Meeting of the Board of Regents | November 2010

Cultural Education Committee

November 16, 2010

Time: 10:20 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Location:  Room 217 EB

REGENTS COMMITTEE ON CULTURAL EDUCATION

Regent Roger Tilles, Chair of the Cultural Education Committee, submitted the following written report.

Your Committee on Cultural Education Committee had its scheduled meeting on November 16, 2010.

(Committee members: Regents Tilles, Brooks-Hopkins, Dawson, Bendit, Rosa)

In attendance were: Regents Tilles, Dawson and Bendit

Absent: Regents Brooks-Hopkins and Rosa

In addition to CE Committee Members, in attendance were:  Chancellor Tisch, Commissioner Steiner, Senior Deputy King and Chief of Staff Baldwin

ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION

Chair’s Remarks: Regent Tilles welcomed everyone and opened the meeting.

Deputy’s Report: Deputy Commissioner Jeffrey Cannell greeted everyone.  The Deputy’s OCE Monthly Report that was distributed at the meeting. 

BR (A) 4 (Full Board) - Regulatory Agenda

The State Administrative Procedure Act (SAPA) §202-d requires that the Department publish, each year, a regulatory agenda in the first January issue and the last June issue of the State Register.  The regulatory agenda is a list containing a brief description of the subject matter of each regulation the Department is considering proposing during the coming year, together with contact information for each proposal. The filing deadline for the next publication is December 21, 2010.    Carol Ann Desch provided information and answered questions pertaining to the current proposed amendments.

CE (D) 2 – Public TV Annual Report for the October 2010: Public Television's Impact on Teaching & Learning - July 1, 2009 through July 31, 2010

Section 236 of the Education Law requires public television stations to allocate at least 20% of their State Aid for “instructional television services to be provided to local educational agencies.” The law and Part 179 of the Commissioner’s regulations also require the stations to make regular reports on the programs and services they provide. Liz Hood, Director of Educational Television/Public Broadcasting presented the report to the Committee. 

CE (D) 4 -Turnaround Schools: Possible Roles for Arts & Cultural Institutions

Liz Hood and Sally Bachofer spoke about opportunities to expand the relationship of cultural institutions to schools, especially schools that require academic intervention.  Senior Deputy King also participated in the discussion which included a review of the need for cultural institutions increase their capacity to understand the needs of schools that require intervention.

CE (D) 6 – Proposal to Establish a Regents Ad Hoc Advisory Committee on Deaccessioning by Chartered Museums

Emergency regulations related to deaccessioning by chartered museums recently expired.  Deaccessioning remains an important issue in the museum community.  As a result, the Regents have decided to establish an Ad Hoc Advisory Committee, chaired by  Carole Huxley, to address the issue of Regents regulations related to deaccessioning by chartered museums.   The creation of the committee at this time will allow action on permanent regulations early in 2011.  Therefore, it is recommended that the Cultural Education Committee of the Board of Regents take the following action: to approve the charge for a Regents Commission on Museums and direct staff to survey possible commission members and make recommendations for appointments to the Ad Hoc Committee.

Motion to establish the Ad Hoc Committee made by Regent Bendit

Motion Seconded by Regent Dawson

Unanimously Approved.

Regent Tilles reviewed a list of proposed members of the Ad Hoc Committee.

Motion to recommend the distributed list of members to the Ad Hoc Committee made by Regent Dawson

Seconded by Regent Bendit

Unanimously Approved

CE (D) 1 – Broadband for All at New York Libraries

From 2007 – 2010, The State Library’s Gates Foundation Hardware Grant Program, a two-phase program, that increased broadband access and provided 421 public libraries with the computers and miscellaneous hardware and software so they could connect to the internet.  This program ended in February 2010 and an Impact Report was published along with recommendations for the need for further broadband funding.

Carol Ann Desch, Coordinator of Statewide Library Services and Director of the Division of Library Development gave a brief overview and introduced presenter and project director, Mary Linda Todd, Library Development Specialist II and Jerry Schell, IT Manager from North Country Library System. Ms. Todd provided an update regarding the State Library’s four current initiatives for improving broadband access in public libraries statewide and the available funding.  This includes federal (ARRA/BTOP), state (OFT) and private (Gates Foundation) grant projects and what the Regents can do to enhance access to high-speed broadband connectivity for all New Yorkers through public libraries.

BR (A) (Full Board) – Discussion of Legislative Priorities Submitted to the CE Committee for information/discussion.

CE (D) 5/BR (D) 1 - Strategic Vision for OCE

The Deputy spoke of OCE’s role in the Commissioner’s vision and answered any questions.