The New York State Board of Regents September 2014 Meeting

The Board of Regents met on September 15 and 16. The main item discussed regarded the establishment of a Career and Technical Education Pathway for high school graduation. Based on the latest data available, for the 2012-13 school year, 8,380 high school graduates (4.67 percent) are awarded high school diplomas with CTE endorsements. At the Regents meeting, Assistant Commissioner Charles Szuberla reviewed the various examinations (i.e., Advanced International Certificate, Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, SAT) that have been determined to be equivalent to Regents examinations in ELA, mathematics, science, and social studies. He also indicated that 13 CTE examinations have been determined to be equivalent to Regents examinations. At this time, however, Regents members are pursuing a 4/1 CTE Pathway option, whereby successful student performance on an equivalent CTE examination may be applied in lieu of a social studies “or perhaps a science” Regents examination for high school graduation.

Based on conversations with Regents members and department leaders during 2013-14, SAANYS was aware that such an item would be raised and acted upon early in 2014-15. Therefore, SAANYS met with partners from the NYS Federation of School Administrators and the Council of School Administrators and Supervisors to develop a position paper under the NYS School Administrators Consortium (NYSSAC) moniker. The NYSSAC document posted on the SAANYS website indicates:

• General support for the expansion of pathways to be made available to students to graduate with a meaningful high school diploma/credential that opens doors to post-secondary education college and career opportunities that are commensurate with students’ interests and abilities.
• Specific support for the establishment of a Career and Technical Education Pathway that aligns academic and industry standards.
• Students matriculating in a CTE Pathway should be permitted to apply at least one, but preferably two appropriate CTE assessments that are tied to or required by industry standards in lieu of one or both social studies Regents examinations.
• Students successfully completing such a pathway should be awarded a Regents Diploma with CTE Designation.

SAANYS also conferred with other members of the Education Conference Board (ECB)* to develop a second position paper in support of a CTE Pathway for high school graduation. The ECB position paper will be posted on the SAANYS website upon being finalized.

Regents members also indicated an interest in pursuing the establishment of an Arts Pathway for high school graduation. For this reason, the Board will establish and convene a Blue Ribbon Commission for the Arts, to be led by Regent Roger Tilles. A report in this regard is expected in the spring of 2015.

*The Education Conference Board is comprised of the following organizations: Conference of Big 5 School Districts, NYS Association of School Business Officials, NYS Congress of Parents and Teachers, NYS Council of School Superintendents, NYS School Boards Association, NYSUT, and SAANYS.

For more information about the Board of Regents meeting, contact James Viola, Director of Government Relations, by e-mailing JViola@saanysdev.ygsgroup.com. Both the NYSSAC and ECB position papers are posted on the SAANYS website.