May 6, 2026 bulletin – Wear Your Shirt Wednesdays, End of Year Happy Hour, Spring Election

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week! The BTA appreciates the hard work that all of our staff do. Be on the lookout for a small gift from the BTA this week from a Rep or Exec Board member at your site.

NEW BTA T-shirts for everyone!

T-shirts are in! Mairead will be distributing t-shirts to Reps and sites this week for distribution.

Beginning Wednesday, May 13th, every Wednesday will be “Wear Your Shirt Wednesdays”, with spotters recording all those who wear their shirts to be entered for a drawing for a prize. Mairead will reach out to some of you who have volunteered to be spotters at your sites through the 1:1 conversations. This is a way to build solidarity and unity among our members. Take pictures of you with your co-workers wearing your shirts to be posted in the next bulletin and on social media. Thank you to our LAP team for this great initiative!

BTA Spring Election

The BTA spring election will be held Tuesday, May 19th at Irvington, St. Matt’s, Transfiguration, CTE/Valhalla and Rochambeau and Wednesday, May 20th at Rye Lake Upper and Lower Campus from 3-4pm. Election flyers/posters/bios that have been submitted have been distributed to Reps and all materials are posted on the BTA vicepresident. The following positions will be on the ballot:

Treasurer

Grievance Chair

Recording Secretary

TA Representative

RA Delegate

BTA End of Year Happy Hour

The BTA will be holding an end of the year Happy Hour on Wednesday, June 3rd at 3:30pm at Bar 141 in Thornwood. Every member will get one free drink and complimentary appetizers. Wear your union shirt and come meet old friends and new members. Please RSVP on this form so that we have a head count for the restaurant. Deadline to RSVP is Friday, May 29th.

NYSUT Representative Assembly

Thank you to Mairead Schuelein and Rosalie Consani for attending NYSUT’s President Conference and Representative Assembly in Albany April 30th – May 1st. They received information on AI in bargaining, STEPS/APPR transitions, legal update, an update from SED as well as voted on NYSUT’s legislative priorities for the upcoming year. Congratulations to former president Marty Sommer on the passing of a retiree resolution he wrote.

More info on NYSUT RA here

LAP 1:1 Conversations

Thank you to our 20+ volunteers for beginning our 1:1 conversation campaign. Over 150 conversations have already been had. Each conversation should last less than 10 minutes and is used to better get to know our members.

Stacey Braun in-person financial planning sessions

All Certified Staff are entitled to 6 hours of virtual or in-person financial planning per year through the new benefit offered by Benefits Trust. In-person sessions will be held on Tuesday, May 19th from 3-5:30pm in the conference room in building 2 of RLC and on Tuesday, June 9th from 3-5:30pm in the conference room at Transfiguration. See the flyer below to sign up. Sign ups are directly through Stacey Braun, either through the QR code or by calling the number or emailing the email address listed directly above the QR code.

Contractual Deadlines for Retirement and Rescinding ESY

Certified Staff: If you plan to retire on the last school day of January 2027 (January 29, 2027) and use your BOCES Bucks, you must submit your retirement notice to HR by Friday, May 15th at 4pm. You can put in to retire at any other time of the year but will not receive your BOCES Bucks.

Aides: If you put in to work ESY this year and now do not want to work ESY, you must rescind the offer by Friday, May 15th. If you miss the deadline, you may not be entitled to summer work in the summer of 2027.

Know Your Rights

Thank you to all of you who completed the Know Your Rights survey that was sent throughout last August and September. Each month I will highlight a different question that was on the survey, how our members responded and the State Education law that explains the answer to the survey.

Question #7: Under New York State Education Law and Commissioner’s Regulations, probationary service can transfer from district to district. 72.5% of members answered it was false. The correct answer is false. Way to go!

As per NYS Ed Law 3012, teachers can receive tenure after 3 years if already tenured in a prior district. Probationary service does not transfer from district to district.

NYSUTDefensive Driving Course

Are you interested in lowering your car insurance? NYSUT is offering a two day defensive driving course through Member Benefits for $34. The course will be held virtually from 6-9pm on May 20th and 21st. Policyholders can save up to 10% on their car insurance. Check out this link to enroll.

NYSUT Member Benefits

Upcoming Webinar: Homebuying & Refinancing Tips from Mid-Island Mortgage

Join us on Wednesday, May 27 at 6 p.m. for an informational webinar hosted by representatives from NYSUT Member Benefits & Mid-Island Mortgage. Are you in the market to purchase a new home, refinance your mortgage, or renovate to build more equity? Whatever your homeownership priorities, Mid-Island Mortgage will guide you through every step, start to finish.

Registration link: https://nysut.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_a5R41PSmRwmKPLJQtE36Fg

Welcome New Members!

Joshue Ramirez, Rye Lake Campus

Jennifer Scelia, Irvington

Reminders

BASIS Sign Up for 2026-2027 School Year: If you are interested in signing up for BASIS, the form will be sent out via your SWBOCES email on Thursday or Friday of this week.

Next General Membership meeting: The next BTA General Membership meeting will be held on Wednesday, May 27th at 4pm at Transfiguration. Meeting will also be done over Zoom. Zoom link to follow.

BTA text list: If you wish to receive texts from the BTA, please fill out this form. The BTA does not give out your cell phone number to outside parties. We use it to send reminders about meetings and upcoming events.

If you receive an email from your supervisor saying you can bring a union rep to a scheduled meeting, reach out to one of the Reps or Exec Board members listed at the bottom of this bulletin ASAP.

Follow us on Facebook and Instagram

Executive Board and Reps

Mairead Schuelein, President

Jason Poniatowski, Executive Vice President

Stacey DiPaola, Treasurer

Derrick Green, 1st Vice President of Aides

Keith Mattos, 2nd Vice President of ALC

Mike Piccolo, Grievance Chair

Rosalie Consani, Corresponding Secretary

Liz Lopez, Recording Secretary

Julie Crosier, Teacher Rep

Theresa Saive, Teacher Rep

Pierre Fils, CTE Rep

Reminder: Benefits bulletin – Get to know your Certified Staff benefits

April 24, 2026

As per Article XX, B of the Certified Staff contract, SWBOCES provides the Benefits Trust with a negotiated amount of $1750 per member each year for the Benefits Trust to provide members to that bargaining unit. No dues monies are used to provide benefits to members.

The Benefits Trust would like to remind you of all of the benefits provided to you through the Trust. Additionally, some of the benefits have been enhanced starting March 1, 2026. We strongly encourage all members (and their families) to use their benefits. If you need to add family members, change existing family members or have a question about your benefits, please reach out to one of the Trustees at the bottom of this bulletin.

DAVIS VISION

Effective March 1, 2026, all Certified Staff and their family members are entitled to a year exam and a pair of glasses or a year’s supply of contact lenses. This is an increase from the biannual exam with either glasses or one year’s supply of contact lenses. Click here to locate a Davis Vision provider near you.

DELTA DENTAL

The group number for all Certified Staff is 10919. That number, along with your birthdate, is all that is needed when going to a dentist that takes Delta Dental.

CHANGE TO ORTHODONTICS

orthodontics have increased from $1750/dependent to $2500/dependent over the course of their lifetime. This increase began on March 1st, 2026 only for new dependents who receive orthodontics. If your child was wearing braces as of March 1st or wore braces in the past, you unfortunately do not get the additional $750 increase.

STACEY BRAUN FINANCIAL PLANNING

The BTA has a new benefit that started March 1st, 2026: 6 free sessions of financial planning with Stacey Braun Associates. To schedule an appointment, call the number below or scan the QR code and fill out an online form. See the flyers below for more information.

HEALTH AND WELLNESS REIMBURSEMENT

FELDMAN, KRAMER, AND MONACO

Everyone is entitled to a free will, healthcare proxy, power of attorney and living will as part of a legal security package through the law firm of Feldman, Kramer and Monaco. The BTA holds virtual will days twice per year, but you are welcome to work with the law firm outside of those days as well. The law firm can also help with other legal matters such as divorce, mortgage refinancing, traffic violations, etc. See this brochure for more information.

UNUM BENEFITS

UNUM offers Certified Staff three additional benefits. Click on each link for more information

• Long Term Disability Plan
• Life Insurance
• Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insuranc

NYSUT MEMBER BENEFITS

NYSUT provides all members with additional benefits for being a NYSUT member. These include free subscription to the Calm App for you and 5 family members, discounted tickets, and hotels, savings on pet insurance, defensive driving courses and much more! Click on the NYSUT Member Benefits logo to learn more.

CERTIFIED STAFF BENEFITS TRUSTEES

Tyree Morris, Chairperson

Jane Shields, Secretary

Stacey DiPaola, Treasurer

Peter Schwartzott, Trustee

Mairead Schuelein, President of the BTA

April 9, 2026 bulletin – Free BTA shirts, 1:1 conversations, discount tickets

NEW BTA T-shirts for everyone!

All BTA members will be receiving a complimentary NEW BTA t-shirt as part of one of our LAP initiatives. The deadline is Friday, April 10th. Your code for the shirt was sent by either Mairead or Stacey to your personal email address. How to order:

• Click the link here
• Choose one shirt you would like (men’s and women’s styles are available) and the size
• Add it to your cart
• Check out – you will not be asked for payment information. Ensure your first and last names are accurate
  

Once delivered, we will start having Wear Your Shirt Wednesdays, with spotters recording all those who wear their shirts to be entered for a drawing for a prize. This is a way to build solidarity and unity among our members. Thank you to our LAP team for this great initiative!

BTA Spring Election:

The BTA spring election will be held Tuesday, May 19th at Irvington, St. Matt’s, Transfiguration, CTE/Valhalla and Rochambeau and Wednesday, May 20th at Rye Lake Upper and Lower Campus from 3-4pm. The nomination ballot was sent out via email on Monday, April 6th and nominations will be accepted until Friday, April 17th at 3pm. The following positions will be contested

• Treasurer
• Grievance Chair
• Recording Secretary
• TA Represntative
• Aides Representative (2 Positions)
• ALC Representative
• RA Delgate

LAP 1:1 Conversations

Thank you to our 20+ volunteers for beginning our 1:1 conversation campaign. Over 90 conversations have already been had, which is a great start. Each conversation should last less than 10 minutes and is used to better get to know our members.

Know Your Contract Campaign

Know Your Contract campaign for Certified Staff is an ongoing campaign to encourage members to read and learn their contract. Reach out to a winner to see how they won. There are still approximately 30 winners still out there!

Karen Canino, RLC/Irvington

Darlene Brice, CTE

Demetria Thomas, St. Matt’s

Sabrina Ereditario, Irvington

Jane Shields, Irvington/St. Matt’s

Tiziana DeMasi, RLC

Cristina Piccolo, RLC

Meghan McCann, Transfiguration

Know Your Rights

Thank you to all of you who completed the Know Your Rights survey that was sent throughout August and September. Each month I will highlight a different question that was on the survey, how our members responded and the State Education law that explains the answer to the survey.

Question #6: Under New York State Education Law and Commissioner’s Regulations, a probationary term must be 3 years long. 55% of members answered it was false. The correct answer is false. Way to go!

As per NYS Ed Law 3012, teachers can receive tenure after 3 years if already tenured in a prior district. If not, the probationary term is 4 years long.

NYSUTMembers Organizing Institute

Are you looking for a different opportunity to make additional money this summer? Do you have interest having one to one conversations with NYSUT members while going door to door in your community? NYSUT holds a Member Organizing Institute to train members to do this work. The training is paid for and pay is $25/hour to do the work. If this sounds like something you are interested in, you can find more information here. The application deadline is April 15th.

NYSUT Member Discount Events

NYSUT has secured discounted tickets for various sporting, musical, entertainment and theater events throughout the state including the Yankees, Islanders, Rangers and the Nets locally. Gather your family members and friends and use the NYSUT discount codes provided here to secure your tickets for specific dates.

Upcoming Webinar: Homebuying & Refinancing Tips from Mid-Island Mortgage

Join us on Wednesday, May 27 at 6 p.m. for an informational webinar hosted by representatives from NYSUT Member Benefits & Mid-Island Mortgage. Are you in the market to purchase a new home, refinance your mortgage, or renovate to build more equity?

Whatever your homeownership priorities, Mid-Island Mortgage will guide you through every step, start to finish.

Registration link: https://nysut.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_a5R41PSmRwmKPLJQtE36Fg

Welcome New Members!

Gio Brice, Transfiguration

Tevar Richburg, Transfiguration

Reminders

Next Rep Council meeting: The next Rep Council meeting will be held on Wednesday, April 15th at 4pm at St. Matt’s. Meeting will also be done over Zoom. Zoom link to follow!

BTA text list: If you wish to receive texts from the BTA, please fill out this form. The BTA does not give out your cell phone number to outside parties. We use it to send reminders about meetings and upcoming event.

If you receive an email from your supervisor saying you can bring a union rep to a scheduled meeting, reach out to one of the Reps or Exec Board members listed at the bottom of this bulletin ASAP.

Executive Board and Reps

Mairead Schuelein, President

Jason Poniatowski, Executive Vice President

Stacey DiPaola, Treasurer

Derrick Green, 1st Vice President of Aides

Keith Mattos, 2nd Vice President of ALC

Mike Piccolo, Grievance Chair

Rosalie Consani, Corresponding Secretary

Liz Lopez, Recording Secretary

Julie Crosier, Teacher Rep

Theresa Saive, Teacher Rep

Pierre Fils, CTE Rep