District Budgets

Largest district by enrollment

Where the general fund goes, tracked district by district as budgets are proposed, amended, and put to a vote.

2026-27 Adopted Budget

Syracuse City School District

Syracuse is one of New York's five "Big 5" city school districts, so this budget was never put to a public vote. The Board of Education gave preliminary approval on March 11, 2026, reviewed the state-aid picture on April 22, and formally adopted the final budget on April 29, 2026. About 86% of the district's revenue comes from New York State aid and roughly 9% from the City of Syracuse. A subsequent budget amendment (on or around June 24, 2026) reduced the district's planned use of fund balance by $5.9 million, though the exact revised total wasn't independently confirmed.

Total budget

$634.1M

up $14.2M; amended total not published

Adopted by

Board of Ed.

April 29, 2026

Syracuse City School District is Onondaga County's largest school district by enrollment. The adopted budget was presented to the Syracuse Common Council alongside a joint public hearing on April 30, 2026; unlike Rochester, no source found documents a formal Council vote to approve or reject it — Syracuse's process appears limited to presentation and public comment.

New York's "Big 5" city school districts — Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Yonkers, and New York City — don't hold the property-tax-cap budget referendum that every other district in the state does; their budgets are adopted by their Boards of Education and then reviewed under a separate city-budget process. Onondaga County's other districts' budgets will be added here as they're verified.

Elections & Candidates

Most recent results

Who’s on the ballot for open board seats, and what they’re running on.

Most recent election · 3 of 7 at-large seats up

Tuesday, November 4, 2025

Syracuse City School District · 7 at-large seats, 4-year terms, elected (not appointed) · next partial election 2027

Election coverage →

At-Large

Karen Cordano

Elected

Incumbent, re-elected to a second term. Certified vote total not published.

At-Large

Twiggy Billue

Elected

Incumbent, re-elected to a second term. Removed by board vote Jan. 20, 2026 after an ethics investigation; appeal to the state Education Commissioner pending. Seat held on an interim basis by a mayoral appointee until a Nov. 2026 special election.

At-Large

Michael Root

Elected

New to the board; retired Syracuse-area teacher of 30+ years. Certified vote total not published.

At-Large

Nyatwa Bullock

Not elected

Incumbent; lost the Democratic primary, then an independent write-in bid.

At-Large

Jason Petrone

Not elected

Challenger, ran on the Republican line.

Syracuse's Board of Education is elected, not appointed — the only role the mayor plays is filling a seat on an interim basis if it becomes vacant mid-term, as happened after Twiggy Billue's removal above. Seats are staggered 4-year terms with roughly 2-3 up each odd-year cycle; the next partial election is in 2027, alongside a special election to fill the remainder of Billue's term in November 2026.

School Board Watch

5 Largest Districts

Meeting-by-meeting coverage of the largest school districts serving Onondaga County: when the board meets, and where to find the agenda.

Syracuse City School DistrictBoard of Education Business Meetings commence at 5:30 p.m. unless noted otherwise, per the district's posted 2026-27 schedule.

Sep

Board of Education Business Meeting

5:30 PM · 725 Harrison Street, Syracuse, NY 13210

Agenda pending

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District Budgets

Largest district by enrollment

Elections & Candidates

Most recent results

Tuesday, November 4, 2025

School Board Watch

5 Largest Districts

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