BY STATE EDUCATION COMMISSIONER RICHARD P. MILLS
September 1998
BY STATE EDUCATION COMMISSIONER
RICHARD P. MILLS
The 11th graders entering school this month must pass the Regents English exam in order to graduate. Local educators are trying hard to get them ready. For example, in New York City, summer school enrollment increased by about one-third in one year.
We need to continue to support expanding local capacity. Later in the fall, we will inform parents about the specific content of the new exams through a newspaper insert. Our policy work on intensive instruction in English for students in bilingual programs, the continuing discussion of the proposals from the "safety net" committee, and the ongoing implementation of special education reform are all intended to help students improve achievement.
As more people focus on the academic challenges immediately ahead, expect forceful and sophisticated pressure to ease up on the standards. We just can’t do that. The system is responding now. If we were to relax we would undercut the hard work of thousands. Many students would find themselves back on the easy path in a world where strong skills are the minimum requirement.
Ten regional forums hosted by Regents will launch our year-long strategy to support local school leaders. Chancellor Crew will cosponsor the New York City forum with us. After brief messages from Regents and from me, small groups will engage the challenges of leadership in detail. Sample topics will include building strong superintendent-board relationships, connecting school and community, and leadership development. The overall point is to build the capacity of leaders as they enable others to bring the high standards to life.
We have prepared heavily for this by first listening to many local school leaders, followed by extensive reading, writing and public speaking about leadership, and co-sponsorship of the first Annual School Leadership Assembly with many education associations this summer at Cornell. Now we will engage thousands in the discussion leading to deep understanding of the problems of school leadership, and the search for a vital few actions that could solve those problems.
Our work on teaching continues but the focus has shifted from policy-making to implementation. Last month, the State Education Department distributed nomination forms for the Professional Standards and Practices Board and I will recommend members to the Regents for their decision in December.
At the September meeting, the Regents Committee on Higher and Professional Education will discuss regulations to implement the Standards Board. Also in September the Legislative Conference will consider the legislative action needed to create the necessary teacher recruiting incentives.
The Regents policy paper on teaching is in press now. We will distribute 20,000 copies and we are also preparing a brochure that summarizes the Regents policy.
All of us who serve in education leadership positions will be judged by what happens to the poorest children and the children who have the farthest to go to meet the standards. Every school in New York includes some students who need extra time and help to learn what they need to know – and we celebrate educators who keep standards high and visible but seem to never give up on a child. The challenge is especially great in the Big Five school districts, many small cities, some rural and even a few suburban districts. We must concentrate there. The Regents have committed to this in the Strategic Plan. I know from personal observation in many of these districts that leaders are taking practical steps to improve curriculum, teaching, leadership, and the other fundamentals. The task demands partners.
Our goal is to raise student achievement and close the gap in performance between these school districts and the rest of the State. Our strategy is to build powerful partnerships with local education leaders, government leaders, community and parent groups, higher education, cultural education, and many others.
We will form partnerships with each of the Big Five districts, and regional partnerships with other school districts through the network of District Superintendents. The State partners bring a proven commitment to advocate hard and successfully for needed resources and a comprehensive set of actions that will improve performance if pursued consistently. The local partners have built their own strategies, created local alliances, and what is most important, they have the children in their schools. It is not and cannot be our intent to substitute State-level expertise for local. It has to be a partnership – a joint assumption of risk – to succeed. We have to succeed.
A September 8 Newsday article on the opening of school in Roosevelt is entitled "Rosier Picture at Roosevelt." It’s an accurate depiction of the situation in the district. The Roosevelt Board of Education has substantially complied with my order of June 17, 1998.
The Roosevelt Board worked hard and filled key administrative and teaching positions, including the superintendency, restructured their budget, and reorganized the personnel and business offices. They hired an Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction to guide curriculum and professional development activities, and a Director of Facilities. They moved to solve heating problems at the Washington Rose Elementary School and updated the Corrective Action Plan. The Board now operates in compliance with a policy manual.
In some cases, the Board missed deadlines in the Order. In another case, the District has an interim Business Administrator who must be replaced by a permanent person. Overall, my assessment is that the Board stabilized its administration, faculty, and facilities as school opened. An on-site visit by the District Review Panel Chair verified this on September 9. The Order accomplished its purpose – to focus district efforts on the most critical needs. I do not plan any further action with respect to the Order.
Now the Board, district administrators, teachers, and the community must focus on implementing the Corrective Action Plan to get all students to meet the higher standards. We must keep the pressure on because we want students in Roosevelt and in all districts to get an education program that enables them to meet the standards. We will continue to support the district’s efforts, with guidance, technical assistance, and funding.
Beginning in January, only two topics matter in Albany and they are tightly connected: budget and legislation. The September Legislative Conference hosted by the Regents and the State Education Department is a signal that the pace is quickening.
The goal we all work for is the adoption of Regents policies that we believe are critical to the success of the entire cultural and educational enterprise in New York.
We begin the legislative session with a very short list of items that reflect the most important Regents policy concerns. It takes a lot of discussion and consultation to get to that short list:
In the weeks that follow, we prepare detailed tactical plans and then we jump into the debate. With our list of priorities and our budget summary, each one of us should seize every possible opportunity to advocate.
In July, the Regents evaluated potential budget initiatives, made some important adjustments, and called for the numbers. At the September meeting, the Regents will vote on a budget proposal that is complete except for State aid, which will come before the Regents in November. The budget recommendation reflects the Strategic Plan and includes all the initiatives confirmed in the July Regents meeting. There are eleven initiatives -- five each in State operations and aid to localities, plus one Department-wide proposal. In each case we have sought proposals that would provide the greatest benefit in the most efficient manner. As in the last two years, this is a multi-year budget so that everyone can see the long-term implications of our recommendations.
The budget summary is in an improved format this year. Familiar summary tables and charts are still there, along with a lot more information and supporting data on the budget initiatives.
All schools have a parent night. This year we will have four parent nights on public television. The purpose is to offer specific information to parents about topics important to them and their children, and to give them a chance to call in questions. The first parent night is September 23, from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. and the topic is school violence and safety. On November 19, we will talk about the new tests and what we are doing to ensure fairness. On February 11, the topic will be the School Report Cards. And, finally on April 8, we will discuss how parents can help students pass the Regents English and Mathematics Exams.
The Regents policy retreat produced consensus on how we will formulate, adopt, implement, and monitor policy. It took considerable discussion, research, and reading to get to that point. Now we have to check that we got it right and then act accordingly. The model represents a fundamental decision about how we will spend our time on policy and who will be accountable for what action. Initiatives that are new this year on leadership and high need schools offer ready topics to test our resolve.
In July, the Regents adopted the second version of our Strategic Plan. Copies will come from the printer next week. Yet because we will keep our Strategic Plan evergreen, it is not too early to begin thinking about the critical policy ends, values, environmental factors, and policy choices that will form the basis of yet another iteration of that plan next year.
The State Museum is planning a multi-year series of exhibitions highlighting works from several major New York City art museums. This innovative program brings important works of art to the New York State Museum, reaching the thousands of students, tourists, legislators, and visitors who will benefit from seeing these important works of art in the Museum’s accessible setting.
A four-year schedule has been developed showing two exhibits a year from the collections of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Museum of Modern Art. The State Museum has developed an extensive program of teacher training, gallery talks, interpretive tours, and school group visits. The education programs will greatly enhance the exhibits, develop new audiences for art, and make the exhibits accessible to the thousands of families, students, and teachers who visit and use the exhibits.
The exhibit program has been made possible by strong advocacy and support by Senator Roy Goodman (Manhattan), Earle Mack, Director of New York State Council for the Arts and Harry Rosenfeld, Editor-at-Large, Albany Times Union. Glen Lowry, Director of The Museum of Modern Art and Ambassador William Luers, President of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, have committed great support. In addition, a partnership between the Capital Region Center for Arts in Education and Museum Education staff is providing teacher training and family guides for the exhibits.
The Council of State Governments has recognized VESID for its exemplary State Management Program. In the accompanying letter to Deputy Commissioner Lawrence Gloeckler, the Council complimented him and his colleagues for their efforts to make State government more successful and efficient. VESID will be highlighted in a new report, "Managing for Success: A Profile of State Government for the 21st Century." The document provides State governments with information on innovative State policies and programs and chronicles how State officials are reinventing government.
The Council on Licensure, Enforcement and Regulation (CLEAR) recognized Deputy Commissioner Johanna Duncan-Poitier with an award for excellence in professional regulation. CLEAR is the largest national organization in this field. This award cites the extraordinary improvement in the speed and efficiency of professional licensing, professional discipline, and public protection in New York State.
Congratulations to VESID and the Office of the Professions for outstanding service to the public, and thanks for bringing such positive attention to the New York State Education Department.
A monthly publication of the State Education Department
