At the invitation of New York State Sen. Joseph Griffo, New York State Education Department Commissioner Betty A. Rosa – along with Assemblywoman Marianne Buttenschon, Assemblyman Brian Miller and Assemblyman Robert Smullen – spent time today in Oneida County engaging with key education stakeholders from Central New York, the Mohawk Valley and the Southern Tier.
Commissioner Rosa’s trip included classroom visits to Rome Free Academy in Rome and Thomas R. Proctor High School in Utica, opportunities to speak with students, teachers and administrators and a roundtable discussion about issues affecting school districts that was moderated by Sen. Griffo.
During the roundtable, participants had the opportunity to interact directly with the commissioner and senior department staff. Topics discussed included:
- Foundation Aid and funding challenges
- Addressing educator shortages
- The electric school bus mandate
- The cell-to-bell cell phone ban and related
- Preparing students for life after school
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Regionalization
Besides Sen. Griffo, Commissioner Rosa and her staff, other participants in the roundtable included Regent Patrick Mannion, Madison-Oneida and Oneida-Herkimer Madison BOCES leaders, area school superintendents, local teacher and parent association and school board representatives, Assemblywoman Buttenschon, Assemblyman Miller and Assemblyman Smullen. Tammie Nabywaniec, chief of staff for Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush, was also in attendance.
“I appreciate the willingness of Commissioner Rosa and her staff to once again come to the region, and I am pleased to have facilitated this visit,” Sen. Griffo said. “The roundtable and related visits were an important opportunity for the commissioner to interact directly with local school officials, other stakeholders in education and area legislators. These discussions and interactions are critical as we continue to work to enhance education to better meet the needs of students, school districts and communities in the region.”
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