November 5th, 2023
Dear UTL Members,
As a long time tradition in the City of Lowell, the United Teachers of Lowell and the Merrimack Valley Central Labor Council collaborate with one another to interview political candidates vying for elected positions on the City Council and the School Committee.
Interested candidates seek an endorsement/recommendation by the groups to be interviewed and voted upon by delegates from both groups. Our members appreciate and look forward to the recommendations and endorsements that result from these interviews as they know we are committed to ensuring that the candidates who best support our issues are elected to these positions. (Note: Not all candidates requested an endorsement or recommendation. The following lists include the names of only those who requested to be considered.)
The Merrimack Valley Central Labor Council, which represents thousands of workers in the Merrimack Valley, including the UTL, has proudly endorsed the following candidates for elected office:
Lowell City Council Lowell School Committee
Rita Mercier, At large Stacey Thompson, District 1
Eric Gitschier, At large Eileen DelRossi, District 2
Corey Robinson, District 2 Dave Conway, District 3
Kim Scott, District 5 Dominic Lay, District 5
Sokhary Chau, District 6
John Descoteaux, District 8
The UTL (United Teachers of Lowell) does not endorse candidates but we do recommend candidates for office based on interviews and performance. The UTL Executive Board recommends the same names as above with the exception of the Lowell School Committee, District 1: The candidates for SC District 1, namely, Stacey Thompson and Fred Bahou, received a split, or a tie vote, for that position, from the Executive Board.
As always, these are only recommendations based on what we know of candidates and how they responded to questions regarding our issues during an interview.
Remember to get out and vote on Tuesday, November 7th, 2023!
UTL Executive Board
October 19, 2023
EDC Issues, Meeting of October 16th, 2023
1. New MA IEP and Classroom Teacher Responsibilities
The new MA IEP is supposed to be rolled out during the 2024-2025 school year. LPS has set no timeline for this yet and currently the ETC’s are running all meetings. Robin Desmond will get clarification as to who will be doing the actual inputting and of data on the new IEP’s. Please contact us if your school has already used, or is using, this new version for initial and re-evaluation IEP’s, and if so, who is being designated as the person responsible for uploading the data.
2. Attendance Reports
Good news! Teacher and Paraprofessional attendance reports have been sent out (interoffice mail) and the clerks should have them in the schools this week for these employees. Custodian and food service worker reports are being updated now and should be available soon. Evan McHugh from HR is the person who should be contacted to report any errors.
3. Payroll Issues
COO Jim Hall has announced that about 400 teachers should see lane changes and step movements in this week's pay period. Information will be forthcoming regarding the ones that were not included in this week's pay period.
Complaints have been filed by UTL regarding the change in pay schedule and deductions for certain employees. We will keep you posted on this.
4. ELL/Newcomer Placement
In a report from the October 4th School Committee meeting, the ELL student placement percentages for Zone 2 were reported in response to the projected migrant families arrival at the UMA Inn and Conference Center (not determined as yet). Placement of new ELL students in Zone 2 was selected due to the disruption any change in bus schedules would cause. Robin Desmond reported that new curriculum has been purchased and distributed, and ML (multi-language) teachers will be trained to better serve ML students. We urge teachers at all schools to keep us informed as to new ELL student placement at their schools: numbers and grade levels of students as well as levels of students.
5. Interpreter Applications
Jim Hall will send the Google Form Link to Para Chair Rose Bergeron for her to disseminate to all building para reps who, in turn, will share with their building paras. Interested paras should send applications to Sophie Keo, who has received 25-40 requests from paras who wish to be considered for interpreter positions. Latifah Philips reported that Central will provide training for different levels of involvement of the paras selected.
6. Elevator at Lowell High School
One sporadically working elevator at the high school shut down today, and it has created hardship for certain staff and students. The Coburn Hall elevator is just about repaired but hasn’t not yet been inspected. Int. Supt. Skinner met with Paul St. Cyr, and it is believed the elevator will be operational by the end of the week. The issue with the 1922 building elevator is that outdated parts are difficult to locate.
7 and 10. Transitional kindergarten reinstated; K and Pre-K Behavioral Issues
We used to have transitional kindergartens and transitional pre-k’s. Behaviors this year in ECE classes are significant. If a student arrives with a diagnosis from a doctor but does not have an IEP, the child must be placed in the general education classroom. Teachers/staff who are assaulted MUST file an incident report on every occasion. Reports must be sent to the principal who should follow the chain of command for reporting. Be sure to copy the UTL on every incident report. Please contact Staff Rep Mike Earle for all serious concerns at utl@utlowell.org
8. Pawtucketville Memorial School - Sharing air quality tests with staff
The school staff was assured that air quality testing would be done last week but, unfortunately, no one came to do it. Jim Hall announced that the testing is to be done regularly, and the company should be testing this week. Reports will be sent electronically to the principal, and the principal should then email the reports to staff.
9. Principals monitoring substitute effectiveness
Issues with any substitute not performing at a particular level should be reported to the principal in writing (email). It is then up to the principal to determine next steps. If the substitute returns and the issue remains, report again to the principal and copy to Deb Jarvis. Teachers have suggested to us that principals should make it a point to show up to classrooms with substitutes to see how it’s going, what can they do to help, etc., in order to have a pulse on how the substitutes manage within the classroom.
A Message for All Teachers who are Members of MTRS (MA Teachers Retirement System)
Dear MTRS Member,
You may have noticed discrepancies in your contributions and creditable service information within your MyTRS Member Self-Service (MSS) account. We want to assure you that your current contributions and creditable service data, as reported by your district, are securely recorded in our system. However, we validate all such information before posting it to the MSS portal, and this validation process has recently experienced a delay.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Immediate Deposits and Validation: Contributions from school districts are immediately deposited each month, and the associated member data is recorded in our system. However, before contributions and creditable service data can become visible in your MSS account, they undergo an additional validation process for every member within the district.
2. Validation Progress: As each report undergoes validation and potential corrections, the contributions associated with that report will be released into your specific account and made visible in the MSS portal. Delayed validation does not negatively impact the interest your account receives or the calculation of your retirement benefits.
3. Technological Updates: We recently completed a necessary and complex update to our system, significantly delaying the processing of deduction reports. We are actively working to resolve these delays.
4. Increased Staffing: To expedite the elimination of data validation backlogs, we are increasing staffing levels within our Employer Services Unit. We also collaborate closely with our school district employers to ensure a swift resolution.
We deeply apologize for any concern or inconvenience caused by the delayed processing. Your peace of mind is important to us, and we are committed to providing you with up-to-date information. We also want to assure you that if you need specific services related to your MTRS account, the validation delays will not inhibit applying for retirement or taking a refund, should you leave active service.
If you have any questions or require further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us via email atgeninfo@trb.state.ma.usgeninfo@trb.state.ma.us> or by phone at 617-679-6877.
Thank you for your patience and understanding as we work diligently to update your data.
Massachusetts Teachers’ Retirement System
Mickie Dumont
Pina Maggio
September 28, 2023
IMPORTANT PAYROLL DEDUCTIONS UPDATE:
The School Department, City Hall Officials, and UTL President Paul Georges are in continued discussions to resolve the Payroll Deductions issue (21 weeks/26 weeks). Notice of a resolution will be shared with you as it becomes available.
Dear UTL Members,
Regarding EDUCATION COMMITTEE TESTIMONY - H.495/S.246, please note:
The moment that many of us have been anxiously awaiting will occur next Wednesday, October 4th, at the MA State House in Boston. The “Joint Committee on Education” will be holding a hearing on multiple education bills including H.495 and S.246, “Thrive Act: An Act Empowering Students and Schools to Thrive.” They have also made two very important accommodations for educators, students, and staff to be able to attend/participate by (1), scheduling the hearing to begin at 2:00PM and end at 8:00PM, and, (2), allowing school personnel the opportunity to request a testimony time slot for after 4:00PM. Additionally, the hearing will also be live-streamed on the MA Legislature website for folks who might want to testify virtually!
Those who are unable to attend are urged to send written testimony to have their voices heard. Testimony may be sent to:
Denise.Garlick@mahouse.gov and Jason.Lewis@masenate.gov
Please write in the subject line of the email: EDUCATION COMMITTEE TESTIMONY-H.495/S.246.
SAVE THE DATE!! OCTOBER 4TH, 2023!
Finally!! A chance for educators, parents, students, community members to speak out about the harmful effects of state takeovers and the high stakes use of the MCAS standardized test results.
Basically, the Thrive Act bill is designed to "equip local communities communities with the tools and resources that students and schools need to exceed and dramatically reduce the harm caused by the high stakes punitive use of standardized tests, such as state takeovers and denying students a high school diploma.”
The Thrive Act has three main components:
It would end the state receivership policy.
It would end the MCAS graduation requirement. Instead, districts would certify students have mastered the skills, competencies and knowledge of state standards.
It would establish a commission to create a new system of assessing students and schools, building on work already happening in Massachusetts and nationally.
Please visit the AFTMA site below to learn more about the bill and also how YOU can help to support both the THRIVE ACT bill and the MCAS Ballot Initiative which would end the MCAS graduation requirement. More to follow!
http://ma.aft.org/news/ThriveHearing
Lowell Education Justice Alliance (LEJA)
MA Education Justice Alliance (MEJA)
United Teachers of Lowell has been an active partner through the years with Lowell Education Justice Alliance (LEJA) and MA Education Justice Alliance (MEJA). Together we have worked on several initiatives including:
2016 “No on 2” ballot question;
Student Opportunity Act;
Fair Share Amendment;
successfully securing a vote by the School Committee in 2018 to increase the amount of recess time at the elementary and middle school levels
At present, we are working closely with the LEJA group (parents, teachers, paraprofessionals, school staff, and community members) in support of the Thrive Act and also the MCAS Ballot Initiative.
In addition to encouraging our school community members to attend the Legislative Hearing next Wednesday, we are also setting up Thrive Act Literature and Ballot Initiative Signature Sheets at various local community events. In order for the MCAS Ballot Initiative to be on the November 2024 Election Ballot for MA Voters, we need to gather 75,000 signatures.
We need your help! Please contact us at 978-937-9039 for more information or if you would be able to help out at one of these local events! (Dates, times, and locations to be announced.)
Below are some helpful resources created by the MEJA group for our active Coalition. You are welcome to use whatever resources may be helpful to you in talking with others and also in creating your personal testimony to send to the Legislature.
LEJA will continue with planning for an October 25th “Thrive Act Forum” which will be open to the public at the Lowell High School Cafeteria from 6:00-8:00PM. Further details on this event will be forthcoming.
Mickie Dumont
Pina Maggio
September 24, 2023
To the UTL Members:
Paul Georges and Mike Earl have been delving into the rationale and legality of the decision to target a specific time period in which certain deductions would be made, i.e. over 21 paychecks rather than 26 paychecks, as has been past practice. So that you know, the paychecks used to have notification of UTL 42 and UTL 52 to denote being paid 42 weeks or paid 52 weeks. Because we are now on a biweekly schedule, the notation has been changed to UTL 21 and UTL 26.
We will be having discussions with City Manager Tom Golden and Interim Superintendent Liam Skinner some tomorrow with regard to the payroll changes that have been made. We are working with AFT (Boston) and its legal advisory as well. No further information will be forthcoming until the matter has been resolved among the Lowell Public School District, City Hall, and the UTL.
Furthermore, we are not in a position to declare step increases, lane changes, the $2,500 increase in base salary, etc., will be reflected in a specific paycheck. (Note: The $2,500 increase in base pay will be distributed evenly within the 21-week pay period or the 26-week pay period.) While we have been told the target date for these payroll adjustments is 10/5/23, there is no guarantee all of these will be reflected at that time. We remain cautiously optimistic. Assurances can be made that everyone will ultimately be made whole retroactively.
Mickie Dumont
Pina Maggio
September 7, 2023
Where is the Union? How often have we heard that question? We have heard it often in the past. We heard it yesterday.
Where is the Union? Call 978-937-9039, and you most likely will hear a warm and friendly voice on the other end. A voice which is calm, patient, and kind; one which offers assistance and reassurance your phone call is important. That would be the voice of Nancy Giblin, a.k.a. the heart and soul of the UTL.
Or you may hear the sophisticated voice of the individual whom we refer to as a “gentleman’s gentleman,” the guru of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, articulate, unassuming, yet powerfully persuasive. That gentleman would be Mike Earle.
You may hear the voice of our on call, always at the ready (24/7), Mickie Dumont. On days, nights, weekends, and holidays, Mickie is there to listen, take copious notes, and embark on a mission to take care of whatever issue one is raising. She has been addressing issues brought before her for over 30 years!!!
No time to make a phone call? Email your building reps, UTL Vice Principals, Susan Uvanni, Barbara Campbell, Mary Ann Dyson, UTL Para Chair Rose Bergeron, Custodial Chair Mike Sheehan, and Cafeteria Chair Colleen Dorris, all of whom will make themselves available to address your issues. And, of course, there many more, Recording Secretary Diane MacLean, Social Chair, Lisa Rowsell and our Treasurer, Kevin Freeman, will extend a helping hand. And you can count on myself, Executive Vice President of the UTL, as well.
Where is the Union? Perhaps just a phone call, text message or email away.
Where is Paul? We cannot account for where he is on any given day, week, etc. We do know the week before Labor Day weekend, when news reports predicted dangerously high temperatures for the coming week, Paul was in constant communication with Central Office and with Interim Superintendent Liam Skinner, acting proactively by recommending two plans be considered. These conversations continued throughout the weekend (when many were at the beaches, attending barbecues, shopping, etc.) and into the early hours of Tuesday morning.
Communication and collaboration on this matter concluded with the announcement yesterday by Interim Superintendent Liam Skinner there would be no school on Thursday or Friday. This decision was made collaboratively between UTL (Paul Georges) and Interim Superintendent Liam Skinner. We thank Interim Superintendent Liam Skinner for this opportunity to collaborate..
Where is the Union? It is often in the shadows, barely visible at times. Nevertheless, it has a commanding presence. Rest assured; It is always there. Its mission is to preserve members' rights, protect them from harm, and be a constant in an ever-changing world.
Unity is strength, the strength that empowers one another. Without it, we become weak, potentially divided. We are grateful to the UTL members who steadfastly support one another, who remain loyal and dedicated to the ideals we hold and strive to maintain. We are indeed UTL STRONG because of you.
Pina Maggio
Executive Vice President, United Teachers of Lowell 495
September 6, 2023
To UTL members:
Before the week began, our President, Paul Georges, was in contact with Central Office and the Superintendent, regarding the forecast for above-normal high temperatures for this time of year. Paul has been collaborating close to 24/7 to ensure the well being and comfort of the UTL members, staff and students.
We have made our recommendations and await a final decision. As soon as we are informed, we shall share that information with you.
Rest assured: The UTL leaves no stone unturned in supporting our members. Obviously, we cannot discuss the details surrounding the issues until a final decision is reached. We have been involved before the school week began, and we will continue until a decision is made.
Note: UTL members have personally contacted the Superintendent to express their grave concerns about rising temperatures in the schools. We would urge any member to do the same. Remember that an email can be sent at any time of day. Advocating for yourself, your students, and your colleagues can be highly instrumental in achieving anticipated actions that may alleviate these unprecedented health challenges faced by our school communities.UTL
UTL Executive Board