Roger Tilles, the Board of Regents member who represents Long Island, voted along with every other member to make regionalization voluntary for school districts
Bob Giglione
State education officials confirmed Monday that its regionalization plan – which would create and foster multi-district collaboration for varied programs and services – is entirely voluntary.
The state Board of Regents voted unanimously Monday afternoon to make amendments to the regionalization plan that explicitly states its voluntary opportunities for school districts. School districts would only participate in regionalized programs that they choose to engage in.
“Throughout the 60-day public comment period, the department has engaged with stakeholders across the state and gathered feedback on the proposed amendment,” the Board of Regents resolution states. “This outreach reflects the department’s commitment to ensuring all students have equitable access to high-quality educational opportunities while respecting the unique needs and priorities of local communities.”
Regionalization is a state education initiative to bolster educational equity and operational efficiency across school districts. The purpose is to address disparities among districts and financial challenges by fostering collaborative programs for areas like athletics and advanced courses.
An emergency regulation in September pushed the program forward, which garnered opposition from many Long Island schools.
Monday’s vote comes after months of pushback from Long Island schools and elected officials who advocated for the program to be optional after verbiage made the program appear to be compulsory. This fight included a legal filing which multiple Long Island school districts joined.
Just hours after the state clarification, the expected opt-out on Long Island began with the Syosset Board of Education who voted Monday night to not participate in the state program.
“The Syosset Central School District repeatedly indicated, it will oppose any attempt to diminish its local control, to redirect local resources or to require the Syosset Central School District to partial in any regionalization plan,” Syosset Board of Education President Carol Cheng said. “The Syosset school district will commence legal action to preserve its local control, in the event that it is required against its will to participate in any activity listed in any regionalization plan.”
Monday’s clarification from the state came two weeks after the Education Department had made amendments to the program that the regionalization planning process would be optional for school districts to participate in.
This still left school districts concerned, as Locust Valley Central School District, which led the legal action, said in a letter the language change made it appear the planning process to be voluntary but not the implementation of the program across school districts.
The regionalization planning process includes five steps, which does include the final step of regional plan implementation, according to the state Department of Education website.