AMPHERE FEDERATION OF TEACHERS
AFT Michigan #1614
September 2007
Congratulations to--Karen Becknell and Arlene Stewart who retired over the summer. Best of luck and good wishes!
Welcome--Welcome and congratulations go to Kim Jacobs, Hiller Kindergarten and Page Social Studies, Erin Hufford, Page and Elementary Band, Laura Gordon, Page 6th Grade Math and Language Arts, Rebeccca Greenway, Page Social Studies, Tim Olson, Spanish High School and Page and Jene Wolynski High School English.
LFT Scholarship Winner--Katie
Adragna was selected this year as the recipient of the Lamphere Federation of Teachers
Scholarship. Katie attended Lessenger and Page and will soon attend the University of
Michigan--Dearborn. We enjoyed having her as a student and wish her great success in her
endeavors. Thanks to the selection committee members, Art Maisano, Nichole Bontomasi and
George King for their work on this project.
Contract 2007/08--Copies of the new contract will be made available soon. Meanwhile refer to the online version with the changes noted in the newsletter for June 2007 linked under "Past News."
LFT Elections--Elections will be held on September 26 in the buildings. Nominations for all offices except the presidency are open until September 19th. Email Zoe' Wainz the Nominations Committee Chairperson.
New Endorsements--Please let Sharon Ballerini in Human Resources know of any new endorsements you may have earned over the summer.
Professional Development Classes--Professional Development Classes are open to all members. Call the AFT Michigan office to register – 313-393-2200 or 800-638-8868.
Managing Anti-Social Behavior (.5 SB-CEU) – September 10 & 11, AFT Michigan Detroit office, 2661 E. Jefferson Ave., 4:30pm-7:00pm. Addresses the emotional and behavior problems of students who consistently act out. Participants will learn strategies to reduce and/or prevent the occurrence of disruptive or dangerous outbreaks.
Managing Bully Behavior (.5 SB-CEU) – September 25 & 27, AFT Michigan Detroit Office, 2661 E. Jefferson Ave., 4:30pm-7:00pm. Provides intervention strategies to create a classroom environment where everyone feels safe, accepted and valued.
Policy Summit--When the Michigan Chamber of Commerce or the Mackinac Center issue their positions on issues ranging from support of school vouchers to making Michigan a Right-to-Work state people ask where is our voice in opposition, where is our think-tank? The Michigan Prospect and other groups including AFT Michigan are hosting a Policy Summit on Saturday, September 8, to bring together allied groups from labor, education, the environment, civil rights, health care and human services to discuss the issues important to us and develop action to work locally on these issues together. Registration is $30 and you may register by going to the website – http://www.Michiganpolicysummit.org .
Teacher Shortage Threatens Goal of Universal Education--The growing worldwide teacher shortage creates a serious challenge to ensuring access to quality public education for all, leaders of Education International told delegates at EI's World Congress meeting in Berlin July 22-26. Speaking before more than 2,000 representatives of teacher and education sector organizations, EI general secretary Fred van Leeuwen said that 18 million more educators—5 million in the industrial economies and 13 million in low-income countries—are needed to reach the goal of universal primary education by 2015, one of eight " millennium development goals" set by world leaders at a United Nations summit in 2000. "This will further increase the pressure on governments to loosen quality standards," warned Van Leeuwen. "A teacher shortage on this scale could not only become the most serious challenge our profession has ever faced. It could also pose a serious threat to the survival of our public school systems worldwide." The concern about teacher quality was part of a range of issues considered by the World Congress. AFT president Edward J. McElroy led a delegation of AFT officers and leaders at the meeting, which considered resolutions on topics ranging from trade union and human rights violations to fostering democratic teacher unionism in Central Asia and the Middle East. McElroy was also re-elected to EI's executive board. Full coverage of the World Congress meeting is available at the EI Web site.
AFT Member On Cover of WORKING MOTHER Magazine--Spurred by a union notice "calling all teacher moms," Connecticut high school English teacher and AFT member Elizabeth Warren submitted a short essay to Working Mother magazine and was selected as the cover story for the magazine's back-to-school issue. The mother of two, who is also a track coach at her school, applied for the honor at the prompting of Patti Fusco, president of the West Haven Federation of Teachers, and after further urging from fellow AFT member Dana Clifford, who now proudly considers herself a "casting director." "She definitely was a good choice," says Fusco, who forwarded Working Mother's call for entries to her members after receiving it from the AFT Communicators Network via her state federation. "She's an excellent teacher. She even coaches, which a lot of young teachers with children aren't able to do." The back-to-school issue of Working Mother will be out on newsstands in mid-August.
Respectfully submitted,
Judy Schram
LFT President