Rye Lake Campus Closure in ESY
I was delighted to share that members impacted by the closure of Rye Lake Campus for July 22-24 will be paid for that time.
This didn’t happen by accident. It happened because of all of us.
From the first day the campus closed, I stayed in close, constant contact with administration, pushing for answers and for a resolution. At the same time, many of you reached out to administration directly in your own words, to make clear how much this mattered. That combination, a voice from the President and dozens of voices from our membership, kept steady pressure on getting this resolved. That’s what a union is: not one person speaking for everyone, but all of us speaking together.
I also want to be clear about how this got resolved. This was not handled through a grievance. It was handled through conversation, through relationship, and through administration’s willingness to listen and act. I want to be honest with you: administration didn’t owe me regular updates last week. They chose to keep talking with me, to keep working toward a solution because of the working relationship we’ve built over time. That relationship is what got this done, and it got it done faster than the grievance process ever could have.
I raise this not to say grievances never have their place, they do, but to show what’s possible when we lead with communication first. When members speak up and I press on that repeatedly, we can solve problems together without needing to escalate.
Thank you to everyone who sent an email, made a call, or simply asked a question of administration and kept the pressure on. This win belongs to all of you.
In solidarity,
Mairead
NYSUT Local Action Project (LAP)
The BTA was honored to have been selected by NYSUT last year as one of 5 local unions from around the state to participate in the Local Action Project. This is an outreach and training program for local unions to improve member engagement and communications, develop leadership skills, organize political action and community engagement opportunities. This is a 3 year commitment, with partial funding supplied by NYSUT each year. This was year 2 for our lap team of Mairead Schuelein, Rosalie Consani, Liz Lopez, Jane Shields and Stacey DiPaola. We spent July 19-24th up at the Fort William Henry Conference Center with our Labor Relations Specialist, Tom McMahon. There, the LAP team created an Aides contract and solidarity campaign and a budget that needs to be approved by NYSUT in the early fall. Year two will focus on creating a Union Buddy program, developing a handbook, pushing for a fair Aides contract, 1:1 conversations with Aides, education to all members about their contract, Aide of the Month program and a Dental Fair. More to come as the school year starts, but we are thrilled to be a part of this program. The LAP team has created a separate Instagram page which you can find here
Find out more about NYSUT’s LAP program here and here
Aides Contract Negotiation Committee
Thank you to Derrick Green, Wendy Beddoes-Muller, Caroline Postell, Juslene Louisseize, and Yanick Chevalier for participating on the Aides contract negotiations committee. The team met twice in July and has identified items for the contract survey. Mairead has submitted that information to NYSUT who she will be working with to create the survey. It is anticipated that the survey will go out to all Aides in the middle of September.
LAP Initiative: Trunk or Treat
As one of the LAP team’s Year 1 initiatives, we had to create a campaign for our community. The LAP team has decided to hold a Trunk or Treat for students in our Special Services programs. The event will take place on Wednesday, October 28th in the Rye Lake Campus bus circle. Car decorators will arrive at 3:30pm and families will arrive beginning at 4pm. If you would like to sign up to decorate your trunk, use this signup genius link. We are limited to 25 cars and will open it up to families/administration if we do not meet the 25 cars. We are looking forward to this new event!
Know Your Rights Survey
Thank you to all of you who completed the Know Your Rights survey that was sent throughout last August and September. Each month I will highlight a different question that was on the survey, how our members responded and the State Education law that explains the answer to the survey.
Question #11: Under New York State Education Law and Commissioner’s Regulations, tenured teachers can use all of their sick days and have their jobs secure. 67.5% of members answered it was false. The correct answer is false – way to go!
The Commissioner has set a high standard on this via case law. If excessive absenteeism interferes with the continuity of instruction for students, it is actionable under Ed. laws 913 and 3020-a
NYSUT is offering fall seminars that are free for NYSUT members. These are free online courses that offer you CTLE hours. See the list and register here. Additionally, NYSUT ELT offers discounted masters degree programs that you can use for salary advancement.
Seniority List
The BTA is in receipt of the latest seniority list. If you are interested in seeing the list for your tenure area, please reach out to Mairead at president@bocesta.net. Once the school year begins, please also reach out to Stacey DiPaola at treasurer@bocesta.net and Derrick Green at 1stvp@bocesta.net.
NYSUT Peer Support Line
Many of you know about EAP but did you know that NYSUT offers a Peer Support Line? This is a support line that is staffed by trained professionals and retirees that can provide assistance on the following:
- finding mental health services or support groups
- managing work related stress and concerns
- reducing feelings of isolation and loneliness
- coordinating elder care and caregiver needs
And much more. The hotline is open Monday through Friday from noon to 6pm, and their phone number is 1-844-444-0152. They also have the ability to chat via the chat box on their website or to submit a secure, private message. For more information, you can watch this short video and or learn more here
Save the date
The BTA will be hosting a Welcome Back Social on Wednesday, September 16th at Bar 141. Sign up form and more info to come in the coming weeks.
Reminders
Check your Wincap: Please remember to check your Wincap account and your salary notice. Compare your salary and step placement with the BTA contracts found here. If you believe there is a discrepancy, reach out to Mary Ann Melendez in Human Resources.
BTA text list: If you wish to receive texts from the BTA, please fill out this form. The BTA does not give out your cell phone number to outside parties. We use it to send reminders about meetings and upcoming events.
If you receive an email from your supervisor saying you can bring a union rep to a scheduled meeting, reach out to one of the Reps or Exec Board members listed at the bottom of this bulletin ASAP.
Next Rep Council meeting: Tentative Date of Wednesday, September 23rd at 3:30pm, location TBD. Notification of dates for Rep Council and General Membership meetings for the 2026-2027 school year will be sent out in the end of August.
BOCES Teachers Association 