This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Orlady (talk | contribs) at 12:00, 5 April 2007 (revert changes that made the USNY's former degree-granting unit, now Excelsior College, the main topic of the summary and info box; some of this info could be added, but mostly in the History section). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 12:00, 5 April 2007 by Orlady (talk | contribs) (revert changes that made the USNY's former degree-granting unit, now Excelsior College, the main topic of the summary and info box; some of this info could be added, but mostly in the History section)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff) Not to be confused with State University of New York.| University of the State of New York | |
| Motto* | Excelsior "Ever higher" |
| Established | 1784 |
| President | R P Mills |
| Chancellor | R M Bennett |
| Vice-Chancellor | A L Sanford |
| Location | All over the State of New York |
| Homepage | http://www.nysed.gov/ |
| As explained in the text, USNY is NOT a "bricks and mortar" school, but an accrediting and chartering body. | |
| *This is the motto State of New York, and appears on the University Seal | |
The University of the State of New York (acronym: USNY; IPA pronunciation usually ) is the State of New York's governmental umbrella organization that is responsible for most institutions and much of the personnel that are in any way connected to formal educational functions (public and private) in New York State. The "university" does not directly own any classrooms of its own and is not itself an educational institution in the usual sense: it is, in fact, a licensing and accreditation body that sets standards for schools from pre-kindergarten through professional and graduate school as well as for the practice of a wide variety of professions.
Establishment of the USNY
USNY was established in 1784 to provide oversight to King's College (today known as Columbia University, a private institution).
The USNY Today
The Board of Regents oversees USNY. The Board includes 16 members elected by the New York State Legislature for five-year terms. Twelve of the Regents represent the State's 12 judicial districts (one appointed from each district), and four are at-large. The Regents serve without salary.
USNY's affiliation and oversight is very broad. As a legal technicality, USNY includes all of the state's more than 7,000 public and private elementary and secondary schools; approximately 250 public and private colleges and universities; another approximately 250 proprietary (for-profit) schools; nearly 7,000 libraries; about 750 museums; all of the state's local historical societies; and 25 public broadcasting facilities. Also included in USNY are the State Archives; a special school for the blind and another special school for the deaf; as well as vocational rehabilitation and special education services. Additionally, USNY has the affiliation of, and oversight for, more than half a million professionals practicing in 47 licensed professions, including everything from accountancy to architecture to engineering to massage therapy to hair styling, as well as 200,000 public certified school teachers, counselors, and administrators. Certain education-related institutions (such as most museums) could exist in New York State without being part of USNY; however, as an example, most museums in New York State choose to be part of USNY (i.e., be chartered by the Board of Regents) in order to get things like tax-exempt nonprofit status.
The USNY and the New York State Education Department
The New York State Constitution and state education law declare the Regents the "head" of the Education Department. The Regents select a Commissioner of Education who both runs the Education Department and is "president" (that is, chief execuitive officer) of the University. The Board of Regents also elects a "chancellor," who presides over the Regents' meetings and appoints its committees.
The New York State Education Department (NYSED) was created at the behest of former New York Governor (and former US President) Theodore Roosevelt in 1904. USNY has, as a subordinate unit, NYSED, including NYSED's various administrative personnel — furthermore, the various schools, colleges, libraries, museums, teachers, etc. of USNY form constituent units of USNY, whereas NYSED forms a constituent and subordinate component of USNY.
USNY, through its Board of Regents, generally uses NYSED as a vehicle to carry out policy created by the Regents. In other words, USNY's Board of Regents generally creates policy, whereas NYSED generally administers policy. The New York State Legislature can also create some education policy; such statutory education policy would become official education policy that the Commissioner of Education would also be responsible for administering.
Regents exminations and diplomas
Regents examinations, tests administered to high school students to demonstrate mastery of various subjects, were established by the Regents and first administered in 1865. The Regents of USNY have set standards by which students may earn various levels of Regents diplomas for high school performance.
Honorary degrees
USNY can also issue honorary degrees; the honorary degrees that can be issued come from an established list contained in Rules of the Board of Regents ("Regents Rules"). USNY also has the power to directly issue (as opposed to through some other institution) diplomas, certificates, and degrees. Today, for a variety of reasons, USNY directly issues diplomas to individuals meeting graduation requirements at several postsecondary institutions in New York State.
State University of New York
Not to be confused with USNY is the State University of New York (SUNY), which is one of New York State's systems of public higher education (the other such system being the City University of New York ). The various SUNY (and CUNY) units are all part of USNY. However, the power of SUNY and CUNY units to grant degrees and certificates exist by mandate of the State Legislature; a private college or university in New York State would be allowed to grant degrees and/or certificates by virtue of a charter granted by the USNY Board of Regents. Yet, any specific degree/certificate programs offered by any particular higher education institution in New York State must be registered (i.e., accredited), on behalf of the Regents, by NYSED before the particular institution may offer such program or programs.
A key former initiative of USNY, created to better bring higher education to New York State's nontraditional adult learners, was formerly called Regents College (made independent as Excelsior College in 2001). Excelsior College is now a constituent member of USNY in the same way that other colleges and universities in New York State are, but upon being made an independent institution, has been separated from the Board of Regents, and has been given its own charter and Board of Trustees.