Education Department, State

Agency Web Site: http://www.nysed.gov/

Mission

The State Education Department (SED) is the administrative agency of the Board of Regents. The Department's primary mission is to raise the knowledge, skill, and opportunity level of all the people in New York.

Organization and Staffing

The Board of Regents oversees the State Education Department, which was originally established by the Legislature in 1784 and subsequently continued in the State Constitution. The Board of Regents is comprised of 17 members – one for each of the State’s 13 judicial districts and four statewide members – who are elected by a joint session of the Legislature for staggered five-year terms. The Board elects its chair, who holds the title Chancellor, and appoints the Commissioner of Education as the chief administrative officer of the Department. The Department’s central operations are in the Education Building in Albany. The Department also has regional service facilities at various locations throughout the State.

Budget Highlights

The FY 2023 Executive Budget recommends $40.60 billion for the State Education Department, a decrease of $11.47 billion in funding from the FY 2022 Enacted Budget level. This net change primarily reflects a decrease in Federal pandemic relief funds that were appropriated in the FY 2022 Enacted Budget.

The Executive Budget also projects a workforce of 2,876 FTEs for the State Education Department, a 189 FTE increase from the FY 2022 projection.

Major budget actions include:

• School Aid: The FY 2023 Executive Budget provides $31.3 billion in total School Aid for SY 2023, the highest level of State aid ever. This investment represents a year-to-year increase of $2.1 billion (7.1 percent) compared to SY 2022, including a $1.6 billion Foundation Aid increase and a $467 million increase in all other School Aid programs.

• Foundation Aid: Foundation Aid is the State’s main education operating aid formula. It is focused on allocating State funds equitably to all school districts, especially high-need districts, based on student need, community wealth, and regional cost differences. The Executive Budget provides a $1.6 billion (8.1 percent) increase in Foundation Aid, supporting the second year of the three-year phase-in of full funding of the current Foundation Aid formula and ensuring each school district receives a minimum year-to-year increase of 3 percent.

• Expense-Based Aids: The Executive Budget includes full funding of current statutory formulas that reimburse a portion of certain school district expenses, such as school construction, pupil transportation, services from boards of cooperative educational services (BOCES), and the educational costs of certain students with disabilities. In total, these aid categories are projected to increase by $464 million (5.9 percent), largely reflecting the reduced impact of the pandemic on school operations in SY 2022 compared to SY 2021.

• Prekindergarten Programs: New York State appropriates over $952 million annually to support public prekindergarten programs, providing access to over 136,000 students statewide, including nearly 125,500 four-year-old children and over 10,500 three-year-old children. Funding has historically been prioritized for students in high-need school districts. The FY 2023 Executive Budget continues current funding for prekindergarten programs.

• RECOVS Learning and Mental Health Grants: The Executive Budget includes a total of $100 million over two years for a new State matching fund, the Recover from COVID School Program (RECOVS), for school districts with the highest needs to create or expand summer learning, after-school, or extended-day and extended-year programs to help students recover academically. It will also support the hiring of mental health professionals, the expansion of school-based mental health services, and other evidence-based mental health supports to help students and school staff recover socio-emotionally. School districts will be required to match this State grant funding with their federal pandemic relief funds.

• Charter Schools: Approximately 180,000 students attend 331 charter schools in New York State. Charter schools receive tuition payments made by school districts, funded through State and local sources; these tuition rates are established for each school district based on the average annual growth in the district's spending. The FY 2023 Executive Budget increases New York City charter schools' per-pupil funding by 4.7 percent. This will allow charter schools to continue to innovate, recruit high-quality teachers and staff, and provide strong educational options for New York’s families and students.

• Nonpublic School Programs: Approximately 370,000 students attend roughly 1,700 nonpublic schools statewide. The Executive Budget provides $295 million in State support for nonpublic schools, an increase of $44 million (18 percent), which includes: $193 million in aid to reimburse nonpublic schools for costs of State-mandated activities; $55 million for science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) instruction; and $45 million for capital health and safety projects, including critical repair and maintenance of nonpublic schools' facilities. The Executive Budget also authorizes any unobligated federal Emergency Assistance to Nonpublic Schools funds to be used to reimburse nonpublic schools for allowable pandemic-related costs through the Governor's Emergency Education Relief Fund.

• Special Education: Approximately 80,000 preschool-age children with disabilities receive services, 14,000 school-age students with disabilities are educated in private settings and special act school districts during the school year, and 50,000 school-age students with disabilities receive summer services. Funding for these providers is determined through an annual rate-setting process. The Division of the Budget will administratively authorize a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) of 11 percent for the SY 2023 tuition rates, increasing providers’ annual funding by more than $240 million. The State will ultimately reimburse roughly 60 percent of these costs, which are paid in the first instance by school districts and counties.

• Zero-Emission School Buses: To improve air quality, the Executive Budget requires that all new school bus purchases be zero-emissions by 2027 and all school buses on the road be zero-emissions by 2035. The Executive Budget ensures that the State provides Transportation Aid for zero-emission bus infrastructure, including charging stations, and purchasing or leasing electric buses. Additionally, the Executive Budget authorizes school districts to lease or finance zero-emission buses for 10 years, double the current five-year limitation for diesel buses, in order to help districts meet this goal.

• Building/Transportation Aid Penalty Forgiveness: The FY 2023 Executive Budget addresses Building and Transportation Aid penalties once and for all by authorizing the State Education Department to forgive all such penalties that the Department deems to be a result of inadvertent clerical errors.

• NYC Mayoral Control. The Executive Budget provides a four-year extension of Mayoral control of the New York City school system.

• Major Capital Investments in Native American Reservation Schools. The Executive Budget provides $35.7 million for capital improvements to the three State-owned schools on Native American reservations, including the St. Regis Mohawk School ($17.8 million), the Tuscarora School ($11.8 million), and the Onondaga School ($6.1 million).

• Public Broadcasting: The Executive Budget provides $21.8 million in funding for public television and radio stations, including $14 million in operating support and $7.8 million in new funding for several initiatives: instructional content for classroom and remote learning ($3.4 million); digital teaching and learning media tools ($2 million); teacher professional development toolkit on improving student mental health ($0.3 million); resources to address social isolation among seniors ($0.75 million); and special programming and events on the opioid crisis in New York State ($1.4 million).

• Aid to Public Libraries: The Executive Budget proposes to increase Library Aid by 2 percent, from $94.1 million in FY 2022 to $96.1 million in FY 2023. This funding provides operating support to public libraries, library systems, and reference and research libraries.

• Independent Living Centers: The FY 2023 Executive Budget increases aid to Independent Living Centers by $1.6 million, from $14.4 million to $16 million. Independent Living Centers provide an array of services to support New Yorkers with disabilities in living fully integrated and self-directed lives.

• Bundy Aid: The Executive Budget includes $35.1 million in aid for independent colleges and universities. To be eligible for funding, colleges and universities will be required to have an SED-approved plan to improve faculty diversity.

• Higher Education Opportunity Programs: The FY 2023 Executive Budget includes a $10.5 million (10 percent) increase for SED-administered higher education opportunity programs. This includes the Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP), the Liberty Partnership Program, the Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program (CSTEP), the Science and Technology Entry Program (STEP), and the Foster Youth College Success Initiative.

For more information on this agency's budget recommendations located in the Executive Budget Briefing Book, click on the following link:

Briefing Book – Education and Arts (PDF)

Program Highlights

Under the policy direction of the Board of Regents, operational responsibilities of the State Education Department include administration, regulation and review of numerous education programs. The following provides a description of the major program areas administered by the Department:

School Aid

School Aid helps support elementary and secondary education for New York pupils enrolled in the 673 major school districts throughout the State. State funding is provided to districts based on statutory aid formulas and through reimbursement of categorical expenses such as prekindergarten programs, education of homeless children, and bilingual education. State funding for schools assists districts in meeting locally defined needs, such as supporting the construction of school facilities and the education of students with disabilities.

Prekindergarten

Over the past decade, the State has more than doubled its annual commitment to prekindergarten from $385 million to over $952 million. This funding provides over 136,000 students with access to publicly-funded prekindergarten programs – 80 percent of whom will be served in full-day spots. Nearly every high-need school district offers prekindergarten. In addition, the State also provides funding to support the implementation of QUALITYstarsNY – a tiered quality rating and improvement system for early childhood programs across the State – which seeks to improve the quality of early learning childcare facilities by assessing programs and providing continuous support for early childhood professionals. This additional support helps monitor the rigor and quality of the State’s prekindergarten portfolio and helps ensure all children are enrolled in high-quality programs.

Smart Schools Bond Act

The Smart Schools Bond Act, approved by voters in November 2014, provides $2 billion in funding for districts to reimagine classrooms and provide New York’s students with the technological resources, skills, and learning environments necessary to succeed in the 21st century. Funding supports enhanced education technologies, including infrastructure improvements, high‐speed broadband internet access, and active learning technologies. Additionally, the Smart Schools Bond Act supports the State’s long‐term investments in full-day prekindergarten through the construction of new prekindergarten classrooms. Further, the Bond Act provides funding for the replacement of classroom trailers with permanent classroom spaces, and high‐tech school safety programs. Over 1,100 Smart Schools Investment Plans totaling over $1.7 billion have been approved in approximately 600 school districts, supporting classroom technology, high-tech security, and school connectivity.

Programs for Students with Disabilities

The State provides a full range of special education services to approximately 500,000 students with disabilities, from ages 3 to 21. Eighty-five percent of these students are school-age students, and the remaining 15 percent are preschool children. Approximately 405,000 school-age students with disabilities are served by public school districts, while roughly 15,000 students require specialized educational settings in private schools, State Supported Schools for the Blind and Deaf, Special Act School Districts, or one of the State-Operated Schools at Rome and Batavia. Preschool special education services, for children ages 3 to 5, are delivered primarily by private providers; however some school districts and BOCES provide these services as well.

Cultural Education

Cultural Education programs administered by the State Education Department include support for public broadcasting stations and aid to public libraries and library systems. SED also administers the State's major cultural institutions located in the Cultural Education Center in Albany, including the State Archives, the State Library and the State Museum. These institutions are responsible for increasing the knowledge and information resources of State and local government, businesses, and individuals.

Higher Education and Regulation of the Professions

Higher and professional education programs oversee the quality and availability of post-secondary education programs, and license and regulate over 50 professions. The Office of Higher Education oversees colleges, universities and proprietary schools; is responsible for the certification of teachers and other school professionals; and oversees programs to improve teacher preparation and recruitment. The Office of Professions currently oversees the preparation, licensure, practice and discipline of more than 50 professions regulated pursuant to Title VIII of the Education Law, including Nursing, Dentistry, Public Accountancy and Engineering.

Adult Career and Continuing Education Services

The Office for Adult Career and Continuing Education Services (ACCES) focuses on the education and employment needs of New York State’s adult population by offering a full range of employment and independent living services to persons with disabilities; overseeing the development of adult education programs that support adult literacy, English language instruction, high school equivalency test preparation and other services; and licensing and regulating the non-degree granting proprietary schools in New York State.

Note: Most recent estimates as of 05/11/2020