For the first time ever, parents, BOCES teachers, administrators, and school board members from across New York State joined forces and traveled to the State Capital on March 19 to lobby their local legislators for continued support of BOCES.
“Budget decisions in the Capital can make or break the future of many Ulster County students. I can’t even begin to imagine what will happen to the students if these programs go away,” states Martin Ruglis, District Superintendent for Ulster BOCES. “The lobby hoped to put a human face on BOCES and show lawmakers the real impact on real lives that changes in funding formulas could have.”
Ulster BOCES (Board of Cooperative Educational Services), like the 37 other BOCES throughout the State, provides opportunities for school districts to offer a rich variety of experiences for students of all interest and ability levels. BOCES opens doors to innovative and exciting programs that schools, on their own, could not afford. A BOCES helps school districts save money by pooling their resources and sharing costs, which eliminates duplication and allows schools to operate more efficiently and cost effectively. That translates to real savings for taxpayers. In Ulster County alone, nearly 1,000 students a day rely on BOCES services and programs.
“The New York State Executive Budget proposed earlier this year would freeze the BOCES aid that is paid to our school districts and roll it into an overall Flex aid formula,” says Ruglis. “The proposal jeopardizes the future of BOCES services to schools and students.”
“The State is breaking its commitment,” Ruglis adds. “The freeze and the Flex aid proposal would severely curtail BOCES funding. Districts would lose $80 million in funding for the services they received from BOCES – money they were promised and have already spent on programs for students. The Flex aid proposal would discontinue BOCES aid as a separate aid category. All this is creating uncertainty for school districts.”
“This isn’t just about money,” says Alan B. Lubin, Executive Vice President of New York State United Teachers. “It’s also about kids and about opportunity. BOCES helps train students for careers, it helps kids with disabilities get more out of school, and helps students meet the State Learning Standards. If the State eliminates BOCES, what message does that send to our children? How do we convince them to stay in school and work hard if we’re not willing to make that same kind of commitment to their future? That’s why it was so important that parents, teachers, board members, and administrators joined together for this BOCES lobby day.”
The BOCES supporters met with their local legislators to remind them of the many services BOCES provides for its students, such as hands-on learning opportunities, state-of-the-art career preparation, internships, and highly specialized education programs for students with varying needs. BOCES programs also provide many other resources to schools that enable them to direct their efforts on improved teaching and learning like training teachers to meet higher standards, integrating technology into the classroom, and so much more. Through participation in BOCES large-scale school supply bids, grant-funded programs, and services that ensure buildings are in compliance with safety standards and laws, districts are able to operate more effectively and with greater cost efficiency.
“The proposed loss of BOCES funding will mean a loss of these programs and tax increases for local taxpayers as they try to provide the necessary programs through other venues,” declares Don Greene, Ulster BOCES Board of Education president.
“Last year’s baseline budget was very difficult for districts,” says Greene. “But this year’s Executive Budget would force districts to choose between devastating property tax hikes or destructive cuts to programs for students. We can’t meet the Learning Standards and provide quality education for all our students if the Legislature and Governor won’t recognize their role in the partnership that has to exist between the State and the local districts.”
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