John Bligh
- Retired teacher
- UFT Adult Education chapter leader
Betty June Gottfried, the longtime chapter leader of the UFT’s Adult Education Chapter, successfully organized city-employed educators of adults, lobbied the union to recognize them and fought to win salaries, pensions and benefits equal to those of other teachers.
That is the legacy she left when she died on April 5, at age 83, after a lengthy illness.
Betty began teaching in 1967 and retired in 2009 after decades of service as chapter leader. Before joining the UFT, city-employed educators of adults were paid by the hour and were entitled to health insurance only if they worked a certain number of hours per week. There were no benefits beyond that, said Karen Wald, a retired adult education teacher who said she and others in the chapter owe Betty a debt of gratitude.
“She was the initiator, the developer of the adult education chapter,” said Wald. “She fought to get it established. She fought to get the chapter recognized. She fought to get us equal pay.”
Retiree Marc Korashan, a friend and former colleague of Betty’s, said she was a “true progressive” who was tireless in her advocacy for adult education teachers. She was equally devoted to her many students, he said.
When Betty began organizing city-employed adult education teachers, they were scattered around the city in individual anti-poverty programs, Korashan said. She convinced the UFT president at the time, Albert Shanker, to let them join the union, he said.
“Over the course of 40 years representing adult education teachers, she moved them from this unrepresented group of hourly contract workers into the union and into a very appropriately compensated workforce,” he said.
Many adult educators came to her funeral and spoke of how grateful they were to her, because they are now retired and collecting pensions, he added.
Retiree Vince Gaglione, a UFT Executive Board member, said he got to know Betty over the past five or so years because she attended Executive Board meetings to support Adult Education Chapter members who were having problems with DOE administrators.
“Over time, it just turned into a friendship, and we would talk on the telephone and share ideas and have discussions on a lot of ideas and topics,” he said.
Betty had a sharp intellect and a wide range of interests, Gaglione said. She was ecumenical in both a religious and political sense — she may not have agreed with others’ views but she respected their right to hold different opinions.
“She was just a generous-of-spirit woman to anybody who needed help,” he said. “That’s just the way she was, and it didn’t matter which part of the union you were in — she’d listen and give you advice.”
Patricia Crispino, the UFT District 79 representative, said Betty had already retired when Crispino assumed that role in 2011 but was more than happy to bring her up to speed about the Adult Education Chapter. “Betty was an oracle because adult education is not like any other school or program that the average person knows about,” she said.
Crispino, who called Betty the mother of the adult education program, described her as dedicated, loyal and hard-working, and said she fought to preserve members’ rights.
“I don’t think I ever heard Betty raise her voice. She didn’t need to,” Crispino said. “When Betty walked into the room, she commanded the room in a very polite, methodical way. It took a lot to get angry at Betty. She was just that kind of person.”
Betty is survived by her niece, Iris Goodgold; her nephew, Jay Goodgold; his wife, Karen; and their three children. Donations can be made in Betty’s name to the American Diabetes Association or the Literacy Assistance Center at lacnyc.org.
May Allah be pleased with her. I will never forget our wonderful conversations about our mutual friend, Lillie Forriest, whom Betty always spoke so fondly of. That was our connection. Every time I saw her we would have great interactions. She would always provided me with
encouragement. I am so sorry to hear of her passing. She was a true UFT Legend!!