Regents Firm Up State Aid, Budget and Legislative Priorities

• ASBO Commentary: At the November Regents meeting the Regents advanced state aid, legislative and budget priorities for the 2019-20 school year they expect to approve in the coming months. ASBO New York is pleased to see many proposals consistent with its priorities: Full Foundation Aid funding, increased funding for early learning and career and technical education, continued support for upgrading school facilities, state aid and special education data systems, and mandate relief in pupil transportation, educational management services, special education requirements, as well as school aid and building aid payment flexibility. ASBO New York appreciates the dialogue with the Department and Regents on behalf of school business officials.

The following is a recap of a number of topics discussed at the November Regents meeting. For an agenda and materials, see www.regents.nysed.gov.

ASBO will release its 2019-20 State Aid Proposal once the November Database is published.

ESSA Accountability

The Regents re-approved regulations to implement New York’s school accountability plan under the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). The action was required to keep the regulations continuously in effect until they can be permanently confirmed.

Regents Provide Waiver for ELL Class Requirements

The Regents approved an amendment to Commissioner’s regulations section 154-2.3(i) o that school districts enrolling fewer than 30 English language learners (ELLs) may apply for a one-year renewable waiver to the requirement to expand the maximum allowable grade span for English as a New Language (ENL) and Bilingual Education (BE) classes from two to three contiguous grades.

The Regents discussed budget priorities including:

• Promotion of positive school climate and bullying prevention grants ($8 million)

• Expand access to quality high level coursework for high need school districts ($3 million)

• Support ESSA school accountability implementation including support for struggling schools, improving transition services to NYS students at neglected and delinquent facilities and a parent-friendly data dashboard ($9.2 million)

• Access to high-quality early education and early care programs (TBD)

• Ensuring equal opportunities for English language learners/multilingual learners ($2.4 million)

• Enhancing the achievement of ELLs ($4.4 million)

• Creating a new English language proficiency assessment for English language learners/multilingual learners with severe cognitive disabilities ($2 million)

• Development of Regents exams in Spanish and French ($950,000)

• Creating a special education and related services data system and school facilities data system, Phase II ($3.8 million)

They also discussed creation of a 5 percent set-aside within all new state programs for administrative oversight and technical assistance, as is common in federal grants and programs and $200,000 for additional webcasting of Regents meetings. Currently only full Board meetings are webcast.

Legislative priorities the Regents discussed included:

• Access to high-quality early education and early care programs

• Require school districts, in the event of an abolition of a position, to excess the teacher/teaching assistant with the least seniority in the tenure area of the position abolished, except where the retention of a less senior teacher/teaching assistant fluent in a specific language is necessary for the school to provide required bilingual/ESOL instruction.

• Provide mandate relief and state aid claims flexibility by eliminating or reducing a significant number of statutory mandates and providing greater flexibility relating to transportation, educational management services, special education requirements, as well as school aid and building aid payment flexibility.

• Tuition Rate Setting Methodology for Special Act School Districts and 853 Schools- Create a statutory growth index to establish predictable and timely tuition increases and allow for improved budget planning. In addition, the proposal would authorize providers to establish a general reserve fund.

• Establish a temporary advisory council composed of legislative and advocacy stakeholders tasked with developing a legislative proposal to establish regional high schools.

The Regents discussed their 2019-20 state aid proposal, which is scheduled for approval at the December Regents meeting. Their state aid priorities include:

• Full funding of Foundation Aid

• Early Childhood: implementation of recommendations of the Blue Ribbon Committee will inform the Board of Regents 2019 budget, legislative and policy proposals.

• English language learners. Additional funds would support supplemental certification for teachers of English language learners, and training for staff models that research has shown to be successful with these students, for example.

• Implementing NYS’s Every Student Succeeds Plan to support all students including investing in the professional development of teachers, school and district leaders and other professionals to implement the Next Generation Standards, provide focused support to the social-emotional learning efforts that help students learn, provide access to high quality career and technical education through increases in the State Aid available to support these programs, improve graduation rates statewide, across all demographic subgroups.

• Prepare students and teachers to succeed in the modern technological world through the availability of hardware and software resources, rethinking the curriculum to embed technology in instruction and access to an expanded network of virtual and blended learning opportunities in specialized subjects like Advanced Placement or career and technical certification coursework.