View from the new lot on Waller Ave looking across the street to St. Matt’s
A Win for Safety and Sanity: New Parking for St. Matt’s Members
As we’ve shared at recent Rep Council meetings, members at St. Matt’s had been assigned to park in the Lyon Garage—a 5–7 minute walk from the building. Over the winter, things escalated: cars were broken into, one was stolen, another had its tires removed, and members reported unsettling encounters with unhoused individuals in and around the garage.
BTA leadership brought these concerns to administration again and again over the past year, always keeping the conversation respectful and focused on solutions. We also offered several closer, safer parking options. It took time, but staying persistent and non-hostile paid off.
As of April 1st, members at St. Matt’s were reassigned to new parking spots almost directly across the street from the school. It’s a major improvement for safety, convenience, and peace of mind. Administration is now footing the bill for both the Lyon Garage and the new Waller Avenue lots—but members are finally getting what they need.
We’ve received lots of messages of appreciation from members. Here are a few:
Carol Fanelli: “Thank you so much for the new parking!”
Debbie Connolly: “I feel much safer for myself, my car, and my co-workers. I am so thankful.”
Christine Menta: “I am so appreciative of the new parking. We can see our cars from the building. What a relief it is to be out of that garage—and even better that the new spots are so close. Thank you for all your help in getting us those spots.”
We encourage all members to bring important issues like this to our attention so we can work together in partnership and answer the question “What does my union do for me?”.
BTA Spring Elections
The BTA Spring elections are almost here! Elections will be held on the following dates:Monday, May 19th at Tappan Hill, Irvington and St. Matt’s 3-4pm
Tuesday, May 20th at CTE/SS Valhalla, RLC Upper and Lower 3-4pm
ALC dates to follow
Nominating ballot was sent out on April 7th.The following positions will be open for a 3 year term:
Executive Vice President
1st Vice President of Aides
2nd Vice President of ALC
Teacher Aide Reps
TRS Delegate will be on the nominating ballot for a 2 year position
RA Delegates and Alternates will also be on the nominating ballot for a 1 year position
Nominating ballots via Google Forms was sent out by Stacey DiPaola on Monday, April 7th. The deadline for submitting a nomination and accepting a nomination is Friday, April 18th at 3pm. Please submit your nominations ASAP so that members have an opportunity to consider whether or not they would like to run. The draft election ballot will be sent out on Monday, April 21st.
Certified Staff Contract Negotiations
The Certified Staff contract expires June 30th, 2025. As mentioned at the last Rep Council meeting, the Negotiations team has been meeting frequently both with admin and separately with our Negotiating team to negotiate a contract. There were also two sub-committees for negotiations that met for the last 3 weeks after school to discuss specific changes to the contract. Thank you to Tyree Morris, Yolette Levy, Zsuzsanna Kozmane-Fejes and Frank Mascetta for their work on those committees. Mairead Schuelein, Jason Poniatowski and Stacey DiPaola represent the BTA at the main bargaining table on almost a bi-weekly basis as the main Negotiating Team. The results of the surveys showed that in addition to improving salaries and keeping healthcare costs low, members were interested in seeing potential changes to ESY upgrades, bereavement, longevities, salary advancement and extended days.
Question of the Month
Health screenings
Question: Can I take time off for a cancer screening, blood donation, mammogram, etc.?
Each member may take a half day each year for a cancer screening or blood donation. Here is how to report your absence and get your half day back:
- Code your absence into AESOP as “sick” and put “health screening” in the comments section
- Go here and print out the Health Screening Form. You fill out the top part and the physician fills out the bottom part
- Submit the form within 5 business days of the appointment to Human Resources. If you have a question, contact Diane Sedacca in HR
- When the form is received, HR will change the coding in Wincap from “Sick” to “Health Screening”
Local Action Project
As mentioned at the March Rep Council meeting, the BTA has been selected by NYSUT to participate in their 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. This is a 3 year commitment, with partial funding supplied by NYSUT each year. The President of the BTA is obligated to participate. The BTA is honored to have been selected for this program and is looking forward to the opportunity it will provide our leaders. For more information, see here
The team that has been selected to participate are:
Mairead Schuelein
Stacey DiPaola
Rosalie Consani
Elizabeth Lopez
Jane Shields
Thank you to the above members for volunteering their time this summer and potentially future summers for this opportunity!
Welcome New Member!
Katherine Carlos, Tappan Hill
NYSUT Runs New York 5K
Are you looking to participate in a family race this Spring? Check out your local NYSUT Run and sign up today.
Thank you to Benefits Trust!
Approximately 8 members and their family members participated in the Spring in-person Will Days this past week in Building 2 at RLC. Be on the lookout for future Will Days in the fall!
Reminders
Teachers, clinicians and RSPs: If you are tenured and have worked for SWBOCES for 5+ years, please consider applying to become a mentor. The posting closes April 25th and can be found here. Give your supervisor time to fill out their form that needs to be accompanied with your submission ahead of the deadline. 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: Please join us on Wednesday, April 30th at 4pm for our next Rep Council meeting. The meeting will be in person at Tappan Hill or you can join us virtually. Link to follow!
We hope you enjoy a well-deserved Spring Break!
Executive Board and Reps
Mairead Schuelein, President
Jason Poniatowski, Executive Vice President
Stacey DiPaola, Treasurer
Derrick Green, 1st Vice President of Aides
Keith Mattos, 2nd Vice President of ALC
Mike Piccolo, Grievance Chair
Rosalie Consani, Corresponding Secretary
Liz Lopez, Recording Secretary
Julie Crosier, Teacher Rep
Theresa Saive, Teacher Rep
Pierre Fils, CTE Rep
Ann Robertson, TA Rep
Tarik Curry, Aide Rep
Read more: April 10, 2025 bulletin, St. Matt’s Parking, CS Contract, Elections
BOCES Teachers Association 