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Periodic Updates from Senior Deputy Commissioner Johanna Duncan-Poitier: Fall 2008

TO:	Presidents and CEOs of Institutions of Higher Education in New York State
FROM:	Johanna Duncan-Poitier, SENIOR DEPUTY COMMISSIONER OF EDUCATION – P-16 for the Office of Elementary, Middle, Secondary and Continuing Education and Office of Higher Education
Topics	Highlights of Work being Carried out by the State Education Department Supporting High Quality Education Strengthening the Educational Pipeline and Ensuring that Students Graduate from High School Prepared to Succeed in College Strengthening Teaching and School Leadership Expediting and Expanding Services
	Letter Presidents and CEOs of Institutions of Higher Education in New York State Fall 2008 (PDF)

Colleagues:

Like many of you, this past spring, I had the pleasure of participating in college Commencement ceremonies. Watching thousands of graduates proudly walk across the stage to receive their degrees, once again, I saw first-hand the power of higher education and the real difference that you make in the lives and the futures of our students. Graduate after graduate told me how they could not have made it without the support of college Presidents, Provosts, Deans, faculty, administrators, and staff. I want to thank you and your colleagues for the important work that you do all year long to help countless students reach their educational and professional goals.

I also want to take this opportunity to share with you highlights of work being carried out by the State Education Department and next steps to support the work of colleges and universities across New York State through the implementation of the Board of Regents Statewide Plan for Higher Education including:

the importance of working together to keep higher education affordable for all students and to support high quality academics and research;
latest developments on the Board of Regents work to eliminate Ability to Benefit Tests (ATB) that did not adequately determine college readiness and the impact this has had on select institutions;
national recognition New York has received for major reforms to strengthen regulation of the proprietary sector;
use of the term “university” in New York State;
work underway to review and update of the State’s learning standards with an emphasis on stronger alignment to the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in high school and college;
early college initiatives and middle and high school/college partnerships;
$3 million grant award to strengthen educational leadership development;
major achievements in teacher certification including the now one day cycle time for graduates of collegiate teacher education programs;
the extensive use of teacher supply and demand trend data;
improvements underway to expedite the program registration cycle time for all sectors of higher education;
and more.

Supporting High Quality Education

This year we will, once again, work together across New York’s four sectors of higher education, as well as with the Pre-Kindergarten through Grade 12 community, the Executive, the Legislature, other State and Federal government leaders, unions, professional associations, and other partners to keep New York State on track as a world leader in education.

To make higher education accessible and affordable to all students, New York funds more grant aid per student than any other state. The State is ranked fourth in the nation in the proportion of low-income students attending college. And, in today’s tightened fiscal environment, higher education continues be a sound investment for the future of our students and our State. The graduation rate for bachelor’s degree students in New York at the end of six years is higher than the national average. Keeping on the cutting edge in a global economy, New York’s colleges and universities also invest a combined $3.8 billion on research and development – second in the nation only to California. That is why it is more important than ever to ensure that New York State continues to be a leader in higher education across the nation and the world. This year, we will be working together on advocacy for critically needed funding for higher education.

We will also continue to carryout the Board of Regents risk analysis approach to quality assurance in higher education. Last year, to protect students and to ensure the effective use of Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) funding, the Board of Regents and the State Education Department eliminated the use of Ability to Benefit (ATB) tests that did not adequately assess students’ ability to complete college level work for purposes of determining student aid grant awards. As a result, two institutions – Interboro Institute and Katherine Gibbs – elected not to continue to operate in New York State. It is important that aggressive action is taken against those institutions that provide students with a substandard education. In 2006, the State Education Department ordered the closure of Taylor Business Institute after repeated site visits revealed serious deficiencies in educational structures and outcomes.

In addition, New York has received national recognition for being among the first states in the nation to carry out major reforms to strengthen oversight of the proprietary college sector, to protect the educational and financial interests of students and their families, and to ensure the integrity of the proprietary sector. The majority of proprietary colleges provide a quality education to students. Instances of poor academic practices in a select number of proprietary institutions, however, have resulted in the Board of Regents taking action on two regulatory amendments to ensure that new owners of proprietary colleges demonstrate the capacity to meet educational and financial standards to operate institutions.

The regulations require:

a transition period before new proprietary colleges receive final authority to award degrees; and
that the sale of degree granting colleges be approved by the Board of Regents prior to purchase.

Over 7,614 students enrolled in proprietary colleges were directly impacted by the Regents and the Department’s actions over the last two years in institutions identified as at-risk.
In the coming months, as we reach the halfway mark of implementation of the Regents Statewide Plan for Higher Education for 2004-2012, we will seek your input, as we have in the past, to ensure that next steps and statewide higher education priorities continue to be carried out in a way this is relevant, meaningful, and supportive of the important work that you do. For example, this year, the Board of Regents reviewed the existing policy regarding the requirements for degree-granting institutions to use the term “university” in their names and, at this time, have not recommended adjustments. As higher education continues to grow and diversify, this will continue to be an important issue. Therefore, we will be asking for your valuable input and recommendations on this and other initiatives to ensure that our policy directions support the future of higher education and are consistent with your needs and expectations.

Strengthening the Educational Pipeline and Ensuring that Students Graduate from High School Prepared to Succeed in College

We have heard your feedback regarding the importance of us working together to do more to ensure that students graduate from high school adequately prepared to succeed in college, and how to achieve that goal. Strengthening the educational pipeline from Pre-Kindergarten to higher education is the crux of the Board of Regents and the Education Department’s P-16 approach to education in New York State. Providing every child with the knowledge and skills they need to not only go to college, but to succeed in college and graduate, is fundamental to the future viability of our children, our State, and our nation. This year, over 70,000 students in New York State are engaged in college study while they are in high school and benefit from early exposure to the college environment and expectations for college study. However, still too many students entering college need remedial instruction. With approximately 48 percent of first-time students in two year colleges taking one or more remedial course and 13 percent of first-time students in four year colleges taking one or more remedial course, it is critically important that we work with our partners across the P-16 continuum to improve students’ college readiness. Examples of activities underway and next steps for the year ahead include:

To ensure that every high school graduate in New York State is prepared for higher education, work, and citizenship, the Board of Regents and the State Education Department are reviewing and updating the State’s Learning Standards beginning with the English Language Arts standards and continuing through the core subjects. The reviews are being undertaken in collaboration with representatives from colleges and universities, including those with teacher education programs, to strengthen the alignment between expectations and knowledge and skills needed for high school graduation as well as for college level work.

The Board of Regents and the State Education Department are working with colleges and universities and Pre-Kindergarten – Grade 12 schools across the State to strengthen P-16 linkages to raise academic performance and graduation rates for students. Last year, over 60,000 students statewide benefited from coordinated high school/college connections, through programs including Liberty Partnership, Learn and Serve America, the Science and Technology Entry program and the Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program. In the year ahead, we must work collaboratively to ensure that these programs receive the support they need to make higher education accessible for those students who might not otherwise have the opportunity to attend college.

The Regents and the Department have proposed a Smart Scholars Program that would transform the traditional four year high school to college model by providing historically under-represented students an opportunity to graduate from high school with as many as 30 college credits, and be on the fast-track to college completion. We are now working with private foundations and other partners to identify potential funding sources.

This year, consistent with the Board of Regents P-16 Education Agenda and Chapter 57, the first annual Excelsior Scholars Program was launched to provide an opportunity for high performing seventh graders to participate in advanced mathematics and science coursework at their local college campuses. This summer, 642 seventh grade students engaged in rigorous, hands-on, real world math and science applications at 13 colleges and universities across the State. Requests for Proposals (RFP) for next summer’s program will be available this winter.

Strengthening Teaching and School Leadership

The Board of Regents and the State Education Department have initiated a comprehensive strategy to help to ensure that all students are taught by qualified, certified teachers that included regional forums throughout the State to discuss the future of teaching and school leadership. In collaboration with colleges and universities with teacher education programs, Pre-K-12 schools, the State Professional Standards and Practices Board, professional associations, unions, government leaders, members of the business community, and other partners, a series of next steps have been identified for addressing teacher supply and demand and strengthening teacher preparation; examples include:

Strengthening the alignment between teaching policy, practice, emerging research and data, and funding. A number of important activities are now underway to ensure this alignment. For example, teacher education program faculty are participating in the Professional Standards and Practices Board’s Content Review Committee on the development of teacher certification examinations.
Reviewing the teacher certification structure in subject shortage areas, such as special education, and updating them where appropriate.
Enhancing the TEACH on-line certification system.
Systematizing P-16 partnerships to enhance teaching and learning.
Improving data systems in cooperation with the education community.

Both short and long term strategies are now being carried out. For example, in July, the Board of Regents accepted a $3 million grant award from the Wallace Foundation to build capacity to support educational leadership. The grant will support the transformation of collegiate school leadership preparation programs, the establishment of leadership professional development programs focused on teaching and learning, and the creation of school leader performance evaluations. This fall, we will be making available a Request for Proposal (RFP) to colleges and universities to fund a subgroup of innovative leadership education programs to prepare the next generation of high quality educational leaders to improve student learning in low-performing, high-need schools.

Expediting and Expanding Services

Also, this year, we will continue to expand and expedite the services that we provide that are important to you. For example:

Important Trend Data Now Available: The Department issued the third annual report on teacher supply and demand to provide information to educators, policy makers, students and parents on where teaching workforce needs are growing and where teacher surpluses exist. This report is available on the Web at http://www.highered.nysed.gov/tsd2008.htm. Over 15,000 educators have downloaded the data for regional planning purposes this year. We are very pleased with the feedback we have received from Deans and faculty in teacher education programs and Pre-K-12 educators across the State.

Teacher Certification Processing Overhaul Results in Major Cycle Time Improvements: With the support of colleges and universities with teacher education programs, the State Education Department has dramatically overhauled our teacher certification processes. With the implementation of our new Web-based teacher certification system, known as TEACH:

Prospective teachers can now apply for certification online and colleges can recommend program graduates for certification electronically.

Between 2006-07 and 2008-09, the Department has reduced the cycle time for certifying graduates of registered collegiate teacher education programs from over two months to 1 day.

Today, 96 percent of all applications are submitted electronically and 20,000 more certificates were issued this year (95,982) than last year (75,446).

We also now provide expedited service for prospective teachers who have secured teaching jobs and are in need of certificates for employment.

Streamlining and Expediting Program Review Process: Consistent with the recommendations of the Governor’s Commission on Higher Education, the State Education Department, and CUNY and SUNY continue to work collaboratively to streamline and expedite the program review process. Process improvements that have been identified will expedite the program registration cycle time for all sectors of higher education. In the last two years, we have received 3,263 program proposals from colleges and universities across the State; approximately two-thirds of program reviews were completed within 30 days.

This month, an extensive report was shared with the Board of Regents detailing activities undertaken by the State Education Department to carryout statewide education goals, as well as proposed next steps. The report is available on the Web at http://www.regents.nysed.gov/2008Meetings/September2008/0908hed4.htm. We would like to thank all members of the Board of Regents for their educational vision and leadership.

As this academic year progresses, I look forward to continuing to work with you to ensure maximum success for all students and to meet the State’s needs through quality academic programs and leading research. By supporting middle/high school – college connections; expanding opportunities for students to earn college credit in high school; and collaborating on other P-16 initiatives including work that is now underway to review and update the State’s learning standards, together, we can strengthen the educational pipeline and help to ensure that all students graduate from high school prepared for college and the workforce. Thank you again for the work that you do to support scholarship, student success, and research within your own institutions and communities, as well as for the important contributions you make to carrying out our statewide higher education goals.

Sincerely,

Johanna Duncan-Poitier
cc:       Members of the New York State Board of Regents
            Commissioner Richard P. Mills
            Associate Commissioner Joseph P. Frey

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