NYSUT News: Going - Pres. Andy Pallotta, Coming - Melinda Person Who? Has Never Been a Teacher - Succession or Coup?

Putin Cites Mulgrew/Randi Takeover of NYSUT as Inspiration for Crimean Invasion

I admire the Unity Caucus operation tremendously. I only wish I had such control....My next invasion will be Brighton Beach to protect the Russian speaking population in Brooklyn.... I am looking for a condo in Brooklyn as a base of operation but the real estate prices are crazy.... Vladimir Putin 

Ed Notes, March 4, 2014

Sunday - February 12, 2023  - Happy Birthday Abe

Ok, so Putin lied about his next invasion. The breaking news Friday night of a coming change in leadership at NYSUT brought up memories of the last change of leadership in 2014, one of only two times where there was a contested election. But lots more on 2014 later in this post.

UPDATE 7:30: Trusted source says Pallotta just retired. No drama. Also - no signs of early resistance to the move to Person.

Traditionally, the top levels of NYSUT have been occupied by former teachers and local union leaders, not by bureaucrats. Even Randi, who was a lawyer first when the top level oligarchs chose to make her the next president, did a quick teaching hit job to give her creds and meet UFT constitution requirements. NYSUT doesn't seem to have a similar requirement that officers had to teach.

 

Thus, we see a change coming with the announcement of candidacy for NYSUT President by Melinda Person, currently NYSUT Executive and Political Director - an appointed position, seemed sort of strange less than three months before NYSUT Delegates meet to elect its officers in late April. 

 

By all reports, Melinda Person is well-liked but it is interesting she shows no teaching background in her resume (see below), though she says she wanted to be a teacher. But all you have to do is look at her salary over the past 15 years (below) for a reason she did not teach. Even Randi seems to have had more teaching experience than her.

 

I was confused when I first heard of the announcement Friday night. 

 

She announces she is running while Andy Pallotta is still president? My first thought was she is running against him. But how could that be since she is running under the Unity line? This came across like she woke up in the morning and decided to run for NYSUT president but we know she was chosen by the hierarchy. 

 

I wondered. Who is Melinda Person and what is going on with Andy? Is he being forced out? Another coup in NYSUT?  (See 2014 story below). 

What forces in the UFT/NYSUT/AFT sphere are behind Person?

We got our answer shortly after with this twitter announcement by Andy Pallotta:

  

The order of announcement seemed strange. How mixed were his emotions? A change in leadership at that level involves some preparation. Some introduction around the state to the rank and file of someone no one except maybe the insiders know. Apparently Unity/NYSUT had a meeting the other day and the change was made. Did Andy decide to retire or was he pushed? Most probably, the former. (He must have noticed how much I've been enjoying my 20 years of retirement.) Usually, there are rumors in advance.

 

One thing we noted was that Person has been the NYSUT political director since October, 2014 and was assistant director of legislation for 6 years from 2008-2013 with a gap of a year, right in the middle of NYSUT turmoil over the 2014 election. She occupied the same position at the state level that Cassie Prugh, who recently left the UFT, had. Prugh replaced the popular (with soccer fans) Paul Egan after a fuzzy type scandal. She had been a somewhat shadowy and unpopular figure who came directly out of the Cuomo administration to the UFT. Some saw Prugh as the Cuomo plant in the UFT or vice versa. It is not clear who is replacing Prugh in the UFT. Sources say that she’ll still be working for the UFT on retainer. And who is taking Person's place as political director of NYSUT? Might as well let Cassie do both jobs for a double retainer - I'd love to what the retainer pays.

The UFT/NYSUT/AFT hierarchy is fundamentally run like a monarchy where the people at the top chose the candidates and then the actual vote is pro forma. Randi's power and control of the AFT emanates through the Unity/UFT/NYSUT nexus since NYSUT members make up about 30% of the AFT and Unity/UFT make up over 30% of NYSUT. Naturally, all 700 Unity/UFT delegates will vote as one. Think Hasidim voting in a block. Person and the entire top four slate will run unopposed.

 

In the 50 year history of NYSUT, there has almost never actually been a competitive election - except 2014 -  more on that below.

 

NYSUT President, a figurehead of sorts? Exec VP was real power position

The thing to understand is that NYSUT, the brainchild of Albert Shanker, was created in the 70s from a state merger of the AFT and NEA and has always been under the control of the UFT Unity Caucus which has been extended to the state level through an expanded version of Unity and the national AFT through the Progressive Caucus. Unity/UFT through the massive membership controls the state and national unions. NYSUT has over 600 thousand members, about a third of the AFT.

 

Shanker set it up politically in a way that gave the non-NYC people the presidency, while the UFT controlled the money machine through the elected Executive VP, a position occupied by Shanker himself for over a decade while Thomas Hobart was president. Power sharing with the real power in the UFT. After Shanker, a top UFTer, the popular Alan Lubin, rumored to be Sandy Feldman's successor - until Randi Weingarten moved into the picture in the late 80s, was moved to the key NYSUT position of Ex Director. Many of us in the oppo liked Lubin - we used to kid him about having to move from Brooklyn to Albany and offered to get him a parka - the last time I saw him was at the 2010 AFT convention in Seattle.

When Lubin retired around 2009 or 2010, Andy Pallotta moved from a Bronx District Rep into that position with Dick Iannuzzi as president. But the money position was in Pallotta's hands. The deal where the upstate/Long Island people had the presidency and the UFT the Ex VP worked - until ----

 

The 2014 coup

Dick was a bit too independent for the Unity machine and in 2014, a coup of sorts was executed when an entire slate of alternate officers except for the Pallotta position was put up against the Iannuzzi slate with Karen McGee as a figurehead president. There was outrage from many small locals. This power move broke the agreement for some of these locals - I report more on that below.

2017- UFT/Pallotta takes NYSUT Presidency for first time, Ex VP goes to non UFT for first time

Three years later, 2017, McGee was out and Pallotta moved up to replace her as president, the first time in the 40 year history of  NYSUT that a UFTer occupied that role. By all reports, Pallotta tried to work well with some of the forces that had opposed him even when counter to some UFT positions. He doesn't get bad grades from some non-UFT people. Probably sensitive to the remnants of the opposition from 2014, especially the heavy test opt-out districts of Long Island.

 

The new Exec VP in 2017 replacing Andy was not a Unity person for the first time after over a 40 year run (Shanker/Lubin/Pallotta). Jolene T. DiBrango

was elected Executive Vice President. She spent much of her career teaching 6th grade in Pittsford, outside Rochester. She served three terms as president of the PDTA, then got promoted within NYSUT. Well liked and competent. But did she have the same level of power and control as Shanker/Lubin/Pallotta? I bet not. Read an interview she did here.

 

And sure enough:

 

2019- Person expands role

In 2019, Melinda Person, who was NYSUT political director, assumed an additional title of Executive Director, an appointed position, which seems to echo the elected Ex Director.  Did they remove the power/money position from Exec VP elective office held by Jolene and hand it to Melinda?

 

Melinda Person is not from the UFT, but neither does she represent the upstate/Long Island interests, but essentially a long-time NYSUT bureaucrat (since 2008), the first time in NYSUT history the presidency was not occupied by a real teacher. She's never been elected to any union position anywhere.

 

In other words, just having a non-UFTer does not restore the original Shanker/Hobart agreement. Would they leave the second position occupied by Jolene alone? 

 

Given the history I couldn't imagine Unity/UFT not being in control of that position and started asking around if Jolene is running again and sure enough Jonathan Halabi came up with BINGO. Despite not being of retirement age, Jolene is out and being replaced as NYSUT Ex VP by a UFT Teacher Center person, Jaime Ciffone, thus putting the NYSUT Ex VP is back in the hands of the UFT. 

 

Jaime was actually a teacher but for quite some time has been working as a teacher center person, recently in seemingly management position (see bio below). I don't know if she was ever an elected chapter leader or delegate. 

 

Are the top two NYSUT positions going to be occupied by people running in their first union election? The increasing bureaucratization of our unions is not a healthy thing. I'd like to see people who spent serious time in the classrooms and in school or local union leadership positions running our unions, just as we would like to see principals with practical experience (there was a time when almost every supervisor had at one time been a UFT member). We think schools and unions are better run by people with hands on experience. 

 

Though Mulgrew seems to have the most hands on of any UFT leader, so maybe not.

=========

 

Detailing our involvement in the 2014 NYSUT coup

 

Iannuzzi and his allies didn't go quietly into the night as a slate called Stronger Together emerged to support him and the other NYSUT officers against the attempted coup.

 

And many of us in MORE at that time were involved. 

 

MORE was approached to run candidates for the NYSUT Board of directors from the NYC districts (see current list below) and statewide slate called Stronger Together emerged. There was some disagreements internally in MORE as to whether to go ahead - it was pointed out that we would be supporting Unity incumbents - but that was finally settled and we ran 5 candidates for NYSUT Ex Bd in the local Ed Districts plus Arthur Goldstein ran against Pallotta for Ex VP. Arthur campaigned all over the state and did an amazing job of reaching out. We knew it was a battle the Unity machine would win but Stronger Together got between one third and over 40% of the votes. 

 

Aside from a lot of resentment towards the UFT from smaller locals, the big 5 cities stuck with the Unity machine. Testing and the opt-out movement, with a lot of support from parent groups on Long Island and upstate had garnered some support from the Iannuzzi crew. The UFT has been firmly opposed to opt-out and supportive of testing -  (makes me think someone owns stock in the testing companies). But probably it was just a power play to gain total control of NYSUT by the UFT Unity machine.

You can read all about the 2014 NYSUT campaign from my numerous Ed Notes posts I link to below pretty much in reverse order by publishing dates between March and April 2014:

 

• NYSUT: MORE Challenges Unity, VP Candidate Arthur ...
• Revive NYSUT (Pallotta/Mulgrew) OK With Non-Union P...NYSUT President Iannuzzi Condemns Treatment of Stu...

• Video - NYSUT Update: MORE's Lauren Cohen and Mike...
• Thursday - Rally Against Cuomo - 4 PM
• NYSUT Election Update: Message to Revive: Now that...
• NYSUT Election Update: Julie Cavanagh Defeats Mulg...
• NYSUT Update: MORE's Lauren Cohen Stands Up to Bul...

• NYSUT Update: EIA Analyzes NYSUT Delegate Vote
• NYSUT UPDATE: UFT Sells Out

• As the NYSUT World Turns: Some NYC Unity Caucus De...
  

• So Goes the UFT, So Goes the NYSUT Election?

------

 Melinda Person

Though she currently makes over $240K she is in for a raise as NYUST Pres makes around 350k.

MELINDA PERSON, EXEC DIR AND POL DIRECTOR

Salary Breakdown (2019)

Total Compensation

$242,979

• Gross Salary: $219,807
• Allowances: $0
• Official Business: $19,256
• Other Compensation: $3,916

--------

Our local UFT elects people to the NYSUT Board of Director UFT Members, both individual districts and at-large - I think there may be some compensation involved and it reads as a who's who of the leadership:

 

 Individial districts

•  

  Karen Blackwell Alford

  E.D. 24 (UFT)
  

•  

  Carl Cambria

  E.D. 25 (UFT)
• 

  Mary Vaccaro

  E.D. 26 (UFT)
  Executive Board Member
• 

  Amy Arundell

  E.D. 27 (UFT)
• 

  Mary Jo Ginese

  E.D. 28 (UFT)

• 

  Mary Atkinson

  E.D. 29 (UFT)
• 

  Anthony Harmon

  E.D. 30 (UFT)
• 

  Michael Mulgrew

  E.D. 31 (UFT)
  Executive Board Member
• 

  Elizabeth Perez

  E.D. 32 (UFT)

 

• 

  Vacant

  E.D. 33 (UFT)
• 

  Richard Mantell

  E.D. 34 (UFT)
• 

  LeRoy Barr

  E.D. 35 (UFT)
  Executive Board Member 
   
   AT-Large
   
  • 

    Debra Penny

    E.D. 24 & 25
  • 

    Michael Sill

    E.D. 26 & 27
  • 

    Sean Rotkowitz

    E.D. 28 & 29
  • 

    Thomas Brown

    E.D. 30 & 31
  • 

    Janella Hinds

    E.D. 32 & 33
  • 

   Leo Gordon
  • 

    Shelvy Y. Abrams

    SRP At-Large
    Executive Board Member 
     
    

    Anne Goldman

    Health Care At-Large 
    

 

====

Melinda Person - Candidate for NYSUT President

Dear NYSUT Members,

I’m writing to you with great hope for the future of public education, for our students and those we serve, and for all of the amazing NYSUT members working in service to our communities. It is the difference our classroom teachers and school related professionals; our higher education, healthcare and public service professionals; and all NYSUT members make every day that strengthens my confidence in the future of our union.

In just the last few years, we have faced historically significant challenges — a global pandemic, violence in our schools, non-stop extremist attacks on education and unions, school staffing shortages, chronic underfunding, and threats to our economic and retirement security. Public education is truly at a crossroads.

So, why am I hopeful given all we’re up against? Educators have always been my heroines and heroes, and I know firsthand what they can mean for students and a community when they have the support they deserve. Educators are called to this profession by a singular purpose: an unwavering, unequivocal commitment to our students’ learning, well-being, and potential. Our members do these jobs because they want to make a difference, contribute to their communities and, if all goes well, change the world. This is the spirit that is driving me to take this next step to help lead our union in the years ahead.

New York is routinely ranked the best state to be a teacher, and that’s because of our strong unions and what we’ve won over decades. In my time at NYSUT, we’ve modernized our advocacy and member engagement, built out powerful regional political operations, and fought back against politicians trying to destroy public education and our union. Through our Pipeline Project we’ve elected NYSUT members to all levels of government including the State Senate and Assembly, propelling educators directly into seats of power. And as I write, state leaders are poised to implement the NYSUT-supported funding formula that will put more than $2.7 billion in additional funding to work in schools across our state this year, finally fulfilling the promise of the Campaign for Fiscal Equity lawsuit. 

We won these things together. I’m proud of our victories to date and eager to keep fighting to continue accomplishing our goals alongside so many of you. I’m ready to put my more than two decades of experience in education and advocacy to work on behalf of NYSUT members, as a fierce advocate and dedicated public school parent with a strong track record of results in my roles as Executive and Political Director of our union. 

I have a vision for education here in New York State, pre-k through post-grad, built through conversations with so many of you. I’m focused on creating workplaces where students and educators can thrive, ensuring our professions are enticing and sustainable career choices, and growing NYSUT’s power because the more powerful we are, the more we can win together. Here’s how we achieve that vision: 

Creating workplaces where students and educators can thrive: To foster success, we need to build an environment where all staff have adequate resources, strong support and a baseline of respect. That means improving our working conditions, providing professional autonomy for educators, focusing on school safety, and tackling long-standing issues like a counterproductive overemphasis on high-stakes testing. Moreover, every student deserves a safe, welcoming and affirming learning environment.

Ensuring our members’ professions are enticing, sustainable career choices: NYSUT members have dedicated their lives to the service of our communities and deserve respect, dignity and economic security in return. Fostering a pipeline to and through a career in education means addressing staffing shortages, fixing Tier 6, guaranteeing retirement security, and ensuring all our members are backed by strong contracts with good pay, benefits and protections.

Growing NYSUT’s power, because the more powerful we are, the more we can win together: NYSUT’s strength lies within our membership, and I’m committed to growing the strength and size of our union through deeper member engagement using both current programs and new tools to expand member outreach, coupled with expanded organizing to form new units. We’ll keep our political program strong and send more NYSUT members and education champions directly into the halls of power. And with our Public Schools Unite Us campaign, we’ll continue driving forward public education as a solution to what divides our nation–because through high quality public education for all, led by our trusted educators, we can build a stronger future for all of New York.

For all the challenges that our state and nation are working through, I firmly believe that we are a big part of the solution. Public schools bring students together from all backgrounds, incomes, races, and religions–and it’s in our public schools where they socialize, play, learn and grow together. Our divides are not unbridgeable. People can disagree and still see each other’s humanity. We should be moving not left, not right, but forward.

I hope that I can continue to earn your support in this election. Over the coming months, I look forward to many opportunities to engage directly with you about the future of our union and of public education in New York State. We’re facing major headwinds, to be sure, but I am confident that together we can accomplish anything.

In solidarity,

Melinda