by Dr. Gladys I. Cruz
District Superintendent, Questar III BOCES
As the District Superintendent of the Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) in Rensselaer, Columbia, and Greene counties, I am tasked with helping local school districts with a New York State Education Department (NYSED) initiative called Regionalization. The purpose of this initiative is to foster discussions and ideas to improve student opportunities and operational efficiencies by sharing resources.
To start, let me share what regionalization is not. It is not about forcing merger, annexation or unwanted services onto local districts. It is also not about forming a super BOCES or duplicating what we already do as an educational service agency.
For more than 75 years, BOCES across the state have provided a means for districts to do together what may be difficult, if not impossible, to do alone. This initiative continues this long-standing practice of collaboration and cooperation, from shared programs and services to participating in regional dialogues.
Regionalization is designed to spur regional conversations across the state to leverage existing strengths and expertise to address common challenges. These challenges – which include declining student enrollment, fiscal constraints and potential changes to school funding, and educational inequities – impact school communities differently.
Possible examples of Regionalization could range from developing new programs to sharing resources. This collaboration does not have to happen within the BOCES; it could be done between districts. We already have examples of this, such as local districts that have merged sports teams (such as Berlin and New Lebanon for all sports) to districts that share staff, programming, or equipment with others.
NYSED will play a key role in facilitating these conversations. It will provide guidance, resources and support to help districts identify their unique needs and develop collaborative solutions.
As the District Superintendent, I will serve as a facilitator to compile the plan and recommendations based on input from our superintendents and others, and to foster ideas and collaboration among our districts.
In April 2025, I will be required to submit an interim progress report with NYSED on what has been discussed regarding the region’s strengths, needs, and preliminary suggestions for action including requests for legislative changes, regulatory changes/relief, or additional resources.
As part of Regionalization, local school districts are required to:
- complete an online survey to summarize and reflect on their local strengths, needs, and vision (due December 6, 2024)
- participate in regional convenings to discuss the aggregate needs of our tri-county region
- help develop a regional plan and set of recommendations for creating and enhancing access to opportunities for all students in our region
- collaborate to implement and amend, as appropriate, regional plans beginning in the 2026-27 school year if their district has an activity listed in the plan for their school(s), and
- Engage in the planning process to reflect on progress and update the region’s plans and recommendations every 10 years.
Our region’s final plan, due October 2025, will be developed by the school districts in Rensselaer, Columbia, and Greene counties. It will include a regional activity plan, or the items the districts have agreed to work on together. It will also include regional ideas and recommendations, or items that districts would consider pursuing regionally if they had additional resources, or legislative/regulatory changes. Districts will not be required to participate in any activities or commit local resources without their agreement or consent.
The output of this initiative, the regional plans and recommendations, seek to highlight the work local districts are already doing, uplift the work they are planning to do, and identify the resources and supports they need to carry out their plans—especially those resources and support they wish to recommend NYSED consider in shaping future budget and legislative priorities, and policy/regulation changes.
We are committed to making this more than a compliance activity with the state, but rather a means to improve the outcomes, opportunities, and operations of our local school districts. Together, our conversations will help to inform local decision making in meeting the needs of all students and strengthening our public education system.
This column appeared in the Register Star and The Daily Mail newspapers.
