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Utica schools say $19.15 million of foundation aid is earmarked under New Yorks Contract for Excellence
Summary
The district presented its Contract for Excellence set-aside of $19,152,589 — a portion of foundation aid subject to state spending rules — and explained allowable uses, school-by-school allocations and who to contact for financial or program questions.
The Utica City School District presented details of its Contract for Excellence (CFE) allocation, saying $19,152,589 of the districts foundation aid is subject to CFE spending stipulations.
An assistant superintendent told the board the CFE amount is not additional state money but a portion of foundation aid that must be used for targeted programs. "The main takeaway from the contract of for excellence is this is not additional money that is awarded to school districts by the state of New York," the assistant superintendent said, explaining the funding is restricted to allowable uses such as class-size reduction, increased time on task, improving teacher and principal quality, and early childhood programs.
District officials said the CFE set-aside was calculated under the states established formula and distributed across the districts 13 school buildings; schools identified by the state as higher-need receive larger allocations. The presenter said eligibility and targeting follow the state's needs-assessment rank order and noted the district has one school identified as a Targeted Support and Improvement (TSI) school.
Officials told attendees that a chart provided to the board shows both the amount of foundation aid subject to CFE and the 2024-25 set-aside figure. The assistant superintendent said parents and taxpayers have the right to ask questions; financial inquiries can be directed to Kim Vile, assistant superintendent for business, finance and operations, and programmatic questions to Rex Grimmer, the chief accountability officer. The board said survey responses and questions and answers would be posted online under the districts CFE materials.
The presentation referenced Chapter 57 of New York State law (the CFE statutory framework) and said the districts plan will align with state rules about how the funds must supplement, not supplant, existing programs.
The public hearing portion of the meeting did not include a vote on the CFE allocations; the presentation and Q&A were presented for public information and posted resources.
