Schools To Be Reimbursed for Attendance Program

Bending to demands from private schools, New York state education officials are releasing $39.9 million in cost reimbursements for a program the state forces the schools to follow.

The program requires that private schools make detailed records of their students' attendance, checking not just once, but several times a day.

A 2005 audit by the state comptroller at the time, Alan Hevesi, concluded that schools had not been reimbursed for their participation in the program since it began in 2003. The audit called the annual cost of the attendance program "significant."

Deborah Zachai, the director of education affairs at a group that represents Jewish parochial schools, Agudath Israel, said she welcomes the payments. But she said Agudath Israel's calculations suggest the attendance program is costlier than the state estimates. "While we are happy that the $39.9 million has been released and that the Jewish schools will begin receiving long-awaited payments, we are working to ensure that future budgets reflect the accurate annual figure of approximately $55 million," she said.