BOCES Consolidation Study Moving Forward
By SUSAN MENDE
CANTON - Two consultant groups will team up to study how the region's 18 public school districts could save money either by full-fledged mergers or consolidating some of their services and staffing.
Research will be handled by Organizational Leadership Services, (OLS) Clifton Park, through a partnership with Rural Schools Association of New York State (RSANYS), Ithaca.
The study carries a pricetag of $126,176, according to Thomas R. Burns, superintendent of St. Lawrence-Lewis Board of Cooperative Educational Services.
Mr. Burns reiterated his support for exploring different options because he said the state could eventually decide to impose its own cost-cutting solutions for small, rural school districts.
"I would rather see us at the table than on the menu. That's my fear if we wait too long," Mr. Burns said. "It's better for us to be proactive and get out in front of this."
BOCES decided to spearhead the study after seeking input from various school district superintendents within the region.
The cost of the study will be divided among the 17 public school districts in St. Lawrence County and Harrisville Central School District, Lewis County.
The BOCES board is expected to approve the spending at its 6 p.m. Sept. 9 meeting at the St. Lawrence Valley Education Center, 30 Court St.
Mr. Burns said he believes the money is being well spent.
"There's a potential to save a considerable amount of money," he said. "When you consider the amount of possible savings, the cost of the study is really quite small."
Following their research, the consultants are supposed to issue a report outlining various options. Those will include the feasibility of creating a few, large regional high schools by consolidating students from different districts.
RSANYS and OLS were selected over two other applicants interested in doing the study- the University at Buffalo's Regional Institute, and the New York State School Boards Association, Albany.
Its affiliation with the state's Center for Rural Schools, Cornell University, Ithaca, made RSANYS strong choice for the job, Mr. Burns said.
"They have access to all sorts of demographic information," Mr. Burns said. "They've done a number of broad brush studies in terms of mergers and regional high schools."
Prior work includes a 2004-05 study for Broome County which houses the city of Binghamton in the southern part of the state.
"That county was facing a similar situation, facilities closing and losing enrollment," he said.
The BOCES subcommittee that reviewed proposals also liked the idea of OLS and RSANYS partnering for the project.
"Neither group felt they had the capacity to handle the job alone, so they are teaming up. This was something we liked about the proposal, how they have allocated personnel according to expertise," Mr. Burns said.
Dennis Sweeney of RSANYS will oversee the study as project manager. Data collection is expected to begin this fall, with the final report released next summer.
Researchers will be touring school districts, conducting surveys, interviewing constituent groups and "crunching data," he said.
The consultants understand that given the large geographic size of St. Lawrence County, their recommendations may not be the same for all sections, he said.
"They recognize that this could look a lot different in different regions. School districts can evaluate this as a group or take portions that only apply to them," Mr. Burns said.
The public will have chances to offer input later in the process, he said.
"They'll be doing some public forums as this moves forward," Mr. Burns said. "They understand this can't go anywhere without public support. They will want to reach out so we get some sense of what is acceptable and what isn't."
