Addressing the Board
The City School District of Albany Board of Education welcomes input from district residents, parents, students and other stakeholders so that we can better understand your views, and so that we can make better decisions.
There are two primary methods of addressing the board: questions and public comment.
Please review all the information on this page carefully to decide which option is right for you.
Before contacting the Board of Education
In many cases, you may find it more helpful to contact a district staff member before addressing the board. Here are some options to consider:
- Often a school principal is the best place to start. If the principal is not the right person to answer your question, they can often point you to the right person to contact. The principal’s contact information is on each school’s page.
- Our Communication Guide is designed to help you find the right person to help, and includes a directory of administrative staff.
- Our Feedback form will send an email to the district’s Communications Department, which can send it to an appropriate staff member.
Questions for the board
If you have a question for the board that requires a response or is otherwise not meant for public comment, please contact us at boe@albany.k12.ny.us. The board president will respond on behalf of the board.
Public comment
Per our policy, the board provides an opportunity for public comment at its regular board meetings. Please note that the board generally does not respond to public comment.
Comments provided by email, voicemail or mail received at least six hours prior to any meeting will be entered into the record at that meeting. Those received later than six hours prior will also be included at that meeting whenever possible, and when not possible, comments received after the deadline will be entered into the record at the next board meeting.
You can provide public comment in any of the following ways:
Use the form below to submit your written public comment.
Use the form below to register for virtual public comment via Microsoft Teams.
Upon submitting, you will receive an automated email receipt of your request containing a link to join the meeting, as well as additional instructions on how to use Teams.
As with the in-person format, virtual public comment is limited to three minutes, and sign ups will be honored until the completion of public comment
We encourage all written electronic submissions to be done using the "online submission form" above, but we also accept public comment submissions through email at boe@albany.k12.ny.us.
Public comments via email must include:
- Your name
- Your city of residence
- Your phone number
- Your organization (if any)
Please be sure to clearly label the subject of your email as "public comment."
Public comment received via email is limited to 400 words. Only the first 400 words of your email will be read into the record.
Public comment may be submitted via postal mail to the following address:
Board of Education
Attn: Public Comment
1 Academy Park
Albany, NY 12207
Public comments via postal mail must include:
- Your name
- Your city of residence
- Your phone number
- Your organization (if any)
Please be sure to clearly indicate that your message is intended to be read as public comment.
Public comment received via postal mail is limited to 400 words. Only the first 400 words will be read into the record.
Public comment can be submitted via voicemail by calling:
Public comments via voicemail must include:
- Your name
- Your city of residence
- Your phone number
- Your organization (if any)
Public comment received via voicemail is limited to three minutes. If the message is longer, only the first three minutes will be played into the record.
When providing in-person public comment, you will be asked to provide:
- Your name
- Your city of residence
- Your phone number
- Your organization (if any)
-
Your topic (optional)
Public comment should be no longer than three minutes.
In person comments are taken in the order that people sign up. Sign up at the meeting, or in advance, by contacting the district clerk:
Board Clerk
Addressing the board in languages other than English
The board welcomes public comment in any language and will provide translation services whenever possible for all forms of comment - email, virtual, voice mail and in person. The Board requests that those wanting to comment in a language other than English provide as much advance notice as possible so that we can arrange translation services. When translation services cannot be arranged, the commenter is permitted to provide their own translator (in person or virtual) or translation (voice mail or written comments).
Need help?
For additional assistance regarding addressing the board, please contact:
Board Clerk
