Electing & Reporting Delegates

Introduction

Employers that participate in NYSTRS oversee the election of delegates to serve two-year terms. As representatives of their districts, delegates have two main functions:

Attend the two-day Annual Delegates Meeting held in the fall at which they elect a teacher member to NYSTRS’ Board.
Serve as a liaison between NYSTRS and the members in their district. In this role, delegates often answer retirement-related and general System questions for their colleagues. Topics include where to get NYSTRS information, differences between tiers of membership and how to plan for retirement.

Although not required, each delegate should have a corresponding alternate who would carry out these duties if the delegate is unable to serve.

The information on this page outlines the delegate election and reporting process, with sections covering the responsibilities of a delegate, eligibility requirements, the election process, how to submit election results to NYSTRS, and the Annual Delegates Meeting.

Section 1: Delegate Responsibilities

Delegates and alternates are elected as a ticket and cannot be split. They serve a two-year term. The term during a regular election year (held in odd-numbered years) begins on Aug. 1 and runs for two years, ending July 31 of the following odd year. Delegates elected via special election (held in even-numbered years) serve out the remainder of the current two-year term.

Delegate Role

Delegates attend a two-day annual meeting held in October or November where they elect one of three active teacher members to the NYSTRS Board. These Board member terms are staggered so one person is up for election each fall. Delegates also serve as liaisons between the System and NYSTRS members at their district.

Alternate Role and Substitution

Alternates serve as backups to their corresponding delegates. The alternate may attend the Annual Meeting but may only vote if NYSTRS is informed prior to the meeting that the delegate will not attend and the appropriate change has been made in the NYSTRS Employer Secure Area (ESA). Should the delegate vacate their position for any reason, the alternate would automatically assume the delegate position and the alternate position would remain vacant until the next regular election. (Note: Delegates and alternates are elected as a ticket and cannot be split.)

The delegate and alternate serve a two-year term. The term during a regular election year (held in odd-numbered years) begins on Aug. 1 and runs for two years, ending July 31 of the following odd year. Delegates elected via special election (held in even-numbered years) serve out the remainder of the current two-year term.

Section 2: Who is Eligible to Be Elected as a Delegate or Alternate

Both delegates and alternates must be in-service, full-time (i.e., per annum) employees who are NYSTRS members.

For reference, the use of “teacher” is defined in the Education Law, Article 11, Section 501 as:

"Teacher" shall mean any regular teacher, special teacher, including any school librarian or physical training teacher, principal, vice-principal, supervisor, supervisory principal, director, superintendent, city professional staff of any class, public school, vocational school, truant reformatory school or parental school, and of any or all classes of schools within the state of New York, including schools on the Indian reservation, conducted under the order and superintendence of and wholly or partly at the expense of the New York state education department or of a duly elected board of education, board of school directors or board of trustees of the state or of any city or school district thereof, provided that no person shall be deemed a teacher within the meaning of this article who is not so employed for full time outside vacation periods.

This definition encompasses any NYSTRS member employed under an annual contract who is employed on a full-time basis. No per diem employees may be considered.

Section 3: Election of a Delegate/Alternate

Election Timelines

Regular delegate elections are held between March 1 and June 1 of odd-numbered years, with results to be submitted to NYSTRS by July 1. Special elections are held in even-numbered years, but only employers with openings in both the delegate and alternate positions of a ticket are eligible to participate. Special elections must be held between March 1 and Oct. 1, with results submitted by Oct. 6.

Review these key dates in the Delegate Election Timelines page.

Election Administration

The Chief School Administrator (CSA) is responsible for holding an election or designating someone to do so. Many employers have the election run by their local union. The Education Law does not mandate an election process, and NYSTRS has no authority to mandate how elections are run. It is left to the discretion of each employer to establish appropriate procedures.

How Delegate Entitlement Counts Are Determined

The number of delegates and alternates to which a NYSTRS-participating employer is entitled is based upon the number of active NYSTRS members contractually employed at the district or college and is therefore subject to change each regular election year. The calculation for the delegate entitlement is the number of NYSTRS members employed divided by 200 and rounded to the nearest whole number.

"NYSTRS members contractually employed" is defined as per annum members who were employed in June of the previous school year and were credited with a full year of service.
Part-time members are not included in the count to determine delegate entitlements.

The number of delegate/alternate tickets an employer is eligible to fill can be viewed within the Convention Delegates section of the Employer Secure Area (ESA). Employers should check this portal each March to determine their entitlement and/or the number of vacancies to be filled.

Special Elections to Fill Vacancies

Vacancies in the delegate/alternate ticket following a regular election may only be filled during a special election, held in even-numbered years. A special election begins March 1 and continues through Oct. 1 with results to be submitted to NYSTRS through Oct. 6.

The term runs from the time delegate/alternate names are submitted in ESA to the end of the original two-year term (i.e., July 31 of odd-numbered year).

If an alternate position is vacated and the delegate remains, the vacant alternate position may not be filled until the next regular election cycle.

Additional Information

Delegates and alternates are elected as a ticket and cannot be split. In other words, an alternate for “Delegate A” may not serve in place of “Delegate B” if the latter is unable to attend the meeting.
It is not mandatory for a delegate to have an alternate. However, should a delegate retire or vacate the position and there is no alternate, the delegate position would remain vacant until it can either be filled during the special election or during the next regular election.
If the number of nominated delegates/alternates is fewer than or equal to the number of delegates to which a district is entitled, no election is necessary. The names of the delegate(s) and alternate(s) may be entered into the Convention Delegates System (CDS) within the ESA. The date of election should be the date the interested delegate(s) and alternate(s) names were submitted, which must be within the election timeframe.

Section 4: BOCES Elections

A BOCES is required to oversee up to two types of elections:

One to fill delegate/alternate openings at its BOCES.
One to fill delegate/alternate openings for the BOCES’ component districts with less than 75 active full-time NYSTRS members. In this capacity overseeing the component district election, the BOCES is considered a supervisory district.

BOCES that do not have component districts with fewer than 75 NYSTRS members do not need to conduct an election in a supervisory capacity.

Election for BOCES’ Own Delegates

Each BOCES is entitled to at least one delegate/alternate to represent their organization. Depending on the number of active NYSTRS members employed by the BOCES, the organization could have additional delegate slots.

Election as Supervisory District

In its capacity as the entity overseeing the component district election, the BOCES is considered a supervisory district and has a separate district number. In this instance, a single election takes place at the supervisory level, with delegate entitlement based on the cumulative number of NYSTRS members employed by the under-75 component districts. The BOCES superintendent or their representative is charged with reaching out to any under-75 component districts to gauge interest in the delegate election and oversee the process. All component districts for a BOCES may be viewed in the Convention Delegates System within the ESA.

Component districts employing 75 or more NYSTRS members are eligible to hold their own elections. They will be contacted independently by NYSTRS, and the supervisory district will not be responsible for reporting election results for them.

Section 5: Submitting Election Results to NYSTRS

Reporting Requirements and Information

Employers are required to report delegate election results to NYSTRS electronically through the Employer Secure Area (ESA). The person reporting results must be a registered ESA user assigned the Convention Delegates User role. The Chief School Administrator (CSA) or Security Administrator may also report election results as well as assign the role of Convention Delegates User. Individuals named as Security Administrator or Convention Delegates User must be an employee of the district or college/school/BOCES. An employer may assign more than one person as a Convention Delegates User.

The following information must be entered in ESA:

Date of election (see election timelines)
NYSTRS EmplID for the delegate(s) and corresponding alternate(s). (The EmplID is a unique seven-digit number assigned to each NYSTRS member. If this information is not provided to the person reporting election results to NYSTRS, it may be obtained from the employer’s business or payroll office.)
School email address for each delegate and alternate (do not provide personal email addresses)

How to Submit Election Results in ESA

To report delegate election results, log in to ESA, select CDS and then Convention Delegates from the dropdown. The District Delegate Information page will show the number of vacancies available to fill.

As a reminder: Delegates and alternates are elected as a ticket and cannot be split.

For a step-by-step guide for reporting your district’s elected delegates and alternates in the ESA, consult our Reporting Delegate Election Results handout.

Election results are periodically updated on nystrs.org; district administrators are encouraged to double-check the Delegate List to confirm that results have been submitted in ESA.

Section 6: Annual Delegates Meeting

As stated above, delegates are responsible for electing a teacher Board member at the Annual Delegates Meeting held each fall. Attendance at the Delegates Meeting is not mandatory. However, if neither the delegate(s) nor alternate(s) attends, the employer they represent will not be allowed a vote for the teacher member of the Board running for election that year.

An alternate may attend the meeting in addition to the district’s voting delegate with whom they were elected. The alternate will not have voting rights in this instance, but they are welcome to attend all sessions and receive meeting material.

In order to vote in the teacher Board member election, alternates must be reported by their employer in the ESA as officially attending the meeting in place of their delegate. Details on this process are covered below under “Attendance Changes in the ESA.”

Compensation and Expenses

Delegates attending the Delegates Meeting are entitled to their full salary. Under a New York State Comptroller’s ruling, however, local school districts/colleges cannot pay expenses for meeting attendance. Therefore, the expenses are the responsibility of the delegate/alternate. (Also see a State Education Department opinion and a ruling by the Commissioner of Education.)

Delegates may be able to seek reimbursement through their local bargaining units and may contact their union for more information.

Attendance Changes in ESA

Employers must only identify Delegates Meeting attendance changes in the ESA if a delegate cannot attend and their alternate is officially attending in their place (i.e., in a voting capacity).

Attendance status can be changed by the employer up to three business days prior to the Delegates Meeting by checking the box in ESA to indicate the alternate will be attending and voting in place of the delegate. Visit the ESA/CDS/Convention Delegates/District Delegate Information page to make attendance changes. The box appears next to the alternate’s name in CDS and reads “Attending delegates meeting in place of delegate.”

Please note that the alternate would still need to register to attend the meeting when event registration opens; if the above change has been entered in ESA by the employer, the alternate should identify themselves as a delegate during event registration.

Upon check-in at the meeting, voting alternates will be given a delegate badge to reflect their role in the teacher Board member election.

Location and Timing of the Annual Delegates Meeting

The Annual Delegates Meeting is held at the Saratoga Springs City Center in Saratoga Springs, NY. Delegates and alternates who were reported by their employers in ESA by that year’s election deadline will receive emails from NYSTRS pertaining to the Annual Delegates Meeting.

The dates vary from year to year, but by law the meeting must be held in October or November. Traditionally, the meeting is held over two days, typically a Sunday and Monday. However, scheduling conflicts with the venue and/or area hotels may require the use of alternate days. If circumstances require that we hold the meeting virtually, the format may change as well. In either case, delegates are given many months’ advance notice to adequately plan their travel and accommodations, if applicable.

See the Annual Delegates Meeting page for the latest meeting information.