BTF Rising Endorses Bruno / Foster BTF 2023

Dear Friends,

As you make your choice in the upcoming run-off election, please strongly consider the full body of work accomplished by our ticket over the past twenty years in the Council of Delegates, on Executive Committee, and at rallies and public speaking at the Board of Education.

Our successes are strong predictors of the effective, consistent, and staunch advocacy you can expect to see as we serve you and lead BTF in the coming years and battles before us.

Whether it is grievance reform, school safety and discipline, negotiations and timely contract renewal, communication system upgrading, school cleanliness and repair, the bell schedule, the school year calendar, special education compliance, core and encore representation — to name but a few — Marc and I will work tirelessly for you, our colleagues, and this proud Federation. Our experience, expertise, skill, and determination will work for you and we will prevail together and united.

Consider the following situations and times and the succesful steps and actions Marc and Pat have taken with your support:

—- When 5 teachers at Riverside faced unfair disciplinary action placing their careers and livelihoods in peril ….. Marc courageously fought for and led them to victory and being made whole through arbitration, 3020a hearings, and NYS Supreme Court.

— When Riverside and many of our Buffalo schools have struggled with chronic attendance and disciplinary problems …. Marc spoke passionately and informatively at Board of Education meetings to shed light on the issues and invite District and Board leaders to make visits and formulate new and better policies.

— When school safety, security, and discipline have been at the forefront of District concerns over the years …. Marc spoke to the Board of Education on the merits of a state of the art School of Student Support to insure our schools are safe and conducive to learning and all BPS students receive the programming and support they need and deserve.

—- When speech at the BTF Council of Delegates was being limited to 2 minutes at the microphone …. Marc passed a resolution to rescind the limitation and return back to Robert’s Rules of Order for guidance (ten minutes).

—- When the BTF did not utilize a parliamentarian in the Council of Delegates as required by the Federation’s Constitution ….. Marc advocated incessantly until finally this year a parliamentarian was appointed.

—- When the BTF did not provide an adequate or efficient way for members to communicate with one another, ask questions, or check for information …. Marc and Pat passed a resolution in June 2021 for BTF to research and provide a quote for a new and upgraded email and member portal system.

—- When the BTF used an outdated double blind envelope voting system for officer and regional assembly elections …… Marc and Pat pushed successfully for BTF to adopt electronic balloting for all elections, beginning in 2015.

—- When Race to the Top and federal mandates required coupling student test scores with teacher evaluation ….. Pat successfully passed a resolution in 2013 opposing student test scores being linked to teacher evaluation citing it was inherently unfair, unreliable, invalid, and did not address absenteeism, special education, and language learners.

—- When overtesting, big data, and standardized testing had dubiously become preeminent in evaluating schools, programs, Districts, teachers, and administrators ….. Pat with Kevin Gibson, Teresa Leatherbarrow, Mel Holden, and Kristen Mendoza pushed successfully for a resolution to support and protect our parents’ and students’ right to opt out.

—- When historic Lafayette High School continuously faced closure and precarious and unfair designations and transformation models for five straight years, and was not given appropriate support and factoring for refugee and ENL students …. Pat worked with his colleagues to organize, speak, and rally successfully at Board of Education meetings in 2009, 2011, 2013, and 2014, to keep the storied oak doors at Baynes and Lafayette open for students to this day.

—- When the BTF and public sector employee unions faced real and existential dangers in the post-Janus years …. Marc and Pat worked with their Executive Committee peers, NYSUT, delegate chairs, and BTF officers to insure member re-enrollment as close as possible to 100 percent.

—- When the first coaches committee MOU, as required by our 2016 CBA, included unfinished elements and unacceptable terms (unfinished evaluation appendix c & inadequate weighting for District coaching experience) ….. Pat fought alongside other District coaches to a split decision at a coaches meeting (successfully rejected the MOU) and then advocated and was supported in tabling the MOU at Executive Committee with Melissa Kenney, and with Sam Fritz’s help in the Council of Delegates.

My fellow teachers, Marc and I can guarantee you we will bring this kind of energy, attention to detail, and steadfastness to the many challenges we will face and in transitioning BTF to its new era. We have been there fighting for you for all these years and we will use this history and experience and dedication to serve you proudly.

We ask you kindly and sincerely for your vote and confidence this coming June 1st.

Thank you so much,

Marc and Pat

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