About Southern Westchester BOCES

The Southern Westchester Board of Cooperative Educational Services (SW BOCES) was established in 1948 by the New York State Commissioner of Education and the Board of Regents to provide shared educational and management services to schools and school districts in our geographic region. From those beginnings, SW BOCES has grown to offer hundreds of cooperative, cost-efficient services to school districts in the region, encompassing 187 different schools, 104,000 students, and more than 650,000 adults who live and work here.

SW BOCES prides itself on providing high quality resources ranging from technology assistance to special education and occupational education programs. It specifically assists school districts by:

• Introducing and responding to program requests and initiatives both from local districts and from the state Education Department.
  
• Providing services, facilities and personnel to meet mutual needs identified on a regional cooperative basis.
  
• Determining ongoing educational trends and challenges, and preparing districts for what lies ahead.
  
• Receiving and administering grants for a broad array of services for students, staff members, and community residents.

Our 33 component school districts participate in specific SW BOCES programs and services on a cost-sharing basis. They receive partial reimbursement for those costs through state aid. School districts that contract with SW BOCES for services know that we are committed to accomplishing specific outcomes and will assist in any way to help meet the educational challenges of the 21st Century.

The SW BOCES central administrative office, including the District Superintendent’s office, is located at 17 Berkley Drive in Rye Brook, N.Y. The Center for Career Services and Alternative High School are located at our campus on Grasslands Road in Valhalla, N.Y., and our Special Services programs are coordinated from our Rye Lake campus in North White Plains, N.Y., with additional classes operating out of many southern Westchester County school buildings.

The Center for Instructional Support & Technology and the Lower Hudson Regional Information Center are located in Elmsford, N.Y., and the Center for Adult and Community Services office is located in Elmsford, with adult classes offered at sites throughout Westchester. Interscholastic Athletics services are coordinated from our Elmsford offices, and the SW BOCES Transportation garage is located on the Rye Lake campus.

The SWBOCES Board of Education, a policy-making board, consists of seven distinguished members who serve three-year terms. Administrative and management decisions for SWBOCES are made by Ronald L. Smalls, the Chief Executive Officer and District Superintendent, and his executive team of one Deputy District Superintendent and three Assistant Superintendents.

The District Superintendent serves in an advisory capacity to all school districts in southern Westchester and facilitates communication between districts and the New York State Education Department.

Our seven Centers provide an array of more than 70 services to help school districts, teaching and administrative professionals, students, and the public with needs in the areas of special education, career and technical education, transportation, interscholastic athletics, adult and community services, technology, and professional development. In addition, our Human Resources department sponsors a Regional Career Fair and provides a Regional Certification Service. Services not offered by SWBOCES can be obtained through Cross-Contracts with other BOCES.

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