Frances SCHIFF Wills ’59 was appointed to the New York State Board of Regents in March 2020. Wills, a retired schools superintendent, has served in education for over fifty years; twenty-five of which were spent in Maine. In New York, she had most recently served as schools superintendent for the Briarcliff Manor and Putnam Valley school districts.
The seventeen-member board sets education policy for the state. A key topic Wills has focused on is mental health support for students, describing the issue as a form of “social justice” in education. She has also called for change in high stakes standardized testing.
Regents, who serve for five-year, unpaid terms, are chosen by the state Legislature in a joint vote by the Assembly and Senate. Wills will represent New York’s 9th Judicial District, encompassing Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, Dutchess, and Orange Counties.
