THE UNIVERSITY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK
Regents of The University
Robert M. Bennett, Chancellor, B.A., M.S. ................................... Tonawanda
Merryl H. Tisch, Vice Chancellor, B.A., M.A., Ed.D. ........................ New
York
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. ........................................................ Syracuse
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
James R. Tallon, Jr., B.A., M.A. ...................................................... Binghamton
Milton L. Cofield, B.S., M.B.A., Ph.D. .............................................. Rochester
Roger B. Tilles, B.A., J.D.................................................................. Great
Neck
Karen Brooks Hopkins, B.A., M.F.A.................................................. Brooklyn
Charles R. Bendit, B.A. ................................................................... Manhattan
Betty A. Rosa, B.A., M.S. in Ed., M.S. in Ed., M.Ed., Ed.D.................. Bronx
Lester W. Young, Jr., B.S., M.S., Ed. D ............................................ Oakland Gardens
President of The University and Commissioner of Education
Richard P. Mills
Deputy Commissioner for Operations and Management Services
Theresa E. Savo
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. Portions of this publication can be made available in a variety of formats, including braille, large print or audio tape, upon request. 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. Requests for additional copies of this publication may be made by contacting the Publications Sales Desk, Room 309, Education Building, Albany, NY 12234.
Leadership and Learning …
For the best educated people in the world
Who We Are
The University of the State of New York (USNY) is the most complete, interconnected system of educational services in the United States. Its origins date back to 1784 with the creation of the Board of Regents to oversee Kings College (now Columbia University) and to the Unification Act of a century ago. In 1904, Governor Theodore Roosevelt proposed the creation of a department under the Regents with the responsibility for all education in the State. He said education should be “unified for the sake of greater efficiency, economy, and harmony.”
Today, USNY includes: 7,000 public and private elementary and secondary schools; 271 public and independent colleges and universities; 450 proprietary (for-profit) schools; nearly 7,000 libraries; 750 museums; the State Archives, Library and Museum; vocational rehabilitation services for adults with disabilities; special education services for children and teenagers; State schools for the blind and for the deaf; 25 public broadcasting facilities; and nearly 750,000 professionals practicing in 48 licensed professions.
USNY means education. The pathways to a good education in New York State
are through its institutions. USNY can and does educate millions of people
of all ages. USNY means high standards − for schools, museums, colleges,
libraries, public broadcasting, archives, professions, vocational rehabilitation
programs, and other institutions. USNY is about potential − to
collaborate, innovate and create new knowledge. Finally, USNY is about
membership in a great endeavor, and that membership carries both rights
and responsibilities. For example, higher education institutions exercise
a right when they confer degrees, and fulfill a responsibility to their
communities when they collaborate with local schools to improve instruction.
The Board of Regents and its State Education Department are constitutionally
responsible for setting educational policy, standards, and rules – and
are legally required to ensure that the entities they oversee carry them
out. The Regents and the Department also provide leadership to The
University by drawing attention to major problems and by bringing all parts
of USNY together to create solutions.
Taken together, the members of USNY and its governing Board comprise a vast resource of knowledge, talent and leadership vital to advancing the State’s economic competitiveness and promoting the well being of New Yorkers.
Our Mission
To raise the knowledge, skill, and opportunity of all the people in New York.
Our Vision
We will provide leadership for a system that prepares the best educated
people in the world.
We will do this by:
- Setting goals and standards of excellence;
- Ensuring educational opportunities throughout a lifetime;
- Seeing that everyone has the opportunity to gain skills for work, citizenship, and individual growth;
- Building partnerships for success;
- Having the courage to speak up for the educational needs of all people; and
- Maintaining a collaborative partnership between the Board of Regents and staff of the State Education Department.
Regents Goals
Regents Goal 1
All students will meet high standards for academic performance and personal behavior and demonstrate the knowledge and skills required by a dynamic world.
Selected Performance Measures:
- Percentage of students meeting standards on State assessments
- Participation rates for students with disabilities on State assessments
- Percentage of ninth graders graduating high school within four years
Regents Goal 2
All educational institutions will meet Regents high performance standards.
Selected Performance Measures:- Percentage of schools meeting Annual Yearly Progress standards
- Number of districts identified as being in financial stress
Regents Goal 3
The public will be served by qualified, ethical professionals who remain current with best practice in their fields and reflect the diversity of New York State.
Selected Performance Measures:- Percentage of teachers teaching subjects for which they are certified
- Cycle time for determinations of summary suspensions for licensees who pose imminent public harm
- Enrollment trends in graduate
science programs
Regents Goal 4
Education, information, and cultural resources will be available and accessible to all people.
Selected Performance Measures:- Trends in classification rates for school-age students with disabilities
- Number of New Yorkers without local public library service
- Number of on-site and electronic users of the State Archives, Library and Museum resources
Regents Goal 5
Resources under our care will be used or maintained in the public interest.
Selected Performance Measures:- Progress on the renewal of State Museum exhibits and renovations of the State Library compared to plan milestones
- Ratio of vocational rehabilitation funds expended to wages earned, taxes paid, and public assistance savings for consumers who are rehabilitated
Regents Goal 6
Our work environment will meet high standards.
Selected Performance Measures:- Demographic trends in the Department workforce
The Regents Plan for the Next Stage of Educational ReformFor a decade, student achievement has improved in response to Regents policy and local action. But the improvement is not sufficient. The achievement gap has narrowed but not closed. The world has also changed as billions of people have entered the global economy and ignited a global education boom. Every society that can afford to do so is moving urgently to improve knowledge and skill and close their own version of the achievement gap. The Regents will engage with statewide and local partners on the actions below, adopt or recommend policy as appropriate, and, with the State Education Department and all of USNY, seek improved results systemwide: |
|
Students |
1. Promote a sustainable early education program for all students. Resolve issues of standards, funding and service delivery for young children. 2. Improve academic outcomes for children with disabilities by setting performance targets, promoting effective practices, and holding schools accountable for dramatic improvements. 3. Improve outcomes for English Language Learners by setting performance targets, promoting effective practices, and holding schools accountable for dramatic improvements. 4. Improve high school attendance and graduation rates by setting performance targets, promoting practices that remove barriers to graduation, and holding schools accountable for dramatic improvements. 5. Report student persistence and college completion results, and increase investment in programs that have been shown to remove barriers to graduation. |
Systems |
6. Raise the learning standards to exceed global standards to graduate all students ready for citizenship, work, and continued education. Align standards, assessments, curriculum and instruction across P-16, emphasizing transitions. 7. Strengthen instruction. Define, reduce and then eliminate the inequitable distribution of teaching talent. Require all teachers of core academic subjects to be highly qualified in the subject they are teaching by July 2007. Improve teacher retention. Focus professional development on effective practices in areas in which academic needs are greatest. Accelerate the integration of technology into teaching and learning practices in P-16 institutions. 8. Advocate for a Foundation Formula to provide State Aid that is adequate, sustainable, fair, and commensurate with the cost of education that enables students to meet the standards. 9. Strengthen the capacity of the State Education Department to support schools as they work to improve student achievement and the Department’s capacity to hold them accountable for doing so. 10. Create a P-16 student data system to drive improvements in graduation rates in high school and higher education. |
Structures |
11. Reduce barriers to teaching and learning in high need schools by creating a vision and leadership framework for an integrated education, health and mental health collaboration. Promote strategies found to be promising in resolving high incident health and mental health problems among children. 12. Create P-16 Councils to advise the Regents on actions to strengthen USNY and improve student outcomes dramatically at each transition point in the P-16 system. 13. Focus regional education networks on joint P-16 strategies and actions to improve student outcomes. |
The Aims of the University of the State of New York (USNY)
- Every child will get a good start.
- Every child will read by the second grade.
- Everyone will complete middle level education ready for high school.
- Everyone 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.
November 2005 Education Summit
The Regents Approach: The Principles
The Regents propose this plan for the next stage of educational reform to accomplish the six USNY aims. As the Board and the State Education Department act to implement its plan, we commit to do so in a manner that is consistent with the following principles:
- We will confront the data, share it broadly, and use it to define as precisely as possible where resources and energy should be applied. We will recognize the achievements and also declare the problems as clearly as we can.
- We will engage everyone by listening to the people the education system is supposed to serve, to parents, to the educators at every level, to the employers, and to the elected officials who must weigh enormous competing demands for scarce resources. In particular, we will engage students and their parents, and the wider community because educational institutions do not belong to the educators but to the people. We will create a communications plan to listen to, inform, and involve people statewide.
- We will define measurable objectives so that others can hold us accountable, and we can hold education leaders accountable for improving results.
- We will study the practices of high performing education systems, states and nations, and adapt the best to New York’s situation. We will examine what actions are most effective, and invite others to learn with us.
- We will take action focused on systematic change to effect sustained improvement. We know, for example, that closing the achievement gap for students requires correcting the unequal distribution of teaching talent. And we know that in demanding change in educational institutions to achieve better results, we must also build capacity in our own State Education Department to take on its part of this improvement strategy.
- We will continually renew the alignment of our actions to ensure coherence and effectiveness. For example, academic standards, curriculum, assessment, and instructional practice have to be aligned to be effective. When one element changes, all other elements must be examined to ensure that the system remains effective.
- We will strengthen USNY, because it has great potential to build more effective transitions for students from one level of the system to the next.
- We will advocate for State and federal financial resources and legislative actions that will help achieve better educational outcomes. And we will be accountable for the effective use of those resources.