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Here's What's Brewing Today
Monday, September 11, 2023
Good Morning, WTU Members!
For those celebrating Yom Kippur, Chag sameach! As you know, WTU’s Contract Negotiating Team has been working for months to prepare and deliver ground rules, several MOAs, and proposals to DCPS. Each week, the team alerts all WTU members of our progress through video updates available here. Unfortunately, as of today, we have not received concrete dates from DCPS to begin the bargaining process so we canceled last week’s Contract Negotiating Teams’ meeting. As you know, our contract expires this coming Saturday, September 30th. Before it does, we ask you to sign WTU’s Safe Schools petition, post it on your social network, and encourage everyone you know to read and sign it.
With your help at the DCPS Block Party this past Saturday, we gave hundreds of free books of choice to every child and gathered hundreds of community signatures for our Safe Schools Petition. Thank you to those who came out to help despite the rain!
The World Cultural Festival is only held every 5 years. This year, it is an honor for the event to be held in DC. We are also pleased and grateful to announce that the World Cultural Festival will be presenting the Human Values Award to the WTU for our work in keeping students, teachers, and staff safe throughout the pandemic. Please take some time to come out to the festival to celebrate this exciting event.
This coming Saturday, September 30th, we are pleased that will we have our Union Leadership Institute (ULI) in-person at AFT Headquarters (555 New Jersey Ave NW, Washington, DC 20001)! This will be the first time we will offer the in-person training since COVID-19. This one-day bootcamp is crafted to give all elected school building leaders (i.e. School Chapter Advisory Committee (SCAC), Local School Advisory Team (LSAT), personnel committee, etc.) the necessary knowledge needed to be effective building representatives. We need as many WTU building leaders as possible to attend this training given the contract battle we now face again. Consider ULI as your training to lead us in battle. When we fight together, we win together! I hope to see you there!
In solidarity,
Jacqueline Pogue Lyons, President
Washington Teachers’ Union
Opportunities to GET INVOLVED!
Register for Union Leadership Institute (ULI)
The WTU offers regular ULIs that give all building leaders the opportunity to learn and develop leadership skills and to acquire the detailed knowledge needed to be effective teacher representatives. To help ensure the voice of teachers are heard. The register for ULI on Saturday, September 30th. Please register here.
Join the Contract Action Team (CAT)!
The CAT Team will be joining the Organizing Committee for the initial meeting of the new year on Wednesday, Sept. 27th & 5PM in person at the WTU’s headquarters (1239 Pennsylvania Ave. SE, Washington, DC 20003). To learn more about the Contract Action Team, please visit our Contract Action Webpage and follow us on WTU’s official FaceBook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram sites. Our campaign focuses on showing our collective demand for a new contract by wearing red on Fridays and our new Campaign button, posting pictures on social media, and rallying everyone we know to sign our petition for school safety. We also need your wonderful photos! So, please don’t forget to keep emailing them to [email protected].
Join a WTU Committee!
The start of a new school year offers all members a chance to join one of five WTU Committees established by the WTU Executive Board to lead our work:
Contract Action Team (CAT) & Organizing Committee – Wednesday, Sept. 27th @ 5PM in person.
The CAT Team will be joining the initial meeting of the Organizing Committee on Wednesday, Sept. 27th @5PM in person at the Washington Teachers Union offices (1239 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE). Contact: Mike Roland ([email protected])
Communications Committee – Tuesday, Sept. 26th @4:30PM
Chair: WTU President Jacqueline Pogue Lyons ([email protected]) Meets the 4th Tuesday of each month. Via Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81572951788?pwd=eFlIa2Q4MHNTeE1GeHRQSFk5bG9qdz09
Committee on Political Education (COPE) Meeting – Monday, October 2nd @ 7-8pm
Chair: Michael Donaldson ([email protected]). Meets the first Monday of each month. Via Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85422764300?pwd=WUtZZjVGT3lQTElqdkFEWWMvaEJPZz09
Legislative Committee – Tuesday, October 17th @4:30PM
Chairs: Jacqueline Pogue Lyons, WTU President ([email protected]) and Regina Bell, WTU Vice President ([email protected]). Via Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81572951788?pwd=eFlIa2Q4MHNTeE1GeHRQSFk5bG9qdz09
IMPACT Committee
The IMPACT Committee continues to gather feedback from different stakeholder groups, and academic research data regarding the validity and fairness of IMPACT's rating system compared to other evaluation systems.
Contact: Regina Bell, WTU Vice President ([email protected])
Hard to Fill Bonuses
Hard to fill bonuses are based on your IMPACT Group. Contact your Field Representative if you haven’t received your bonus.
Attend a Student Loan Forgiveness Webinar
Monday, September 25th 4-5PM Register here. The Office of the Deputy Mayor for Education invites DC educators to our second virtual webinar led by a Certified Financial Planner™, Andrew Katz-Moses, on Monday, September 25th, from 4 to 5 pm ET. The Student Loan Forgiveness webinar will provide DC educators with essential insights and strategies to navigate student loan repayments, optimize the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program, and learn if loan consolidation is right for them. The webinar will cover how to plan for loan repayment starting in October as well as major opportunities for loan forgiveness you need to take advantage of by the end of 2023. Whether you're currently paying off student loans or seeking ways to optimize your repayment journey, this webinar is designed to empower you with the knowledge you need. See the full invitation attached and register here. Q&A will follow the session.
Attend a Boundary & Student Assignment Study Virtual Town Hall
Tuesday, September 26 at 12 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Wednesday, September 27 at 6 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Both sessions below will cover the same information.
Join the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Education for a series of virtual town hall meetings to learn more about the Boundary & Student Assignment Study. This initiative will provide strategic, data-informed recommendations to ensure more students have equitable access to great schools. Click here to sign-up for a town hall session: dme.dc.gov/page/townhalls-2023
Sign DC School Nurses’ Petition
Sign a petition to support student health and nurse professionalism in DC schools! We demand DC immediately reconsider this harmful cluster model. They must collaborate with DCNA representatives to build a solution-oriented approach that has dedicated nurses per school. This is what our students deserve. We ask you to join the fight to protect student heath and nurses' working conditions. Let's uplift their voices and stand against this damaging cluster model that profit over people.
In the News
- Washington Post – In a Changing Mount Pleasant, Bancroft Elementary Loses Federal Grant
- NBC4 News – Magic Johnson Offers DC Teen a Scholarship
- DCist – DC School Nurses Say New Staffing Model is a Recipe for Disaster
- Accuracy in Academia – Teachers’ Union President Slams Impeachment Inquiry as a Scam
WTU's Contract Negotiating Team's Weekly Video Update (SAME VIDEO AS LAST WEEK)
To watch last week’s video, please click here: https://youtu.be/9-CScsBoMDM?si=aXD1-kmkdDP1791M or picture below.
Watch previous video updates here.
Art All Night with Roosevelt STAY
Friday, September 29, 7-10PM
Click here to learn more.
Latest IMPACT Guidebooks
The latest IMPACT guidebooks which outline how staff and teachers will be assessed in their specific roles/responsibilities is available here.
Ward 7 EdCouncil Meeting - Oct. 5th
Professional Development Opportunities
Office of the State Superintendent of Education – LEA Look Forward – September 22, 2023
Update your Contact Information
The AM Brew is distributed as a benefit to members of the WTU. In the coming weeks, we’ll be updating our database removing non-members from the distribution for the AM Brew, as well as other important Member–Only emails.
To ensure that you’re not inadvertently removed from the distribution list, please update your member information by clicking here.
If you are removed, please contact Carlton Nettles at [email protected] to update your information and be re-added to the WTU mailing lists.
Be sure to follow the WTU on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to keep up on the latest from your Union.