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.

Council Meeting
June 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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August 23^rd, 2010
• WELCOME BACK! – The SVFT leadership would like to welcome all our members to what we hope will be another very successful year. We hope you enjoyed your vacation and we look forward to speaking to each member during our upcoming school visits.
• SICK BANK WINDOW – The window for membership in the Sick Bank is open now and will remain open until November 1, 2010. Do not miss this opportunity to take advantage of this valuable benefit. You must have three years of full-time employment or the equivalent of part-time employment. A detailed explanation can be found in the September newsletter.
• NEW TEACHER ORIENTATION – Orientation for new teachers was offered at the Crowne Plaza in Cromwell on August 16th, 17th, and 18th. SVFT Leadership welcomed the new hires the morning of August 18th, explained the benefits and operations of the SVFT, and answered questions. The SVFT Leadership would once again like to welcome all new teachers and we encourage everyone to become a member. Building reps have been asked to personally greet each new teacher and extend the welcome of the union.
• DUES CHANGES – Effective September first, the union dues deducted from your pay will change slightly. Please review the article in the September Vocational Instructor in which SVFT Treasurer Greg Beyer explains the dues structure and calculations.
• POWERTEACHER – The parent portal was successfully piloted in two schools – Grasso and Emmett – the last few weeks of the 2009-2010 school. Starting in September, it will be active in all schools. Letters have been sent to all students and parents with a login ID, password, and a brief explanation that grades will be posted within 7 days of the due date and that email responses will be returned within 48 hours.
• TEACHER OF THE YEAR – On Friday, May 21, 2010, Kathy Patrick was selected as the CTHSS system wide Teacher of the Year. Kathy has been teaching at Kaynor for 25 years and is currently teaching Teen Leadership and Career Development. Raymond Tanguay was the runner-up and is CADD Department.
• OSHA TRAINING – On Friday, August 27th, the five members who were trained in School’s Emergency Response Programs will be presenting “Emergency Preparedness” at Emmett O’Brien in the morning and at Bullard-Havens in the afternoon. This training will be offered to each school throughout the school year.
• Head at Wolcott. Congratulations to all of our Teacher of the Year candidates.
• TEAM – Any new teacher who did not participate in BEST is required to complete the TEAM program to obtain Provisional certification. All teachers who do not have Provisional Certification should have a mentor in their school.
• HEALTH & SAFETY VISIT – The Health & Safety schedule has been developed and will be distributed to building reps at the September council meeting. The first visit will be to Abbott THS on Monday, September 20th. Please see your building representative if you have any health and safety concerns. Every school should have an in-house health and safety committee, which should review and address concerns.
• EXECUTIVE COUNCIL MEETING – Any member who has a question or concern should contact their building representative for discussion at the last Executive Council Meeting, scheduled for Wednesday, September 8th. Please reference our website for a synopsis of past meetings.