[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 16 (Tuesday, January 28, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E132]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         HONORING GARY BIXHORN

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. TIMOTHY H. BISHOP

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 28, 2014

  Mr. BISHOP of New York. Mr. Speaker, I rise to congratulate Gary D. 
Bixhorn on his retirement after 35 years of educational leadership and 
service. As Chief Operating Officer of Eastern Suffolk BOCES, Gary 
oversaw New York State's largest BOCES, serving more than 50 school 
districts across an area of 1,000 square miles. Under his guidance, 
Eastern Suffolk BOCES became a leader in exploring cost-saving 
opportunities for school districts, and Gary became one of the region's 
top advocates for Long Island schools.
  Gary did an outstanding job during exceptionally challenging economic 
times for education, testifying frequently before commissions and 
forums where he shared his vast knowledge and understanding of school 
finance. He was a key spokesperson in the fight to urge New York State 
lawmakers to end the Gap Elimination Adjustment, a formula in the state 
budget that reduces the amount of aid to school districts, and he 
fought New York's first property tax cap, one of the most stringent in 
the nation. Newsday called him, ``the region's leading analyst of 
financial trends in education.''
  Gary understood the unique qualities of Long Island's schools and was 
a master at forming coalitions to advocate for their most pressing 
needs and to find creative solutions to save money and provide 
services. As national economic conditions declined, he advocated for 
shared services as a means of reducing costs, arguing that BOCES was 
well positioned to provide these shared services. He embraced and 
promoted the idea of cost sharing as an alternative to school district 
consolidation, and he championed the concept known as ``functional 
consolidation,'' or the pooling of resources to provide such services 
as business management, food service, software purchases and 
transportation.
  Gary's vision for BOCES went well beyond its traditional role to 
provide regional educational services such as special education and 
career and technical education. He saw BOCES as a vehicle for helping 
school districts join together to meet their collective needs. He once 
said, ``BOCES doesn't exist in a vacuum. It exists as the collective 
will of our component school districts and our stakeholders in the 
region.'' He demonstrated the kind of strategic, regional thinking that 
could provide effective solutions. Gary also served as president of the 
Suffolk County School Superintendents Association, SCSSA, and then as 
chair of its Legislative Committee. He was well versed in the 
particular needs and characteristics of the region's school districts 
and saw it as his responsibility to communicate those needs to 
legislators in Albany and Washington, particularly in pushing for fair 
distribution of state aid.
  I was proud to stand with him and others last June for the unveiling 
of Long Island's first P-TECH program, a cutting-edge educational 
partnership with Longwood School District to train Long Island students 
for high skill technology jobs. Gary also served as a member of my 
Education Advisory Board and was always looked to for his ability to 
synthesize information and analyse educational data.
  Mr. Speaker, it has been an honor to work with Gary Bixhorn. He 
embodies the spirit of the BOCES mission to enable school districts to 
operate more efficiently by working together. His ability to see the 
broad picture while analyzing the small details made him a valuable 
educational resource for our region and a widely-respected leader. On 
behalf of New York's first congressional district, I would like to 
thank him for his lasting impact on education and wish him well in 
retirement.

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