In a somber moment at the start of the 35th NYSUT Representative Assembly, delegates took a moment of silence to honor students, faculty and families devastated by the Virginia Tech campus shootings of April 16 that left 32 dead.

'The delegates to this convention join with our brothers and sisters in the education community in mourning their loss,' said William Scheuerman, president of United University Professions, NYSUT's affiliate at the State University of New York.

Pictured above, flanked by UUP's Ed Quinn and Fred Floss, Scheuerman introduced a special order of business that acknowledged the 'continuing suffering' of the families of students and faculty who were killed.

One day later, delegates also observed a moment of silence for New York State Trooper David Brinkerhoff, who was slain in the line of duty April 25 in Delaware County.

Brinkerhoff's brother, Michael, is a member of the Lake Shore Central Teachers Association in western New York.