ALBANY, N.Y. Sept. 11, 2017 — New York State United Teachers, in concert with parents and other education organizations, will rally Tuesday against the SUNY Charter School Committee’s attempt to cheapen the teaching profession by lowering certification standards in some charter school chains.
“Every child deserves a fully qualified teacher — not one credentialed through a backdoor, ‘EZ-Teach’ shortcut that undermines quality instruction, shortchanges charter students and parents, and sabotages the teaching profession,” said NYSUT President Andrew Pallotta.
NYSUT activists will rally at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 12 at 4 p.m., outside the SUNY Board of Trustees meeting before filing inside for the public portion. The trustees are meeting at:
The Embassy Suites Hotel
86 Congress Street
Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
You can learn more and RSVP online at the Facebook event page for the rally.
Pallotta called on the SUNY Charter School Committee to reject “fake teaching credentials” for charter teachers, saying, “They make a mockery of the high academic and professional standards expected of teachers who wish to be certified to teach in regular public school classrooms.”
The proposal surfaced from the SUNY Charter School Committee in July, after the end of the regular legislative session. Charter schools authorized by SUNY, many of them plagued by shockingly high teacher turnover rates, are pushing for the authority to certify their own teachers, with as few as 30 hours of classroom instruction.
“This unacceptable shortcut would only ensure a two-tier system, in which students in charter schools have the least qualified teachers,” Pallotta added. “Charter teachers who one day may want to teach in a regular public school would find their path blocked by this worthless credential. The SUNY Charter School Committee should reject this terrible idea.”
New York State United Teachers is a statewide union with more than 600,000 members in education, human services and health care. NYSUT is affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers, the National Education Association and the AFL-CIO.