Published On: January 10, 2025

Victory on Social Security Fairness Act, Late-breaking school closure news; Membership Meeting Tomorrow
President Biden signs the Social Security Fairness Act. AFT President Randi Weingarten (center) was in attendance. Photo Credit: AFL-CIO
Dear Member,

Happy New Year and welcome back to school! Today’s bulletin starts with a victory which the BTU and our allies have worked towards for more than three decades to achieve!

Social Security Fairness Act Signed into Law

Over the weekend, President Joe Biden signed the Social Security Fairness Act into law which will give retired public employees, including Boston educators, the full Social Security payments which they deserve. Since 1983, public employees and their spouses who would otherwise be entitled to Social Security benefits have received reduced Social Security payments because they did some work which was not subject to SS taxes and received a public pension. The legislation ultimately punished people who chose to dedicate their professional lives to public service and placed financial burdens on thousands of our retired members.

The new law rescinds the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO) which reduced Social Security payments for both former employees and their spouses. The Biden Administration estimates that monthly social security payments for roughly 3 million retirees will increase by an average of $360 a month.

The BTU and the BTU Retired Teachers Chapter have been working on this issue for more than 20 years. Finally, a short-sighted program to cut costs on the backs of millions of dedicated public workers has been fixed. We want to thank the BTU members who have made calls on the issue, along with the AFT, AFT MA and dozens of other organizations for working with us to make this legislation a reality.

BPS Announces School Closures for September 2026 After this Bulletin was written and scheduled to send, BPS announced school closures that will impact multiple communities in September 2026. In response to this late breaking news, the BTU released a statement and distributed the text of a facilities-related resolution ratified by the membership, along with key background data about the need for investments in high-quality facilities for all BPS students, families, and educators. More to follow on this late-breaking development.

Membership Meeting Tomorrow

Our first membership meeting of 2025 is scheduled for TOMORROW, January 8th from 4:30 to 6:30 pm. Please let us know if you need childcare.

As always, we encourage every member who is able to attend to do so, but it is pivotal for at least one building representative from each school to attend on Wednesday. Our next bargaining session with BPS management is scheduled for January 16th at the BTU Hall from 5 to 8pm, and we are planning a major actionin the coming days.

At tomorrow’s membership meeting, BTU staff will provide resources and direction to building reps. to prepare their school communities to make that action a success.

Introducing the BTU’s new Elementary Field Representative Caitlin Gaffny

Caitlin Gaffny, who was elected as Elementary Field Rep. on December 18th, started in her role last week. Caitlin submitted the message below to introduce herself to the rest of the BTU membership.

“I am honored to be your Elementary Field Representative for the Boston Teachers Union. I have taught at the Tobin School for the last 25 years and was most recently a Transformation Coach there. I am a long time Building Rep and member of the Executive Board of the BTU. I would like to connect with you in the near future so that I can hear about your work, your successes, and any needs or concerns that you may have. My hope is that we can collaborate proactively with a focus on solutions for the benefit of students, educators, and our schools. I am interested in teaming on equity of resources, safe working and learning conditions, student empowerment, and teacher leadership. I look forward to meeting you and learning about what is important to you in your workplace. Please invite me to your school or site for any events, especially if you may need an extra set of hands. You can reach me at cgaffny@btu.org and (857) 847-8347. I am excited to get to work and fight to protect our contractual rights.”

A Message from the BTU Election Committee:

The regularly scheduled biennial BTU elections will be held in 2025. Election information is below:

 

Candidate Q&A:

Ever consider running for BTU elected office? The Elections Committee and a panel of former union Officers, Delegates and Executive Board members want to encourage all interested members and can give you the low down on the roles and responsibilities of each position and how to go about mounting a campaign. Please join us for a Zoom panel on January 15th from 6 to 8pm. Register for the Candidate Q&A HERE

Here is the timeline for the General Election in June. Nominations will open on January 8th, online nominations will be open at 4pm. Nomination papers can be picked up at the membership meeting starting at 4pm. They will also be available in the office. Nominations end March 12 at 6pm.

You may contact ombudsperson Danielle Fraine with questions or concerns at electioncommittee@btu.org. Next meeting is January 27th at 5:00 pm at the BTU. Members are welcome to attend and ask questions during the first 15 minutes of the meetings. Contact mfrank@btu.org with any questions about your membership status.
Join the BTU for a Children’s Party at the BTU Hall on Wednesday, Feb 19th from 11am to 1pm. Register ahead of time!

BTU Events and Announcements
School Site Council Training: Zoom 5:30 to 7pm on January 13th & 27th

There will be a new School Site Council zoom training about forming & running Personnel Subcommittees for hiring teacher bargaining unit members. All such hires must go through this process from September through the end of the school year. Empower your input by learning this process. Questions can be directed to ccarew@btu.org. Check out this link to learn more and to register!

BTU Labor Fellowship with Fund for Teachers: Deadline Jan 23rd!

We will award one fellowship to a BTU member or team whose application focuses on the theme of labor history, labor studies, and/or unionism. Interested applicants should design their application and choose destinations that will allow them to connect the rich history and present of labor organizing and activism to their lives and their students. This fellow will also present their learning with the BTU. There are plenty of resources available to support your application. Check out the Fund for Teachers Online Learning Center for resources. There are many online info sessions with weekly sessions specifically for educators of color. Support and mentoring for your application are also available from BTU peers. Please contact Paul Tritter to get connected.

Unafraid Educators January Meeting – 1/27 at 4:30pm 

Please join us on Zoom for our next Unafraid Educators Meeting! We are the BTU’s Immigrant Rights Organizing Committee, and work to support our Undocumented students and families. Please click here to join on Zoom!

Housing and Immigrant Justice Panel at the BTU: January 28th 5:30-7pm 

You are invited to a panel about the relationship between immigration and the housing crisis. This panel will feature speakers from the Haitian Educators Committee, and the Housing Justice Committee, to discuss solutions to the housing crisis, and make clear that Haitian immigrants, and all other immigrant community members, are not the culprits for the housing crisis that we face. Register here to attend.

BTU Lunar New Year Celebration: Thursday, January 30th, 4:30-6:30PM

The Boston Teachers Union is hosting our annual Lunar New Year celebration on Thursday, January 30, 2025 from 4:30-6:30pm at the BTU. Join us for games, food, and celebrations of different Lunar New Year traditions. Please register yourself and any guests you plan to bring.

BTU Children’s Party: Wednesday, February 19th, 11am – 1pm

The annual BTU Children’s Party will be held on Wednesday, February 19th from 11am – 1pm at the BTU. Join us for a fun afternoon and don’t forget to use the link to sign up!

BTU Movie Night “Counted Out”: Friday, March 14th, 7-9PM

The BTU will be hosting a Movie Night on Pi Day! Join us to watch the film “Counted Out.” “Counted Out” shows us the power of math in our society, our economy, and our democracy. Who holds that power? Who doesn’t? And how can we all speak the language of math to fully participate in a world that belongs to everyone? Register to join us for the film screening.

BTU Dependent Scholarships: Deadline April 4th

This year there will be 16 scholarships in the amount of $2,000 awarded to high school seniors who are dependents of BTU members. To apply, please obtain an application from Michelle Frank at mfrank@btu.org or download the form from the BTU website. The 2025 Application and the four supporting documents must be received in the Union office no later than April 4th, 2025.

 

Retired Teachers Chapter Scholarships: Deadline April 4th

Each year the Retired Teachers Chapter of the Boston Teachers Union awards three scholarships in the amount of $2,000 to deserving high school seniors who are children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, grandnieces or grandnephews of RTC members. One of these scholarships is earmarked for a student who chooses to attend a vocational school or equivalent institution. To apply, please obtain an application from Michelle Frank at mfrank@btu.org or download the from the BTU website. The deadline to apply is April 4, 2025. The envelope must be postmarked by this date.
Join the BTU for a Lunar New Year Celebration on Thursday, January 30th from 4:40 to 6:30 pm!

Professional Learning & Development Updates

Each week, we have many new and exciting Professional Learning & Development opportunities to share with you. You can find a full description of each listing on our Professional Learning & Development Updates Page.

  • AFT Member Benefit Virtual Workshops
  • Degree Completion
  • Early Childhood Inclusive Education PD Series
  • Telescope IM Planning Cohort: Wednesday, January 15, 12pm-3pm
  • Implementing ALL Block Connect and Share: January 16, 5:30-7:00pm
  • Telescope – Connect & Share: “Orton Gillingham Across Various Contexts”, January 22, 5:30-7:00pm
  • Early Childhood Illustrative Math Learning Site: Feb 4, 8:00-2:30
  • Teach for Climate Justice: An Experiential Retreat for Educators to the Bribri Territories of Costa Rica this summer!

Community Events

Join the MA Youth Climate Coalition Lobby Week – February 2025

Join the Massachusetts Youth Climate Coalition as they lobby directly (in person and virtually) with legislators to fight for state-level climate justice policy during the MYCC Youth Climate Lobby Week (week of 2/10/25). Training provided. This is a great opportunity to get students directly involved in climate advocacy work! More information here.

Multilingual Education in MA: “Building the Bilingual Educator Pipeline,” January 15, 7-8:30pm

“Building the Bilingual Educator Pipeline” is the last of three virtual sessions exploring multilingual education in Massachusetts, hosted by Citizens for Public Schools. Speakers, including BTU President Erik Berg, will share their knowledge and experience with successful programs to recruit, develop and support bilingual educators in Massachusetts and the U.S., the barriers to success, and how to overcome them. You can register and learn more here

In Memoriam

Retired BTU member Della Larsen passed away over the holiday break at age 59 due to complications caused by Multiple Sclerosis. Larsen was a dedicated kindergarten and special education teacher who ended her career at the West Zone Early Learning Center. To learn more about her life and service, see her full obituary here.

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