In four sections this report examines the effects of rising energy costs on New York State's public elementary and secondary schools and makes recommendations to ameliorate problems. Section 1 gives overviews of both total energy use and energy use in education at the national and state levels, and observes that energy cost increases have forced districts to either cut programs or reduce energy consumption. The second section of the report measures the effectiveness of federal and state efforts at energy conservation in education, and then analyzes the extent of energy conservation in New York State schools from 1972 to 1979, noting the effects of such factors as district wealth, tax effort, size, and urban or rural location. Section 3 reports on a survey of 28 other state education agencies' methods of handling energy problems. It also describes successful energy management programs in two regions and one district of New York State. Twelve recommendations are presented in section 4 concerning a state energy management plan, statewide training in energy management, state incentives for energy conservation, school district energy management activities, and state support for continuation of federal energy programs. Four appendices provide further data on energy consumption and costs. (RW)