Ed Notes Online: PROTECT YOUR PENSION-UPCOMING TRS ELECTION - Ben Morgenroth For Teacher-Member Trustee of NYC TRS Board

Ben is the most qualified candidate for trustee on the NYC Teacher Retirement System pension board. Help him get on the ballot. Vote for him on Wed, May 8, 2024.

Thursday, February 29 - and happy birthday to all you youngsters.

I have a post ready to go explaining the background of how this election has come to be with current TRS board member David Kazansky being replaced/or leaving willingly for a position with the AFT willingly -- choose your poison. Unity endorsed his replacement at the Feb. 5 EB and Feb. 7 DA.

Elections are held in the schools on May 8 and are run by the DOE - with principals in charge. Only working members may vote (no retirees). There will be a major effort to make sure they are properly held. The last time over 1/3 of the schools didn't even hold an election.

There's a so-called election every year for one of the rotating members of TRS -all Unity) and I and others have talked about one day running someone against the Unity candidate to break their monopoly on the position. Or at the very least to be able to raise questions about the role they play or should be playing.

If Kazansky was still running there would likely not have been an alt. candidate- there hasn't been an election in decades. Kazansky was pretty well respected as being responsive and knowledgeable. In fact a good friend who recently suffered a death in the family of a UFT member had some questions and I gave him David's email and he responded with satisfactory answers just last week.

Some people seemed pissed off at what seemed to be yet another power move by the UFT leadership.

Did Unity, under the leadership of Michael Mulgrew, once again shoot itself in the foot. (See Amy-Gate)?

A question asked on the ICE-mail listserv:

How does the election of this single (sole, one) candidate change things for all TRS members, active and retired? Will this candidate be running things going forward or will he just be one in a group? Please explain the drastic difference electing this single candidate will make.

Responses:

An interesting question. This is one of three teacher members. Then there is the comptroller- Brad Landers and an appointee from the mayors office. Having a person on the board as qualified as Ben would benefit every member. They oversee the investments and allocations of billions dollars in funds. He can ask the right questions, make inquiries and convince the other board members to vote one or another. We want someone with a financial and academic background that Ben has to oversee the consultants working for TRS, he’s a classroom teacher who will have our best interests at heart.

My reply: To me the most important thing is Ben is not controlled by Unity and slave to decisions by the leadership. Can he change things? Probably not much but he can reveal things that are going on that Unity keeps under cover.

First, Ben needs 1000 signatures to get on the ballot and Unity went into quick panic mode to get theirs. So if you are in a school, follow the instructions below and get Ben some signatures.

My own experience with Ben goes back a few years when he approached me outside the DA when we held a healthcare rally and he began to attend Ex bd meetings with us. He has become an expert on the sad state of Tier 6 people and their pension systems and having a strong advocate like Ben in an official position would be benefit the 54% of current UFT working members who are shockingly in Tier 6.

Ben Morgenroth For Teacher-Member Trustee of NYC TRS Board
Ben is the most qualified candidate for trustee on the NYC Teacher Retirement System pension board. Help him get on the ballot. Vote for him on Wed, May 8, 2024.
https://thewire.educators.nyc/p/ben-morgenroth-for-teacher-member
Educators of NYC
Feb 29, 2024
Let’s get Ben on the ballot
Help get fellow NYC public schools teacher, Ben Morgenroth, on the ballot for the May NYC TRS board election as part of the three teacher trustees who oversee the more than $100 billion in our pension fund.
This trustee position is the second to change hands in two years. We need qualified trustees with a solid financial background, like Ben’s, to keep our pensions safe, secure and stable.
We need to put the best qualified candidate on the ballot and Ben is the most qualified candidate.
Ben teaches AP Calculus and Algebra II at Brooklyn Technical High School and has served as a passionate teacher in the New York City public schools for the past decade. He also serves as an adjunct lecturer in Mathematics at Hunter College, City University of New York. He is a life-long New Yorker and a graduate of New York City public schools. He comes from a family of educators; he and three members of his immediate family are all TRS members.
Ben holds a BA in Applied Math-Economics from Brown University and a MA in Applied Mathematics from Hunter College.
Prior to teaching, Ben served as a business technology consultant and hedge fund risk analyst, helping to manage $3 billion in client investments.
He is the only candidate with a strong investment background who can be trusted to keep our pension stable, solvent, and ensure that it continues to grow.
Ben is an independent-thinking, union-proud, classroom educator who will serve the best interests of all NYC educators. He will fight to fix Tier 6 so all members have a fair pension and have the option to retire at 55 with the same contributions that Tier 4 members have.
He needs 1,000 signatures to get on the ballot. Please help by circulating his nomination petition (link and QR code below). Any active in-service TRS member may sign the petition, including teachers, counselors, school staff, administrators and active CUNY employees who are members of TRS.
Please circulate this petition in your school to all NYC TRS members.
Please return signed petitions as quickly as possible. We are hoping to collect all signatures in the next 15 school days.
Download & Print Ballot Petition
If you have questions, concerns or comments, contact the Committee to Elect Benjamin Morgenroth at ben4trs@gmail.com
Vote For Ben - Election Day, Wed May 8, 2024
When asking people to sign the petition ballot, please remind and urge them to vote for Ben Morgenroth on May 8, 2024 - Election Day.
We will share more details about these NYC DOE run elections in the coming days and weeks.
Editor’s note:
Only someone with a strong investment background can be trusted to keep our pension stable, solvent and can skillfully manage it so that it continues to grow. Ben’s classroom and financial experience and expertise makes him inarguably the best qualified candidate for teacher trustee of TRS.
Mulgrew’s establishment Unity caucus candidate for this election has served as a pension specialist/union staffer, but is far removed from being in the classroom full-time.
And while this staffer may be helpful in a one-on-one consultation about your service record and your future payouts, managing a multi-billion dollar pension fund is not remotely the same responsibility or job description. In the same way that an oil change/car service specialist by no means makes one uniquely qualified to be an auto engineer, or to serve on the board of Ford or Tesla.
Mulgrew’s trustee candidates are selectively chosen to be merely rubber-stamps for his agenda and often are years removed from our classroom perspectives and issues.
We also know that Mulgrew’s track record has only proven to bring about the erosion of our pension and health benefits. Under his watch, we have been burdened by state’s establishment of Tier 6 and his plan to “fix it” lacks specifics, vision and strength.
Ben’s top priorities for managing our pension plan:
Ensure financial stability and fund solvency to secure financial futures for retirees.
Aggressively and judiciously pursue investments that maximize returns while minimizing risk.
Hold webinars and workshops in schools to ensure members understand our pension, including benefits, investment, and retirement options.
Improve pension and disability benefits for members of all tiers.
Restore the 8.25% TDA rate (received by everyone except UFT members).
Restore retirement age to 55 for Tier 6 members.
Reduce pension contributions for all tiers and end pension contributions after 10 years of service.
Improve pension flexibility for members who change careers or relocate, including pension credit for teachers entering from other school systems.
Improve Final Average Salary calculation for pension benefits that better reflect real earnings.
Update COLA law for benefit increases that keep pace with inflation.
Offer swifter movement of funds between TDA investment options (reduce time lag to one day from the present one to four months).