What's Happening? Update
This update chronicles the activities of the State Vocational Federation of Teachers Leadership.

It Documents scheduled calendar events and reports on decisions and actions of importance to the SVFT.

Candidate Forum
Candidate Forum Sponsered by AFT-CT 04-21-10

Teacher of the Year
Teacher of the Year Challenge
More information can be found on the Forms and Documents page.

Council Meeting
March 2010 Council Meeting Summary

Archive
February 25, 2010
February 8, 2010
January 29, 2010
January 18, 2010
January 11, 2010
December 14, 2009
December 6, 2009
November 20, 2009
November 16, 2009
November 9, 2009
June 8, 2009
May 18, 2009
May 11, 2009
April 27, 2009
April 22, 2009
March 31, 2009
March 17, 2009
March 5, 2009

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March 12^th, 2010
• TEACHER OF THE YEAR – All voting for SVFT Teacher of the Year should be completed. As soon as the list is complete and sent to central office, each recipient will be sent an information packet regarding the criteria for the CTHSS TOY recipient. The union will hold its annual banquet on May 11th at the Rocky Hill Marriott. Congratulations to all of this year’s TOY winners!
• SCHOOL VISITS – SVFT leadership continues with our final round of school visits. During this round of visits an after school union meeting is scheduled with the hope that those that did not get a chance to speak with the officers during the last visit will now have the opportunity to do so. Anyone with an issue they would like discuss at the school union meeting should contact their building representative or contact the union office.
  • Scheduled school visits for the next two weeks include; Prince (Mar 16th), Vinal (Mar 17th), Bristol (Mar 23rd), and Platt (Mar 24th)
  • Schools visited to date; Grasso (Feb 17th), O’Brien (Feb 23rd), Abbott (Mar 1st), Goodwin (Mar 2nd), Kaynor (Mar 8th), Ellis (Mar 9th)
• LEGISLATIVE TESTIMONY – On March 8th, President Rick Tanasi and four of our members (Sue Loud, Eric Sawyer, Ed DeSousa, and John Sylvestre) gave testimony to the Education Committee regarding Senate Bill 379. This bill is aimed at improving our sub-board, advisory committee, buses and other school financial concerns.
• BUDGET – The proposed budget has been approved by both the Executive Committee and the Executive Council. The final vote will occur at the General Membership Meeting, scheduled for May 6th at 6:30 PM - Wilcox THS in Meriden. Please attend! See your building representative for more information.
• SEBAC (State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition) – SVFT leadership, along with other SEBAC leaders, and Dan Livingston (chief negotiator), met on January 28th with representatives from the state. Refer to SVFT’s homepage for up to date information as it develops.
• TEAM – New teachers who did not participate in BEST are required to complete the TEAM program to obtain Provisional certification.
  • Teachers who began August 2009 have been pulled from the Spring pilot program
  • ALL teachers who do not have Provisional Certification should have a mentor in their school, and the mentor will need to attend TEAM Mentor Update Training offered through the Regional Educational Service Centers (RESCs).
  • For more information, please contact Kim Traverso at Central Office (860) 807-2208 or Kimberly.Traverso@ct.gov.
• HEALTH & SAFETY VISIT – The next Health & Safety visit is scheduled for Monday, March 15th at Vinal THS. Please see your building representative if you have any health and safety concerns. REMINDER, every school should have an in-house health and safety committee, which should review and address concerns.
• OSHA TRAINING – On April 23rd through 25th six of our members will attend Health and Safety Training in Albany, NY. The program is designed to train educators and leaders on emergency response and preparedness. After attending the conference, members will share the provided materials and information with each school’s Health and Safety committee.
• EXECUTIVE COUNCIL MEETING – Any member who has a question or concern should contact their building representative for discussion at the next Executive Council Meeting, scheduled for Wednesday, April 7th. Please reference our web page for a synopsis of past meetings.
• GREEN TECHNOLOGIES – Three schools [Grasso, Goodwin and Wolcott] have been selected to participate in a Weatherization and Green Technologies program. The programs, funded by grants, will supply equipment and training for an after school adult educational program. The equipment will be also be available for use by CTHSS students during the day. Once proven successful, the plan is to expand the program into three additional schools next year.
• RACE TO THE TOP – The Race to the Top fund provides educational grants to States that create conditions for educational changes. At a recent meeting a AFT-CT, it was suggested SVFT sign the memorandum of understanding (MOU) in order to be allowed to participate in future program discussions. If the union did not sign the MOU, there was a possibility that the union would not have input on future initiatives resulting in Race to the Top. Educational Commissioner Mark McQuillan has stated that the plan does not include a merit pay system.
• WRIGHT TECH RENOVATIONS – Ad-Hoc committee meetings have been scheduled to develop a plan for Wright Tech in Stamford and make it a flagship technical high school. At the last meeting (March 8th) the committee focused on identifying tracks, curriculum changes, “green” technology, partnerships, and existing shops that will need to be refurbished. Please see the Wright Tech link on our homepage for more details.