NYS Board of Regents Meeting Summaries

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Summary of March 2024 Board of Regents Meeting

Topics covered during the meeting include:

• Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Accountability Systems of Support
• Amendment relating to Student and Parent Notification of Advanced Coursework
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Schools
• Amendment Relating to Albert Shanker National Board Certification Grant
• Epistemic Injustice in Libraries

The Board of Regents conducted their monthly meeting on Monday, March 11^th and Tuesday, March 12^th. Chancellor Lester Young opened the meeting by recognizing Regent Christine Cea (Staten Island), Regent Wade Norwood (Rochester), and Regent James Cottrell (NYC), on being reelected to serve a new term on the Board by the NYS Legislature. The Chancellor also welcomed newly elected Board of Regents members, Hasoni Pratts (Brooklyn) and Patrick Manion (Syracuse).

Chancellor Young recognized Vice Chancellor Josephine Finn, who is retiring from the Board, for her years of service to the children of New York State. Regent Judith Chin received unanimous support in her nomination to fill Regent Finn’s position as the Board of Regents Vice Chancellor.

Regent Finn recognized March as Women’s History Month by reading the powerful Ain’t I a Woman speech that Sojourner Truth delivered at the 1851 Women’s Convention in Akron, Ohio.

Chancellor Young also recognized the month of March as Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month emphasizing the need for educators at all levels to continue efforts which ensure appropriate accommodations that support students with disabilities.

P-12 related topics covered during the March meeting and summarized in this report include:

• Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Accountability Systems of Support
• A Proposed Amendment Relating to Student and Parent Notification of Advanced Coursework
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) in P-12 Education
• Amendment Relating to the Albert Shanker National Board Certification Grant Program
• Epistemic Injustice in Libraries

• Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) Accountability Systems of Support

The opening session included a review of newly implemented support practices for schools identified to be in need of improvement through the requirements of Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). The revised model is designed to focus more on building capacity for continuous improvement in schools and allows school staff to be more actively involved with designing the improvement process. The revisions also provide increased supplemental supports for schools designated as Additional Targeted Support and Improvement (ATSI), Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI), or Schools in Receivership (OISR).

Dr. Kristen Wilcox, a professor at the University at Albany, spoke about the concept of Improvement Science and reviewed a series of online micro credential professional development modules that are offered to NYSED field staff working with schools in need of improvement. Areas integrated into the courses include management skill development, use of reflective feedback vs direct or celebratory feedback, assessing and improving school culture, effective use of data, and targeted instructional interventions.

Representatives from six schools/districts currently participating in various levels of the school improvement process shared their experiences with some of the new supplemental systems of support modules that include themes related to:

1. Enhancing Principal Leadership
2. Assistant Principal Mentoring
3. Increased Support for Instructional Coaching (Coaching for Excellence)
4. Specialized Support for High School Redesign

The link below includes the slides that were referenced during the presentation. https://www.regents.nysed.gov/sites/regents/files/FB%20Monday%20-%20ESSA%20Accountability%20Systems%20of%20Support.pdf

• Amendment relating to Student and Parent Notification of Advanced Coursework

The Board discussed a proposed amendment that will require school districts to notify students and parents, either electronically or by mail, of the benefits and potential opportunities associated with participating in advanced coursework.

The proposed amendment requires that:

• • Districts provide annual notification to families of the advanced courses offered in middle school and high school, including a detailed course description of each of the classes, and advice on how best to prepare and enroll in such courses.
  • Notification be provided to all students in every grade level beginning in either the fifth grade, or one grade prior to the first year that advanced coursework is offered by the school district, whichever comes first.
  • Parents must receive notification by June 1^st annually.
  • Districts provide a description of the academic and non-academic supports the school district provides to help students succeed in such courses, as well as any financial assistance that might be available.
  • Access to all the information be provided through the school district’s website. NYSED will be

providing a template to assist districts with organizing the information for their website.

It is anticipated that this amendment will be presented for adoption at the July 2024 Board of Regents meeting and become effective as a permanent rule on July 31, 2024.

https://www.regents.nysed.gov/sites/regents/files/324p12d1revised.pdf

• Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Schools

Deputy Commissioner, Angelique Johnson-Dingle introduced a discussion focused on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its potential uses in schools. The Deputy Commissioner was joined by Paul Cardettino, Coordinator for the NYSED Office of Educational Design and Technology, Dr. Mike Doughty, Asst. Superintendent for the Northeast Regional Information Center (NERIC), and Tara Carozza, Director of Digital Learning and Innovation in the NYC schools.

Mr. Cardettino provided a general overview of what AI is and what AI is not. He reviewed some of the many misconceptions of AI and noted that speech to text software is a common example of how AI can be used in schools. He also specifically referenced Generative AI, which includes Chat GPT, and presented a chart that listed over a hundred newly developed Generative AI applications and the wide range of areas where they are being used.

With regards to how AI will be used in schools in the future, he noted recent efforts to include AI considerations in federal and state legislation and in the proposed K-12 Computer Science and Digital Fluency Learning Standards. Dr. Doughty expressed that districts are currently “all over the

place with their acceptance of, and commitment to AI as an educational tool.” He cautioned that as districts continue to explore the potential benefits and pitfalls, they need to be especially aware of issues relating to academic honesty and equity and access. Current research data indicates that a significant number of AI users are white males.

Ms. Carozza shared that New York City has been experimenting with AI since 2020, and in 2022, began offering a PD course, Using AI In the Classroom. She reviewed the progress of their work from when AI was originally banned from being used in NYC schools to the point where they are currently working with collaborative technology industry partners to offer more training opportunities, implement K12 AI Policy labs, and refine policies for AI use.

Deputy Commissioner Johnson-Dingle concluded the discussion by noting that at next month’s

Board of Regents meeting there will be a follow-up presentation on AI.

Below you will find a link to the slides used in the presentation. https://www.regents.nysed.gov/sites/regents/files/P-12%20-

%20Artificial%20Intelligence%20AI%20and%20P-12%20Education.pdf

• Amendment Relating to Albert Shanker National Board Certification Grant

The Albert Shanker Grant provides funds to teachers to help defray the costs associated with obtaining National Board Certification. Currently, the grant does not assist with costs associated with the NBCT Certification Renewal process that is required every five years. The Board reviewed a proposed amendment which would allow the grant funds to also be used to support the NBCT renewal process fees.

Additionally, the approved amendment allows first time NBCT candidates who complete the initial candidacy requirements but do not successfully complete one or more of the required components, to request funding to support costs associated with retaking the required sections.

The amendment was unanimously approved and becomes effective May 14, 2024.

https://www.regents.nysed.gov/sites/regents/files/324hea1.pdf

• Epistemic Injustice in Libraries

Dr. Beth Patin, Assistant Professor at Syracuse University’s School of Information Studies, presented to the Board on the topic of epistemic injustice. Epistemicide is defined as the devaluing, killing, silencing, or annihilation of a knowledge system.

Dr Patin shared stories of her family history of activism through several generations as advocates for desegregation and women’s rights in Alabama. Her grandfather won a lawsuit which allowed her father to attend school and become the first black student to integrate Huntsville schools.

Using Alabama as an example, she framed how the state has limited student access to knowledge of the civil rights movement and highlighted some of the gaps that exist in current school curricula, primary document collections, and library holdings across the country. The different types of epistemic injustices were discussed along with contrasting examples of alternative frameworks that nurture diverse knowledge systems.

The link below provides access to the slides Professor Batin used in her presentation. It includes several primary documents, family photographs, and specific examples of current epistemic injustices that are occurring.

https://www.regents.nysed.gov/sites/regents/files/CE%20-%20Nurturing%20Knowledge- Ending%20Epistemicide%2C%20Transforming%20Education%2C%20Strengthening%20Communities

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