Area 6 Director Dana Smith Represents the Following School Districts:

Au Sable Valley, Beekmantown, Brasher Falls, Brushton-Moira, Canton, Chazy, Clifton-Fine, Clinton-Essex-Warren-Washington BOCES, Colton-Pierrepont, Crown Point, Edwards-Knox, Elizabethtown-Lewis, Franklin-Essex-Hamilton BOCES, Gouverneur, Hammond, Harrisville, Hermon-DeKalb, Heuvelton, Indian Lake, Keene, Lake Placid, Lisbon, Long Lake, Madrid-Waddington, Malone, Massena, Minerva, Moriah, Morristown, Newcomb, Northeastern Clinton, Northern Adirondack, Norwood-Norfolk, Ogdensburg, Parishville-Hopkinton, Peru, Plattsburgh, Potsdam, Putnam, Raquette Lake, Saint Lawrence-Lewis BOCES, Saint Regis Falls, Salmon River, Saranac, Saranac Lake, Schroon Lake, Ticonderoga, Tupper Lake, Westport and Willsboro

Area Director Electronic Newsletter

Welcome to the December 18, 2008 issue of the Area 6 electronic newsletter. The electronic newsletter is designed to facilitate communication between members of your NYSSBA Board of Directors and the Areas they represent. The newsletter contains information about Area 6 and NYSSBA. I hope you find it informative. I would appreciate your sending comments and suggestions for future newsletters to me at area06director@nyssba.org. If any of your board colleagues do not have computer access, a copy will be sent to the district office for distribution. If others with email did not receive their own copy, please submit their e-mail address to NYSSBA at info@nyssba.org.

The annual dinner with Regent Dawson and the SLLCSBA was hampered by bad weather, but a hardy group still showed up December 9, enjoyed the wonderful dinner provided by the culinary arts students of the Seaway Technical Center and all made it home safely.  As always, Regent Dawson was informative.  All of us need to be on guard with regard to what points of the Suozzi Commission and the Lundine Commisson Governor Patterson will use in the coming budget and legislative sessions.
 
NYSSBA has issued the final report from its Task Force on Maximizing School District Resources.  It is available through the NYSSBA web site.  The report has valuable suggestions for all boards to consider with respect to the financial challenges we are facing in building our 2009-2010 budgets.  We all need to be proactive in this regard.  We will be facing attacks both from the governmental level and the local taxpayer level.  It will be a new experience for all of us. 
 
Dave Little presented his recommendation for the NYSSBA Legislative Agenda to the Board of Directors in early December.  Part of what we as board members need to do is to get involved by communicating with our legislators.  We can't do that effectively unless we are educated ourselves, so it behooves us all to stay connected by reading news reports, log into the NYSSBA web site regularly and use CapWiz to communicate with our elected representatives.  Additionally, we need every board to be represented at the March SLN Conference in Albany by at least one board member.  The registration fee has been waived and most meals will be provided.  This is always a prime opportunity to communicate with our legislators during their prime budget consideration period.  We can't let this pass without our voices being heard! 
 
If you know of a fellow board member who is not getting information from NYSSBA on line, share your belief in doing so to stay educated and in touch.  We are elected to provide the best opportunites for our students and our voting constituents.  Staying informed is also our responsibility.  We can't afford not to be.  An uninformed board member inhibits our ability to govern.   Most of us read On Board, but there are still too many board members in  Area 6 who do not communicate on line. 
 
For those who do not know, the annual convention will remain in NYC for 2009 and 2010.  In 2011 it moves to Buffalo and in 20012 and 2013, it goes to Rochester.  The rotational move is a response to member requests. 
 
If you have any concerns or want to become more involved, please contact me at home through email (dlsmith45@earthlink.net), by telephone (315-388-5585) or through the NYSSBA office (800-342-3360). 
 

Recognition Due

I am happy to report that the following individuals have recently reached Level One in NYSSBA's Leadership Development Recognition program.  Members qualify for recognition by participating and earning points in various NYSSBA developmental activities.

Level One recipients have earned 40 or more points:

Charlene Favaro (Saranac), Vasso LaForest (Saranac), Phillip Burnett, Sr. (Canton), Scott Baxter    (Colton-Pierrepont), Barbara A. Griffith (Morristown), Ronald Tomo (Northern Adirondack), Joey Varin (Northern Adirondack), James R. Carroll (Westport), Jackie Dow (Brasher Falls), Bryan Gotham (Edwards-Knox), William A. McConvey (Franklin-Essex-Hamilton BOCES), Tina Miller    (Colton-Pierrepont), Rhonda Shorette-Peets (Brasher Falls), Amy Ashline (Saranac), Kevin Bolan    (Newcomb), Kari B. Ratliff (Elizabethtown-Lewis), Colleen A. Sage (Newcomb)

Congratulations to one and all!

2009 Executive Budget

Governor Paterson released his proposed 2009 budget yesterday.  Among the things listed in his proposal, individual school districts across New York would see reductions in state aid ranging from 3 percent to 13 percent, most reimbursable aids and universal pre-K funding would be frozen at 2008-09 levels for the next two years, and foundation and other aids would be subject to a $1.1 billion “Deficit Reduction Assessment” (DRA). Some mandate relief for school districts was proposed, including a five-year exclusion from Wicks Law construction contract requirements and making new employees pay more into their pension plans.  However, the governor also called for requiring local districts to pick up 15 percent of pre-school special education costs, funding that is currently provided by the state and counties.  More information on the budget can be found in the December 16 issue of SLN News.  If you have not gotten your copy of the SLN News via e-mail, please contact Christine Decatur at christine.decatur@nyssba.org.

CapWiz

As we prepare for the new year, and the challenges we will face in the 2009 legislative session, please remember how important it is to regularly communicate with your legislators.  NYSSBA makes this easy for you by emailing you Calls to Action when your help is needed to convince state leaders to support public education.  These emails allow you to simply click on a link to a letter, prewritten by NYSSBA staff, and have it faxed from our website to your legislator with your name on it. 

As constituents you hold the greatest power to influence your legislators.  Please take a minute to respond to NYSSBA Calls to Action when you receive them, and visit our online Legislative Action Center (http://capwiz.com/nyssba/home/) often to help ensure your representatives make public education the priority it must be.

Getting the Message Out

NYSSBA’s Communications Department helped get NYSSBA's response to the final report of the Commission of Property Tax Relief out to several media outlets by arranging for Executive Director Tim Kremer to appear on WRGB Channel 6, Capital News 9, and several radio interviews, including a morning talk show in Ithaca.

Since the last newsletter, NYSSBA has also responded to numerous press calls dealing with the state budget crisis and its impact on schools.  Press statements were issued regarding the Gov's proposed mid-year cuts to education, the final report of the Commission on Property Tax Relief, alternatives to mid-year cuts, and on NYSSBA's Maximizing Resources Task Force report.

NYSSBA’s Governmental Relations Update

Governmental Relations Deputy Director Charlie Dawson represented NYSSBA at the State Comptroller's semi-annual Local Government forum where training opportunities for municipal officials was discussed, as well as state cost shifts to local government and ways the state could help address cost drivers at the local level.  The group commended NYSSBA’s Maximizing Resources Report.  Staff also met with former Assembly Education Chair and new NYSSBA contract lobbyist, Steve Sanders, to discuss the mayoral control issue.

2009 Convention

The following overflow hotels have blocked rooms for the 2009 Convention.

Flatotel:           100 rooms (room rate $315.00-$355.00 - next door to the Sheraton)
Omni Berkshire:     100 rooms ( room rate $ 299.00 – 4 blocks from the Sheraton)
New Yorker Hotel:     50 rooms (room rate $ $279.00 - 18 blocks from the Sheraton)

Staff has begun researching keynote speakers.  The 2009 Convention Call for Proposals is scheduled to go out in mid-January.

Reservation of booth space on the trade show floor is off to a good start.  To date, about 52% of the trade show floor for the 2009 Annual Convention has been reserved.

Welcome New Members

NYSSBA is pleased to report that the Mount Pleasant-Blythedale Special Acts School Board (Area 10) has rejoined NYSSBA, effective January 1, 2009.   In addition, the Greater Southern Tier BOCES has voted to rejoin NYSSBA, effective January 1, 2009.

Membership Update

To date, 567 boards of education have paid their 2009 NYSSBA dues. This number represents 82.41% of NYSSBA’s Year 2008 membership.

Campaign for Educational Equity

Recently, General Counsel Jay Worona served as part of a panel with Michael Rebell on the topic of “Implementing Comprehensive Educational Equity: Legal and Legislative Perspectives” at the Campaign for Educational Equity’s (CEE) 4th Annual Equity Symposium at the Teacher’s College of Columbia University.

NYSSBA Staff Update

Congratulations to Brian Butry, NYSSBA’s Communications Coordinator, and especially to his wife Christine and daughter Emma.  They welcomed a brand-new baby girl into the family. Dylan Elizabeth was born on December 15.

Also, Jessica Caicedo has joined the NYSSBA staff on December 1.  Jessica’s position is secretary to both Governmental Relations and Communications/Research.  Jessica recently graduated with a bachelor's degree from the University at Albany, majoring in Latin American and Caribbean Studies, with a minor in English and Sociology.  During her college career, she served as a peer mentor, volunteer tutor and teaching assistant.  She also completed a full-time internship in the state Assembly and coordinated a three-day national conference at the University.  We welcome Jessica to two busy departments.

On the Road Again…

President Wayne Schlifke has also been quite busy touring New York State (and beyond) in 2008.  Since taking over the presidency, Wayne has visited nine local school boards associations, attended the NYSCOSS Mid-Winter Conference in January, the Value-Added Conference in May, the NYSASBO Conference in June, the Rural Schools Conference in July, the NSBA Presidents’ Retreat in Pennsylvania in August, the Area 6 Dinner Meeting in Malone in September and the NSBA Northeast Region meeting in the Virgin Islands in October.  He has also traveled to Washington, D.C. in February to attend the Leadership/FRN Conference and to Latham to lead four Board of Directors meetings throughout the year.
 
Upcoming Events - 2009

School Law Conference
  January 22, Islandia Marriott
  December 9, Albany

School District Auditing Workshop
  January 23, Latham, NYSSBA Headquarters
  February 13, Garden City, Nassau BOCES
  February 27, Rochester, Rochester Marriott Airport
  March 20, Buffalo, Hyatt Regency Buffalo
  April 3, White Plains, Crowne Plaza White Plains
  April 24, Utica, Radisson Hotel Utica

Fiscal Oversight Fundamentals Workshop
  January 24, Latham, NYSSBA headquarters
  February 28, Long Island
  March 21, Rochester
  July 27, Westchester/Rockland area
  July 28, Westchester/Rockland area
  August 10, Southern Tier area
  August 11, Southern Tier area
  August 24, Oswego/Syracuse/Utica area
  August 25, Oswego/Syracuse/Utica area
  October 15, New York City (to be held during the 90th Annual Convention)
  November 7, Rochester area
  November 14, Ulster/Orange County area
  December 5, Long Island

National School Boards Association’s Federal Relations Network Conference
  February 1-3, Washington, D.C.

Fiscal Oversight Online
  February 18-April 1 (registration dates:  January 7-February 11)
  April 15-May 27 (registration dates:  Januarhy 7-April 8)
  April 29-Jjune 10 (registration dates:  January 7-April 22)
  May 13-June 24 (registration dates:  April 1-May 6)
  June 10-July 22 (registration dates: May 1-June 3)
  June 17-July 29 (registration dates:  April 1-June 10)
  September 2-October 14 (registration dates:  August 5-August 26)
  September 16-October 28 (registration dates:  August 5-September 9)
  October 7-November 18 (registration dates:  August 5-September 30)
 
State Legislative Network Issues Conference
  March 1-3, Albany

Advanced Board Training
  March 27-28, Latham
  April 17-18, Long Island
  May 29-30, Fairport

National School Boards Association’s Annual Convention
  April 4-7, San Diego, CA

Joint BOCES Workshop
  May 1 and 2, location to be determined

NYSAWA Conference
  May 3-4, Albany

Special Education Law Conference
  May 22, Albany
  May 28, Rochester
  June 11, Long Island

NYS Association of School Business Officials Conference
  May 31-June 3, Saratoga

New Member Weekend Academy
  June 19-20, Long Island
  July 17-18, Buffalo
  August 21-22, Ithaca
  September 11-12, Albany
  October 2-3, Lake Placid

Rural Schools Association Conference
  July 13-15, Cooperstown

Summer School Law Conference
  July 17, Albany
  July 23, Long Island
 
Board Officer’s Academies
  July 31, Fairport
  August 14, Latham, NYSSBA Headquarters
  September 25, Long Island
  November 7, Westchester

Education Law Conference
  August 7 OR 14, Syracuse

NYS Council of School Superintendents Fall Conference
  October 4-6, Rochester

School Board Institute Courses (3)
  October 15, NYC (during the 90th Annual Convention)
  Plus 2 other dates via video conferencing

Pre-Convention School Law Seminar
  October 15, New York City

90th Annual Convention
  October 15-18, New York City
 
Open Meeting Law (dates to be determined)
  Binghamton
  Latham
  Syracuse
  Buffalo
  Long Island
  Plattsburgh

School Foundation Training  (dates to be determined)
  Latham
  Long Island
  Rochester