THE STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT / THE UNIVERSITY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK / ALBANY, NY 12234 Ken Slentz, Deputy Commissioner Office of P-12 Education Room 2M EB (518) 474-3862

January 3, 2013 Dr. Joel Klein Superintendent East Ramapo Central School District 105 South Madison Avenue Spring Valley, NY 10977 Dear Dr. Klein: I write in response to your failure to address the concerns and conditions expressed in Assistant Commissioner Szuberla’s December 14 letter regarding the financial condition of the East Ramapo Central School District (the “District”). While your December 20 letter reiterated the measures you and the Board have taken over the last four years to reduce costs it neither addressed the significant requests for information nor the need to take urgent action to address the current deficit outlined in Assistant Commissioner Szuberla’s letter. Your plan to submit a proposed 2013-14 spending plan to the Board of Education does not recognize the need to make changes in the 2012-13 budget. I am therefore directing that you and the Board of Education (the “Board”) take the following actions on or before January 16, 2013:

• Submit the District’s plan and timeline for addressing the current budget deficit and balancing the budget for the current school year, including payment for services provided by the Rockland Board of Cooperative Educational Services (Rockland BOCES). Your failure to pay for services provided by the Rockland BOCES is having an adverse impact all children served by the BOCES.

• Provide documentation showing the size of the 2012-13 operating deficit and any accumulated deficit for prior years.

I am also directing that you and the Board of Education take the following actions on or before January 16:

• Make further budget reductions to comply with Education Law §1718 and ensure that the 2012-13 school budget is in structural balance. If there are staff members who will lose their positions, they should be notified in accordance with law and collective bargaining provisions as soon as possible.

• Establish policies and procedures to oversee the balanced budget, make appropriate transfers and prevent negative appropriations.

• Submit a management plan to the Department that demonstrates controls are in place to monitor and control spending.

• Forward to the Department, beginning in January and on a monthly basis thereafter, the treasurer’s report required by Section 170.2(o) of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education.

• Forward to the Department, beginning in January and on a monthly basis thereafter, the budget status report required by Section 170.2(p) of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education.

Further, you were notified by the Office of Special Education under separate cover of the specific actions you must take to provide appropriate programs for students with disabilities in the least restrictive environment.

The Department is prepared to assist you in the following areas provided that we receive the information requested above:

• Providing technical assistance to you and your school business official to assist you in addressing the deficit.

• Reducing the costs for services to special education students – over the long-term – by creating high-quality, in-district programs for students who have been placed in approved private schools and other settings outside of the school district.

Please take the actions noted above and submit the District’s plan and timeline for addressing the current budget deficit and balancing the budget for the current school year on or before January 16. Failure to take the above actions on or before January 16 will result in a Commissioner’s Order to you and the Board to comply.

Sincerely, Ken Slentz c: J. King C. Szuberla