New York State Education Department Commissioner Thomas E. Sobol Subject Files

W0107-95, W0107-95B: Alphabetical by subject.

W0107-95A: By major subject area and alphabetical therein.

Dr. Thomas E. Sobol was born on January 11, 1932, and grew up in Boston, Massachusetts. He attended Boston Latin public school, and graduated from Harvard College with an English degree in 1953. He went on to earn a Master of Arts from the Harvard Graduate School of Education in 1954, and then a PhD in Education from the Teachers College at Columbia University in 1969. He gained further experience as an educator during this time by teaching English and acting as a school administrator in both Massachusetts and New York. After receiving his doctorate, he was appointed assistant superintendent of Great Neck, NY schools, serving for two years. Then, in 1971, he was selected as superintendent of schools in Scarsdale, NY, and held this position for 16 years.

On March 24, 1987, he was chosen by the Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York to replace Gordon M. Ambach as New York State Commissioner of Education. Selected amidst concerns amongst some Regents and lawmakers who were seeking either a minority candidate or one who had more experience in lower-income communities, Sobol reached out to them by adopting many of their concerns as his own. He quickly became an advocate for increasing state aid to both poor urban schools and traditionally neglected rural areas, for adding more material about the history of minorities in America to social studies curriculums, and for improvements in bilingual education.

One of his major accomplishments was "A New Compact for Learning," a policy statement designed to shift responsibility and power from centralized educational bureaucracies to parents and teachers at the local level. The Compact was adopted by the Board of Regents in 1991 as part of their efforts toward systematic education reform and improved academic standards, though they removed Sobol's original plan to include a vouchers system. Both the Commissioner and the Regents hoped to promote greater educational performance from students through rigorous standards and assessments, while at the same time allowing greater local control over how these improvements were to be attained. In this, they saw the New Compact as part of a nationwide trend towards academic decentralization at the state level.

Following up on the recommendations of "A New Compact for Learning," in 1992 Sobol undertook a major reorganization of the New York State Education Department. In response to staff reductions, and what he saw as the need for greater cooperation, efficiency, and customer focus, Sobol abolished the department's bureaus and divisions, and restructured staff into interdisciplinary teams responsible for policy, central services, and regional services. In addition, the functions of higher education services and regulation of professions were merged into the Office of Higher and Professional Education.

Sobol served as Commissioner of Education and President of the University of the State of New York until his resignation on June 30, 1995. He cited irrevocable differences with new Governor George Pataki's philosophy of government as the reason for his stepping down. Their relationship had been strained through Pataki's attacks on the Board of Regents and the State Education Department, and his promise to trim what he viewed as the Department's excessive bureaucracy and elitism. Sobol did not entirely disagree with the goal of reducing bureaucracy, but felt that the Governor went too far in his pursuit of it, and was advocating policies that would deprive schools of needed funding. Upon his resignation, Sobol accepted an endowed position of Christian A. Johnson Professor of Outstanding Educational Practice at Teachers College, Columbia University, which he held until 2006.

This series consists of correspondence, meeting agenda and minutes, reports, and other materials documenting the administration of the New York State Education Department under Commissioner Thomas E. Sobol. Materials were organized by the Commissioner's office according to the office, organization, or subject to which they were related. This organization has been reflected in the folder titles.

Many of the files are labeled according to their pertinence to major program areas of the New York State Education Department. These areas include Elementary, Middle, and Secondary Education (EMS), Higher Education, Professions, Vocational and Education Services for Individual with Disabilities (VESID) and Cultural Education. The file labels reflect the reorganization of the State Education Department during Sobol's tenure. Files marked "ESC" refer to the Office of Elementary, Secondary, and Continuing Education, which was changed to EMS in 1988. Meanwhile, the Office of Higher Education became the Office of Higher and Continuing Education in 1988, and then the Office of Higher and Professional Education in 1992.

Included among the EMS files are correspondence, reports, and other materials related to specific interventions made by the State Education Department in struggling school districts in Hempstead and Buffalo. Also included are published copies of "A New Compact for Learning", as well as letters expressing views on the New Compact from concerned citizens and constituent groups. Also related to the New Compact are reports and meeting agenda from a group of Curriculum and Assessment Committees related to specific academic subjects. These reports involve the creation of "learning outcomes' for each subject, a key component of the New Compact. Higher Education materials include correspondence with the Doctoral Council and with college and university officials regarding reviews of doctoral programs in New York State, as well as correspondence related to state-sponsored scholarship programs and teacher certification. Materials related to the professions include correspondence with citizens alleging misconduct from members of licensed professions, with practitioners regarding licensing, and with appointees to State Boards of licensed professions.

Other documents in the series reflect the daily activities of Commissioner Sobol in administering the New York State Education Department. Files marked "Commissioner's Office" refer to the daily functioning of the Office of the Commissioner of Education under Thomas Sobol. Included are correspondence, programs, minutes, agenda, and reports related to meetings held by, or attended by, Commissioner Sobol, both inside and outside of the State Education Department. Also included are correspondence to legislators, federal government officials, and Department staff, stating the Department's position on federal legislation related to education. In addition, there are letters to and from members of the Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York, as well as agenda and meeting minutes from Regents meetings, regional conferences, retreats, and legislative conferences. Files marked "Commissioner Sobol" relate to the personal schedule and activities of Thomas Sobol while serving as Commissioner. Many of these materials consist of "calendar regrets," or letters sent by Commissioner Sobol to people requesting his attendance at various functions, expressing regrets at not being able to attend those functions. In addition, there are correspondence and official forms documenting Sobol's travel schedule, interactions with the news media, and speaking engagements. Files marked "Department Administration" largely deal with personnel matters, and include correspondence with labor unions, including Public Employees Federation, concerning the negotiation of a new contract, as well as correspondence and memoranda related to the reorganization of the Office of Elementary, Middle, and Secondary Education into interdisciplinary field service teams.

Furthermore, files marked "Advisory Councils and Task Forces" refer to materials, including correspondence, drafts, and final reports, produced by ad hoc councils and task forces either convened by Commissioner Sobol, or in which Commissioner Sobol participated. Among those prominently documented include the Anti-Drug Abuse Advisory Council, the Bilingual Education Advisory Council, and various bodies (Curriculum of Inclusion Task Force, Social Studies Syllabus, "One Nation, Many Peoples" Task Force) related to the controversial 1991 revision of the state's social studies curriculum to reflect greater cultural diversity. Files marked "Organizations" contain materials related to organizations outside of New York State Government with which Thomas Sobol was involved. Organizations extensively represented in the subseries include the Council of Chief State School Officers, the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York, the New York State School Board Association, the National Center on Education and the Economy, the New York State United Teachers, and the Regional Educational Laboratory.

W0107-95, W0107-95A, W0107-95B: These records were transferred by the State Education Department in 1995 and originally accessioned as part of Series 15080. When Series 15080 was separated into individual series corresponding to each commissioner in 2017, the records were re-designated part of Series W0107.

W0107-96: These records were transferred by the State Education Department in 1996 and originally accessioned as part of Series 15080. When Series 15080 was separated into individual series corresponding to each commissioner in 2017, the records were re-designated part of Series W0107.

This series description was enhanced as part of the States' Impact on Federal Education Policy Project (SIFEPP), in November 2006. The New York Community Trust - Wallace Special Projects Fund provided funding for this project.

This series may contain material to which access is restricted. Archives staff will review requested documents and disclose information pursuant to New York State Freedom of Information Law (FOIL).