Information

COMPLETING YOUR 2026 RETIREMENT FORMS

DFT unit members planning on retiring at the end of the 2025-26 school year should complete all of the forms related to retirement during early April, 2026 and submit them no later than May 1, 2026. Doing so will help ensure a timely payout in late June and early July of any monies owed by DPSCD to unit members (summer pays, bonuses, sick day payout, etc.), and a prompt start to their pension payments. These forms include:

1. A Separation from Service Survey (SFSS) which is found on DPSCD's Hub. Please remember that in order to be paid for sick days upon retirement from DPSCD, eligible* DFT unit members must submit a SFSS to the District's Human Resource office (HR) no later than May 1, 2026 and retire effective July 1, 2026 (or August 1, 2026 if working during the month of July.) 

The SFSS should be submitted to HR by May 1, 2026. (Follow the instructions on the Hub). The "effective date of separation" used on the SFSS should be June 20, 2026 if retiring July 1, 2026 (or July 31, 2026 if working during the month of July and retiring effective August 1, 2026).

After the SFSS is submitted to HR, a confirmation email will be sent by HR to the unit member. Unit members should print a copy of that email from HR for their records.

*Eligible DFT unit members (does not apply to DFP, food service worker, or noon hour aide) meeting the May 1, 2026 deadline to submit a SFSS to HR (and with an effective retirement date of either July 1, 2026 or August 1, 2026) will be paid $45 for each unused sick day in their sick bank for days 1 to 100 and $65 for each unused day in their sick bank fordays 101 to 200 for a maximum payout of $11,000. Payout for sick days upon retirement does not include a payout for days in the catastrophe bank. (To calculate the number of sick days in one's sick bank, divide the number of sick bank hours by eight [8].) Unit members should also print a copy of a pay stub in June to confirm the number of sick days in their sick bank since after a unit member's separation date with the District, they will no longer have access to the Hub. 

2. The online retirement application forms which can be found on a unit member's miAccount with the Michigan Office of Retirement (ORS) (michigan.gov/orsschools).  Click on the menu item "Ready to Retire", then click on the box "Apply for Retirement" and follow the instructions. Use the same "last day worked" that was used on the District's SFSS (June 20,2026 or July 31, 2026). Questions about ORS' online retirement form can be answered by ORS at 800.381.5111. (Unit members who first worked for a Michigan public school beginning July 1, 2010 or later and are in ORS' Pension Plus Plan or Pension Plus 2 Plan, are eligible to retire if they are age 60 or older and have ten [10] or more years of service credit. They should also contact Voya [800.748.6128] for information concerning their 457 and 401[k] accounts.)

If a unit member has not yet set up an miAccount with ORS, they should:
> go to michigan.gov/orsschools
> look for a picture of a red school house
> scroll down under the red school house to a rectangular box that says, "miAccount"
> click on "miAccount " and go to the MiLogin
> create a username and a password on the MiLogin and then login
> follow the prompts to set up an miAccount

(In addition to being used to fill out the online ORS retirement application, an miAccount can also be used to track the dollar amount of a unit member's annual earnings, the number of years of service credit that they have, and to provide an estimate of the amount their pension will be when they retire.) 

3. The application forms for Social Security (if eligible) and Medicare (if eligible) which can be found on Social Security's website (ssa.gov). This website is separate and unrelated to ORS' website.

WORKING AFTER RETIREMENT 

Currently, ORS has strict rules concerning an earnings limit when one first retires. These rules only apply if a retiree wishes to work for a Michigan public or charter school (including Michigan community colleges), or an agency servicing a Michigan public or charter school. Working anywhere else will not subject a retiree to an earnings limit with ORS. A retiree cannot work for a Michigan public or charter school or an agency servicing a Michigan public or charter school during their first month of retirement. Then, for the next five months of a calendar year, they can return to work for a Michigan public or charter school or an agency servicing a Michigan public or charter school, but they cannot earn more than $15,100 in total during those five months. Once they have been retired for six months, the $15,100 ORS earnings limit ends, and they are then free to earn as much money as a Michigan public or charter school or an agency servicing a Michigan public or charter school is willing to pay them--and continue to collect their pension. 

For Example: Someone retires effective July 1, 2026 and wishes to work for a Michigan public or charter school or an agency servicing a Michigan public or charter school. They cannot work during July, 2026. They can return to work in August, 2026, but during August, September, October, November, and December, they cannot earn more than $15,100 intotal during those five months. Once they have been retired for six months, the $15,100 ORS earnings limit ends(effective January 1, 2027) and they are then free to earn as much as a Michigan public or charter school or an agency servicing a Michigan public or charter school is willing to pay them. 

PLEASE NOTE: If a retiree is collecting Social Security (SS) and is not yet full SS retirement age (around age 67), SS has its own annual earnings limit ($24,480 in 2026). Going beyond $24,480 in earnings will cause a reduction in some or all of one's annual SS payment depending on the amount of annual earnings that one has in excess of the $24,480 earnings limit. (The SS annual $24,480 earnings limit does not apply to pensions, interest, and withdrawals from TDAs.) 

SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR UNIT MEMBERS (OR THEIR SPOUSES) AGE 65 OR OLDER
Unit members (and/or their spouses) who are age 65 or older, must have Medicare Parts A and B in order to be eligible for health care insurance coverage from ORS when they retire. Part A should have been applied for when the unit member(or their spouse) turned 65. (There is no cost for Part A.) If Part A has not been applied for, it must be done so immediately. (It can be done online.) The effective date for Medicare Part B for a unit member (and/or their spouse)should be the same date as a unit member's effective retirement date. 

To sign up for Medicare Part B, two forms (which can be found online) will be needed. One form is entitled Medicare Request for Employment Information. This form is submitted to the District a few days after a SFSS has been submitted to HR. Currently, the Medicare Request for Employment Information form should be emailed to Karen Manning (karen.manning@detroitk12.org).

(Note: If a unit member has healthcare insurance coverage through a spouse [and not through DPSCD] and now wishes healthcare insurance coverage through ORS, the Medicare Request for Employment Information form should be submitted to their spouse's employer and not to DPSCD or Karen Manning.)

When the Medicare Request for Employment Information form is emailed to Ms. Manning (on behalf of the unit member and/or their spouse) (or to the spouse's employer if applicable), the unit member should note in their email that they have submitted their SFSS and ask Ms. Manning (or their spouse's employer) to complete the Medicare Request for Employment Information form and then email it back to them.

The second Medicare form needed is the Request for Enrollment in Medicare Part B form. This form should be completed by the unit member (and/or their spouse) using information that Ms. Manning (or their spouse's employer) hasput on the Medicare Request for Employment Information form.

When both of these Medicare forms have been completed, they should then be mailed or taken to the unit member's local Social Security office no later than May 1, 2026.

Questions about retirement and/or the retirement process can be directed to DFT's retirement counselor, Patrick Falcusan, at 313.875.6783 at any time during the year.
 

Communicating with members is a priority of the DFT. We also want you to receive accurate and up to date information.

1. Weekly Notes (via your personal email): at the beginning of every work week we send updates on information pertinent to our members
2. Union Hotlines (via your personal email): messages of an "urgent" or immediate attention, many times these will reflect our "Calls to Action" where we ask for members to write, call, or email on a particular topic. We post our Calls to Action on the DFT website under the Take Action menu.
3. Wellness Wednesdays (via your personal email and website): these columns focus on tips for health, well-being, safety. All of our Wellness Wednesdays are posted on the DFT website: https://dft231.mi.aft.org/sites/wellness-wednesday. There is also a document of all topics from October 2023 until June 2025. This document will be updated frequently and is on the website, pinned to the top: Wellness Wednesday Topics.
4. The Detroit Teacher (via your personal email and website): this monthly publication highlights what members are doing in our work/school locations, community outreach by members, legislative updates and other items of interest to our members. The most recent editions are posted on the DFT website: https://dft231.mi.aft.org/publications-and-reports. If you have anything of interest to submit, please reach out to our Communications Specialist at [VBonacci@dft231.com?link_id=3&can_id=51d3c46c71ada49d8caccfb1ae5d6e3c&source=email-welcome-new-members-74&email_referrer=email_2853599&email_subject=communications-used-by-dft&&]VBonacci@dft231.com.
5. DFT website: https://dft231.mi.aft.org/. We encourage you to take some time to peruse through the website as it can answer so many questions.

• The home page is used for information we share with the public.
• Join the Union is used for signing up for DFT and DFP, along with membership dues information.
• About Us has a staff directory (contact us), who we are, names of leaders, and links to AFT.org, AFT Michigan, AFL-CIO, AFL-CIO Michigan, and Metro Detroit AFL-CIO
• News features news and legislative articles, publications and reports, and videos.
• Actions & Events list our "take actions" and a calendar of events.
• Membership lists information about membership meeting dates, member benefits, key DFT and DFP documents, letters of agreement, the retirees chapter and professional development offered by the union.
• Resources are used for information about programs, information about voluntary deductions, Wellness Wednesday.

5. Facebook: To get the only accurate information from the DFT, subscribe to our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/DFT231.

6. X (Twitter): https://x.com/DFT231

7. DFT Bulletin Board: Each work/school location is to have a dedicated space for a Union bulletin board. Please be sure to lknow where this is located. Information about School Union Committees and contacts can be found be at your work location site.

8. AFT Michigan: The state federation sends out weekly communications via your personal email. Their website is https://aftmichigan.org/. To sign up for communications: https://aftmichigan.org/signup/. AFT Michigan is also on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aftmichigan/; on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aftmichigan; on X (Twitter) https://x.com/aftmichigan.

9. AFT National: To receive emails from AFT National, go to https://www.aft.org/join, find this sentence under the heading Do you work in: "If there an AFT local in your worksite that you are eligible to join, please go to this form and select YES."  

Be sure to say yes, fill out the form and click the box (near the bottom of the page) that allows you to opt in to receiving emails: https://www.aft.org/join-aft. You can connect to the various social media in which AFT participates by scrolling down to the bottom of the home page on their website (AFT - American Federation of Teachers - A Union of Professionals) and enter your personal email and zip code.

All DPSCD employees are eligible for the confidential support, at no cost. Reach out to a counselor at Ulliance. More information can be found on the attached flyers.

• Employee Assistance Program through Ulliance Page 1
• Employee Assistance Program through Ulliance Page 2

COMPLETING YOUR RETIREMENT FORMS

DFT unit members planning on retiring at the end of the 2024-2025 school year should complete all of the forms related to retirement by May 1, 2025.  These forms include:

1.  A Separation from Service Survey (SFSS) found on the District's Hub.  Please remember that in order to be paid for sick days upon retirement from DPSCD, eligible employees must submit a SFSS to the District's Human Resource office (HR) no later than May 1, 2025 and retire effective July 1, 2025 (or August 1, 2025 if working during the month of July).

The SFSS should be emailed to HR by May 1, 2025.  (Follow the instructions on the Hub.)  The "effective date of separation" on the SFSS should be listed as June 14, 2025 (or July 31, 2025 if working during the month of July).  After the SFSS is submitted to HR, a confirmation email will be sent to the employee.  Employees should print a copy of that email for their records.

Eligible employees meeting the May 1, 2025 deadline will be paid $45 for each unused sick day in their sick bank for days 1 to 100 and $65 for each unused sick day in their sick bank for days 101 to 200 for a maximum payout of $11,000.  Payout for sick days upon retirement does not include a payout from the catastrophe bank.  (To calculate the number of sick days in one's sick bank, divide the number of sick bank hours by eight [8].)

2.  The pension application forms found on an employee's miAccount with the Michigan Office of Retirement Services (michigan.gov/orsschools).  (Click on the menu item "Ready to Retire", then the box that says, "Apply for Retirement", and then follow the instructions.  Use the same date for "the last day worked" as was used on the SFSS (June 14, 2025 or July 31, 2025).

3.  The application forms for Social Security (if eligible) and Medicare (if eligible) found on Social Security's website (ssa.gov).  (This website is separate and unrelated to the Michigan Office of Retirement Services' website and an employee's miAccount.)

Questions about retirement can be directed to the DFT's retirement counselor, Patrick Falcusan, at 313.875.6783 at any time during the year.

There is much concern about the recent statement from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announcing it would end a policy restricting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents from arresting undocumented immigrants at sensitive locations such as hospitals and schools.  

We want to share some resources with our members that AFT National is providing as we deal with this uncertainty. We have also posted these resources in our January 2025 The Detroit Teacher. 

RESOURCES: https://www.aft.org/our-community/immigration

• Rights for Immigrant Students/English
• Rights for Immigrant Students/Spanish
• Deportation Defense Toolkit/English
• Deportation Defense Toolkit/Spanish
• Educators' Guide/English
• Know Your Rights Information for Students and Families/English
• Know Your Rights Information for Students and Families/Spanish
• 15 Things to Do to Protect Students/English
• Family Immigration Raid Emergency Plan/English
• Family Immigration Raid Emergency Plan/Spanish
• Share My Lesson Immigration Lesson Plans
• Colorín Colorado Serving and Supporting Immigrant Students

Do you know a member who is an outstanding STEM teacher. If so, check out this information on the Presidential Awards in Math and Science Teaching website. Applications are due by February 6, 2025.

Do you need quick tips for working with ELL students? Please check out these two documents from Colorin on the Go:

1. overview of Colorin on the Go
2. what ColorinColorado offers

Schools To Tools, a State of Michigan grant funded program, aims to provide educators with the tools and incentives to offer students the option of considering career opportunities available in union construction trades apprenticeship programs. Designed for middle and high school students, Schools to Tools has a Mobile Experience that brings the field trip to you. They also offer FREE SCECH training for educators that include a meal, a training center tour and material to share with your students and some fun swag.

Learn more at https://schoolstotools.org/resources/ and https://schoolstotools.org/scech/.

Please refer to the Educator Services provided by the State of Michigan for MOECS and certification: Click here to be directed to the site.

This is a guide to introduce basic language and concepts inherent in discussions of the LGBTQ+ experience in the workplace:

This is a 20th and 21st Century document outlining LGBTQ+ history: