Religious and Independent Schools

Office of Religious and Independent School Support (ORISS)

In response to the continuing COVID-19 public health emergency, the Governor’s Office has issued guidance on a reopening strategy for state agencies and authorities based on region. This emergency continues to significantly impact normal business activities and services provided by the New York State Education Department. Please continue to expect delays in services, wait times and responses. As a necessary precaution, access to all State Education Department buildings will be restricted to visitors until further notice. Building access will be limited to state employees who have official duties within the buildings.

The office will be operating with minimal staff during this time. If you need to contact our office, you can leave a message on our office phone at (518) 473-8202 or email oriss@nysed.gov and we will respond as best as possible during this time.

Please visit NYSED's dedicated COVID-19 web page for updated information and guidance for schools. SED appreciates your patience as we navigate this public health emergency.

Parents and guardians of compulsory school age children have the legal right to enroll them in nonpublic schools. Nonpublic schools may be either independent/secular or provide religious instruction as part of their curriculum. Parents and guardians may also instruct their school age children at home and be in compliance with the Compulsory Attendance Law.

Nonpublic school students are entitled to some publicly funded services, which are either provided by the school district in which the student resides or the district within which the nonpublic school is located. State-funded programs and services include: Health Services, Homebound Instruction, Textbook Loan Program, Computer Software Loan Program, School Library Materials Loan Program, Transportation (students must reside within 15 miles of the nonpublic school), Special Education Services, Dual Enrollment Programs, and Mandated Services Reimbursement.

The Office of Religious and Independent School Support (ORISS) staff provides general information, support for the Board of Regents Education Corporation process and Commissioner’s Consent to alternate incorporations, registration of nonpublic high schools; oversight of the application process for entities seeking a Basic Educational Data System (BEDS) registration number; and Coordination of the Commissioner of Education's Advisory Council for Nonpublic Schools.

News

  • 8/27/2020 - Extension of Deadline for Requests for Transportation to Nonpublic and Charter Schools

    Note: This item is an update to the transportation deadline extension referenced below on 3/30/20.

    Please note that, pursuant to Executive Order(s) issued by the Governor for the COVID-19 crisis, the Governor suspended through September 4, 2020, Section 3635 of the Education law, to the extent necessary to delay the April 1 requirement that parents must file transportation requests with their school district in order to obtain transportation for their children for the following school year.

  • 3/30/2020 - Extension of Deadline for Requests for Transportation to Nonpublic and Charter Schools

    Please note that due to the closure of schools pursuant to the Executive Order(s) issued by the Governor for the COVID-19 crisis and recognizing that such requests need to be incorporated into a school district’s budget, the Department directs all public school districts to accept all parental requests for transportation to charter and nonpublic schools submitted on or before May 9, 2020. The Department deems such Executive Order(s) be a reasonable excuse for a delay under Ed. Law 3635.

  • 3/17/2020 - Mandated Services Aid (MSA) Claims

    In response to the public health emergency for the COVID-19 virus, all non-essential State employees for New York State’s agencies and public authorities in every county were directed not to report to work for the next two weeks, starting 03/17/20.

    The Office of Grants Management will continue to review Mandated Services Aid (MSA) claims to the extent practicable, but please anticipate a delay in the reviewing of MSA claims during the next two weeks.

    Thank you for your understanding during this difficult time. Please contact us with any questions at emscmsa@nysed.gov or call (518) 474-3936.

  • 2/12/2020- New York State Grant for Mathematics, Science, & Technology Teachers in Religious and Independent Schools (MST)-Year 3

    Funds to reimburse religious and independent schools for Mathematics, Science, and Technology teachers were appropriated in the 2019-2020 enacted State budget. The program is governed by Section 3037 of Education Law external linkadded by Chapter 59 of 2017. Religious and independent schools that employ eligible teachers of Mathematics, Science, or Technology may seek reimbursement. Application must be received by August 3, 2020

    Links to MST Guidance and Reimbursement Form can be found below:

    MST 2019-20 Guidance WORD ICON - New Form

    MST 2019-20 Reimbursement Form WORD ICON - New Form

  • 06/28/19 - Calendar of Reminders

The updated Calendar of Reminders has been posted. The Calendar is a month by month listing of upcoming deadlines and due dates for Religious and Independent Schools.

  • 05/31/19 - New York State Grant for Mathematics, Science, & Technology Teachers in Religious and Independent Schools (MST)-Year 2 Webinar

Link to 2018-19 MST Webinar can be found below:

MST 2018-19 Webinar

  • 04/12/19 - New York State Grant for Mathematics, Science, & Technology Teachers in Religious and Independent Schools (MST)-Year 2

Funds to reimburse religious and independent schools for Mathematics, Science, and Technology teachers were appropriated in the 2018-19 enacted State budget. The program is governed by Section 3037 of Education Law external link added by Chapter 59 of 2017. Religious and independent schools that employ eligible teachers of Mathematics, Science, or Technology may seek reimbursement. Application deadline is August 1, 2019.

Links to MST Guidance and Reimbursement Form can be found below:

MST 2018-19 Guidance WORD ICON

MST 2018-19 Reimbursement Form WORD ICON

  • 04/08/19 - E-Rate Central is under contract with the New York State Education Department (NYSED) to provide E-rate support services to all schools and libraries in New York. One of these services is a weekly E-rate newsletter which is a major source of E-rate information and which is currently being e-mailed to approximately 400 New York applicants every week.
  • Their goal is to help eligible agencies be successful with the E-Rate program. The newsletter covers a variety of topics such as:
    • important program rules and changes
    • upcoming deadlines
    • tips for avoiding common mistakes
    • schedule of training workshops

If you would like to subscribe to the New York E-Rate Forum and receive future newsletters please join the mailing list at http://www.e-ratecentral.com/subscribe.asp.

Additional E-rate resources for New York applicants are available on the NYSED-sponsored Web site at http://www.e-ratecentral.com/us/nys/

02/12/19- Mandated Services Aid (MSA) System

The Mandated Services Aid system was opened today on the NYSED Business Portal. We do not yet have clarification on certain technical issues related to the recently enacted Chapter 347 of the Laws of 2018, which, when fully in place, will change the rules regarding the calculation of the hourly rate used to make the reimbursement for nonpublic schools for mandate services. 

We have been directed to open the system and accept claims based on the rules which were in place last year. We will review claims as quickly as possible. The system will close on February 21, 2019, with the expectation that it will re-open after the start of the new state fiscal year in April. 

 

  • 01/29/19 - Mathematics, Science, & Technology Teachers in Religious & Independent Schools Grant (MST) Update

The submission date for the MST grant has closed, and SORIS has received nearly 1,500 applications. The team is still diligently working through logging and approving the submissions. Due to the high volume of responses, however, the release date of reimbursement funds has yet to be determined. Applicants are encouraged to check back here for further updates. Thank you for your patience.

  • 11/20/18 - Please be advised that, as a result of the April 17, 2019 decisions/judgments of the Supreme Court, Albany County, the State Education Department’s “Updated Guidance and Resources on Substantial Equivalency of Instruction” have been removed from our website.  While the Department evaluates next steps, all currently scheduled trainings have been canceled and no action should be taken under the Updated Guidance and associated materials.  Updates will be posted on the Department’s substantial equivalency webpage as appropriate.
  • 10/15/18 - MSA/CAP Claims for 2014-15 School Year

    October 31, 2018 is the deadline for MSA and/or CAP claims for the 2014-15 School Year. New or amended online claims or paper submissions received after that date will not be accepted.

  • 10/03/18 - Annual BEDS report

    The Due Date for all BEDS reports is November 16, 2018. Please see link below for additional information regarding the annual BEDS report filing.

    Annual BEDS report information

  • 09/05/18 - Mathematics, Science, & Technology Teachers in Religious & Independent Schools Grant (MST) Update

    The submission date for the MST grant has closed, and SORIS has received nearly 1,500 applications. The team is diligently working through logging and approving the submissions. Due to the high volume of responses, however, the anticipated reimbursement date of late fall 2018 may need to be extended. Applicants are encouraged to check back here for further updates.

  • 09/05/18 - Ombudsman Point of Contact

    If a religious or independent school official believes a public school district: did not engage in consultation that was meaningful and timely; did not give due consideration to the views of the nonpublic school; and/or did not make a decision that treats nonpublic school students equitably, please contact the Office of Accountability at CONAPPTA@NYSED.GOV for technical assistance.

    If a religious or independent school official wishes to file a formal complaint regarding their concerns about a public school district’s implementation of equitable services, please email the New York State Education Department Ombudsman at OMBUDSMAN@nysed.gov.

  • 07/16/18 - Nonpublic School Safety Equipment (NPSE) Grant Allocations

    Below are the links to the 2017-18 (Year 5, 2018-19 school year) Nonpublic School Safety Equipment (NPSE) program information:

    1. NPSE Program Guidance
      2. NPSE Allocations-available shortly
      3. NPSE Reimbursement Form
      4. NPSE Personnel Activity Report (PAR)-Addendum
      5. NPSE Webinar Video-available shortly
  • 03/16/18 - MST Webinar Video

    The webinar for the Mathematics, Science, and Technology Teachers (MST) Grant has been posted. This webinar provides an overview of the program and guidance.

    MST Webinar Video

  • 02/14/18 - MSA DUE DATE EXTENDED to Wednesday February 21, 2018

    The Due date for the submission of 2016-17 School Year claims has been extended to Wednesday February 21 at Noon.

    Please note that if you have any other MSA or CAP claim that has not yet been resolved, you will not be able to open the 2016-17 school year claim. Contact the Office of Grants Management at 518-474-3936 with any questions.

    Please note that the new reimbursement rate for State School Immunization Program (SSIP) for the New York City, Rochester and Buffalo areas has not yet been established. While schools claiming SSIP will still be able to complete and submit their claim, they will have a temporary hold on their claim until such time the new rate has been determined. Once the amount is determined we will adjust appropriately and the HOLD for SSIP will be removed. The Department expects the new rate to be in place prior to when payments are to be made in late February, early March.

    In order for your MSA claim to be considered timely, it must be submitted and/or received by Noon February 21, 2018. For those schools making an online submission, it is important to note that an “Open” claim is not a “submitted” claim. For those schools submitting a paper form, please be sure to allow time for the mailing process as received does not mean “postmarked”. Funds will not be made available to make payments until after the due date of February 21, 2018.

  • 01/03/18 - MSA Revised Timeline for 2016-17 School Year Claims

    We apologize for the delay in the online availability of the 2016-17 school year MSA Claims through the SED Business Portal. At this time, we anticipate opening up the system for the 2016-17 school year no later than January 10th. Due to this delay, the deadline for submission of claims has been extended to February 14th, 2018.

    Please note that the MSA online system pulls contact data from a school’s SEDREF record and uses this information to notify the schools of claim approvals, payments and any additional information required to process claims. It is important to ensure that all information in that record is correct and up to date. Please take this opportunity to review your school’s SEDREF record for accuracy. If there are any changes that need to be made, please complete a SEDREF Update Request.

    In addition, it is important to note that the online system allows only one school year claim to be open at a time. If you have a prior year claim that has not yet been closed, please contact the Office of Grants Management at 518-474-3936 so that any outstanding issues can be resolved so as not to delay your ability to submit a claim for the 2016-17 school year.

  • 01/02/18 - New York State Grant for Mathematics, Science, & Technology Teachers in Religious and Independent Schools (MST)

    Funds to reimburse religious and independent schools for Mathematics, Science, and Technology teachers were appropriated in the 2017-18 enacted State budget. The program is governed by Section 3037 of Education Law external link added by Chapter 59 of 2017. Religious and independent schools that employ eligible teachers of Mathematics, Science, or Technology may seek reimbursement. Links to MST Guidance and Reimbursement Form can be found below:

    MST 2017-18 Guidance WORD ICON

    MST 2017-18 Reimbursement Form WORD ICON

  • 10/24/17 - DEADLINE EXTENDED for MSA and/or CAP claims for the 2013-14 School Year

    The October 31, 2017 deadline for MSA and/or CAP claims for the 2013-14 School Year has been extended to November 30, 2017. New or amended online claims or paper submissions received after that date will not be accepted.

  • 09/18/17 - New SEDREF data field

    Below is a link to the memorandum regarding a new SEDRF data field which will be referred to as the SORIS code. Schools with multiple building locations, please read the memo in its entirety, including the questions and answers for specific guidance. For schools with only one building, no further action is needed regarding this data field. For additional information, review the memo and FAQ documents:

  • 07/26/17 - Webinar for the Nonpublic School Safety Equipment (NPSE) program

    The webinar for the Nonpublic School Safety Equipment (NPSE) program has been posted. This webinar provides an overview of the program and guidance.

    NPSE 2016-17 Webinar Video

  • 07/26/17 - Webinar for the Academic Intervention Services (AIS) program

    The webinar for the Academic Intervention Services (AIS) program has been posted. This webinar provides an overview of the program and guidance.

    AIS 2016-17 Webinar Video

  • 07/20/17- Calendar of Reminders

    The updated Calendar of Reminders has been posted. The Calendar is a month by month listing of upcoming deadlines and due dates for Religious and Independent Schools.

Last Updated: August 31, 2023