NTU Update - February 5, 2016

Colleagues,

1)    Hall of Fame Dinner: The 18^th Annual Albert Shanker Scholarship Awards are upon us.  If you are a full member of the NTU, your son/daughter is eligible to apply.  If you are a full member of the NTU and you are a Paraprofessional in our public school district who is currently attending college then you are eligible to apply.  

This year, these awards will be presented at the 2016 NTU Hall of Fame Dinner to be held on Wednesday, May 18^th at The Robert Treat Hotel, 50 Park Place, Newark, NJ at 6:30 p.m.  A buffet dinner and dessert will be provided, along with music and a special program for your enjoyment.  If you do not have a student applying this year, you can still support these fine recipients by purchasing a ticket for $70.00 and attending this worthwhile event.  Some of you have family members or know friends that own businesses.  This would be an ideal opportunity for them to gain exposure by placing an ad in our ad journal that will be distributed to the 200+ attendees, sponsors, vendors and patrons.  

2)    NTU in the news:  Politifax is a weekly electronic newsletter on NJ politics.  This week, they named the Newark teachers Union as one of their Winners of the week after our terrific victory over the Superintendent’s unilateral attempt to change our prescription plan.  See attached.

Also, NJ Spotlight reached out to us to put together a response to an opinion piece by Charter School shill, Muhammed Akil.  You can see our response here!

3)    Strategic Planning Committee: Need member input!  On Monday, Feb 8th, NTU President John M. Abeigon will be speaking before the State Board of Education's Strategic Planning Cmte. They want our thoughts on: what the SBOE & the NJDOE should be focusing on over the next five years; what an ideal education looks like in this modern techno world; and what specific outcomes we should seek. Send your thoughts to John - jabeigon@newarkteachersunion.com.

 4) NTUniversity:  We had numerous responses from members interested in presenting workshops for fellow members.  We are ready to begin development of our course schedule.  If you responded YES to our call, or are still interested... Please complete the following form ASAP!  We plan on meeting before the end of this Month to make the schedule. 

5)     Upcoming NPS meetings: We need you at this month’s Business and Advisory Meetings.  Now, more than ever, our voices need to be strong and united!  Every day someone asks, “Where are we in terms of getting a contract?”  The answer is, “The more strength and unity we have, the more power we have, especially when it comes to negotiation!”

In Solidarity,