Ed Calamia for VP of High Schools

I come from a union household. When I was a young child, the Teamsters made sure I could go to the doctor and my family could afford to live. They made sure my family would not lose our income for no reason. I learned early how unions bring stability and dignity to the lives of working people.  

In my adult life, I have been an English teacher in District 79 for over 15 years. I have worked in secure and non-secure settings teaching analysis, grammar and rhetoric to students across a wide range of ages and skill levels. In addition, it has been my great honor to serve as UFT chapter delegate from Passages Academy and as an elected high school teacher representative on the UFT executive board. In all of these roles I have paid close attention. I have watched as we were mercilessly heckled and shouted down at Delegate Assembly and Executive Board meetings. Our crimes? asking for a copy of our contract before a ratification vote and demanding truth and fidelity regarding healthcare decisions for all members. I have watched closely how the UFT leadership have cooperated with the DOE to diminish us behind our backs. For too long we have watched as the current UFT leadership has made dishonest, humiliating and unjustifiable concessions that have discredited our union in the eyes of too many members

In 2025 we have an epoch-making opportunity. We can save the life of our union. We can come together to elect a slate of people who are willing to stand firmly for serious unionism (playing hardball to protect our healthcare and our pensions and our professional autonomy) and understand that serious unionism also includes standing up for what’s right in a deeper sense when that is necessary. We can elect a slate who are not going to back down until the right thing is done. 

It is in this context that I seek your vote for Vice President of High Schools. It is my impression that our union could be doing much more with respect to High School issues. We need to be more organized. We need to have serious working groups around the issues that matter. Tenure, Pension, Abusive Administrators, Safety, Evaluations, etc We need to invite in the rank and file instead of paid staffers. In order for High School members to regain what has been stripped from us, we need to arise.