Onondaga County:
Baldwinsville: $3,697,360
East Syracuse-Minoa: $2,298,247
Fabius-Pompey: $750,954
Fayetteville-Manlius: $1,727,955
Jamesville-DeWitt: $1,016,394
Jordan-Elbridge: $1,387,107
LaFayette: $857,397
Liverpool: $5,345,676
Lyncourt: $277,464
Marcellus: $1,121,225
North Syracuse: $6,256,194
Onondaga: $800,506
Skaneateles: $534,585
Solvay: $1,132,813
Syracuse: $27,150,068
Tully: $784,252
West Genesee: $2,847,843
Westhill: $1,076,116
Total: $59,062,156
On this year’s election ballot the Smart Schools Bond Act, a New York State legislative proposal, will be up for vote. If approved, this act could bring $2 billion in aid for technology to public school districts in the state, including roughly $60 million to those in Onondaga County.
The Smart Schools Bond Act was presented by Governor Cuomo in his 2014 State of the State Address.
“Let’s have the smartest classrooms in the nation because our children deserve nothing less than the best. Let’s go to the people of this state … in November with a bond referendum with a smart schools initiative The students get the skills they need to succeed within the 21st century economy,” Cuomo said in his Jan. 9 address. “And while we remake our classrooms for tomorrow, we must get young minds engaged as early as possible. In 2013 in the State of the State, we called for expanded full day Pre-K.”
If approved, this legislatively referred bond proposal would allow the state comptroller to issue and sell bonds up to $2 billion. The revenue from the sale of these bonds would go to public school districts in the state to modernize facilities to accommodate pre-k programs, replace classroom trailers with permanent instruction space, install high-tech security features for school buildings and fund technology updates like interactive whiteboards, computer servers, desktop and laptop computers, tablets and high speed broadband or wireless internet.
According to the governor’s website, the amount of money school districts would receive are based on the proportion of the district’s share of total formula based school aid in the 2013 year, excluding building aid, universal pre-kindergarden aid and Gap Elimination Adjustment.
Locally, Fayetteville-Manlius could receive $1,727,955, Jamesville-DeWitt could receive $1,016,394, and East Syracuse-Minoa could receive $2,298,247.
In the March 31 Assembly vote, about 90 percent voted to approve the act, including Assembly members William Barclay of the 120th district, Gary Finch of the 126th district, Al Stirpe of the 127th district, Sam Roberts of the 128th district and William Magnarelli of the 129th district.
In the March 31 Senate vote, 95 percent voted to approve this act, including Senator John DeFrancisco and Senator Dave Valesky.
Proponents of this act argue that this will help fill the gap for public schools that have not had the funds to improve and update their in-class technologies for learning. Opponents of this act argue that the state already funds many technology plans in public schools and the effectiveness of this process has not yet been examined. They also say that by the time the technologies are implemented in schools, they will be outdated.
If approved, many districts in Onondaga County areas will be able to receive aid for funding technology advancements in their schools if they meet the eligibility requirement set by a state review board that consists of the chancellor of the States University of New York, the director of the budget and the commissioner of education.
School districts who meet these eligibility requirements will have to present their plans for updates using the bond money to the public for approval.
“There will be strict eligibility for the use of funds and each district must submit a technology plan for approval by the state,” Cuomo said in his January address.
Kieran O’Connor, executive director of planning, development and technology at East Syracuse-Minoa school district said that no formal process of applying for the bonds has been established yet. At his presentation about the technology updated at the school’s Oct. 20 Board of Education meeting, he said if the smart schools bond act was passed, the school would plan to move forward with the process of applying for the bonds.
“There are eligibility guidelines for schools who wish to receive this bond money for technology,” O’Connor said. “With our updated technology plan, I think we are well prepared.”
Now the act is in the hands of the voters and will appear on the Nov. 4 ballot.
It will appear as follows:
“The Smart Schools Bond Act of 2014, as set forth in section one of part B of chapter 56 of the laws of 2014, authorizes the sale of state bonds of up to two billion dollars ($2,000,000,000) to provide access to classroom technology and high-speed internet connectivity to equalize opportunities for children to learn, to add classroom space to expand high-quality pre-kindergarten programs, to replace classroom trailers with permanent instructional space, and to install high-tech smart security features in schools. Shall the Smart Schools Bond Act of 2014 be approved?”
Voters will be asked to answer this question with a “yes” or “no” response.
Hayleigh Gowans is a reporter for the Eagle Bulletin. She can be reached at [email protected].
