Voter turnout for last week’s school budget votes plummeted by more than 50,000 from a year ago – the lowest total since the inception of the tax cap in 2012, according to a New York State School Boards Association analysis of State Education Department data.

The total number of votes cast statewide in 2018 school budget votes was 505,075, compared to 557,642 in 2017 – a drop of 52,567.

Photo, video and interview opportunities

What:  A series of summits focused on what education will look like in 2030. Guest speakers and stakeholders will discuss how education needs to evolve in order to prepare students for success in the year 2030. The summits are geared toward school board members, administrators, educators, parents, students and community members.

Who:

• Tim Kremer, Executive Director, New York State School Boards Association
• MaryEllen Elia, New York State Education Commissioner
• Bill Daggett, Ed.D., Founder and Chairman, International Center for Leadership in Education
• A presenter from IBM will demonstrate the Teacher Advisor with Watson program.
• A ‘Digital Skills’ program will be presented with a representative from Microsoft about empowering students to be future-ready.

New York State voters approved 97.6 percent of school district budgets on Tuesday, May 15, according to an analysis by the New York State School Boards Association. That's down slightly from 99.3 percent in 2017.

"School boards and their leadership teams put together budgets that were fiscally restrained yet responsive to the needs of their communities," said NYSSBA Executive Director Timothy G. Kremer. "For example, in response to community concerns about school safety, many school boards allocated funding for school resources officers..."

We are concerned that if enacted, proposed APPR legislation that has passed the Assembly would result in additional student testing. 

Unless the state wants to forfeit federal ESSA funds, it still must administer grades 3-8 ELA and math state assessments. Under the proposed APPR legislation, students could have to take both the state tests as well as alternative assessments that would be used for teacher and principal evaluation purposes.

Here are some quick facts on school board elections:

• With few exceptions, school districts across the state hold school board elections and school budget votes on the third Tuesday of May.
• The size of a school board generally ranges between three and nine members.
• With limited exceptions, school board members serve three, four or five-year terms.

View a regional breakdown of board elections based on a NYSSBA survey of 671 school districts. A total of 610 districts responded – a rate of 91 percent.

Avon Central School District Board Member Julie Welch is the 2018 recipient of the New York State School Boards Association Champion for Change Award. 

The Champion for Change Award is presented to an individual who is serving in their first five years as a school board member and demonstrates leadership by enhancing educational opportunities for all students.

Nearly three-quarters of school board members responding to a recent online poll by the New York State School Boards Association believe the reduction in the number of testing days for the state’s grades 3-8 English language arts (ELA) and math exams is positive for their school districts. 

Starting this year, the number of testing days for both the state’s grades 3-8 ELA and math exams was reduced from three days to two. Of the 548 poll respondents, 73 percent believe the shorter testing timeframe was "generally positive" for their district.

The new state budget delivers a school aid increase of $859 million despite a tight fiscal year. Competition for state funding was particularly fierce, and we thank lawmakers for making education a high priority again this year. 

Our enthusiasm is somewhat tempered by the fact that the aid increase is less than what we believe is necessary to maintain current educational programming. Thankfully, the Legislature rejected a harmful proposal to cap expense based aids.

On Sunday, New York State Director of the Budget Robert Mujica  issued a statement alleging that local officials are not allocating school funds in a manner that is fair and equitable. Our response to Mr. Mujica’s claim is simple: Who do we want to decide local school budgets – state bureaucrats in Albany or local boards of education representing school district residents?

A safe learning environment for every student and staff member is a school board’s highest priority. While in recent days we have seen a number of proposals to keep schools safe, the public is best served when local boards of education, operating within the boundaries of their legal authority, choose what approaches are best for their district. One thing is clear, however: both state and federal lawmakers should earmark additional resources toward maintaining school safety in our local communities.