Research

Scope and Content Note

These annual reports from academies, high schools, and academic departments of union free schools provide statistics on operations and programs and were collected to assist the Regents in supervising educational institutions in the State. The reports provide information on the school's finances; property; organization of departments; name, age, education, and teaching experience of teachers; name and age of all students, with names of textbooks read or subjects taken; curriculum and texts used; frequency of composition and declamation by students; total number of students; tuition and board rates; free instruction provided; and length of school terms and vacations.

Each report is accompanied by a "Principal's Schedule" listing each student's name, age, and courses studied and tests used during each term. The Principal's Schedules from the 1880s also include the date that each student's preliminary certificate was issued, and for the years 1883-84 and 1884-85 the dates that intermediate certificates and diplomas were issued. Some reports are also accompanied by a form listing the title, author, number of volumes and cost of books added to the school's library during the reporting period. The reporting period during the 1840s was the calendar year, and during the 1880's was the school year. The reports from 1847 and 1848 are not found for all academies in the State.

A2017-00: This accretion consists of a partial, burn-damaged volume for 1885-1886 school year reports of academies to the Board of Regents. The volume contains the reports of the Wellsvile - Yates Union Free School Academy (Allegany County) that was salvaged from the Capitol Fire of 1911 and accessioned by the New York State Library in 1938.