Regents Goal 1
Regents Goal 2
Regents Goal 3
Regents Goal 4
Regents Goal 5
Regents Goal 6
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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; 248 public and independent colleges and universities; 251
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 more than half a million professionals
practicing in 47 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 we
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 Challenge
Despite a decade of progress and many instances of excellence, New
York's educational system today faces two critical problems that demand
urgent attention. First, we face a great divide in educational opportunity
and achievement along lines of income, race and ethnicity, language, and
disability. Second, New York – and the nation – are not
keeping pace with growing demands for still more knowledge and skill in
the face of increasing competition in a changing global economy.
Closing the achievement gaps must begin with the fundamental belief
that all learners can reach higher standards. It requires that we set high
expectations and employ powerful strategies that build on the success of
many USNY institutions that are working to close these gaps.
Overall, too few people are completing their education with the skill
and knowledge that will be needed among the workforce. Experts estimate
that by 2020, America will be unable to fill 14 million of the most
skilled, highest paying jobs because there will not be enough qualified
people.
Raising achievement throughout the State's educational system is
important to all of us. When some are left behind, all of us ultimately
suffer – from the failure of America's classic commitment to opportunity
for all, from competition with others who educate their citizens to higher
standards, from a lagging economy, from a society in greater stress. Only
when achievement gaps are eliminated and the overall performance improves
will our State and nation have the resources on which our economic future
depends. Only then will all New Yorkers have the choices in life that they
deserve.
Woven throughout the plan is our commitment to confront problems and
create solutions through a focus on setting high standards, building
capacity, promoting collaboration and accounting for results – whether it
is for students, institutions, or the staff of the State Education
Department. This commitment guides the work we do throughout all areas of
the Department's responsibilities. This plan does not mention all the
services the Department will perform. Detailed plans for each major
program area flow from this broad plan.
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.
We will be known for:
- A quality of work that is a model of what we expect of others;
- Persistence in pursuit of our goals;
- Integrity;
- High productivity;
- Responsiveness; and
- Being a good place to work.
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.
Performance Measures1:
- Percentage of children entering kindergarten knowing sounds and
letters
- 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
- Number of individuals with disabilities who have received vocational
rehabilitation services and have successful outcomes
_______
1 Data will be disaggregated by race/ethnicity, capacity/resource need of
district, disability status, and for English Language Learners, and Career
and Technical Education students as appropriate and when available.
Key Strategies:
- Promote the grade-by-grade Math and English Language Arts standards.
- Distribute detailed curriculum resources in math and English language
arts.
- Expand research-based reading programs statewide.
- Develop policy and practice to ensure that the high school diploma
signifies readiness for citizenship, work and adult responsibility.
- Implement the school improvement strategy, regional support networks
and academic interventions for low performing schools.
- Focus Department oversight on districts where outcomes indicate the
greatest need for improvement for students with disabilities and English
language learners.
- Strengthen the use of library, museum, archives and public
broadcasting resources to support learning.
- Implement grade-by-grade testing.
- Implement the Statewide Student Data System and Comprehensive Special
Education Information System.
Regents Goal 2 — All educational institutions will meet Regents high
performance standards.
Performance Measures:
- Percentage of schools meeting Annual Yearly Progress standards
- Number of schools on SURR list or identified as In Need of Improvement
- Number of districts identified as being in financial stress
- Percentage of applying museums and historical societies achieving an
absolute charter
- Number of public libraries which become voting public library
districts
- Percentage of teacher education institutions achieving the established
pass rate on teacher certification examinations
- Progress on implementation of postsecondary education sectors' master
plans after four years compared to the original plans
Key Strategies:
- Implement middle school reforms.
- Begin high school reforms.
- Implement a system of fiscal indicators for school districts.
- Simplify school district reporting mandates.
- Require corrective action for teacher education programs that fall
below the established pass rates on certification examinations. Review
need to increase the pass rates or otherwise strengthen the examinations.
- Implement the Statewide Plan for Higher Education.
- Put into place a new approach for State aid to schools.
- Strengthen local school districts' capacity to use data to improve
instruction.
- Develop instructional leadership at all levels.
- Provide training and guidance on internal controls and fiscal fitness
to school administrators and school boards.
- Provide guidance and training to help cultural institutions and local
government records programs meet standards.
- Expand the capacity of colleges and universities to educate students
with disabilities.
- Convene USNY leaders to promote stronger collaboration across
institutions to improve instruction and learning.
- Conduct forums for educators and business leaders to collaborate on
challenges shared by the education and the workforce systems.
- Partner with health and mental health organizations to remove barriers
to learning.
- Expand the capacity of the vocational rehabilitation system.
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.
Performance Measures:
- Percentage of teachers teaching subjects for which they are certified
- Percentage of elementary schools with certified library media
specialists
- Cycle time for determinations of summary suspensions for licensees who
pose imminent public harm
- Percentage of licensed professionals who receive guidance information
on professional practice issues from the Department
- Enrollment trends in graduate science programs
Key Strategies:
- Recruit librarians in all fields, including school librarians.
- Assess progress on the Regents teaching policy.
- Recruit and prepare more teachers of mathematics, science, special
education, and English language learners and then retain them once they
are in the classroom.
- Coordinate implementation of the recommendations of the Regents Task
Force on Nursing.
- Increase access to graduate and professional education programs.
- License and regulate the six new professions established by statute in
2002.
- Develop practice guidelines for the licensed professions.
Regents Goal 4 — Education, information, and cultural resources
will be available and accessible to all people.
Performance Measures:
- Percentage of students with disabilities in different educational
settings
- Trends in classification rates for school-age students with
disabilities
- Number of four- and five-year olds residing in school districts
without prekindergarten or full-day kindergarten programs
- Number of New Yorkers without local public library service
- Number of on-site and electronic users of the State Archives, Library
and Museum resources
- Number of collections about under-documented groups preserved and made
accessible for teaching and learning
- Percentage of selected Department customer service transactions
available via the internet
- Net price for full-time students from low income families to attend a
NYS public postsecondary institution
- Percentage of schools and libraries with broadband connections
- Percentage of elementary and middle schools with librarians and media
specialists
Key Strategies:
- Review early childhood education policy and practice so that all
children get a good start.
- Make prekindergarten universal.
- Build capacity to educate children with disabilities in the least
restrictive environment.
- Promote greater accessibility in the design of curriculum materials
and instructional practices.
- Increase the pre-employment training and employment opportunities for
vocational rehabilitation consumers.
- Increase access to postsecondary education for historically
underrepresented students.
- Oversee the renewal of the State Museum exhibition and education
programs.
- Expand the Documentary Heritage program.
- Expand the Department's use of the Internet for customer service, data
collection and reporting, dissemination of information, and educational
content.
Develop a technology strategy based upon recommendations approved by
the Regents from the USNY Technology Policy and Practices Council.
Regents Goal 5 — Resources under
our care will be used or maintained in the public interest.
Performance Measures:
- Progress on securing site, architectural work and construction plans
for a new cultural education facility compared to planned timetable
- 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
- Percentage of the Department's priority information technology
projects which are on time and on budget
- Cycle time for selected Department services
- Percentage of customers indicating they are satisfied with selected
SED services
- Percentage of the Department's discretionary funds that are awarded to
low-performing schools and high need districts
Key Strategies:
- Transition the Department's financial systems to web-based technology
to improve efficiency and reliability.
- Ensure the Department's operations are effective, efficient, and are
in compliance with State and federal laws and regulations.
- Improve the articulation between the Department's financial systems
and those of other NYS agencies.
- Reduce cycle time for specific Department services.
- Maintain secure controls over the information contained in the
Department's databases.
- Complete priority information technology projects to improve key
Department services and enhance information available for policy
decision-making.
- Complete renovations of the State Library and State Museum.
- Implement the new research and collections facility plan.
Regents Goal 6 — Our work
environment will meet high standards.
Performance Measures:
- Percentage of Department staff participating in professional
development programs and the percentage of those staff who rate those
programs as useful to their jobs
- Demographic trends in the Department workforce
- Percentage of Department employees who indicate satisfaction with
quality of the work environment
- Percentage of OSHA and PESHA occupational workforce standards that
Department facilities meet
Key Strategies:
- Expand professional development offerings for all staff based on
Department and employee needs.
- Enhance workforce planning and opportunities for staff rotations so
that the Department is prepared for the future.
- Increase staff diversity.
- Improve the health, security, and safety of the Department's
facilities statewide.
Extending and Using the Plan
Check Performance and Find Ways to Improve
Staff is using performance measures to assess the quality of our
services. Where results fall short, we are identifying opportunities to
improve. We have already found ways to do our work faster, cheaper, and
with better results for our customers. Clearly, however, we can — and must
— do more.
Report on Results
This plan is the yardstick to measure performance for both the State
Education Department and for the entities that constitute The University
of the State of New York. Within the Department, we are using performance
data to inform decisions and hold management accountable. The Commissioner
continues to conduct quarterly performance reviews for each area of the
Department. Performance agreements for individual managers now include
quantifiable expectations about desired results. The Board and Department
staff will build upon current efforts to communicate widely about efforts,
progress, and results as evidence of our willingness to be held publicly
accountable.
Align Budget Request and Legislative Program
This plan forms the rationale for the Department's annual State budget
request, the Regents State legislative program and federal education
policy positions.
Communicate and Advocate our Strategic Directions
The plan's goals are the hallmark of all our communications, thus
reinforcing our priorities and building the foundation for a statewide
consensus around a framework for educational reform.
Modifying the Plan
This is the fourth strategic plan. As we did with all the other
editions, we will revise the plan as we build a record of further
accomplishment.
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