The TEACH NYS (The Educational Alliance for Children in New York State) coalition, representing New York’s non-public school community arrived in Albany today to push one of their top priorities – the full restoration of $34 million in funding to non-public schools through the Comprehensive Attendance Policy (CAP) in the 2012-13 budget. TEACH NYS and other advocates for non-public schools are calling on the State to cease shortchanging the cost of attendance-taking for 500,000 students and allocate the full $60 million necessary to carry out this mandate

Over 40 coalition members traveled to Albany today to meet with over 50 legislators – including the Senate and Assembly leadership – and representatives from the Governor’s Office to advocate on behalf of the 500,000 students attending non-public schools in New York State.

CAP is a costly state-mandated program that requires schools to take attendance at the start of every period to ensure that students are attending class and not skipping school. While the mandate has existed under state law since 2006, the CAP program has been historically underfunded, leaving non-public schools footing the bill amid escalating tuition costs. Coupled with the shortfall in reimbursement for other mandated services, the total outstanding debt owed to non-public schools is approximately $350 million.

“Families are suffering from record debt and financial stress due to the high cost of educating their children. What we are doing is not just acknowledging that there is a problem; we are actively seeking solutions to help struggling families,” said Sam Sutton, Co-Chairman of Teach NYS and President of the Sephardic Community Federation.

ABOUT TEACH NYS

TEACH NYS is a bipartisan coalition of non-public school leaders committed to tackling the tuition crisis in New York’s religious and independent schools.
TEACH NYS aims to secure reasonable government support for non-public schools and to provide maximum relief for tuition-paying parents.
TEACH NYS is the only organization exclusively dedicated to solving the tuition crisis, working on behalf of nearly 500,000 non-public school students in New York State.

PARTICIPATING in the TEACH NYS LOBBY DAY

Sephardic Community Federation
National Council of Young Israel
Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America
UJA Federation of New York
Ahi Ezer Yeshiva
Barkai Yeshivah
Hebrew Academy of the Five Towns and Rockaway (HAFTR)
Magen David Yeshivah
Manhattan Day School
Yeshiva Darchei Torah
Yeshiva of South Shore
Yeshiva of Flatbush
Yeshivat Darchei Eres

(YWN Desk – NYC)