Similar to the default workday, except there is 100 minutes of professional development on Monday and 55 minutes of parent engagement on Tuesday. ·     80/40/35 option: Similar to the default workday, but the 75 minutes for parent engagement and Other Professional Work on Tuesday are broken up across two days. ·     80/75 before-school option: The extended time allotted for professional development, parent engagement and Other Professional Work is moved to the mornings, before students arrive. ·     Combined conferences for multi-session schools: The faculty and department conferences are held on one day each month between October and May. All of the options available to schools are spelled out in the June 1 Memorandum of Agreement for the 2021-22 school year. Read the full agreement » Thank you for everything you do.

 

Sincerely, Michael Mulgrew UFT President