New Haven Federation of Teachers President David Cicarella speaks on uniqueness of union run high school.

July/August 2012

New Haven school to be union managedCollaboration leads to unique arrangement

Mystic Seaport United Files for Election

Continued on Page 5

Danbury Nurses work to protect

patients and jobs

2

Meriden teachers awarded Innovation

Fund Grant

3

AFT Connecticut endrosements for

Primary Day Aug. 14

4

State of theUnion

Ne w H a v e n’s H i g h School in the Com-munity will become

the f irst turnaround high school in the city and the first to be managed by the New Haven Federation of Teach-ers, Local 933. Turnaround schools came about as a re-sult of the landmark 2009 teachers’ contract, where the district works to turn around lowest performing schools.

In order to make this a reality, all sides needed to be in agreement, including the teachers. Teachers at HSC voted on the upcoming changes in a staff meeting with all but one teacher voting yes. Union leadership and the district will sign a special Memorandum of Under-standing outlining the terms of running the school.

High School in the Community (HSC), a magnet high school which has been teacher-led since its founding, cur-rently has a service, activism and social justice theme, and will adopt a law and

social justice theme. Law schools and law firms will be brought in as partners to help with the new themes.

As part of the turnaround effort teachers will have to reapply for their jobs, work rules will be adjusted to include an additional hour of teacher time between extended student time and team planning and development. The school also has a goal of 100 percent parent contact and involvement during

Mystic Seaport United has filed a majority of union authorization cards with

the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in Hartford.

“We have filed a petition for a union authorization election be-cause we feel forming a union is the only option we have left for address-ing our issues,” said Linda Prior in Membership.

“We are extremely excited to be filing for an election,” said Mike Bartles in Interpretation. “It has been inspiring to see workers from all across the Seaport coming to-gether.”

“Our hope is management will respect our decision and the will of the majority,” said Rob Whalen in Shipyard.

The workers presented Mystic CEO Steve White with a letter call-ing on him to voluntarily recognize their union, which would negate the need for an election.

Barring voluntary recognition, the NLRB will set a date for an elec-tion.

Learn more about Mystic Sea-port United online at aftct.org.

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Sharon PalmerPresident

Melodie PetersFirst Vice President

Leo CantySecond Vice President

Charles MorrellSecretary/Treasurer

Eric BaileyCommunications Director

STATE OF THE UNION is published on an irregular basis up to six times a year by AFT Connecticut, 35 Marshall Road, Rocky Hill, CT 06067.Phone: 860/257-9782www.aftct.orgThird class postage paid at Hartford, CT

Postmaster: Send address changes to: AFT CONNECTICUT 35 Marshall Road Rocky Hill, CT 06067.

Members: To change your address or subscription, call 860/257-9782.

STATE OF THE UNION is mailed to all AFT Connecticut members as a benefit of membership. Subscription fees are included in dues, $20 per year for non-members. Although advertisements are screened as carefully as possible, acceptance of an advertisement does not imply AFT Connecticut endorsement of the product or service.© AFT CONNECTICUT, AFT, AFL-CIO 2009

Danbury Nurses work to protect patients and jobs

Applicants selected for teacher evaluation system pilot

Danbury Nurses Unit 47 have reached an agreement that will help to protect the pa-

tients they serve. The union and Danbury Hospital management have set a goal of ensuring 90% of nurses have the flu vaccination.

“One of the most important things we can do for our patients is to prevent secondary infections,” said Mary Consoli, president of Danbury Nurses. “Getting a flu shot is an ef-fective way of helping to do that.”

Nurses currently have a vaccina-tion rate of around 70%. “The whole hospital is going to be vaccinated including vendors,” added Consoli.

If any employee ops out they will be required to wear a mask during

flu season if they are within 3-6 feet of patient.Dialysis Unit Jobs

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has scheduled a hear-ing for August 21, on unfair labor practice charges filed by the Dan-bury Nurses Union Unit 47, Local 5047, against Danbury Hospital.

In late 2011, Danbury Hospital management informed nurses work-ing in the renal dialysis unit that the unit was being sold to Total Renal Care, Inc. a wholly owned subsidiary of DaVita, Inc. Then, in February, 2012, Danbury Hospital manage-ment provided those nurses with job applications for DaVita, Inc. and required the nurses to sign a "Release

of Information" form as a condition of applying for and securing employ-ment with DaVita, Inc.

The "Release of Information" form authorized Danbury Hospi-tal, its employees and independent contractors to release a nurse's per-sonnel files, payroll records, health insurance benefit plans and any and all grievances filed by that nurse.

"Requiring nurses to sign this form is a direct violation of the law," said Mary Consoli, president of Dan-bury Nurses. "DaVita would likely use this information to discriminate in their hiring practices."

The issuance of a complaint by the NLRB is tantamount to an indict-ment. The NLRB will make a deter-

The State of Connecticut has selected ten participants to pilot the new system of teacher and principal evaluation and support that was passed as part of

this year's education reform legislation.36 school districts along with a consortia of districts

applied to participate in the pilot program. Participants were chosen based on factors, including geography, size, student academic performance, and socio-economic and ethnic diversity.

Selected districts will pilot the new evaluation sys-tem during the course of the 2012-2013 school year, with statewide implementation scheduled for the 2013-2014 school year. The University of Connecticut’s Neag School of Education will analyze administration and results in the ten pilots and report back to the General Assembly by October 1, 2013.

Among the applicants selected are these AFT Connecticut districts:

• Norwalk• Waterford• Windham

The AFT and Britain's TES Connect have come together to create "Share My Lesson," a new digital platform for U.S. educators to

collaborate and share teaching resources and innovative ideas, with a significant emphasis on resources to guide teachers in implementing the new Common Core State Standards. The site is live, and teachers are already registering and sharing their best ideas with colleagues around the country.

Share My Lesson already has more than 180,000 resources, and that collection will grow rapidly as more educators add to it. Any educator, from preschool to college, can register and start using the site immediately.

STATE OF THE UNION 3

Conference highlights the power of collaboration

Meriden teachers awarded AFT Innovation Fund Grant

Ansonia schools face cuts to education despite test gains

Last month, state and district education leaders from across the country traveled to Cin-

cinnati, Ohio to share their stories, strategies, and best practices around a topic in education that seldom sees the spotlight: labor-management collaboration.

For a second time, the U.S. De-partment of Education partnered with national education organiza-tions to host a major convening centered on changing the way that school administrators, board mem-bers, and union leaders work togeth-er to improve teaching and learning.

This year’s conference, Collabo-rating to Transform the Teaching Profession, drew teams of State and

district leaders from 41 states and more than 100 school districts to highlight innovative approaches to better prepare students for college and careers by dramatically chang-ing the teaching profession and growing the number of highly effec-tive teachers in our nation’s schools.

Team members from Meriden Public Schools outlined their col-laborative work around a number of transformative programs, including a leadership academy for teachers, peer-to-peer coaching, and learning walks connected to the instructional core and anchored in student data.

Team members from New Haven Public Schools presented their col-laborative work around their land-

mark evaluation system and more.T he conference, which was

funded by grants from the Ford Foundation, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and GE Foundation, was designed to facilitate learning and sharing at every level. In order to RSVP, State and district teams, com-posed of school chiefs, union leaders, and school board presidents,had to commit to attend the conference together, collaborate to improve student achievement in their State or district, and arrive at the convening prepared to present their plan for transforming the teaching profes-sion.

You can learn more about the conference online at aftct.org.

Despite the gains made by students on state tests, the Ansonia School Distr ict

has laid off six elementary school teachers.

"Laying off these elementary teachers is going to make a difficult task even harder," said Michelle Fraher, co-president of the Ansonia Federation of Teachers, Local 1012.

Laying off teachers will likely

result in larger class sizes and lower test scores.

"All of the gains we have made over the past few years will be un-done," said Fraher. "And this will hurt our ability to recruit and retain great teachers. Our teachers are among the lowest paid in the state."

Ansonia teachers rank dead last in teacher pay in New Haven County.

"We are already at the bottom of the ladder when it comes to pay," said Joyce Seccombe, co-president of the Ansonia Federation of Teach-ers, Local 1012. "This is a clear example of the problem with educa-tion funding in Connecticut. Towns like ours are forced to over rely on property taxes and forced to lay off good teachers."

In 2009, AFT created an Innovation Fund to support its members’ best ideas for school reform. The union-led venture philanthropy fund is aimed at cultivating

workable, bottom up solutions from the people who know education best: educators. The Meriden Federation of Teachers, Local 1478, was awarded an Innovation Fund Grant for extended day learning at Pulaski Elementary School. “After attending a conference on extended day, our union and the district sent teams to Massachusetts to learn more about how an extended day could benefit our students,” said Erin Benham, president of Meriden Federation of Teachers. “We knew the AFT Innovation Fund was a perfect fit for this idea and applied for a grant. We are overjoyed that this grant will be helping improve education for our students.” Beginning this year, Pulaski’s grade 1-5 students will begin their day at 7:30 starting with breakfast. “Fit-

ness and nutrition will be a huge part of the extra 90 minutes in the school day,” says B e n -ham. Increased ex posu re to science a nd t e c h n o l o g y will also be a la rge pa r t of t h e s c h o o l day. T h e plan is to add a sec-ond elemen-tary school in year two of the grant and, if successful, bring extended day to all eight elementary schools.

4 STATE OF THE UNION

New AFT effort highlights Obama’s record on education

Educators for Obama" is a new AFT effort to highlight the stark differences between the two presidential candidates on the issue of public education.

The AFT, which has endorsed President Obama for re-election, is urging members to become Educators for Obama to make sure that the union's priority issues are at the forefront of his re-election campaign.

Obama is fighting for educators. In his State of the Union speech, he exhorted the nation to "stop bashing" teachers and stressed the need to "stop teaching to the test." During his term as president, Obama kept more than 300,000 educators where they belong—with their students. He proposed targeting additional funds to stave off another round of devastating cuts of tens of thousands more educators. And just recently, he urged Congress to take action to put teachers back to work in their class-

rooms, st at-ing: "The best pred ic tor of i n d i v i d u a l and American success in this economy is a good educa-tion."

Republican candidate Mitt Romney, on the other hand, continues to promote a view of America that dif-fers greatly from the vision of those concerned about economic and educational fairness. In fact, Romney recently said we have too many teachers, police officers and firefighters.

Find out more about Educators for Obama at aftct.org.

AFT Connecticut 2012 Endorsements (as of July 3, 2012)

PresidentBarack Obama

US SenateChris Murphy (primary)

US CongressJohn LarsonJoe CourtneyRosa DeLauroJim HimesChris Donovan (primary)

AFT Connecticut has a strict endorsement process. The AFT Connecticut Legislative and Political Action Com-mittee (LPAC) first reviews candidate requests for endorsement. The LPAC then makes recommendations to the AFT Connecticut Executive Committee regarding candidate endorsements. All candidates seeking endorsement by AFT Connecticut must sign a Statement of Principles for Public Officials. Recommendations by the LPAC are then forwarded to the AFT Connecticut Executive Committee/COPE for approval.

Senators1 John Fonfara2 Eric Coleman3 Gary LeBeau5 Beth Bye6 Terry Gerratana7 Karen Jarmoc10 Toni Harp11 Martin Looney

12 Ed Meyer13 Dante Bartolomeo17 Joseph Crisco19 Tom Reynolds (primary)20 Andrea Stillman23 Edwin Gomes (primary)29 Don Williams31 David Roche

Representatives1 Matt Ritter5 Leo Canty (primary)6 Edwin Vargas (primary)9 Jason Rojas10 Henry Genga15 David Baram18 Andrew Fleischmann22 Betty Boukus24 Rick Lopes25 Bobby Sanchez26 Peter Tercyak27 Sandy Nafis28 Russ Morin29 Tony Guerrera30 Joe Aresimowicz

38 Betsy Ritter44 Mae Flexer48 Linda Orange49 Susan Johnson53 Bryan Hurlburt54 Greg Haddad58 Kathy Tallarita (primary)59 David Kiner60 Peggy Sayers64 Roberta Willis83 Cathy Abercrombie85 Mary Mushinsky89 Vickie Nardello90 Mary Fritz

92 Pat Dillon93 Toni Walker94 Gary Holder-Winfield95 Juan Candelaria99 James Albis100 Matt Lesser104 Linda Gentile110 Bob Godfrey115 Stephen Dargan116 Lou Esposito (primary)117 Paul Davis127 Jack Hennessy137 Chris Perone139 Kevin Ryan

Don’t forget to vote on August 14th!

LABOR2O12

AFL-CIO

STATE OF THE UNION 5

New Haven school to be union managed continued from Page 1

the course of the year.“Ever yone recognizes that a

good teacher is the most powerful force on a students learning,” said David Cicarella, president of the New Haven Federation of Teachers. “Within the NHFT, and in continued collaboration with Mayor DeStefano

and Dr. Mayo, teachers are going be-yond the classroom to be that force for learning. We are proud of our work in shaping school reform here in New Haven from the very start– and we are eager to take on this new role of school management at High School in the Community.”

“Everything has to be student-led. The focus has to be on the stu-dents. So what will they see? They’ll see some new faces, that’s for sure, but many staff have been retained as well. They’ll see a new curriculum, new courses and a change in the way we do things,” said Cicarella.

Grading policy will change with students beginning in a “Core Acad-emy” and moving to a “Community Bridge Academy” that focuses on community-driven work. Students will progress from stage to stage based on their portfolio of work and graduate when they are ready. The school is also bringing back the “Family Group”, a mandatory fresh-

man class that focuses on social de-velopment and team building.

“Unlike charter school turn-arounds which hand pick t heir students, HSC will keep its current students,” said Cicarella. “We are returning to the roots of charter schools. Charter schools were made to be an incubator of change—not a separate system that creams kids from the traditional district.”

“There are about eight or nine union-r un schools nat ionw ide, including in Denver and New York City.” Cicarella added.

HSC is seeking to become part of the Education Commissioner’s Network which was created under this year’s education reform legis-lation. HSC could receive up to $2 million in funding over a period of several years. The New Haven Board of Education has formally registered their intent to apply to the Commis-sioner’s Network.

Learn more about HSC at aftct.org.

Workers and their unions key to economic turnaround, election outcome

Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) and Columbia University Professor Dorian Warren both say the best way to solve the nation’s economic

crisis is to grow the middle class rather than allowing wealth to concentrate in fewer and fewer hands. Unions, they say, will play a vital role politically and economically in building a strong middle class.

O'Malley and Warren spoke on a conference call with reporters Friday to counter recent attacks by Republican lawmakers on workers and their unions.

O’Malley pointed to Maryland’s top 10 ranking in job creation, its AAA bond rating and the fact it has the high-est median income in the nation to show that economic prosperity is "achieved by a partnership with unions, not by scapegoating labor.”

"We don’t see unions as an impediment to growth but organized labor helps us grow and maintain balance, invest in skills of the workforce and ensure people receive a decent wage for a decent day’s work."

From the post-war era through 1973, when one in three working people had a voice on the job, said Warren, the nation had the smallest economic gap ever between the rich and the poor, because of the growing middle class with good union jobs.

But as efforts were made to weaken unions and at-tempts to modernize and strengthen the nation’s labor laws were blocked, the middle class began to shrink, said Warren.

"There are consequences to declining union strength and now we have the highest levels of economic injustice ever. Our economy has moved to an hourglass model with jobs at the top end and bottom end, but with the middle hollowed out."

When working people have a “strong collective voice,” said Warren, “we get a stable and strong economy with continued economic growth. Unions still remain the best tool and best route for workers to improve their lives.”

Several teachers from HSC expressed their excitement about the collaborative effort taking place at the school.

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6 STATE OF THE UNION

ConnTEACHAFT Connecticut’s Annual Education Conference

Aug. 3 - Meriden, CT

Workshops covering:Autism - Common Core StandardsStrategies for Success and more.Register at AFTCT.org

NLRB prevents raiding of Judicial Employees, others

Connecticut wins No Child Left Behind waiver

U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan announced today that Connecticut has won its bid for a waiver to the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) requirements.

18 others states have received the NCLB waiver. One of the requirements under NCLB was that 100 percent of students be proficient in reading and math in three school years. A requirement that is near impossible to meet as evidenced by the fact that nearly half of Connecticut schools have been unable to meet that requirement.

"These states are getting more flexibility with federal funds and relief from NCLB's one-size-fits-all federal mandate," said Duncan.

The NCLB waiver has been awarded to states that have developed alternative plans for accountability and measuring success.

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U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan

The National Labor Board of Relations (NLRB) dismissed attempts to raid Judicial Professional Employees Local 4200B and other state employee

unions, July 3. The NLRB found that the petitions sub-mitted by the United Public Service Employees Union on behalf of five bargaining groups was not filed in a timely manner.

“This was a tremendous victory for the profession-als we represent,” said Sharon Palmer, president of AFT

Connecticut. “This raiding group has a history of mak-ing false promises to locals and then providing zero services.”

The NLRB sided with the state and the incumbent unions who maintained that state employees essentially closed the window to switch unions when they voted to approve the State Employee Bargaining Agent Coalition (SEBAC) agreement and the bargaining unit agreements in August 2011.

STATE OF THE UNION 7

New report looks at what it takes to make high-poverty schools effective

A new Educat ion Tr ust re-port validates what every teacher knows is necessary

to strengthen public schools and the teaching profession, says AFT president Randi Weingarten. "Build-ing a culture of collaboration and shared responsibility among teach-ers, principals and administrators; focusing on continuous professional development for teachers; and en-suring teachers have the time, tools and trust they need to improve

teaching and learning are essential ingredients to building strong public schools and a quality teaching force," she says.

"Building and Sustaining Talent: Creating Conditions in High-Poverty Schools That Support Ef fect ive Teaching and Learning" also recog-nizes that teachers do not teach in a vacuum, Weingarten says. "Qual-ity school buildings and working conditions, school leadership and community factors all play a role in

attracting and retaining qual-ity teachers and helping our children learn and grow," she notes. "The report also makes clear that improving teaching and learning cannot start and stop by improving teacher eval-uations. Evaluations are just one tool in improving teacher quality and should be used to support, not sanction, teachers.

"This report offers a clear road map for school districts across the country. Districts leading the way in improv-ing teaching and learning are already focused on building strong, collaborative school communities to help all chil-dren succeed."

Check out the report online at aftct.org.

New Haven teacher honored with U.S. History Teacher of the Year Award

Ne w H a v e n t e a c h e r Gretchen M. Gurr re-ceived the U.S. history

teacher of the year award last month. Gurr teachers U.S. his-tory at James Hillhouse High School.

Gurr was honored during History Day in Connecticut. This event encourages students to explore local, state, national and world histor y by invit-ing them to explore a histori-cal topic related to an annual theme and to submit projects for a series of contests from local to national level. This year’s theme was “revolution, reaction and reform.”

This marks the first year in which Hillhouse students entered the competition where they won second place for their documentary, “WWII: African American Veterans Recollec-tion of Segregation.”

The students, along with Gurr, represented Connecticut at the National History Day Competition at the University of Maryland.

To go “as far as we did the first time we entered says a lot about the ability of our stu-dents,” Gurr said. It also shows that given opportunities to succeed, students will excel, no matter what school they attend, she said.

“What I try to generate in my classroom daily is inquiry,” Gurr said. “They do the re-search. I provide them the op-portunities, the material, the perspective, so to speak, and they have to investigate.”

Affordable Care Act upheld by Supreme Court

Labor unions work hard to improve the lives of working families na-tionwide. We believe strongly that quality, affordable health care is a right for everyone in America.

By upholding the Affordable Care Act, the U.S. Supreme Court has sided with the American people to make quality, affordable health care a reality.

Here in Connecticut, our union has worked to improve access to afford-able healthcare through efforts like pooling in the state employee health plan for municipalities, non-profits and small businesses.

“We applaud the decision of the Supreme Court,” said Sharon Palmer, president of AFT Connecticut. “As the Affordable Care Act moves forward we will be working to ensure everyone is covered in Connecticut.”

“Access to affordable healthcare is an essential building block to rebuild-ing and expanding the middle class and a lifeline to those who have no access to healthcare right now. The Affordable Care Act will continue to make that a reality for millions of Americans,” said AFT president Randi Weingarten.

8 STATE OF THE UNION

NoNprofit org.U.S. poStage

paiDHartforD Ctpermit # 4501

Thinking outside the boxSharon Palmer, AFT Connecticut President

It never ceases to amaze me how many people accuse labor unions of being unwilling to make changes. The reality is far different. AFT has always

been a union of forward thinking professionals. The original idea for charter schools - as experimental schools where new ideas could be tested to see what works and then replicated in public schools - came from AFT President Al Shanker.

Here in Connecticut we are surrounded by local union members and their leaders who have proven that collaborative work leads to new and innovative ideas that benefit us, our workplaces and the people we serve.

This month’s issue highlights the work of the New Haven Federation of Teachers and the Meriden Federa-tion of Teachers, both of which are working to bring about new ideas that will improve education for low performing students and help to close the achievement gap. Every year our teachers are making similar efforts in their school districts.

Healthcare locals like Danbury Nurses Unit 47 are working to prevent infections and workplace violence.

Our public employee locals are coming up with ways to improve efficiency in state services.

Together, our union is leading the way in change, while anti-union groups promote ideas that have only weakened the middle class in America.

In addition to thinking outside the box on new ideas, our union pushes for legislation, both at the state and national level, that benefits working families.

Sometimes that legislation is viewed on a wider stage, like education reform, where we were at the forefront of fighting for ideas that would improve

education for every child in Connecticut.Other times the legislation goes quite unnoticed

by the general public, like reporting workplace vio-lence in hospitals, even though, in the long run, legisla-tion like this will improve patient safety and save lives.

Still our detractors cry foul when we use our politi-cal clout to help get important bills passed. Everything we do is open to public scrutiny while corporations and right-wing think tanks hide in the shadows of secrecy, bundling billions of dollars in Super PACs to influence government.

Virtually every candidate we support at the state level runs under the publicly financed election system. We can’t give them any money. Instead, we push them to support our issues when they are in office and if they do and continue to pledge to support our issues, they earn our endorsement. Is that a guarantee you will vote for them? Of course not. But you will know where they stand on our issues and be able to make an informed decision about the candidates.

Our members have repeatedly made the difference in election outcomes in Connecticut. This year will be no different.

On Tuesday, August 14, several candidates will be running in primary elections across the state. We have endorsed several, including our Second Vice President Leo Canty.

We hope that you will continue to make your voice heard on Election Day, as well as in your locals and your workplace by thinking outside the box and moving our union forward.