Starken
PATCHOGUE — CSEA Patchogue- Medford [Pat-Med] School District Operational Unit President Peter Starken began attending CSEA Long Island School Districts Committee meeting with the intention of learning strategies that would help his unit with its upcoming contract negotiations.
Little did Starken know that he was about to gain information that would change the trajectory of his unit.
“During one of the meetings, Jarvis [CSEA Long Island Region President Jarvis Brown] and Pat [CSEA Long Island Region School Districts Committee Chair Patricia Davilla] led a conversation about the importance of establishing a political action committee as one of many levels of activism to bettering school districts,” said Starken. “I took notice of that immediately because I knew the district board of education had three primary seats up for reelection.”
The next day, Starken contacted CSEA Suffolk Educational Employees Local 2nd Vice President John DeSantis, who was then the Pat-Med District Operational Unit president, to share what he learned at the meeting and to urge DeSantis to start a unit political action committee.
Starken, DeSantis and the rest of the unit’s executive board soon held a meeting, at which they agreed to start the political action committee and discuss potential committee members.
Starken was eventually appointed as the committee chair, and two other unit board members also agreed to be on the committee.
Growing relationships
CSEA Long Island Region Political Action Coordinator Sue Castle was the first person the newly formed committee contacted. Castle guided the committee through the entire endorsement process.
According to CSEA’s political action guidelines, when a district has multiple units, all units must come to an agreement before CSEA can publicly endorse a candidate. To get that consensus, the unit political action committee reached out to the two other CSEA unit presidents in the school district.
The unit officers communicated regularly through the entire endorsement process, which has opened up the lines of communications between the units, creating a larger support system for CSEA members across the district.
CSEA Pat-Med School District
Operational Unit President Peter
Starken attends a Long Island
Region School Districts Committee
meeting.
Specifically, the Pat-Med School District Operational Unit officers gained valuable information that helped them going into contract negotiations.
“We got to hear directly from potential board members without creating a direct dealing issue, circumventing the negotiation process or undermining the administrators that are appointed by the board,” said Starken. “We were also able to grow our relationships with potential board members by getting to know them and their personalities.”
The Pat-Med School District Board of Education president personally contacted Starken to voice his happiness with CSEA’s district political action committee. He expressed that the interviews with the candidate spoke to the spirit of teamwork the district hoped to achieve by developing a better working relationship with CSEA members.
“We were thankful that the candidates were willing to be interviewed on short notice,” said Starken. “It shows the value of having CSEA members’ endorsement in the community.”
Additionally, CSEA’s Legislative and Political Action Department helped the group secure posters, postcards and robocalls to support the endorsed board of education candidates.
The Pat-Med School District’s endorsement was so influential that another union in the district began endorsing the unit’s candidates and also sent out mailers.
All of CSEA’s endorsed candidates won their elections. The Pat-Med Pac Committee was able to organize and orchestrate their plan in four weeks.
“The candidates were blown away with how much support they received,” said Starken. “Now, there’s no mistaking how strategically important CSEA is for them.”
— Wendi Bowie
