About WSWHE BOCES

The Washington-Saratoga-Warren-Hamilton-Essex (WSWHE) Board of Cooperative Educational Services serves 31 school districts in a five-county region. The BOCES Board of Education, a governing board made up of representatives from component school districts, is responsible for the oversight of curricular, financial and other policy decisions. The chief executive officer of a BOCES is the District Superintendent who works closely with local school districts as a liaison/agent of the New York State Commissioner of Education. WSWHE BOCES is the second largest geographically of the 37 BOCES regions in New York State covering 2,686 square miles. It is also the 13th largest in terms of kindergarten through grade 12 enrollments in the participating component school districts. With 31 component districts, it is the fourth largest in the State, after three BOCES on Long Island and Westchester County.

Our Mission

The mission of the Washington-Saratoga-Warren-Hamilton-Essex BOCES is to provide cost-effective shared educational programs and services that complement component school districts in strengthening the quality of living and learning in their communities.

What We Do

WSWHE BOCES provides educational services for students of all age levels and abilities. We recognize and encourage student success, and continue to increase collaboration and communication with component school districts.

We provide our component school districts with programs in Career and Technical Education, Special Education, Adult Education, and Gifted and Talented Education. Through our School Support Services, we also provide professional training and staff development, which place a continuing emphasis on program quality and responsiveness to district needs.

Dedicated staff members, teachers, administrators and board members work hard to provide quality programs and services based on present and future needs. WSWHE BOCES serves as an invaluable resource to thirty-one school districts in five counties of upstate New York.

What is a BOCES

BOCES stands for Board of Cooperative Educational Services. It is a public organization that was created by the New York State Legislature in 1948 to provide shared educational programs and services to school districts. Today, BOCES continues to partner with school districts to provide a broad range of services to help meet the evolving needs of learners of all ages.

BOCES services are created when two or more school districts decide they have similar needs that can be met by a shared program. BOCES helps school districts save money by providing opportunities to pool resources and share costs. Sharing is an economical way for districts to provide programs and services that they might not be able to afford otherwise. However, BOCES services are often customized, offering districts the flexibility to meet their individual needs. Except for an administrative charge that is based on each district's size, districts pay only for BOCES services they use. BOCES expenses are incorporated into each district's annual budget. State aid helps offset some of the expenses, while others are directly funded by the state or federal government. BOCES has no taxing authority.

WSWHE BOCES Budget

BOCES budgets differ greatly from those of a school district. Except for the Administrative and Capital Budgets (which are shared by all component schools and are based upon each district’s enrollment), districts pay only for the specific BOCES services they use. The cost of BOCES participation is incorporated into each school district’s annual budget. To learn more click here.

BOCES Report Card: How are we doing?

Each year the New York State Department of Education collects data on BOCES programs to inform the community about the BOCES performance. This information is published as a BOCES Report Card each BOCES. To view the WSWHE BOCES REPORT CARD, click here.