NYS Education Department

A great deal of information, including direct mailings to K-8 teachers and regional meetings across the state, will be made available to teachers and administrators - test design, time requirements, etc. so that the field is fully informed and can offer their insights. Sample questions at each grade level in each subject will also be provided. In addition, curricular and other resources for teachers will be provided on our website.

The purpose of the New York State Education Department's Virtual Learning System is to encourage the use of the Internet as a tool for teaching and learning and to assist classroom teachers in locating Internet resources for instruction. VLS offers the full text of New York State's learning standards with their key ideas and performance indicators, as well as alternate performance indicators for students with severe disabilities. It provides resources that classroom teachers can use to support preK-12 standards-based instruction, such as sample tasks, learning experiences and lesson plans.

The Love Your Library license plate is now available from the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles. Proceeds from the plate's annual fee will help support the New York State Library's Statewide Summer Reading Program at public libraries across the State.

The Commissioner's monthly report to the Board of Regents featuring information on the Regents School Accountability Plan, Challenges to the Regents Exams, and other relevant topics.

School-Based Vaccination Clinics for 2009 H1N1 Influenza Virus - Joint SED-DOH guide to schools as they partner with local health departments to conduct school-based vaccination clinics for the 2009 H1N1 influenza. This includes a letter from Commissioners Steiner and Daines; a guidance document; a sample MOU for the use of school facilities for this purpose; a parent/guardian H1N1 vaccination consent form; a sample letter to parents/guardians; and a summary of relevant legal issues.

In Albany today the New York State Board of Regents took the first in a series of steps to strengthen the preparation and practice of teaching with a specific emphasis on providing high need schools with the best teaching faculty possible. The Regents are authorizing the development of a performance-based approach to teacher certification and inviting - on a trial basis - new entities to prepare teachers for certification. As part of this new approach, the Regents will support the development of new performance-based assessments for teacher certification (including the eventual use of value-added assessment as a component of professional certification), will develop new methods to recruit and retain teachers for high needs schools in subject shortage areas and will allow additional content knowledge demonstrations for prospective teachers to bring new talent into the teaching field.

The State Board of Regents convened leaders from education, business, and community service organizations to confront tremendous educational challenges. We must continue to close the achievement gaps that exist from early childhood through postsecondary education while also raising the performance of the entire system to the level needed to sustain the state's economy in the face of global competition. We have made progress over the last decade, yet the gaps in achievement and productivity persist and impede New York's economic and civic vitality.

On October 28, Governor Paterson signed Executive Order 29 declaring a disaster emergency in New York. The Executive Order authorizes a 30 day temporary suspension or modification of several laws and regulations related to licensed professions overseen by the State Education Department and the New York State Department of Health in order to facilitate the timely administration of the 2009 H1N1 and seasonal influenza vaccines throughout the State of New York to prevent the further spread of these viruses.

The NYSED Curriculum, Instruction & Instructional Technology (CI&IT) Team's October 16, 2009 E-Blast is now available.

Dr. David Steiner took the oath of office today as New York State Education Commissioner in front of 5th and 6th grade students at Albany's Pine Hills Elementary School. Judge Victoria Graffeo of the New York State Court of Appeals administered the oath. Also present at the ceremony were representatives of major stakeholder groups in New York State's educational system.

The Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) and the National Governor's Association (NGA) Center for Best Practices have convened a State-led process to develop common core standards in English language arts and in mathematics. On September 21st, 2009, the NGA Center and CCSSO released the first official draft of the college-and career-readiness standards and would like public feedback.

The State Board of Regents today announced the selection of Debra Calvino as the 2010 New York State Teacher of the Year. Mrs. Calvino, a high school math teacher at Valley Central High School in Montgomery, New York, also serves as the Chairperson/Supervisor of the school's Mathematics Department. Interim Education Commissioner Carole Huxley made the announcement at the September meeting of the Board of Regents.

The State Board of Regents today announced the appointment of Dr. John B. King, Jr. as Senior Deputy Commissioner for P-12 Education. In his position, King will lead the State's school reform efforts. He will begin State service on October 5, 2009. Regents Chancellor Merryl Tisch said, "John King is a nationally recognized education leader with a proven track record of lifting student achievement, particularly for low-income minority students in urban settings. His goal is always the same -- ensuring that the students in his care are prepared for college-level work and productive careers."

The State Education Department announced today that 13 schools have been identified as "persistently dangerous" under the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act. Last year 19 schools were identified. Eight new schools have been added to the list of persistently dangerous schools this year and 14 have been removed. The eight newly identified schools are located in New York City; the 14 newly removed schools are all located in New York City as well. Schools were removed from the list because they reported fewer serious incidents.

A total of 499 elementary, middle and high schools and 35 districts statewide have been identified for improvement under the federal No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act. Of these, 49 schools and three districts were newly identified this year. Of the identified schools, 430 will receive Title I funds in 2009-10 and are required to offer extra help to eligible students; 339 of these Title I schools must also offer public school choice (as appropriate) to all enrolled students. In addition, 197 schools and 26 districts have been removed from the improvement list because they made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for two consecutive years in all areas for which they were identified. AYP is the minimum level of performance schools and districts must achieve each year and is based on student participation and performance on state assessments.

Results released today show that New York State students are the largest and most diverse state population in the country taking the SAT and Advanced Placement exams. In the 2008-2009 school year 122,790 students took AP exams and 159,886 seniors took SAT exams indicating a strong interest in preparing for and attending college.

New York State Governor David A. Paterson and the New York State Education Department announced today that 493 schools in 119 school food authorities have been awarded Food Service Equipment Assistance Grants totaling $5.99 million. The grants were made available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009.

All Department technology services will be unavailable starting 3:00 PM on Friday, July 31, 2009 through 6:00 AM on Monday, August 3, 2009.