• The Orleans/Niagara Board of Cooperative Educational Services is governed by the Education Law and other laws of the State of New York.

• The governing body is the Board of Education. The scope of activities included within the accompanying budget is those transactions, which comprise BOCES operations, and are governed by, or significantly influenced by, the Board of Education.

• The Orleans/Niagara BOCES is an independent reporting entity clearly within the criteria established by the National Council of Governmental Accounting (NCGA) Statement #3 and adopted by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) Statement #1. All funds with budgets having appropriations approved and controlled by the Orleans/Niagara BOCES are included in this budget.

• Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) were established by New York State legislation in 1948 to enable smaller school districts to offer more breadth in their educational programs by sharing teachers.

• In 1955, legislation was passed allowing BOCES to provide vocational and special education.

• A BOCES is a voluntary, cooperative association of school districts in a geographic area that share planning, services and programs to provide educational and support activities more economically, efficiently and equitably than could be provided locally.

Orleans/Niagara BOCES programs and services include:

• Special Education

• Vocational Education

• Academic & Alternative Programs

• Summer Schools

• Staff Development

• Computer Services (Management & Instructional)

• Educational Communication

• Cooperative Purchasing

In addition, BOCES provides:

• Curriculum Development & Instructional Improvement Service

• Educational Planning Services

• Instructional Materials Services

• Continuing Professional Education Services

• Pupil Personnel Services

• State & Federal Liaison Services

• Adult & Continuing Education Programs.

The Orleans/Niagara BOCES has become heavily involved in the delivery of educational programs for special needs students of the Supervisory District.

• These programs include the delivery of itinerant and full-time "self-contained" classroom services to exceptional students, including classes for students whose needs are so unique or whose handicaps are so severe that they cannot be economically served by the individual local district special education programs.

The Orleans/Niagara BOCES also provides an array of:

• General school management, administrative, business, personnel, and leadership services for the component school districts.

• Included in these services are numerous programs designed to assist various needs of the community such as emergency management, adult education, and corporate training courses.

The mission of the Orleans/Niagara Board of Cooperative Educational Services is to be the premier provider of innovative and effective solutions for the evolving needs of our component districts and other learning collaboratives.

BOCES provides instructional and support programs and services to the following 13 school districts in Orleans and Niagara Counties:

• Albion

• Barker

• Lewiston-Porter

• Lockport

• Lyndonville

• Medina

• Newfane

• Niagara Falls City School

• Niagara-Wheatfield

• North Tonawanda

• Royalton-Hartland

• Starpoint

• Wilson