COMMACK — CSEA members employed at school districts face a unique set of circumstances that differ from those of other local government workers.
To address members’ concerns, the CSEA Long Island Region established a region School Districts Committee, where CSEA school district workers from across Long Island gather together to collaborate, problem-solve and shape a collective vision for the future.
CSEA Long Island Region School Districts Committee Chair Patricia Davila briefly explains the meeting agenda to attendees.
Chairing the CSEA Long Island Region School Districts Committee is Western Suffolk BOCES Teacher Aides/Cafeteria Unit Vice President Patricia Davila, with Western Suffolk BOCES Teacher Aides/Cafeteria Unit member Steven Askew serving as co-chair. Davila took over as committee chair in 2021, after a period of dormancy due to retirements.
Resources and similar stories
Similar to the state’s Office for People With Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) and the Office of Mental Health (OMH), CSEA members who work at the Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) work with children with developmental disabilities and mental illness. Many of these workers also face violence, low pay and the outsourcing of their positions.
“One of our members was grabbed by her hair and punched in the face eight or nine times,” said Davila. “Other members have been bit and had someone spit in their eye. It isn’t uncommon for members to end up in the hospital or urgent care.”
Violent behaviors can be so excessive that certain schools have a padded room. More so, the age of the “children” in some of the BOCES schools can go as high as age 22.
Violence aside, other school district workers are facing the same issues as BOCES workers. The region committee is working to be a resource to help these workers.
At the committee meetings, officers exchange phone numbers so they always have someone to consult about prevailing issues in their units. All members receive contact information, including names, titles and office contact information for CSEA officers and staff that members will most likely need.
Askew
“We have discussions about the function of different levels of leadership in CSEA,” said Askew. “A lot of rank-and-file members don’t fully understand the roles and responsibilities of each office. It’s good to break that down for them.”
Attendees also fill out a survey asking them to identify what is working — and not working — in their units as well as any other issues they may need help in addressing. These efforts are intended to help members better connect with one another.
Seeing results
The Long Island Region School Districts Committee does not focus solely on negative issues. The committee also makes a point of sharing their success stories, including how they applied the knowledge they acquired at the committee meetings at their worksites.
One of the success stories is the CSEA Patchogue-Medford School District Operational Unit, which was highlighted in the January 2025 issue of The Work Force.
Patchogue-Medford School District Operational Unit President Peter Starken learned about the importance of establishing a political action committee. Starken took that knowledge back to his unit, which was able to harness that knowledge into much-needed political power in the school district.
Other members have learned the importance of forming a labor-management team and gained ideas on applying certain methods in their school districts, particularly in safety and health. These teams now meet with their respective school districts twice a month and are seeing positive change.
Davila and Askew said they strongly believe members should rely heavily on region and statewide leadership to educate them on chairing a committee.
“We were running on a hamster wheel, going nowhere, before we turned to the region,” said Davila. “That’s where we learned what is and isn’t permissible, and we are grateful for that guidance.”
— Wendi Bowie
CSEA Long Island Region President Jarvis Brown clarifies the roles of CSEA leadership and CSEA staff during contract negotiations.
