Over the weekend, the BTU was proud to award over $75,000 in scholarships to BPS high school graduates and BTU dependents at our 48th Annual Scholarship Breakfast. This year, we were also proud to introduce a new scholarship in honor of former BTU and AFT MA president, Kathy Kelley. Jim Braude, co-host of Boston Public Radio and a friend of Kathy’s, shared words of advice to the graduating class:
Be like Kathy Kelley. Be a fierce, unrelenting advocate for what you believe in, but treat everyone with kindness and respect along the way.
Congratulations to the graduating class of 2018 students who received awards at our 48th Annual BTU Scholarship Breakfast this past Saturday!
At the BTU we are continuing to advocate for the funding our students and schools need. The House has yet to vote on a bill that would take steps towards correcting the 25-year-old funding formula.
The House is long overdue on its responsibility to update this formula. If the House allows the clock to run out on this bill that the Senate unanimously approved, it would be a disservice to students across the Commonwealth.
Read the full Herald article and take action by calling or emailing Jeffrey Sanchez, Chair of the House Ways and Means Committee, at 617-722-2990 or jeffrey.sanchez@mahouse.gov. Get involved with our Boston Education Justice Alliance (BEJA) and the Massachusetts Education Justice Alliance (MEJA). See below for information about a June 23 MEJA meeting.
Unfortunately, we have been dealt another blow to school funding as the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts struck down the Fair Share “Millionaire’s Tax” yesterday. As we head into summer, our organizing efforts are of utmost importance, especially as we prepare for the impending Janus decision. It’s not too late to sign up for our Summer Organizing Institute.
There has been no Janus ruling yet — but we have less that two weeks to get in our last few hundred missing BTU All-In Recommitment Cards. Please check to see that you are signed up at members.btu.org! Building Reps, we need your help to get those last cards in. Please contact Farah at fassiraj@btu.org if you did not get your list from the membership meeting last week.
Lastly, we want to thank organizers Farah Assiraj and Shanika Houlder for their contributions to our union and their hard work on behalf of all our members, students, and schools. They will be moving on to new roles after this month, and we wish them both the very best in their future endeavors. They will be missed!
Have a great week.