[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-seo-590412-105":3,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":81,"doc-detail-590412-en":130},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"ok",{"site_id":7,"language":8,"slug":9,"title":10,"keywords":11,"description":12,"schema_data":13,"social_meta":74,"head_meta":76,"extra_data":78,"updated_unix":80},105,"en","moving-meriden-in-connecticut-a-road-map-for-union-district-relations","Moving Meriden - In Connecticut, a Road Map for Union-District Relations","","Explores the evolution of labor-management relations between Meriden Public Schools and the Meriden Federation of Teachers from a distrust-filled early 1990s climate to a collaborative partnership. Describes “Doom” and “Gloom” back-door outreach, then shifts to frequent leader communication between union and superintendent teams. Details joint professional development initiatives, peer coaching, learning communities, leadership training, and extended-day school expansions supported by AFT Innovation Fund grants, linking these efforts to rising student achievement.",{"@graph":14,"@context":73},[15,34,56],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/","Research & Report",3,{"item":32,"name":10,"@type":21,"position":33},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/moving-meriden-in-connecticut-a-road-map-for-union-district-relations/590412/",4,{"url":32,"name":10,"@type":35,"image":36,"author":41,"headline":10,"publisher":44,"fileFormat":47,"inLanguage":8,"description":12,"dateModified":48,"datePublished":49,"encodingFormat":47,"isAccessibleForFree":50,"interactionStatistic":51},"DigitalDocument",{"url":37,"@type":38,"width":39,"height":40},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/moving-meriden-in-connecticut-a-road-map-for-union-district-relations/590412.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":42,"@type":43},"Pentious","Person",{"url":19,"name":45,"@type":46},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-11-07","2026-10-15",true,{"@type":52,"interactionType":53,"userInteractionCount":55},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":54},"ViewAction",6,{"@type":57,"mainEntity":58},"FAQPage",[59,65,69],{"name":60,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":62},"What problems defined the union-district relationship in Meriden in the 1990s?","Question",{"text":63,"@type":64},"Relations were marked by low trust and teachers felt principals did not treat them as professionals. Teachers lacked a voice in instructional matters and even basic scheduling and lunch duty issues were difficult to resolve.","Answer",{"name":66,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":67},"How did the union president initially try to manage the tensions with teachers?",{"text":68,"@type":64},"The union deployed two assistants to meet teachers in their schools. Teachers told them to avoid the front door, using back-door entry to prevent confrontation with principals.",{"name":70,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":71},"What changes have occurred in the last five years according to the article?",{"text":72,"@type":64},"The union and district built a strong labor-management partnership focused on supporting teachers, accompanied by frequent communication between leadership teams. The article links this collaboration to steady increases in student achievement.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":32,"og:type":75,"og:title":10,"og:site_name":45,"og:description":12},"article",{"robots":77,"canonical":32},"index,follow",{"doc_id":79,"site_id":7},590412,1792620656,{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":83},"success",[84,88,92,96,101,105,110,114,119,122,126],{"id":22,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":85,"show_sort_weight":86,"slug":87},"Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":26,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":89,"show_sort_weight":90,"slug":91},"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":33,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":93,"show_sort_weight":94,"slug":95},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":97,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":98,"show_sort_weight":99,"slug":100},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":55,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":102,"show_sort_weight":103,"slug":104},"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":106,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":107,"show_sort_weight":108,"slug":109},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":111,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":29,"show_sort_weight":112,"slug":113},8,30,"research-report",{"id":115,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":116,"show_sort_weight":117,"slug":118},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":117,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":120,"show_sort_weight":117,"slug":121},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":123,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":124,"show_sort_weight":123,"slug":125},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":127,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":128,"show_sort_weight":97,"slug":129},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":131},{"doc_id":79,"user_id":132,"nickname":42,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":111,"category_name":29,"doc_title":10,"doc_description":12,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":55,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":22,"is_downloadable":22,"audit_status":22,"page_count":106,"language":139,"language_code":8,"site_id":7,"html_lang":8,"table_of_contents":140,"faqs":141,"seo_title":142,"seo_description":12,"update_tm":143,"read_time":144,"preview_page_count":4},1374404730887,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_6f874abed73319feea01a86fa6f0fab8","Moving Meriden  \nIn Connecticut, a Road Map for Union-District Relations  \nBy Jennifer Dubin  \nI  \nn the 1990s, the relationship between the Meriden Public Schools and the local teachers’ union, the Meriden Federation of Teachers, was frosty with a lack of trust. 􀀞e union spent much ofits time 􀀛elding concerns from teachers who  \nbelieved principals were not treating them as professionals. Teachers did not have a voice in instructional matters. Teachers and principals could not even resolve administrative issues like scheduling and lunch duty assignments.  \nTo help teachers navigate this uncomfortable climate, the union president atthe time deployed two assistants to meet with teachers in their schools. 􀀞roughout the district, the assistants were known as “Doom” and “Gloom”; their presence in schools always signaled a problem. When the duo scheduled their visits,  \nJennifer Dubin is the assistant editor of American Educator. Previously, she was a journalist with the Chronicle of Higher Education. To read more of her work, visit American Educator’s authors [index at www.aft.org/](index at www.aft.org/)[ ](index at www.aft.org/)[newspubs/periodicals/ae/author.cfm](newspubs/periodicals/ae/author.cfm).  \nthe teachers would instruct them not to come in through the front door. Nervous teachers feared that the principal would see them and 􀀛gure there was an issue. So to avoid any confrontation, the teachers let the assistants in through the back door. Relations between teachers and principals were so strained that the pair performed their clandestine operations several times each month.  \nFor the most part, the district’s central o􀀉ce administrators did not visit schools to get to know teachers and did not involve themselves in building issues, says Erin Benham, the current president of the Meriden Federation of Teachers (MFT) .  \nBenham has taught in the district for 34 years. For several of those years, she was the union assistant known as “Doom.” She laughs now when recounting this part of her career because things have so dramatically changed. No doubt she wasn’t laughing back then.  \nIn the last 􀀛ve years, the union and the district have built a strong labor-management partnership whose focus on supporting teachers has resulted in a steady increase in student achievement. Today, it’s fair to say that Benham belongs to another dynamic  \nILLUSTRATIONS BY INGO FAST  \nAMERICAN EDUCATOR | WINTER 2013–2014 29  \nduo, a much less dour one. Her partner is Meriden’s superintendent, Mark Benigni. A native of Meriden and the city’s former mayor, Benigni has committed himself and his central o􀀉ce sta􀀝 to working with the union. Benham and Benigni contact eachother several times a day and meet regularly. 􀀞e partnership isnot only between the two leaders; members of the union’s executive board and the superintendent’s cabinet also are in close touch with each other.  \nWhile Meriden administrators and union o􀀉cials engage in  \nthe usual personnel matters such as hiring and budgeting issues, much of their time is spent coming up with joint professional development programs to hone teacher talent. Together, the union and the district have created the Peer Coaching Program, in which educators partner with each other to improve instruction; the Leadership Academy, in which teachers  \nlearn to become stronger leaders in their buildings; Professional Learning Communities, in which teachers meet to  \nreview student achievement data; and the Meriden Teachers  \nSharing Success program, in which the district’s most e􀀝ective teachers open up their classrooms to teachers seeking to improve their craft.  \nThe union and the district  \nhave also partnered to turn two elementary schools with high  \npoverty rates into extended-day schools, so students can participate in a variety of enrichment activities, including art, music, and physical 􀀛tness, to which they are not usually exposed to a great extent during the regular school day. To implement this program, u","cbCaidJRcnfRZC6F","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaidJRcnfRZC6F","pdf",254598,"English","# Background: Strained Union-District Relations\n## “Doom” and “Gloom” and the Lack of Trust\n# Building a Labor-Management Partnership\n## Leadership Communication and Regular Collaboration\n# Joint Programs to Improve Instruction\n## Peer Coaching, Leadership Academy, and Learning Communities\n# Extending School Opportunities\n## Extended-Day Schools and AFT Innovation Fund","[{\"question\":\"What problems defined the union-district relationship in Meriden in the 1990s?\",\"answer\":\"Relations were marked by low trust and teachers felt principals did not treat them as professionals. Teachers lacked a voice in instructional matters and even basic scheduling and lunch duty issues were difficult to resolve.\"},{\"question\":\"How did the union president initially try to manage the tensions with teachers?\",\"answer\":\"The union deployed two assistants to meet teachers in their schools. Teachers told them to avoid the front door, using back-door entry to prevent confrontation with principals.\"},{\"question\":\"What changes have occurred in the last five years according to the article?\",\"answer\":\"The union and district built a strong labor-management partnership focused on supporting teachers, accompanied by frequent communication between leadership teams. The article links this collaboration to steady increases in student achievement.\"}]","Moving Meriden - In Connecticut, a Road Map for Union-District Relations | PDF",1792069590,18]