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Financial and Statistical Outcomes of the Boards of Cooperative Educational Services

Submitted August 2006
 

Summary of Observations
Changes in BOCES Data from 2003-04 to 2004-05
Foreword
Background Information on the Establishment and Purposes of Boards of Cooperative Educational Services
Summary of General Fund Expenditures
Shared Service Expenditures
Administrative Expenditures
Capital Expenditures
State Aid
Career and Technical Education Program
Special Education Program (Staff to Pupil Ratio)
Special Education Program: Related Services
Itinerant Services
General Education Program: Alternative Education and Distance Learning
Non-Instructional Program: Substitute Coordination
 

Data Sources (V-VIII) – NYSED Data Entry Assistant (DEA) Database, Schedule 8.
Data Sources (IX) - NYSED Mainframe Suspense Database, SA-CMP/20 Output Report for Components of this BOCES.
Data Sources (I-IV and X-XV) – NYSED 602 Electronic Database. Information is reported by the District via the website electronic data collection form for the 602 Report to the Legislature – 2006.

Summary of Observations

• Estimated Total BOCES General Fund Expenditures increased 7 percent.

• Estimated Career and Technical Education Service Expenditures increased 5 percent, Special Education increased 7 percent, Itinerant Services increased 8 percent, General Instruction increased 6 percent, Instructional Support increased 5 percent and Non-Instructional (other) Service Expenditures increased 9 percent.

• Enrollment of students in career and technical education courses increased by nearly 3 percent.

• Enrollment of students in special education CO-SER 4220 classes, staff-pupil ratio 1:12:1, decreased 5 percent; in CO-SER 4230 classes, staff-pupil ratio 1:6:1, increased 3 percent; in CO-SER 4235 classes, staff-pupil ratio 1:8:1, increased 8 percent; and in CO-SER 4240 classes, staff-pupil ratio 1:12:3, decreased 17 percent.

• Enrollment of students in secondary full-day alternative education classes in BOCES decreased by 74 in 2004-05 compared to 2003-04.

• Average tuition costs in career and technical education increased 7 percent: about $441 per student. Regional differences account for some of the range of tuition costs, but not all.

• Tuition costs in special education rose from the prior year. The average tuition in 1:12:1 classes increased by $1,184; the average tuition in 1:6:1 classes increased by $1,416; the average tuition in 1:8:1 increased by $916; the average tuition in 1:12:3 classes increased by $970.

• Related service costs of BOCES did not change markedly for most BOCES from one year to the next, but the range across all BOCES in both years was wide. Regional differences in salaries account for some of the range, but not all.

• Average itinerant service costs increased in some cases but decreased in others. There was no particular pattern. There was a great range across BOCES with some, but not all, variances attributable to regional differences in salaries.

• Tuition costs in alternative education classes increased for most BOCES from one year to the next, and the range across the BOCES was significant. The average tuition increased from $13,150 per pupil to $14,177.

• Distance learning participation increased by 24 districts for a total of 256; average cost decreased from $21,009 per course to $20,607.

Changes in BOCES Data from 2003–04 to 2004-05

1. BOCES General Fund Expenditures: Estimated

   1. Total BOCES General Fund Expenditures: increased 7 percent

2. Service Program Expenditures: Estimated

   1. Career and Technical Education Service: increased 5 percent

   2. Special Education Service: increased 7 percent

   3. Itinerant Service: increased 8 percent

   4. General Instruction Service: increased 6 percent

   5. Instructional Support Service: increased 5 percent

   6. Non-Instructional Service: increased 9 percent

3. Administrative Expenditures: Estimated

   1. Total Administrative expenditures: increased 7 percent

   2. Administrative per RWADA: increased $65 to $69

4. Capital Expenditures: Estimated

   1. Total Capital expenditures: increased 3 percent

   2. Capital expenditures per RWADA: decreased $37 to $36

5. Career and Technical Education Data

   1. Enrollment of 34,074 students in career and technical education during the 2003-04 school year increased to 35, 233 students in 2004-05.

   2. Tuition in career and technical education ranged from $4,192 to $9,260 in 2003-04 and from $3,963 to $9,540 in 2004-2005. The average tuition in 2003-04 was $6,723 and in 2004-05 was $6,853.

6. Special Education Data

   1. Enrollment of 4,809 students in 1:12:1 classes, CO-SER 4220, decreased to 4,590.

   2. Enrollment of 5,608 students in 1:6:1 classes, CO-SER 4230, increased to 5,976.

   3. Enrollment of 5,103 students in 1:8:1 classes, CO-SER 4235, increased to 5,232 students.

   4. Enrollment of 3,387 students in 1:12:3 classes, CO-SER 4240, decreased to 2,807 students.

   5. Tuition in 1:12:1 classes ranged from $11,265 to $32,470 in 2003-04 and from $11,242 to $34,321 in 2004-05. The average went from $18,999 to $20,183.

   6. Tuition in 1:6:1 classes ranged from $11,062 to $44,870 in 2003-04 and from $11,242 to $34,321 in 2004-2005. The average went from $27,535 to $28,951.

   7. Tuition in 1:8:1 classes ranged from $14,406 to $36,868 in 2003-04 and from $11,095 to $41,381 in 2004-05. The average went from $24,304 to $25,220.

   8. Tuition in 1:12:3 classes ranged from $14,623 to $43,715 in 2003-04 and from $16,484 to $42,894 in 2004-2005. The average went from $27,902 to $28,872.

7. Related Service Costs: Individual

   1. Speech service ranged from $42 to $153 in 2003-04 and from $34 to $180 in 2004-05. The average went from $84 to $85.

   2. Psychological service ranged from $34 to $179 in 2003-04 and from $39 to $226 in 2004-05. The average went from $94 to $98.

   3. Physical therapy service ranged from $36 to $149 in 2003-04 and from $37 to $206 in 2004-05. The average went from $79 to $92

   4. Occupational therapy service ranged from $35 to $139 in 2003-04 and from $42 to $194 in 2004-05. The average went from $79 to $83.

   5. Counseling service ranged from $22 to $179 in 2003-04 and from $18 to 226 in 2004-05. The average went from $85 to $93.

   6. One-to-One Aide service ranged from $9 to $38 in 2003-04 and from $10 to $34 in 2004-05. The average increased from $19 to $20.

8. Itinerant Services

   1. School psychologist costs ranged from $46,242 to $97,573 in 2003-04 and $46,110 to $169,696 in 2004-05. The average went from $72,361 to $73,787.

   2. Speech impaired teacher costs ranged from $22,987 to $112,397 in 2003-04 and from $52,569 to $133,210 in 2004-05. The average went from $73,261 to $70,415.

   3. Visually impaired teacher costs ranged from $58,545 to $114,970 in 2003-04 and from $41,856 to $123,718 in 2004-05. The average went from $80,794 to $80,269.

   4. Occupational therapist costs ranged from $44,552 to $127,656 in 2003-04 and from $43,143 to $155,461 in 2004-05. The average went from $69,070 to $75,669.

   5. Physical therapist costs ranged from $38,880 to $119,940 in 2003-04 and from $48,727 to $128,281 in 2004-05. The average went from $74,562 to $80,740.

9. Alternative Education

   1. Enrollment decreased to 4,173 in 2004-05 from 4,247 students in 2003-04.

   2. Tuition ranged from $7,388 to $25,477 in 2003-04 and from $8,681 to $27,744 in 2004-05. The average was $13,150 in 2003-04 and $14,177 in 2004-05.

10. Distance Learning

    1. Enrollment among participating districts increased to 256 in 2004-05 from 232 in 2003-04.

    2. The cost per course ranged from $270 to $82,163 in 2003-04 and from $1,869 to $78,296 in 2004-05. The average was $21,009 in 2003-04 and $20,607 in 2004-05.

11. Substitute Coordination

    1. The number of teachers using the service in 2003-04 was 53,051 and the number in 2004-05 was 51,146.

    2. The cost per teacher ranged from $13 to $111 in 2003-04 and from $14 to $99 in 2004-05. The average was $44 in 2003-04 and $46 in 2004-05.

Foreward

Chapter 602 of the Laws of 1994 added Section 215-b to the Education Law to require the Commissioner of Education to prepare and submit to the Governor, the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, and the Speaker of the Assembly, an annual report beginning January 1, 1996. The report is also to be provided to all school districts and Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES).

The report details certain financial and statistical outcomes of BOCES, tuition costs for selected programs, per pupil cost information, and aggregate expenditure data for BOCES administrative, capital and service functions. In accordance with the statute, the report is to include changes from the year prior to the report year for all data. Therefore, data will be reported here for the 2004-05 year and for the prior year, 2003-04. The expenditure data are for costs incurred by the BOCES for the 2002-03 school year as the prior year and for the 2004-05 school year as the current year. The estimate for aid is based upon the cost of services and administration for 2003-04 and for 2004-05; the estimate for aid for the cost of capital operations is based on the 2004-05 and the 2005-2006 school year. Most aids are paid the year following the expenditure, but aid on capital operations is current.

All school districts that have joined a BOCES are required to pay for the costs of the central administration of the BOCES and the cost of the capital operations. In accordance with Education Law, the costs of both functions are allocated on the basis of either the Resident Weighted Average Daily Attendance (RWADA) of each district or the true valuation of the property of each. Beginning with the 1997-98 school year, BOCES may also use resident pupil enrollment as the basis for cost. A single method must be used by all districts in a particular BOCES. Currently, all BOCES except one use the RWADA method of allocating costs. Therefore, in this report the administrative and capital charges are reported based on RWADA for all BOCES.

Districts in a BOCES make their final decision about participation in services in the spring preceding each school year. The costs of services are determined by the number of students each district elects to send to a program, or by the amount of time a district purchases in some other programs. Therefore, in this report some services are reported based upon tuition, while others are reported on an hourly basis or on the basis of a full-time equivalent (FTE) of staff time.

This is the eleventh year of the annual report by the Commissioner of Education on BOCES. Comments would be welcome about the usefulness of the report, as well as ways in which the report might be improved. Comments should be addressed to Jeanette Canaday, Supervisor, Grants Management Services, New York State Education Department, Education Building Annex, Room 876, Albany, New York 12234.

Background Information on the Establishment and Purposes of Boards of Cooperative Educational Services

Introduction

The tradition of Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) is rooted in the organizational history of school districts in New York State. The three-part public education system which has evolved in New York is comprised of the local school district, the regional Supervisory District and BOCES, and the State Education Department.

Supervisory Districts

In 1910, the State Legislature adopted a statute to improve overall supervision of the State's schools. The Commissioner of Education was authorized to divide the territory of the State outside cities and villages of 4,500 or more people into Supervisory Districts, with approximately 50 schools in each. The person in charge of this territorial jurisdiction was given the title "District Superintendent." At that time, 208 Supervisory Districts were created. District Superintendents were deemed to be State officials with their salary paid by the State.

Groups with a concern about the range of educational services provided to rural children began their initial efforts to construct an intermediate unit or regional service agency to support local district services in the 1930s. While the Supervisory District structure instituted in 1910 provided an excellent means to improve supervision of local schools, there was no authority for a Supervisory District to provide educational services.

In 1933, the Legislature adopted a statute to reduce and consolidate the number of Supervisory Districts. Thereafter, whenever there was a vacancy in the Office of District Superintendent, the Commissioner of Education was required to determine if the educational interests of the area could be adequately served by combining the vacant office with an adjacent Supervisory District. This led to a reduction in the number of Supervisory Districts to 183 at the time of the formation of the Council on Rural Education in 1943.

Current Status

Today there are 38 Supervisory Districts in the State and a BOCES is located in each. All but 9 of the 698 operating school districts in New York are members of a BOCES. Of the 9, 4 are eligible to become members of BOCES; the 5 city districts, each with a population over 125,000, are not eligible to join a BOCES. The 38 BOCES served a total of 1,633,631 students in the 2004-2005 school year. Total general fund expenditures amounted to approximately $2,231,503,816.

The individual BOCES vary in size significantly, with those located in rural areas serving fewer districts and smaller numbers of students, but encompassing a larger territory than those in suburban locations. The BOCES serving the largest number of students (209,121 students) is Nassau BOCES on Long Island, while the BOCES with the smallest enrollment base is Franklin-Essex-Hamilton BOCES on the Canadian border (9,272 students). The BOCES with the largest number of districts is also Nassau with 56; the smallest is Schuyler-Chemung-Tioga in the Southern Tier with 7. The BOCES with the largest territory is Jefferson-Lewis-Hamilton-Herkimer-Oneida in the North Country with 3,339 square miles; the smallest is Westchester, adjacent to New York City, with 184 square miles. (The University of the State of New York, The State Education Department, Educational Management/Grants Management Services: School Districts by Supervisory District – 2004.) 

Programs and services also vary, reflecting the local needs of each area. All the BOCES operate programs in six service categories: career and technical education; special education; itinerant services; general education; instructional support and non-instructional support. The array of programs in each category differs, however, reflecting the services requested by the local districts. Nassau BOCES, for example, operates a very small itinerant program, as does Westchester. This is because most of the school districts in both BOCES are quite large and have sufficient students to preclude the need for part-time staff through BOCES. Generally, itinerant expenditures are inversely proportional to the enrollment base of the BOCES; the smaller the student base, the more likely it is that districts will request shared personnel through BOCES. In another service category, the reverse is true. In general education, BOCES serving primarily the larger suburban districts have bigger budgets for general education since these districts use more services, such as arts and environmental education and enrichment services for the academically talented. Another example of the variety across BOCES is in the area of instructional and administrative computer services. These services are regionalized in many areas of the State. Generally, certain BOCES serve districts in other BOCES, as well as their own. In a few instances, a BOCES has developed a service to which districts in many BOCES subscribe. The Rensselaer-Columbia-Greene BOCES operates a State Aid Planning Service to which hundreds of districts subscribe. The Erie I BOCES operates a policy development service which also serves many districts in other BOCES.

From 1948 to the present, the array of services provided by BOCES has increased. BOCES provide programs for their component districts to supplement district programs. They equalize educational opportunities for all students by permitting districts to take part in shared services. They provide programs for adult residents. They provide programs on behalf of both the federal and State governments. While many states now also have regional service agencies, few provide the breadth and variety of services which are the norm in the BOCES of New York State.

Summary of General Fund Expenditures

The following pages summarize the 2003-04 and 2004-05 school year expenditures of the 38 BOCES. Expenditures are, by statute, divided into three categories: Administration, Capital, and Service. The administration category includes expenditures for the Office of District Superintendent, Assistant Superintendents with central office responsibilities, and expenditures for certain operational functions, including the business office and personnel. The capital expenditure consists of costs for maintenance and renovation of owned facilities, and rental of leased facilities. The service category, representing the largest expenditure, consists of all of the shared programs requested by component school districts to supplement and enhance district programs. Successive charts provide greater detail about the costs for the administration and capital budgets, the kinds of shared programs included in the service category, the State Aid provided to districts as partial reimbursement of the cost of BOCES services and cost data for selected BOCES services.

N.B.  Expense for instructional and administrative computing is duplicated in the Total Service Expense Column. The total for that column is inflated by approximately $102,823,120. Computer services are regionalized. Designated BOCES provide services for their districts and districts in two or three neighboring BOCES. Providing BOCES and receiving BOCES list the computer services as an expense, therefore inflating the total. Aid is not duplicated.

N.B. Expense for instructional and administrative computing is duplicated in the Total Service Expense Column. The total for that column is inflated by approximately $102,823,120. Administrative computer services are regionalized, as are some instructional computing services. Designated BOCES provide services for their districts and districts in two or three neighboring BOCES. Providing BOCES and receiving BOCES list the computer services as an expense, therefore inflating the total. Aid is not duplicated.

Shared Services Expenditures

BOCES service expenditures are comprised of six categories: career and technical education (CTE), special education, itinerant personnel, general education, instructional support, and non-instructional support. School districts decide each year which services they will request BOCES to provide. Revenues to support most of the expenditures in each category are general fund revenues from the participating districts. A small portion of the revenues in some of the categories is from federal and State grant sources. Certain federal vocational education funds are included in the career and technical educational expense category, as are some federal and State funds in the special education expense category. Most grant revenues are budgeted in the special aid fund. However, where grant funds are provided to support an ongoing BOCES service like career and technical education, the funds are often included in the service budget.

Special education is usually the largest area of service in most BOCES, averaging 40 percent of total service expenditures. School districts have been strongly encouraged in recent years to operate their own classes for students with mild disabling conditions. The students who attend shared classes at BOCES tend to be those with more severe conditions and, therefore, require programs which are costly. Thus, while the number of children who are attending shared classes for special education has decreased in most BOCES, total expenditure has increased.

The next largest area of service is non-instructional support, averaging 17 percent of total service expenditures for BOCES. It encompasses services which support the management and operational functions of districts: administrative computing including payroll, accounting, and student census and scheduling; safety-risk management to promote healthy and safe facilities; transportation and contract negotiations.

The third largest area of service is instructional support, averaging 16 percent of total service expenditures for BOCES. The category consists of services to support district instruction, such as educational communications and technology-related programs to assist student learning, and curriculum and staff development to enhance teacher skills. This category of BOCES services has also been increasing recently, especially instructional technology.

The fourth largest area of service is career and technical education, averaging 14 percent of total service expenditures for BOCES. School districts are required to provide a career and technical education program. Almost all districts send some of their students to BOCES for career and technical education rather than operate a full local program. Because of the large expense for equipment in most career and technical courses and because student abilities and interests require a variety of vocational training, BOCES is ideally suited for providing shared career and technical training.

The other categories of shared services are generally of lesser magnitude but they significantly enrich local programs. General education represents 8 percent of total service expenditures. General education services include shared summer school, alternative education classes for at-risk students, interactive distance learning instruction, arts education and programs for gifted students. This category of BOCES service has been increasing as districts seek BOCES programs to enhance district instruction of students.

Itinerant services are the smallest category in most BOCES, an average of 5 percent of total service expenditures. This varies greatly, however, in that a BOCES with a number of small districts will often have a large itinerant expenditure, while BOCES with larger enrollment districts will have a smaller expenditure. Larger enrollment districts generally have little need for shared personnel from BOCES because they have enough students to employ full-time personnel. However, most districts are using part-time persons from BOCES to provide related services including psychologists, speech therapists and physical therapists, for district-operated special education classes.

Administrative Expenditures

As explained previously, the administrative function of a BOCES is like the central office function of a school district. The costs for the chief executive officer and assistants are included in the administrative budget, as well as costs for the business and personnel offices.

In accordance with statute, all of the districts which are members of each BOCES pay for the cost of the administrative function based upon the number of students in the district or the full valuation of property. All BOCES but one use the pupil count, so that method is used for all BOCES in this report. The pupil count used is Resident Weighted Average Daily Attendance, or RWADA. It is a pupil count based on the number of students in a district with weightings for half-day kindergarten and secondary students. It is a student count calculated by the State Education Department for each district based on data submitted by a district.

Administrative charges per RWADA vary among the 38 BOCES. There are a number of reasons why this happens. BOCES with a smaller number of total students are more likely to have a higher cost per RWADA than larger enrollment BOCES. There are certain staff and functions which must be present to operate the central administrative function regardless of size, as in a school district. There must be a chief executive, a business manager, a personnel director and the like. If the base upon which these fixed costs are allocated is small, the cost per base unit will be higher than if the base is larger.

Another factor is differing regional costs. Costs in the highly urban BOCES below Albany County are higher than so called "upstate" BOCES for staff and purchased items. Personnel salaries are higher; costs for service contracts and utilities are higher, too.

Finally, costs may differ to a small degree among BOCES irrespective of size or location because of the manner in which BOCES budget costs. Some items such as vehicles, telephone and other utilities are purchased as a single unit but must be allocated to administration and to the various service budgets. The manner in which BOCES allocates these costs varies. Some costs for administrative personnel can be budgeted differently also based upon the philosophy of the Cooperative Board. In some BOCES there is only one assistant superintendent in the administrative budget, and personnel in the program budget assume full responsibility for program operation. Other BOCES have two assistant superintendents in the administrative budget. These persons are likely to have a greater role in providing program oversight than in a BOCES with a single administrator. In either case, all persons budgeted in administration must provide only oversight. Personnel providing direct program supervision must be budgeted in the service budget. Another variance may be due to the manner in which a BOCES is accounting for retiree benefits. BOCES must budget for the cost of health insurance and supplemental retirement for all of their staff who retire with benefits. These costs cannot be charged to the service budgets by law. Some BOCES have established a reserve for this expense, while others are including the cost as a current expenditure in the budget. Both methods are appropriate, but the BOCES including the cost in administration will have a greater administration budget than the BOCES which have established a reserve.

For all of these reasons, administrative charges per RWADA are different among the BOCES. Because the charge per RWADA is markedly different from one BOCES to another, it should not be assumed that the management function in one is operated more or less efficiently than in another.