Unity Caucus Members Vote Unanimously to Endorse Tom Brown for TRS Board of Trustees

The Teachers’ Retirement System of the City of New York exists to provide retirement, disability, and death benefits to more than 200,000 educators who serve New York City’s public schools every day. For most of us, our pension is our single largest financial asset. It is deferred compensation earned over decades of service, and it is something that must be protected with vigilance and care.

That responsibility falls to the TRS Board of Trustees. Trustees are elected to safeguard the fund so that when you are ready to retire, you can do so with dignity and security.

This spring, one of the three educator trustee seats on the Board of TRS will be up for election.

As current trustees, we want to share an important update. Earlier this evening, the Unity Caucus Steering Committee met and voted to recommend endorsing Tom Brown for another term as trustee of the Teachers’ Retirement System. That recommendation was then brought to the full Unity Caucus membership and just after 8:00 p.m., over 900 members voted anonymously to unanimously endorse Tom Brown.

For anyone who knows Tom, this outcome comes as no surprise.

Tom Brown has spent years doing the unglamorous, deeply consequential work of protecting our pensions. Whether in the UFT pension office, serving as Assistant Treasurer of the UFT, or representing educators on the TRS Board, Tom has consistently put members first. He understands that pensions are always a target for politicians, hedge funds, and so-called reformers looking for short-term gains at the expense of long-term security.

During his time on the board of TRS, Tom has been a steady, informed, and principled advocate. He has fought to strengthen the fund, improve benefits, and ensure that decisions are made with retirees and active members in mind, not political convenience or outside pressure. Under his leadership and with the work of the board, TRS has remained one of the best-funded public pension systems in the nation.

That didn’t happen by accident.

Unity’s endorsement reflects trust earned through experience, competence, and results. At a time when public pensions across the country are under attack, we need trustees who know the system, understand the stakes, and are prepared to fight for our members every single day.

Unity is proud to stand with Tom Brown, and so are we. If your pension is important to you, please click this link and join the campaign to re-elect Tom Brown.

-Victoria Lee & Christina Mcgrath

TRS Trustees