Federal Legislation and Education in New York State 2006

Federal Legislation and Education in New York State 2006

The University of the State of New York ✦ The State Education Department ✦ Albany, New York 12234 ✦ www.nysed.gov

THE UNIVERSITY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK

Regents of The University

ROBERT M. BENNETT, Chancellor, B.A., M.S. ................................................................... Tonawanda
ADELAIDE L. SANFORD, Vice Chancellor, B.A., M.A., P.D. ............................................. Hollis
SAUL B. COHEN, B.A., M.A., Ph.D. ................................................................................. New Rochelle
JAMES C. DAWSON, A.A., B.A., M.S., Ph.D. ................................................................... Peru
ANTHONY S. BOTTAR, B.A., J.D. ....................................................................................... North Syracuse
MERRYL H. TISCH, B.A., M.A. .......................................................................................... New York
GERALDINE D. CHAPEY, B.A., M.A., Ed.D. ..................................................................... Belle Harbor
ARNOLD B. GARDNER, B.A., LL.B. ................................................................................... Buffalo
HARRY PHILLIPS, 3rd, B.A., M.S.F.S. ............................................................................... Hartsdale
JOSEPH E. BOWMAN, JR., B.A., M.L.S., M.A., M.Ed., Ed.D. .......................................... Albany
LORRAINE A. CORTÉS-VÁZQUEZ, B.A., M.P.A. ............................................................... Bronx
JAMES R. TALLON, JR., B.A., M.A. .................................................................................... Binghamton
MILTON L. COFIELD, B.S., M.B.A., Ph.D. ........................................................................ Rochester
JOHN BRADEMAS, B.A., Ph.D. ........................................................................................... New York
ROGER B. TILLES, B.A., J.D. .............................................................................................. Great Neck

President of The University and Commissioner of Education

RICHARD P. MILLS

Deputy Commissioner for Office of Operations and Management Services

THERESA E. SAVO

Director, Office of Governmental Relations

DIANA M. HINCHCLIFF

Federal Relations Representative

CYNTHIA R. WOODSIDE

The State Education Department does not discriminate on the basis of age, color, religion, creed, disability, marital status, veteran status, national origin, race, gender, genetic predisposition or carrier status, or sexual orientation in its educational programs, services and activities. Inquiries concerning this policy of nondiscrimination should be directed to the Department’s Office for Diversity, Ethics, and Access, Room 530, Education Building, Albany, NY 12234. This publication is available on the State Education Department website, www.oms.nysed.gov/legcoord. This publication can be made available in a variety of formats, including Braille, large print or audio tape. Call 518-486-5644.

Table of Contents

Page
Introduction ..................................................................................................... 1
No Child Left Behind Act .................................................................................. 5
Workforce Investment Act: An Overview ............................................................ 8
a) Workforce Investment Act, Title I .................................................................. 9
b) Adult Education and Family Literacy Act, Title II ............................................ 11
c) Vocational Rehabilitation Act, Title IV ......................................................... 12
Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act ..................................... 14
Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act ...................... 16
Higher Education Act ...................................................................................... 19
Early Childhood Education ............................................................................. 22
Information and Cultural Resources .................................................................. 24

Introduction

The Board of Regents, the University of the State of New York and the New York State Education Department

Established by the New York state legislature in 1784, the Regents of the University of the State of New York form the oldest, continuous state education entity in America. The Regents are responsible for the general supervision of all educational activities within the state, including presiding over the New York State Education Department. The mission of the State Education Department is to raise the knowledge, skill and opportunity of all the people in New York.

The University of the State of New York (USNY) is the nation’s most comprehensive and unified educational system encompassing all the institutions, public and private, that offer education in the state. It consists of the State Education Department as well as all elementary, secondary and postsecondary educational institutions, libraries, museums, public broadcasting, records and archives, professions and vocational and educational services for individuals with disabilities.

The Regents identified six goals for lifelong education, encompassing infancy through senior years:

• Every child will get a good start.

• Every child will read by the second grade.

• Every student will complete middle level education ready for high school.

• Every student will graduate from high school ready for work , higher education and citizenship.

• People who begin higher education will complete their programs.

• People of all ages who seek more knowledge and skill will have the fullest opportunity to continue their education.

These goals require the partnership and collaboration of all the USNY members. They also call for a new view of federal funding—as a linked continuum of support for each person throughout their life.

The Regents of the University of the State of New York form the oldest, continuous state education entity in America.

Importance of the Federal Role

The Regents believe that the federal government has a historically defined role in education that should be maintained and coordinated with state and local activities. Education is a state responsibility and a local operating function, with most funding properly coming from state and local sources. Federal funding should be a supplement directed toward specific needs, particularly to pursue equity and access.

While federal funds comprise a relatively small proportion of total education spending, they are pivotal and important resources to support the nation’s learning system. Federal programs should serve special population groups such as the economically and educationally disadvantaged, people with disabilities, the gifted and talented, persons needing occupational education and students in high cost graduate or professional programs who are being trained for a national market. Federal programs also should recognize the pivotal role that state education agencies play in all facets of education nationwide, respect the rights of states and localities to design and manage education systems within their jurisdictions according to their own constitution or statute and provide adequate funding for administrative tasks that states and localities must complete to meet federal statutory requirements.

Federal Legislation and Education in New York State 2006, the State Education Department’s federal agenda, outlines the Regents legislative priorities for the second session of the 109^thCongress. Its focus is on laws due for reauthorization and includes recommendations for statutory amendments to other laws to effect improved programs and services. For more information contact the State Education Department, Office of Governmental Relations at 202-659-1947 (Washington, DC) or 518-486-5644 (Albany, NY).

The 108th Congress

Congress approved and President Bush signed into law legislation that reauthorized the federal child nutrition programs. The new law makes nutritious meals and snacks available to more children in school and in programs outside of school and in childcare, and will improve the quality of food in schools. The New York State Education Department supported expanding the Lugar pilot program for summer food programs, which Congress included.

Congress also reauthorized the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

The House and Senate passed legislation to reauthorize the Workforce Investment Act, which includes the Rehabilitation Act and the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act. The bills did not go to conference.

Both chambers attempted to come to agreement on reauthorization of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, the welfare reform law enacted in 1996. Congress extended the law until March 2005.

Bills were introduced in the House and Senate to reauthorize the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act but the Senate was unable to bring its bill to the floor and the legislation died.

Work on reauthorizing the Higher Education Act began in earnest in 2004 but with little progress. The House introduced and passed several bills that would affect various programs under the law. The Senate held hearings but did not act on any legislation.

Education Funding in Federal Fiscal Year 2005

The 108^thCongress passed government-wide $388.4 billion omnibus spending legislation, which included $56.6 billion for the Department of Education, a $944 million increase over FY 2004. This was significantly less than the Bush administration’s request and the levels set in House and Senate bills passed earlier. All non-defense programs except homeland security took a 0.83 percent across-the-board cut.

Title I and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act received significant increases but ultimately were funded at levels lower than in earlier House and Senate bills. Limiting the increases to these programs allowed Congress to restore funding to several programs that were slated for elimination, including Title V of the No Child Left Behind Act, which provides grants to states for innovative education programs. Title V was funded at $200 million, $97 million less than in FY 2004.

Higher education was funded at $2.13 billion, up from $2.09 billion in FY 2004. Pell grants received a small increase from $12 billion to $12.4 billion, with the maximum grant amount frozen at $4,050.

The National Endowment for the Arts was funded at $123 million, $2 million more than last year’s level. The National Endowment for the Humanities was funded at $140 million: $5 million more than the FY 2004 level.

The 109th Congress: First Session

The House and Senate passed Workforce Investment Act reauthorization legislation but the bills did not go to conference.

The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act was considered in both the House and Senate committees but did not reach the floor of either chamber. Congress extended the law until September 2005 and the measure was included subsequently in the House budget reconciliation package.

President Bush’s fiscal year 2006 budget request proposed eliminating Perkins programs; however, the House and Senate committees and chambers passed reauthorization bills. A House-Senate conference was not held.

After several years of efforts to reauthorize the Higher Education Act, little progress was made in this first session. The House introduced and passed several bills that would affect various programs under the law. The Senate held hearings and the measure passed in committee; however, it did not reach the Senate floor. Congress extended the law and the House and Senate included the measure in the budget reconciliation package. The bill probably will be reconsidered in the next session.

Head Start child development reauthorizing legislation was considered in House and Senate committees and passed in the House chamber. However, the Senate companion bill did not reach the chamber for consideration.

Purpose of the No Child Left Behind Act

The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) mandates educational standards and holds states, school districts and schools accountable for the performance of all students. While NCLB is not due for reauthorization until the 110^thCongress, the 109^thCongress should address allocation of Title I funds and accountability requirements.

Title I. Title I provides aid to improve academic achievement for disadvantaged students. Funding allocations are made according to census data. While New York will receive an overall minimal increase in its state allocation for fiscal year 2006-2007, 10 percent of the school districts in the state will lose funding, including New York City, the largest and neediest, and 75 other districts, some of which are in small cities and rural areas, according to U.S. Education Department preliminary information released on December 16, 2005.

Accountability. The New York State Board of Regents and the State Education Department have historically required accountability and are strong supporters of NCLB’s requirements. The mandate that schools demonstrate adequate yearly progress (AYP) toward meeting the law’s education standards for each of several discrete subgroups of students (economically disadvantaged, major racial and ethnic groups, students with disabilities and students with limited English proficiency) creates differentiated challenges for schools and sometimes results in an inaccurate picture of true performance. For example, urban schools and districts that must demonstrate progress for large numbers of disaggregated subgroups can show gains in performance but still fail to meet AYP goals. Furthermore, the current accountability requirements do not appropriately assess the progress schools and districts are making with students with disabilities.

The New York State Board of Regents and the State Education Department have historically required accountability and are strong supporters of NCLB’s requirements.

Regents Priorities

1. Extend hold harmless. Extend the four-year grandfather provision to the basic, targeted and education finance improvement funding grants (concentrated grants are grandfathered) to allow school districts to adjust to future reductions in funding for these essential programs.

2. Allow longitudinal data to be used to demonstrate adequate yearly progress. NCLB Section 1111(b)(3)(B) permits longitudinal data in a state accountability system but not as a way to demonstrate AYP. Use of longitudinal data for the annual grade 3-8 testing that goes into effect with the 200506 school year will enable schools and districts to demonstrate success in closing the achievement gap by measuring the aggregate change in performance of individual students over time. Districts and schools could use this data as an alternate means to achieve safe harbor. The U.S. Education Department’s initiative to pilot growth models in 10 states is a step in the right direction (a growth model tracks the progress of individual students over time.) However, some of the conditions required for approval may limit its effectiveness. Building on these pilots, states should be permitted to use longitudinal data as an alternate means to give schools and districts credit for achieving safe harbor.

3. Provide a flexible definition of highly qualified special education teacher. States should have the discretion to allow special education teachers and rural teachers who are highly qualified in one subject to teach other subjects when working in consultation with another teacher who is highly qualified in that subject. This would provide increased flexibility in staffing special education classes and maintain the consultation teacher model.

4. Create accountability measures that truly assess the achievement of students with disabilities. NCLB does not take into account the range of instructional levels and abilities of students with disabilities. NCLB recognizes that there is a small group of students (1 percent of the total population tested) with “significant cognitive disabilities” who can be counted as proficient on an alternate assessment based on alternate achievement standards. Recently proposed U.S. Education Department regulations would take into account another small group of students with disabilities (2 percent of the total population) who may take an assessment based on modified standards that reduce the breadth and depth of material at the same grade level while not precluding the student from getting a regular diploma. New York applauds the effort to allow certain special education students to be measured using modified standards and assessments. However, an alternate assessment for 1percent of the population and an assessment based on modified standards for 2 percent of the population still does not take into account that within the 2 percent there is a sub-group of students with significant cognitive disabilities (e.g., those with mild mental retardation) who are not able to meet grade/age level expectations even with appropriate instructional programs and supports. It is not reasonable to expect these students to learn at the same rate or to learn the same level of content as their non-disabled peers. Nor is it reasonable to penalize schools that cannot meet NCLB adequate yearly progress (AYP) mandates due to the disparity in special education students’ learning abilities. Therefore, NCLB should be amended to recognize student results on assessments that measure performance toward modified state standards at the student’s appropriate instructional grade level for determining AYP. Achieving proficiency on these modified standards may not lead to a regular high school diploma, especially in states like New York where there is a commitment to very rigorous general education standards for students. Funding should be provided to help states that wish to develop these assessments or modify their existing assessments.

5. Allow students with disabilities who need more than five years to graduate to be counted as graduates. Some students with disabilities need more than the standard four years to achieve the learning standards and meet graduation requirements for a regular high school diploma. In calculating Adequate Yearly Progress in state plans, allow the determination of graduation rates to include students with disabilities who graduate from a secondary school with a regular diploma within the number of years established by their Individualized Education Program (IEP) team.

Over the next 20 years, the number of workers with postsecondary skills is projected to grow only 19 percent compared to a 138 percent increase from 1980 to 2000.

Workforce Investment Act: An Overview

Context for Federal Investment in Workforce Preparation

Our nation’s workforce competitiveness is tied directly to the skills, knowledge, credentials and supports that the education and vocational rehabilitation system provides. The Workforce Investment Act, enacted in 1998, recognized the need to connect the parts of the education system that address out-of-school youth and adults (vocational rehabilitation, adult education and family literacy, Perkins postsecondary vocational and technical education) with workforce development. Changes in the economy since 1998 have created new reauthorization challenges.

Increasingly some postsecondary education is required for living wage employment and careers. Over the next 20 years, the number of workers with postsecondary skills is projected to grow only 19 percent compared to a 138 percent increase from 1980 to 2000. Workers with postsecondary credentials are more likely to be employed than those with a high school education or less. This is especially true for African Americans and women. In 2000, 87.8 percent of workers with a college degree were employed, a 12 percent higher employment rate than for those with just a high school diploma and a 40 percent higher employment rate than for those with less than a high school education.

As globalization accelerates, the unskilled American worker is at a distinct disadvantage and more likely to be trapped in poverty. Not only are workers with postsecondary skills more likely to be employed in a knowledge economy, they are better buffered from job loss due to global competition. A national study of unemployment trends between 1996 and 1999 found that those with less than a high school education were unemployed 47 percent longer than college educated workers and those with only a high school diploma were unemployed almost 23.5 percent longer than those with at least some college (Built to Last: Why Skills Matter for Long-Run Success in Welfare Reform, Karen Martinson and Julie Strawn, April 2003).

U.S. prosperity depends on a skilled workforce and proactive support and organization for innovation. A higher skilled workforce is only the baseline requirement for global competitiveness. The bar for skills is rising, a result of competition from lower wages but increasingly better educated workers overseas and the demands of rapid technological change at home. Responding to global competition requires integrating workforce development and education with economic development efforts to support innovation.

Mohammad and Farida Younus spoke three languages when they arrived from Pakistan but English was not one of them. Their youngest daughter Nazish is in kindergarten. Farida: “I knew no English when I came here not even ‘how are you?’ I took citizenship classes and I passed citizenship. Now I take regular classes in reading and writing.” Mohammad: “Reading and speaking English is very important in the United States. It helps you find a good job. I found a good construction job. I read blueprints. I understand directions. Before somebody would speak to me in English but I didn’t know English. Now, they show me the address and I drive the company truck all over four boroughs. I read the street signs; I check the maps. “ Farida: “Nazish is going to Public School 7. She wants to be a doctor. Before I couldn’t fill out the forms, I didn’t know the ABCs. Now I help my daughter with her homework. Before, I cried when a letter came home with my child. Who will help me read this? Now I’m proud of myself; I can read the letter. Now I’m a citizen; this is my country. If I don’t know English, how can I help my country? How can I help my children?”

Adult Education in
Action in New York

Workforce Investment Act, Title I

Purpose of Title I of the Workforce Investment Act

Title I requires that each of nearly 600 local workforce investment areas in the nation develop and administer a one-stop delivery system. Federal adult education, vocational rehabilitation and postsecondary vocational and technical education programs administered by the State Education Department are mandatory partners in every local workforce investment area and expected to contribute to the shared costs of one-stop delivery centers.

The New York state commissioner of education is a permanent statutory member of the State Workforce Investment Board. At the local level, district managers from the education department’s Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities sit on each of the state’s 33 local workforce investment boards as do agency-designated representatives from funded adult education and family literacy programs.

Regents Priorities

1. Provide line item funding for one-stop delivery centers. Create a discrete funding appropriation to pay for one-stop delivery centers without diverting essential state administrative dollars from other programs. If this is not possible where such authority is constitutionally separate from the governor, as in New York, authorize the chief officer of the state policy-making entity constitutionally responsible for the administration of adult education and family literacy, vocational rehabilitation and postsecondary Perkins vocational and technical education programs to receive and distribute funding.

2. Maintain representation by key education and vocational rehabilitation partners designated by the state education agency on local workforce investment boards. Representatives can connect Workforce Investment Act planning and system-building with the educational and vocational rehabilitation system.

3. Support youth councils, maintain the balance between in-school and out-of-school youth programming and simplify the eligibility determination. Either maintain current requirements for youth councils or provide state workforce investment boards with authority to determine whether and how to establish youth councils. Enable up to 70 percent of funds to be used for in-school youth and 30 percent for out-of-school youth. Either maintain this split or empower state workforce investment boards to determine the appropriate percentage. Allow programs to use school lunch eligibility as a proxy.

4. Support postsecondary skills for youth and adults. Connect all programming to postsecondary study so youth and adults obtain the education, credentials and supports needed for living wage employment. Expand support for Individual Training Accounts, critical to American competitiveness.

Adult Education in Action in New York

Rosa Veloz, 25, was born in the Dominican Republic and lived in Spain before coming to New York three years ago. After less than two years in the GED program at Highbridge Community Life Center, she is now a student at Hostos Community College preparing for a career in law.

Adult Education and Family Literacy Act in New York State

Federal funds are combined with over $100 million in state discretionary grant and state aid funds for adult education and family literacy administered by the State Education Department to support approximately 260 programs serving over 140,000 students annually. New York’s system is the most diverse in the country and includes school districts, Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES), public and private postsecondary institutions, community-based organizations, literacy volunteer organizations, unions and library systems.

Regents Priorities

1. Support health literacy. Create a 5 percent set-aside and expand appropriations to help adults who cannot understand English at least at a high school level obtain and understand the basic information and services they need to make appropriate health decisions.

2. Reward good performance. Target incentive grant funds to states with high performing adult education programs that display exemplary performance in meeting or exceeding core performance indicators in the National Reporting System.

3. Expand state leadership funding. Raise the ceiling for state leadership activities from 12.5 percent to 15 percent to support staff development, state coordination with multiple agencies, expanded use of distance learning and technology, development and assessment of research-based instruction and program development and technical assistance targeted to raising performance and accountability.

4. Keep the current maintenance of effort requirements. This is important to New York, which uses a contact hour-based state aid formula to provide support.

Federal and state funds support 260 programs and over 140,000 students.

VESID and its network of community rehabilitation providers serve more than 60,000 individuals and place over 15,000 people into employment each year.

Vocational Rehabilitation Act in New York State

The State Education Department’s Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID) is the designated state entity for vocational rehabilitation and independent living services. VESID local managers participate on all 33 local workforce investment boards. VESID staff is involved in the over 70 one-stop delivery centers in the state. VESID and its network of community rehabilitation providers serve more than 60,000 individuals and place over 15,000 people into employment each year.

Regents Priorities

1. Close the employment gap. Establish a funding formula for vocational rehabilitation that ensures adequate support for increased service demand and the need to achieve quality employment outcomes. The formula must address the inequities in the current formula by ensuring that no state receives less than a cost of living increase when the total national appropriation increases.

2. Increase emphasis on transition services for youth. Improve transition services without prioritizing students with disabilities over other eligible individuals. Establish a dedicated funding source for transition services reflecting a formula that supports the cost of staff and services required to provide effective transition to post-school employment.

3. Provide more support for independent living. Increase the appropriation for the Independent Living Services program based on the Consumer Price Index to meet emerging service demands, particularly those related to the Supreme Court’s Olmstead Decision and the executive order for federal agencies to review their programs and practices in light of this decision.

Vocational Rehabilitation Funding in Action

“This is the first time I’ve had a job with benefits!” said Richard Dieu, a data entry operator at Quest Diagnostic Labin Syosset, Long Island. He is deaf. Mr. Dieu spent years working at low paying, part-time or temporary supermarket positions because that was all he could get. VESID provided him with computer skills training, placement assistance and interpreter services while he learned his new job. Quest HR Associates says of Mr. Dieu, “He has great attendance andproductivity. Someone’s life depends on this work. It’s a tough job.”

Marty Lewis had a long history of short-term, dead end jobs when he came to VESID. In recovery, Marty also has a permanent injury to one hand and he has had a heart attack. Labor market information indicated that Marty’s dream of becoming a welder was practical and together VESID and Marty started the process. He successfully completed a stick-welding program. VESID and the Buffalo one-stop center assisted in placement efforts. Marty entered their on workers Local #6 apprenticeship program. VESID bought his tools and equipment and paid his union dues. He is now a proud union welder at the federal building being built in downtown Buffalo.

Richard Sicignano loves science. And he loves making other people love it too. He was a geologist until a motor vehicle accident left him a C7 quadriplegic. He now uses a wheelchair and has limited upper torso and arm strength. VESID modified his van so he could work at a part-time job while recovering. Richard really wanted to get back into science and with VESID’s assistance he got his master’s degree in education. He had several job offers and elected to teach earth science and environmental science at Ossining High School. He is earning over $54,000 a year.

32% of all secondary diplomas and 30% of all postsecondary degrees and certificates at less than the baccalaureate level are career and technical education credentials.

Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical
Education Act

Funding for Perkins Vocational Education in New York State

FY 2003		FY 2004	FY 2005
Total State	$60,030,031	$59,438,959	$60,087,553
Basic Grants	$54,501,607	$54,088,791	$54,794,919
Tech Prep Grants	$5,528,424	$5,350,168	$5,292,634

Purpose of the Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act

Perkins is a significant assist to the overall goal of creating a workforce preparation system that can strengthen this nation’s ability to face the challenges of today’s and tomorrow’s world economy. The federal government has a vital interest in the quality and availability of career and technical education (CTE), not only to address the workforce needs of the 21^stcentury but because CTE brings relevance to learning. From middle and secondary students who want to know why they need to learn math, science and other core academics to postsecondary students seeking employment skills, CTE helps educators at every level achieve education reform goals.

A strong financial investment by the federal government is necessary to maintain quality CTE programs. While New York State invests heavily in CTE programs, federal Perkins funds allow programs to innovate and improve program quality. This has continued even though CTE has shared little in the overall increase in education funding.

Perkins in New York State

The State Education Department administers the Perkins Act and provides quality, relevant and rigorous CTE programs in schools, Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) and postsecondary institutions as a first choice option for students to achieve state performance standards. Perkins funds both secondary and postsecondary programs. Thirty-two percent of all secondary diplomas and 30 percent of all postsecondary degrees and certificates earned at less than the baccalaureate level are CTE credentials.

Even prior to the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act, New York had made great strides in raising academic standards for all students. That progress continues at the secondary level with Perkins funding, providing opportunities for students to achieve high academic standards. In the 2005-2006 academic year, the State Education Department awarded $36.2 million to 79 education programs to support approximately 325,000 students, including the seven special population categories: disabled; economically disadvantaged; individuals preparing for non-traditional careers; single parents; displaced homemakers; educationally disadvantaged; and individuals with limited English proficiency. Recent data shows that 70 percent of students served by Perkins funds were members of one or more of these special populations.

At the postsecondary level, Perkins funds support a wide range of innovative activities that not only enable students to reach their career goals but also provide a smooth transition from the secondary to the postsecondary levels. In the 2005-2006 academic year, the State Education Department awarded $28.9 million to 62 education programs to support 200,000 students. Recent data shows that 80 percent of students served by Perkins funds were members of one or more special populations.

Regents Priorities

1. Do not include CTE funding as part of an education block grant. Target Perkins funds to struggling students to help them achieve high academic standards.

2. State education agencies must continue to be the administrative entities for CTE funds.

3. Provide separate funding for secondary and postsecondary CTE. CTE remains an important strategy for ensuring academic success for many students across the K-16 system. Maintaining two funding formulas ensures that appropriate resources are made available at all levels.

In 2005-06, the State Education Department awarded a total of $65.1 million to 141 education programs to support approximately 525,000 secondary and postsecondary students.

In federal fiscal year 2002, the State Education Department’s Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities served over 5,000 TANF eligible individuals, including placing 864 persons with disabilities in jobs.

Personal Responsibility and Work
Opportunity Reconciliation Act

Purpose of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act

This 1996 law overhauled the nation’s welfare system and created the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant, which provides basic funding for states to implement federal welfare reform. TANF requires that most participants work and gives states unprecedented flexibility to help low-income parents, including the working poor, move into employment.

Welfare Reform in New York State

The State Education Department has a strong partnership with the New York State Department of Labor that connects funds from a variety of resources with TANF to create opportunities for the most vulnerable New Yorkers, including public assistance recipients and working poor individuals in families with incomes up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level.

Education for Gainful Employment (EDGE) is one of the largest work-based education programs in the country, serving TANF eligible public assistance recipients and working poor adults over age 21 who lack basic skills, English language proficiency or a high school diploma or the equivalent.

Local Interagency/VESID Employment Services (LIVES) helps family assistance recipients with disabilities obtain employment services, training and job placement. In federal fiscal year 2002, the State Education Department’s Office of Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID) served over 5,000 TANF eligible individuals, including placing 864 persons with disabilities in jobs.

Regents Priorities

1. Help TANF recipients prepare for economic self-sufficiency and preserve flexibility to help working poor adults retain and upgrade employment. TANF funding must more effectively prepare public assistance recipients obtain and advance in employment not only to leave public assistance but also to help them out of poverty.

2. Oppose “super waivers” that divert funds from education. The New York State Education Department is unusual among the states in that it is not an Executive agency. Rather, the state’s constitution created a board of regents appointed by the legislature that is responsible for the general supervision of all educational activities in the state, including presiding over the State Education Department. Such a super waiver would not allow the necessary flow of funds from the state legislature to the education department.

3. Support access to work-based education and English for Speakers of Other Languages instruction combined with career planning and work readiness skills and preparation for a high school diploma or the equivalent. The failure to address this critical skills gap is a “ticking time bomb,” according to research expert Anthony Carnevale from the National Center on Education and the Economy (Standards for What? The Economic Roots of K-16 Reform, Anthony P. Carnevale and Donna M. Desrochers, 2003).

4. Expand the definition of vocational education to include postsecondary education and enable recipients to receive more than twelve months of support. Identify and support innovative career and technical education programs that combine solid academics with preparation for good-paying jobs. Postsecondary education can increase low skilled workers’ earnings exponentially, putting their families on the road to self-sufficiency. Federal law must enable teens to finish school and obtain postsecondary skills.

Welfare Reform in Action in New York State

Auther Chin, a public assistance recipient, entered the Mt. Vernon School District’s EDGE program in July 2002.EDGE combines academic instruction with preparation for a heating/ventilating/air conditioning/refrigeration(HVACR) career. During his 10-monthprogram, Auther steadily raised his academic skills, participated in two internships with a local HVACR contractor and completed the requirements for an entry-level position as an HVACR mechanic’s assistant. Upon completing the program, Auther was employed by the same local contractor that had provided the internship. He has remained regularly employed, receiving promotions and raises that are bringing his family into the middle class.

Chewulue Boway arrived in Rochester on September 16, 2003 with his wife and four younger children. They had fled their native Liberia to an Ivory Coast refugee camp during the civil war. Their home was burned and they became separated from their older children in the midst of war zone confusion. The Refugee Resettlement Department of the Catholic Family Center of Rochester sponsored their move from Ivory Coast to Rochester. A port inspector with a high school education, Mr. Boway enrolled at the Rochester City School District’s Family Learning Center. He studied computers and advanced English for six months until he found a maintenance job at the Jewish Home of Rochester in May 2004. He is pursuing advanced technical work. Through EDGE he found employment and is beginning a career. His public assistance was reduced from $1,100 to $300 per month. He plans to become a citizen, reunite with his whole family and leave public assistance.

Jamarr entered the Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection in 1999. This program is designed to help inner-city youth stay in school, achieve academic success and earn a high school diploma. Hillside Work-Scholarship Connection has a web of services and support to help students develop the habits, acquire the skills and demonstrate the desire to become contributing, responsible young people at home, in school, at work and in the community. When Jamarr began, he was performing below grade level and lacked a positive role model. At home, Jamarr took on the role of an adult, helping his ill parent raise four younger siblings and maintain household stability. As a result of program support, he was an honor roll student throughout his high school career and was graduated with distinction from the Rochester City School District in 2002.Today, Jamarr is a front-end coordinator at Wegmans Food Markets and is working on his bachelor’s degree at Roberts Wesleyan College.

Higher Education Act

Selected funding for the Higher Education Act in New York State

FY 2003		FY 2004	FY 2005
Pell Grants	$1,025,300,000	$1,051,400,000	$1,027,300,000
Perkins Loans –
Capital Contributions	$9,765,915	$9,708,312	0
Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants	$72,966,627	$73,967,722	$74,761,205
Federal Work Study	$108,221,095	$107,582,550	$106,694,201
Leveraging Educational Assistance Partnership	$5,623,123	$5,589,164	$5,545,239
Byrd Honors Scholarships	$2,587,500	$2,532,000	$2,526,000

Purpose of the Higher Education Act

The Higher Education Act (HEA) supports states’ efforts to extend educational opportunity and maintain a highly skilled workforce and citizenry. It funds: student financial assistance; early outreach and student services; teacher quality

development; and strengthening postsecondary institutions and the workforce.

Higher Education Act in New York State

Each year New York’s 271 degree-granting public, independent and proprietary institutions and 356 non-degree postsecondary vocational schools serve over a million undergraduate, graduate and first-professional students. In 2003-2004, these students borrowed over $3.6 billion from HEA loan programs and received over $1.1 billion in HEA grants and work-study wages. Pell grants went to over 385,000 undergraduates—approximately 1 of every 3 at four-year colleges and

universities and 1 of every 2 at two-year colleges. New York has higher rates of college participation and completion than most other states. But, family income is not keeping pace with rising tuition prices, so Pell grants and federal loans cover a shrinking share of college costs and students rely increasingly on high-cost, private loans.

HEA’s Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Program (GEAR UP) serves youth who would not otherwise prepare for high school graduation and college study. In federal fiscal year 2005, New York received $7.6 million from GEAR UP for statewide and partnership projects. The HEA’s TRIO programs in New York help low-income and at-risk youth prepare for and succeed in undergraduate and graduate study. But TRIO and GEAR UP do not reach all eligible students.

The HEA’s Title II teacher quality programs help teachers meet state and federal standards for preparation, certification, induction and professional development and help schools recruit highly qualified teachers. Teachers in high poverty schools and teachers of shortage subjects such as math and science rely on Title IV loan forgiveness.

In 2003, New York students borrowed over $3.6 billion from HEA loan programs and received over $1.2

billion in federal grants and work-study wages. Regents Priorities

1. Make college accessible for all. Title IV programs should be strengthened. Increase the maximum Pell grant to help low-income students go to college. Pell grants should: provide an enhancement of up to $750 for students with negative expected family contributions; be available for year-round study at all institutions; be reduced, when shortfalls occur, only with Congress’ approval; and not be limited to a four-year period after the first award so that students who enroll part-time and receive prorated awards can complete their studies. Maintain Family Education Loans, Direct Student Loans and loan consolidation. Raise annual and aggregate limits for subsidized loans for all undergraduate, graduate and first professional students. Raise authorizations for the Leveraging Educational Assistance Program (LEAP) to support need-based state grant programs such as New York’s Tuition Assistance Program (TAP). Continue Title IV campus-based programs. Streamline the student aid delivery system to enable students to use a state-specific, online application for both federal and state aid. Raise authorization levels for GEAR UP and TRIO to serve more eligible low-income and first-generation college students.

2. Support public school teachers, librarians and school leaders. Title II should support states and institutions of higher education that help public schools prepare, recruit and retain highly qualified teachers, professional librarians and school leaders. Title IV loan forgiveness programs should be extended and amounts forgiven should be increased. Title VII graduate education programs should be aligned with Title II to address serious shortages of qualified teacher educators and enhance the qualifications of teachers in such hard-to-staff areas as mathematics, the sciences, special education and bilingual education.

3. Expand higher education access for students with disabilities. Students with disabilities are increasingly seeking postsecondary education. HEA Title IV early intervention and student assistance programs should address their needs and institutions of higher education should receive support for making reasonable accommodations.

4. Strengthen higher education’s capacity to serve students. Enable the National Center for Education Statistics to create a national, student-level system to track individual student progress and completion across postsecondary institutions and states. Reduce reimbursements that colleges must make to the federal government when students withdraw so that colleges have the resources they need to provide services to students without the threat of losing them. Maintain a limited federal role in tuition policy.

^{In 2003-04, over
385,000 students received Pell Grants.}

HEA in Action in New York State

New York State’s HEA Teacher Quality Enhancement Grant supports New York’s Teacher Recruitment Project. The project has enabled independent colleges and universities to place approximately 750 new teachers in New York City public schools in the past two years through the Teaching Fellows Program. Without HEA funds, these colleges and universities would not be able to help New York City meet its need for teachers in hard-to-staff subjects and schools.

Quality early childhood education has been correlated with positive development of language and mathematics skills in young children and subsequent success in academic performance.

Early Childhood Education Programs in New York

New York has been viewed as a national leader in its implementation of universal prekindergarten. When New York’s statute was enacted in 1997, fewer than 10 states had similar programs. Forty-six states now have some type of prekindergarten program. As a nation, we are moving toward an educational system that includes three and four-year olds.

Regents Priorities

1. Provide universal access to prekindergarten. All four-year-olds, regardless of economic and social background, can benefit from an early start. Universally available prekindergarten ensures they have opportunities for quality early education experiences that result in enhanced readiness and greater potential for future academic success. Disadvantaged, low-income and other at-risk children especially need extra help to prepare them for general education.

2. Ensure an available and qualified workforce. Require that early education programs, regardless of location and sponsorship, be staffed by certified teachers whose preparation has included instruction relevant to the education of very young children (birth through age 5).

3. Provide early literacy instruction. Align early literacy instruction with states’ Reading First initiatives, ensuring that educational institutions have strong collaboration from other service providers.

4. Create continuity of education. Align all components of early education programs, from child-focused practice to scientifically based reading initiatives, with the kindergarten and early elementary programs that children will be entering. Continuity between prekindergarten and kindergarten is especially important. Provide adequate funding for full day programming.

5. Meet the needs of families. Ensure collaboration between childcare and early education programs in ways that respond to the varied and multiple employment and care needs of students’ families.

6. Allow flexibility to build on current efforts. This flexibility should include the authority for states to decide where the administration of the prekindergarten and early education programs will reside. Ensure that when states place the administration in other than the state education agency there are strong links between the state and local education agencies and the entities providing prekindergarten and early education programs. Extend flexibility to funding options. Allow states continued options to contract for services within the full continuum of the early education and care service delivery system.

7. Provide adequate funding. Funding must be sufficient to support and sustain the implementation and expansion of quality programs. The funding must be predictable, thus allowing program administrators to engage in long-term, realistic and meaningful planning.

8. Align requirements for standards, curriculum, assessment and data reporting.

As a nation, we are moving toward an educational system that includes three and four-year olds.

New York has successfully established a state funded prekindergarten program. One hundred ninety-three districts throughout the state have implemented prekindergarten programs. The state has designed a program that flows funds through school districts and requires funded collaboration with community-based providers and that all teachers regardless of setting meet teacher education certification requirements.

Improved scores on statewide testing, increased curriculum alignment regardless of setting, improved quality of instruction in community-based programs and shared professional development among collaborative providers are evidence of success. Additionally, the prekindergarten programs have been ideal settings for integrating preschool children with special needs. A longitudinal study by the Rochester Children’s Project found that prekindergarten programs closed the achievement gap for four year-olds.

Early Childhood Education in New York State Millions of books, serials, manuscripts, archives and other documents residing in New York state libraries, historical societies, museums and other repositories are at risk due to their physical instability, poor storage environment, use and exposure to disasters.

Information and Cultural Education Programs in New York State

The Museum and Library Services Act, reauthorized in 2003, is composed of the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA), Museum Services Act competitive grants and librarian recruitment. The LSTA provides formula grants to the states and competitive grants for advancing technology and networking services, digitization and other leadership, research and collaborative projects. The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) offers national competitive grants for recruiting librarians. Six library organizations received grants totaling $2.1 million in 2005 under the Laura Bush 21^stCentury Librarian Program. In addition, IMLS supports the education and training of persons in library and information science, particularly in areas of new technology and other critical needs, including graduate fellowships, institutes, or other programs.

The 34-year-old Corporation for Public Broadcasting is being transformed through the transition to digital television. Stations are migrating to digital broadcasting on a schedule mandated by the Federal Communications Commission. The public broadcasting system is implementing the extraordinary promise of emerging digital technologies while addressing the daunting challenge of funding them.

Libraries, museums and archives receive support from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) for research, education, preservation and public programs. We The People is a two-year old NEH initiative to encourage and strengthen the teaching, study and understanding of American history, culture and civics. Millions of books, serials, manuscripts, archives and other documents residing in New York state libraries, historical societies, museums and other repositories are at risk due to their physical instability, poor storage environment, use and exposure to disasters. New York institutions receive over $2 million a year in state funds to preserve and make their collections accessible. Many use these funds to leverage federal monies for preservation efforts.

The New York State Archives has received more federal support than any other archives in the nation. The Save America’s Treasures program preserves nationally significant intellectual and cultural artifacts and historic structures and sites. Since its inception in 1998, the New York State Archives has been awarded three grants for conservation treatment of the Dutch Colonial manuscripts, the Native American treaties and land papers, and papers related to the American Revolution and early espionage. Within the National Archives, National Historical Publications and Records Commission support has been the main source of funding for statewide strategic planning for New York’s historical records.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) funds science research and education programs. The State Museum has a long history of NSF funding for research and collections projects. NSF’s role in funding scientific research is a critical component of a healthy scientific community in New York.

Since its inception in 1998, the New York State Archives has been awarded three grants for conservation treatment of the Dutch Colonial manuscripts, the Native American treaties and land papers and papers related to the American Revolution and early espionage.

Regents Priorities

1. Reauthorize the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) to continue the digital conversion mandate. Harnessing the greatly expanded capacity of public broadcasting to support educational programming at all levels requires a strong CPB with predictable and consistent funding.

2. Continue and strengthen the U.S. Education Department’s Teaching American History Grant Program, the multi-agency’s Save America’s Treasures Program and the NEH “We the People” initiative. Many studies have indicated a dismal lack of knowledge about American history among students and the need for a firm grasp on American history and government in order to function responsibly in our democracy.

3. Fund the Library Services and Technology Act at its full authorization level to allow more libraries to improve their services to underserved communities and implement new technologies.

4. Fund the National Historical Publications and Records Commission at its full authorization level. NHPRC, the grant-making arm of the National Archives, provides critical funds that greatly expand the capacity of the State Archives and over 50 partner institutions to make historical records accessible for use by teachers, students, academics, government officials, business and legal researchers and others with a host of historical information needs.

Library Services Technology Act Funding in Action in New York State

• State-of-the-art library services come right to families in rural south central New York thanks to the Four County Library System’s Cybermobile. The bookmobile has a 100 percent satellite linked computer system through which residents can access the Internet and a regional library catalog without having to go to the library.

• Children of at-risk parents in central New York will have a brighter future, thanks to the Babies First program of the Mohawk Valley Library System. The program helped parents learn the importance of reading to babies from birth through books and other materials from health care providers. Parents were encouraged to use the library for information on parenting and early education.

National Historical Publications and Records Commission Funding in Action in New York State

Because of NHPRC…

FY 2003		FY 2004	FY2005
Adult Education
State Grants	$32,784,491	$33,307,381	$33,044,635

FY 2003		FY 2004	FY 2005
Vocational Rehabilitation
State Grants	$132,279,506	$135,187,045	$135,116,950