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Prior to the 2007-08 school
year, the Watervliet City School District entered
into a "Contract for Excellence" (C4E) with the New
York State Education Department. The four-year
contract provides the district with additional
funding to create and augment an assortment of
educational programs and initiatives designed to
improve academic achievement. Please read on to
learn more about how the contract influences
teaching and learning at Watervliet City Schools
and look to the right for updates on the
2008-09 contract.
Frequently Asked
Questions:
What is the Contract for Excellence?
The Contract for Excellence (C4E) is
an agreement by a school district within New York State that
states how new Foundation aid dollars will be spent.
New York State's Contract for Excellence program was
created prior to the 2007-08 school year. SED
mandated school districts to enter into Contracts
for Excellence if they met the following criteria:
-
One or more schools
designated as a School in Need of Improvement
-
Foundation Aid* increase
of 10 percent or more over previous year, OR
-
Foundation Aid increase of
$15 million or more over previous year
As a result, 55 school
districts throughout the state were required to
enter into C4Es prior to the 2007-08 school year.
When the 2008-09 school year begins, 39 school
districts throughout the state will be operating
with a C4E
* Foundation Aid is the Education Department's term
for money provided to school districts for
instructional purposes. The amount of Foundation Aid
school districts receive is essentially based upon
enrollment, but is adjusted to account for regional
costs and other considerations. Foundation Aid does
not fund expense-driven costs, such as construction,
transportation, BOCES and other special service aid,
special education, universal pre-kindergarten and
other items.
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We hope you will take a moment to review the district's
contract, which is further outlined in the links below:
We
want your feedback!
We welcome your feedback and
input at anytime throughout the year. Should you have any questions or concerns, please
feel free to contact the school district by calling
629-3200.
We
will be holding a public hearing on Wednesday,
August 13, at 6 pm in the WJSHS Library.
You can
also download and fill out this
public comment form
Or,
click here to complete an
online
C4E Feedback
form. |
So, why does our school have a
contract? Watervliet is required to complete this contract as we meet
certain state aid thresholds for 2008-09 and have at least
one school with academic performance issues. Watervliet Junior High School has been
named a School in Need of Improvement for ELA scores within
the special education sub-group.
Are other schools in NYS on the C4E
list?
Yes, when the 2008-09 school year
begins, 39 school districts throughout the state will be
operating with a C4E. Many of
these are small city school districts that have similar
demographics to Watervliet. Local districts on the list
include South Colonie, Amsterdam and Schenectady.
Can the district spend the money on
whatever it wants?
According to the state, C4E
funding must be used to increase student achievement. It
must be targeted to students with the greatest educational
need, and also be used to supplement (not supplant) existing
district efforts. Districts are allowed to use a certain
portion of the funding to maintain current programs.
So, how are we spending the money?
School district administrators worked
with SED officials to develop a C4E that addresses our
district's specific needs in
four areas: class size reduction, increased time on
task for students, quality initiatives for teachers
and administrators and MS/HS restructuring.
Details can be found in the
2008-09 new
initiatives document. The 2008-09 contract will
be posted when it is approved by the state.
WCSD received $1,128,423 in C4E funding for the 2007-08 school
year. The district will receive $700,152 for the 2008-09
school year, of which $341,699 must be used to develop new
initiatives, while the remaining $358,453 will fund
initiatives created during the 2007-08 school year. The
district's Foundation Aid will cover the balance of the cost
to continue operating the initiatives created during the
2007-08 school year. |
