Committee Report | October 2012

Report of

REGENTS P-12 EDUCATION COMMITTEE

to

The Board of Regents

October 10, 2012

Your P-12 Education Committee held its scheduled meeting on October 9, 2012.  All members were present except for Chancellor Emeritus Bennett and Regent Rosa, who were excused.

ACTION ITEMS

Safety Net for Students with Disabilities

Your Committee recommends that section 100.5 of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education be amended, as submitted, effective October 31, 2012, as an emergency action upon a finding by the Board of Regents that such action is necessary for the preservation of the general welfare in order to ensure the timely implementation during the 2012-2013 school year of the safety net options for students with disabilities to graduate with a local diploma.    [P-12 (A) 1]

MOTION FOR ACTION BY FULL BOARD


Madam Chancellor and Colleagues: Your P-12 Education Committee recommends, and we move, that the Board of Regents act affirmatively upon each recommendation in the written report of the Committee's deliberations at its meeting on October 10, 2012, copies of which have been distributed to each Regent.

MATTERS NOT REQUIRING BOARD ACTION

Special Education Regulations – The Committee discussed proposed amendments to regulations to conform Commissioner’s Regulations to Chapters 267 and 279 of the Laws of 2012 relating to CSE membership and IEP dissemination requirements.  If endorsed by the Regents, the proposed amendments will come back to the Regents for action in December.    [P-12 (D) 1]

CharterSchoolOffice Update – The Committee was provided an update on the activities of the Department’s Charter School Office in carrying out the Board of Regents public charter school authorization and oversight responsibility. The Committee discussed the Performance Framework (to be presented to the Board of Regents in November) that covers all areas of school and system accountability.  Also discussed was the federal Charter Schools Program Grant used to support the opening of quality charter schools.  Staff reported that 27 new charter schools opened this school year and 19 more are slated to open in the fall of 2013.  [P-12 (D) 2]

CTE Advisory Panel Update – The Committee was provided an update on the activities of the CTE Advisory Panel, which met for the first time on September 18, 2012.  The Panel was charged with developing recommendations to strengthen CTE K-12 learning and to address gaps in the CTE learning continuum statewide.   Initial recommendations focused on four critical areas:  students, teachers, school leaders, and community economic development.  The Panel will re-convene on October 15, 2012 and focus on the recommendations around these four critical areas.  [P-12 (D) 3]

Proposed Regents State Legislative Priorities – The Committee discussed proposed legislative priorities for the creation of Regional Secondary Schools; Support and Intervention in Chronically Underperforming Schools; Mandate Relief and Flexibility; BOCES as Regional Leaders and the Race to the Top Longitudinal Data System.  Final legislative priorities will be presented to the Board of Regents for approval at their November or December meeting.  [P-12 (D) 4]

Updates on Early Learning Initiatives – The Committee discussed the QualitystarsNY program; a voluntary quality rating and improvement system designed to ensure that New York’s pre-kindergarten-age children have the opportunity to experience high quality early learning experiences.  Other discussion focused on the Department’s proposed legislative priority to request additional UPK funding, provide funding flexibility to support full-day UPK programs and allow Transportation Aid to be used for UPK transportation.  The Committee agreed to move forward with the legislative priority and also re-affirmed its commitment to the transition to universal full-day kindergarten. [P-12 (D) 5]

Diagnostic Tool for School and District Effectiveness – The Committee discussed the Diagnostic Tool for School and District Effectiveness, a key component of New York’s Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) waiver.  Discussion focused on the six tenets of school and district effectiveness and the five pilot reviews conducted in Albany and Rochester this past spring.  During the pilot reviews, schools were engaged in the protocols of the review process and debriefing sessions were held with the staff and district administrators. As a result, there have been numerous requests from districts for professional development and mentoring on the six tenets of the rubric. The six tenets are:  district leadership and capacity; school leadership practice and decisions; curriculum development and support; teacher practices and decisions; student social and emotional developmental health; and family and community engagement.   [P-12 (D) 6]

Updates from the Office of Accountability and the Office of School Innovation – The Committee discussed the wide range of funding opportunities available to districts with low-performing schools, including School Improvement Grant funds (SIG); the School Innovation Fund Grant; and Commissioner’s Schools Dissemination and Replication Grants.  The Committee also discussed the Systemic Supports for District and School Turnaround Grant, which assists districts in building their capacity to reframe systems and structures to both support and hold schools accountable.  Of the eighteen eligible districts for this grant, seventeen submitted complete applications on or before the deadline of August 1, 2012.  The Department approved applications from eight districts.   [P-12 (D) 7]

Consent Agenda Items - The Committee discussed the following items scheduled for approval on the Full Board consent agenda:

• Petition of the Watervliet City School District for Consent to Exceed the Constitutional Debt Limit.

October 10, 2012