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Adult literacy programs assist adults to become literate and obtain the knowledge and skills necessary for employment and self-sufficiency; who are parents/guardians to obtain the educational skills necessary to become full partners in the educational development of their children; and to obtain a secondary school credential.

New York State also offers an alternative preparation model aimed at mature, second career professionals. Alternative programs are offered by colleges with local school partners. They feature an accelerated introductory component, followed by paid employment, with extensive mentoring, coursework and other supports from the college and school district.

Education Law §310 provides that persons considering themselves aggrieved by an action taken at a school district meeting or by school authorities may appeal to the Commissioner of Education for a review of such action. A §310 appeal must be initiated within 30 days of the decision or action complained of, unless the delay is excused by the Commissioner for good cause shown in the petition.

Approved Preschool Special Education Programs
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To help provide a broad range of services to New York State residents who, because of academic and economic circumstances, would otherwise be unable to attend a postsecondary educational institution.

The Federal Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Improvement Act (Perkins IV / CTEA) provides funds to postsecondary institutions, preparing students to be more competitive in the world economy.

View the New York State certification status of individual teachers, school administrators, and pupil personnel professionals.

The mission of the New York State Education Department Charter School Office is to create and sustain excellent educational options for New York State families on behalf of the Board of Regents through high quality charter school authorizing, fair and transparent oversight of all charter schools, and the dissemination of innovative school designs and practices.

The list of cities, towns and villages in New York State is based on 1998 data from the NYS Department of Transportation and the NYS Office of Real Property Services.

The New York State Education Department conducts site visits to determine compliance with federal Civil Rights Laws and Regulations as part of the State's agreement with the U.S. Department of Education.

The purpose is to increase the number of students from under-represented groups who are pursuing professional licensure and careers in mathematics, science, technology and health-related fields.

How can I get a copy of my high school diploma?

The decisions reported on this website are unedited and unindexed and are only available from July 1991 to date. Although reasonable efforts have been made to ensure that the decisions are current, complete and accurate, the State Education Department does not warrant or represent that they are current, complete and accurate. The decisions of the Commissioner of Education from April 1958 through June 2010 are officially reported and indexed in Education Department Reports, Volumes 1-49. Decisions in Volume 50 and thereafter are not officially reported and indexed in the Education Reports and should be cited using the volume and decision number. (For example: 50 Ed Dept Rep, Decision No. 16,084).

The database containing the entire New York State Public and Nonpublic Schools and Administrators is available in various formats and can be downloaded from the site.

Directory of School District Websites

Driver & Traffic Safety Education in New York State schools is a course implemented via a joint partnership between the New York State Education Department (NYSED), and the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).

File a moral character complaint concerning the moral character of individuals who hold or who are applicants for New York State teaching certificates, or about illegal practice of the profession by an uncertified person.

A new High School Equivalency (HSE) Test called TASC™ (Test Assessing Secondary Completion) replaced the GED® Test in 2014.

The TASC™ is a High School Equivalency (HSE) national examination developed by CTB/ McGraw Hill. The test is available to adults who did not graduate from high school or whose diplomas may not be recognized by New York State. In New York State, the TASC™ is offered in English and Spanish.

When candidates pass the TASC™ test in Spanish in New York State, they receive a high school equivalency diploma with a designation of Spanish.

There are five tests in the TASC™ test Battery: Reading; Writing; Social Studies; Science; and Mathematics.  The tests take approximately nine hours to complete and include a direct writing assessment.  To ensure that the content and skills measured by the tests remain closely matched to contemporary high school curriculum, the tests undergo regular review.

A broad range of services to New York State residents who, because of academic and economic circumstances, would otherwise be unable to attend a postsecondary educational institution.

Topics include creating an individualized home instruction plan, evaluation, students with special needs, and college entrance.

Education Law §310 provides that persons considering themselves aggrieved by an action taken at a school district meeting or by school authorities may appeal to the Commissioner of Education for a review of such action. A §310 appeal must be initiated within 30 days of the decision or action complained of, unless the delay is excused by the Commissioner for good cause shown in the petition.

The text emphasizes the design, and the architecture and construction, of the Iroquois longhouse as it appeared 400 years ago, and before European influence drastically changed the Iroquois culture. The intention is to present Iroquois technology as it was before the influx of Europeans. The design of the longhouse reflects the social organization within Iroquois culture. Its architecture and construction are adapted to the raw materials available to the Iroquois in their immediate surroundings, and to the tools and technology in their possession.

The Liberty Partnerships Program (LPP) was established in 1988 under Section 612, Subdivision 6 of the Education Law to address the significant dropout rate among New York’s youth.

Search by name, establishment, license number to verify a professional's license to practice in NYS.

These awards provide recognition of a teacher and a citizen who have made outstanding contributions to New York State education about the Holocaust and other violations of human rights.

The scholarship is awarded annually and provides successful applicants with financial assistance to help defray costs of tuition, books, and other college-related expenses.

What We Do: Since 1973, NCCRS (formerly National PONSI) has been evaluating training and education programs offered outside of the traditional college classroom setting and translating them into college credit equivalencies.

How We Do It: NCCRS coordinates teams of college faculty evaluators and subject matter experts to conduct extensive reviews of education and training programs offered by corporations, unions, religious organizations and proprietary schools.

Why We Do It: We strive to help working adults and other students earn credit for learning acquired outside of the college classroom. Over 1,500 Cooperating Colleges and Universities will consider granting actual college credit based on our credit recommendations and in accordance with their own transfer policies.

The New York State Alternate Assessment (NYSAA) is a part of the New York State Testing Program. Starting with the 2013-14 administration, the NYSAA is based on a new test design with requirements that reflect the updated assessment. The NYSAA is a datafolio-style assessment in which students with severe cognitive disabilities demonstrate their performance toward achieving the New York State P-12 Common Core Learning Standards in English language arts and mathematics. In addition, this assessment measures the New York State Learning Standards and Core Curriculum in science and social studies. Eligibility for participation in NYSAA is determined by the Committee on Special Education (CSE) according to criteria described in the Administrators' Manual. Student performance is recorded through direct observation and documentation and may include other information such as student work products, photographs, audio and videotapes. Students must be assessed once a year beginning in the school year they become 9 years old through the school year they become 14 (grade equivalents 3-8). The secondary level NYSAA is administered during the school year they become 17-18 years of age (high school).

The New York State Archives was established in 1971 and opened its doors to the public in 1978. It is a program of the State Education Department, with its main facility located in the Cultural Education Center on Madison Avenue in Albany. There it cares for and provides access to more than 200 million documents that tell the story of New York from the seventeenth century to the present.

From its main facility, it also administers statewide programs that reach out to state agencies, local governments and community organizations.

Archives staff are located in nine regional offices around the State to address the archives and records management concerns of every area of the State.

The Regents are responsible for the general supervision of all educational activities within the State, presiding over The University and the New York State Education Department.

The University of the State of New York is the nation's most comprehensive and unified educational system. It consists of all elementary, secondary, and postsecondary educational institutions, libraries, museums, public broadcasting, records and archives, professions, Adult Career and Continuing Education Services, and such other institutions, organizations, and agencies as may be admitted to The University. The concept of The University of the State of New York is a broad term encompassing all the institutions, both public and private, offering education in the State.

The New York State P-12 Common Core Learning Standards (CCLS) are internationally-benchmarked and evidence-based standards. These standards serve as a consistent set of expectations for what students should learn and be able to do, so that we can ensure that every student across New YorkState is on track for college and career readiness. The New York State Education Department (NYSED) will continue to develop educator resources to support the successful implementation of the CCLS in classrooms across New York State over the next several years.

New York began statewide registration of births, marriages, and deaths ("vital records") in 1880-81, under supervision of the State and local boards of health. Compliance with the law was incomplete until 1913 or even later; therefore certificates are lacking for many events.

Several of the State's larger cities recorded vital events for varying periods of time prior to 1880; see below for more information. An 1847 law required the school districts in each town to collect vital statistics. They ceased doing so after a few years. (The State Archives and State Department of Health hold no records created under the 1847 law.)

The New York State English as a Second Language Achievement Test (NYSESLAT) is designed to annually assess the English proficiency of all English language learners enrolled in Grades K–12 in New York State schools. The exam gives the State and schools important information about the English language development of English language learners (ELLs), and is part of the State's compliance with federal laws that mandate the annual assessing and tracking of English proficiency of English language learners.

The Library serves three major constituencies:

The Research Library, which was established in 1818, collects, preserves and makes available materials that support State government work. The Library's collections, now numbering over 20 million items, may also be used by other researchers on-site, online and via interlibrary loan.

The Talking Book and Braille Library (TBBL) lends braille and recorded books and magazines, and related equipment to residents of the 55 upstate counties of New York State who are unable to read printed materials because of a visual or physical disability.

The Division of Library Development works in partnership with 73 library systems to bring library services to the millions of people who use New York's academic, public, school and special libraries. Library Development also administers State and Federal grant programs that provide aid for library services.

The New York State Museum serves the lifelong educational needs of New Yorkers and visitors through its collections, exhibitions, scholarship, programs, media and publications in science, history, anthropology, and art. The Museum explores and expresses New York State’s significant natural and cultural diversity, past and present.

Summer residential programs for high school students which provide intensive pre-professional training with internationally acclaimed artists and artistic companies.

The State Education Department's Office of Nonpublic School Services staff provides general information, support for the Board of Regents Education Corporation process and Commissioner’s Consent to alternate incorporations, registration of nonpublic high schools; oversight of the application process for entities seeking a Basic Educational Data System (BEDS) registration number; and Coordination of the Commissioner of Education's Advisory Council for Nonpublic Schools.

A person may complete a teacher education program in a New York college or university and be recommended for a certificate provided that program has been registered by the Department as leading to the designated certificate.

The NYS P-TECH program is a public-private partnership that will prepare thousands of New York students for high-skills jobs of the future in technology, manufacturing, healthcare and finance.

The Office of State Review (OSR) was created in 1990 to assist NY State Review Officers (SROs).  A State Review Officer reviews decisions of impartial hearing officers concerning the identification, evaluation, program or placement of children who have, or are suspected of having, an educational disability.  Either a child's parent or a school district may appeal to the State Review Officer requesting a review of an impartial hearing officer's decision.

New York State Regents Exams in PDF format, some going back as far as the 1930s, are part of the Library's Digital Collections.

Regents exams administered after 1998

Verify a professional's license to practice in New York.

Reference tables for:

  • Physical Setting/Chemistry
  • Physical Setting/Earth Science
  • Physical Setting/Physics

Pending the appropriation of State funds by the New York State Legislature, 8,000 scholarships will be awarded for students graduating in 2015.  Of the 8,000 scholarships, 2,000 scholarships will have a value of $1,500 each and 6,000 scholarships will have a value of $500 each.

STEP provides academic enrichment in science and mathematics content areas.

Through the Smart Scholars Early College High School Program, institutions of higher education (IHEs) partner with public school districts to create early college high schools that provide students with the opportunity and preparation to accelerate the completion of their high school studies while earning a minimum of twenty but up to sixty transferable college credits at the same time.

The Office of Special Education works to promote educational equity and excellence for students with disabilities through its roles and responsibilities to:

  • oversee the implementation of federal and State laws and policy for students with disabilities.
  • provide general supervision and monitoring of all public and private schools serving New York State preschool and school-age students with disabilities.
  • establish a broad network of technical assistance centers and providers to work directly with parents and school districts to provide current information and high quality professional development and technical assistance to improve results for students with disabilities.
  • ensure a system of due process, including special education mediation and impartial hearings.
  • meet with stakeholders through the Commissioner's Advisory Panel for Special Education Services.

SRO decisions beginning with calendar year 2007 to the present are in accessible PDF format containing bookmarks/footnotes.  Pre-2007 decisions are in html format unless otherwise noted.

Tenured educators have the right to retain their positions and may only be terminated if there is “just cause” pursuant to Education Law §3020.

This page contains links to the following forms:

  • TASC Forms -> Application and Eligibility Requirements
  • Request for Duplicate Copy of NYS High School Equivalency Diploma and/or Transcript of GED® Test Scores
  • Out of State Testing - To Obtain a Copy of your Diploma
  • College Credit - To Have Your Credits Reviewed

This page contains a map listing for each county where the HSE/TASC™ test centers are located, when the tests are given and where a HSE/TASC™ Test Preparation Program can be found in your area.

This page contains a map listing for each county where the HSE/TASC™ test centers are located, when the tests are given and where a HSE/TASC™ Test Preparation Program can be found in your area.

New York State’s Dignity for All Students Act (The Dignity Act) seeks to provide the State’s public elementary and secondary school students with a safe and supportive environment free from discrimination, intimidation, taunting, harassment, and bullying on school property, a school bus and/or at a school function.

Adult Career and Continuing Education Services-Vocational Rehabilitation (ACCES-VR) offers access to a full range of employment and independent living services that may be needed by persons with disabilities through their lives. Through its administration of vocational rehabilitation and independent living programs, VR coordinates policy and services relating to:

  • transition services for students with disabilities from school to adult services;
  • vocational rehabilitation services for working age individuals with disabilities;
  • independent living services for people with disabilities of all ages; and
  • business services for hiring a qualified diverse workforce.

The original World Trade Center featured landmark twin towers, which opened on April 4, 1973, and were destroyed in the September 11 attacks of 2001.

At the time of their completion, the original 1 World Trade Center (the North Tower) and 2 World Trade Center (the South Tower), known jointly as the "Twin Towers", were the tallest buildings in the world.