Erie County Association of School Boards

Awards Nominations

It's that time again for the 2012 Awards Nominations

Nominations are now open for the Diana Miller Service to Education Award, Laura Burns Advocacy for Children Award, and Hodgson Russ Excellence in Collaboration Award.

Award descriptions and nomination forms are below. Nominations are accepted from Boards of Education, individual Board members, and Superintendents. Nominees may be from your own District or from a different ECASB Member District.

Nominations are open through March 16th. Please take a few moments to submit a nomination and help honor those who exemplify our best in service, advocacy, and collaboration!

Here are the forms
Diana Miller
Laura Burns
Excellence in Collaboration

Bracing for a New Era
21 Erie County School Districts Attend Finance Session

Members of the Holland and Lancaster Boards of Education were among representatives from 21 Erie County School Districts who attended the Saturday morning, "Bracing for A New Era: Life Under the Tax Cap," program presented by Dr. Rick Timbs, Executive Director of the Statewide School Finance Consortium.

Dr. Timbs has been traveling the state speaking on inequitable distribution of state aid and cuts in aid, and the financial challenges ahead under the State's tax levy cap which becomes effective this year.

School Leaders’ Summit Draws 100+ to Conversation on Student Success and College Readiness

A day-long Educational Leadership Summit on developing and sustaining partnerships among K-12 school districts and higher education drew more than 100 participants at Erie 1 BOCES, 355 Harlem Road, West Seneca.

Participants included college and university presidents and provosts, school superintendents, and top academic officials from K-12 and higher education. Described as "an unprecedented gathering of leadership" by Erie 1 BOCES District Superintendent Donald A. Ogilvie, the group initiated a conversation about student readiness for college and careers, and the bigger picture of preparing children for the challenges from the beginning of their learning through the culmination of higher education.

Posted on Thursday, 11 August 2011 19:22

Notes on the Tax Cap Myth

"The real reason local taxpayers are being sucked dry"

"... the tax cap is a bad idea unless it's wedded to relief from state mandates - the real reason local taxpayers are being sucked dry."
- Syracuse Post-Standard, 5/23/11

In most school districts, state-mandated pension cost increases alone will be higher than the amount allowed under the 2% tax cap being proposed for schools.

2011 Excellence in Collaboration Awards

Cleveland Hill School District and Erie 2 Chautauqua Cattaraugus BOCES cited for Excellence in Collaboration at annual event

The 2011 Hodgson Russ Excellence in Collaboration Awards were presented to the Cleveland Hill School District and to Erie 2 Chautauqua Cattaraugus BOCES at the annual dinner meeting of the Erie County Association of School Boards at Salvatore's on June 16, 2011.

Posted on Thursday, 30 June 2011 17:52

Mandate Relief Resolution

The ECASB Executive Board and Legislative Team are requesting the support of all Erie County School Districts in approving a Resolution for Mandate Relief . The intent is to launch a united effort to drive home to the Governor and Legislators the importance of mandate relief to all school districts in Erie County. Local school board associations across New York State are engaged in similar efforts to express the education community's expectation and resolve for significant mandate relief. This is especially important as school districts work to balance the increasing cost of mandates with the revenue shortfalls of recent years and the restrictions of the tax levy cap which goes into effect this year.
Districts that have approved the Resolution for Mandate Relief thus far are:

Akron School District

Amherst School District

Cheektowaga Sloan School District

Cleveland Hill School District

Depew School District

Erie 1 BOCES

East Aurora School District

Eden School District

Frontier School District

Hamburg School District

Holland School District

Iroquois School District

Lackawanna School District

Lake Shore School District

Maryvale School District

North Collins School District

Orchard Park School District

Springville-Griffith School District

Sweet Home School District

West Seneca School District

Williamsville School District

Districts passing amended resolutions:
Tonawanda

The Annual ECASB Legislative Breakfast will be held on Saturday, Feb. 11, at the Protocol Restaurant. All New York State representatives have been invited to this program which highlights school issues and concerns.

Property Tax Cap Without Mandate Relief: "This is gonna kill us ..."

A property tax cap, without accompanying mandate relief, will be lethal to area school districts, Erie County School Board members were told at the 2011 ECASB School Finance Academy. "You've got a gun pointed right at you," warned Mike Ford, "This is gonna kill us." Sharing data from the Statewide School Finance Consortium, Mr. Ford, who is Superintendent of central New York's Phelps-Clifton Springs School District, spoke to more then 60 area school board members at the program entitled, "The Storm is Here."