§ 316. Teacher resource and computer training centers. 1. As used in
this section, unless another meaning clearly appears from the context:

a. "Teacher resource and computer training center" means any site
operated by a school district, board of cooperative educational services
or a consortium of school districts and/or boards of cooperative
educational services which is specifically established pursuant to this
section to provide professional support services to teachers within the
state in order to:

(1) assist teachers, diagnose learning needs, experiment with the use
of multiple instructional approaches, assess student outcomes, assess
staff development needs and plans, and train other school personnel in
effective pedagogical approaches;

(2) provide demonstration and training sites where teachers are
trained, specifically in the use of computers as teaching aids; the
criteria for school acquisition and use of computer equipment and
software; and the evaluation of computer-related materials;

(3) develop and produce curricula and curricular materials designed to
meet the educational needs of students being served through application
of educational research or new or improved methods, practices, and
techniques;

(4) provide training to improve the skills of teachers in order to
enable such teachers to meet the special educational needs of the pupils
they serve, and to familiarize such teachers with developments in
curriculum formulation and educational research, including the manner in
which the research can be used to improve teaching skills;

(5) provide a location where teachers may share resources, ideas,
methods and approaches directly related to classroom instruction and
become familiar with current teaching materials and products for use in
their classrooms; and

(6) retrain teachers and other educational personnel to become better
qualified to teach in subject areas necessary to prepare students for
the developing high technology era, in the disciplines of mathematics,
science and computer technology.

b. "Site" for the purposes of this section shall mean the location or
locations where the curriculum development and training activities of
the teacher resource and computer training center take place.

2. In order to provide the school districts and teachers of the state
with an opportunity to develop systematic, ongoing in-service training
programs, assure the dissemination and application of educational
research developments to classroom instruction and develop new curricula
and curricular materials specifically designed to meet the educational
needs of the students served, the commissioner shall, within available
state appropriations and subject to the procedures established in this
section, provide funds to school districts and boards of cooperative
educational services to plan, establish and operate teacher resource and
computer training centers. Any school district or board of cooperative
educational services requesting such funds shall make application
therefor at such time, in such manner, and containing or accompanied by
such information as the commissioner may through this section or by
regulation require. Applications shall be made within the following
categories:

(i) a school district with a teacher population of one thousand or
more;

(ii) a school district with a teacher population of five hundred or
more but less than one thousand;

(iii) a school district with a teacher population of less than five
hundred;

(iv) a board of cooperative educational services; or

(v) a consortium of two or more school districts and/or boards of
cooperative educational services.

3. Each such application shall be reviewed by the state professional
standards and practices board for teaching. The board shall in each
instance recommend to the commissioner action, as appropriate, including
specific reasons when it is negative. Any school district, board of
cooperative educational services or consortium whose original
application is rejected may resubmit a revised application for further
review. Notwithstanding any other provision to the contrary, an
application to continue a teacher resource center which was in operation
prior to the nineteen hundred eighty-four--nineteen hundred eighty-five
school year shall be deemed automatically approved.

4. The commissioner shall establish criteria and standards by which
applications shall be evaluated which shall include provisions for
furnishing technical assistance and information provided by the
department through the facilities of the proposed teacher resource
center, provided, however, that such criteria and standards shall be
consistent with federal regulations which were applicable to teacher
resource centers in operation during the nineteen hundred eighty-two
calendar year.

5. Any school district, board of cooperative educational services or
consortium having an application approved under this section may
collaborate, consult and contract with an approved institution of higher
education in New York state to carry out activities under or provide
technical assistance in connection with such application. Each
application shall be reviewed by the professional practices subcommittee
of the state professional standards and practices board for teaching.

6. Each teacher resource and computer training center shall be
operated by a board, the majority of which shall be composed of
elementary and secondary school teachers representative of teachers
served by the teacher resource and computer training center. Teacher
members shall be designated by the collective bargaining agent of the
teachers served by the teacher resource and computer training center.
Such board shall also include individuals designated by the school board
or board of cooperative educational services served by such center and
at least one representative designated by the institutions of higher
education located in the area served by such center. Such board shall
also include at least one parent of an elementary or secondary school
pupil and at least one representative of a business or industry that
uses, produces or is involved with computer equipment and software.

7. The powers and duties of each teacher resource and computer
training center board shall include policy formulation, the employment
of staff or consultants, budget control and expenditure of funds to
accomplish the purposes of this section, recommendations for
subcontracting to secure technical and other kinds of assistance, and
any other appropriate managerial or supervisory activities not otherwise
prohibited by state or local law or regulations of the commissioner.

7-a. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a teacher resource
and computer training center board may collaborate, consult and contract
with a school district or board of cooperative educational services
which is included in the application for the establishment of such
teacher resource and computer training center for the assignment of
teachers employed by such school district or board of cooperative
educational services; provided, however, in such case such teacher shall
continue to accrue all employment rights and benefits, including
seniority, with the employing school district or board of cooperative
educational services and the teacher resource and computer training
center board shall reimburse such school district or board of
cooperative educational services for the services of such teacher.

8. Funds provided each school year to school districts and boards of
cooperative educational services by the commissioner to plan, establish
and operate teacher resource and computer training centers shall not
exceed two million dollars per center, except that for the city school
district for the city of New York such center shall not exceed sixteen
million eight hundred thousand dollars and provided further that each
approved center shall receive not less than twenty thousand dollars. In
any year in which there is a statewide increase in funding for teacher
resource and computer training centers, such increase shall be
distributed proportionately among existing centers that have
satisfactorily fulfilled the requirements of such centers' current
grant. A portion of the increase shall be made available to new
applicants to establish new teacher centers, and to current teacher
centers to develop and implement regional and statewide teacher center
activities.

9. Evaluation and annual reports. a. Teacher resource and computer
training centers shall provide data annually as prescribed by the
commissioner.

b. The commissioner shall prepare and submit to the governor, the
temporary president of the senate and the speaker of the assembly, not
later than May first, nineteen hundred ninety-nine and by the first day
of January in each year thereafter, a report detailing the financial and
programmatic information for teacher resource and computer training
centers. Such report shall, at a minimum, set forth with respect to the
preceding school year: cost information for individual services provided
by such centers; numbers of teachers and other staff served, summarized
in the aggregate, by elementary and secondary school levels, and by home
school district; lists of programs and courses offered, including
identification of those with credit toward college graduate degrees and
those which relate to specific academic areas and higher learning
standards; and aggregate expenditure data for the following categories:
administration, staff development services, rent and other facilities
costs, and other services; and such other information as deemed
appropriate by the commissioner to assist the commissioner in
identifying cost-effective services and programs which may be
successfully replicated in other centers, school districts and boards of
cooperative educational services (BOCES). The format for the report
shall be developed by the commissioner in consultation with school
district officials, and teacher resource center officials, provided that
all information in such report shall be displayed on both a statewide
and individual center basis. Such report shall include changes from the
year prior to the report year for each such item for all teacher
resource and computer training centers and shall be made available to
other interested parties upon request.

c. Funds provided under the teacher resource and computer training
centers program may be used to contract with educational organizations
for the purpose of conducting a statewide program evaluation. The
professional practices subcommittee of the professional standards and
practices board shall review and approve grant applications submitted
for this purpose.