New Jersey school districts
| K-12 education in New Jersey | |
 | |
| Education facts | |
| State superintendent: Kevin Dehmer | |
| Number of students: 1,321,709 | |
| Number of teachers: 109,282 | |
| Teacher/pupil ratio: 1:12 | |
| Number of school districts: 546 | |
| Number of schools: 2,312 | |
| Graduation rate: 91% | |
| Per-pupil spending: $20,670 | |
| See also | |
| New Jersey Department of Education • List of school districts in New Jersey • New Jersey • School boards portal | |
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Public education in the United States Public education in New Jersey Glossary of education terms | |
| Note: These statistics are mainly from government sources, including the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Center for Education Statistics. Figures given were the most recent as of October 2022. | |
New Jersey is home to 700 school districts, 2,596 schools and 1,356,431 K-12 students.[1][2]
Quick facts
State school administrators
- State Board of Education[3]
- Arcelio Aponte, President
- Joseph Fisicaro, Vice President
- Mark W. Biedron
- Ronald K. Butcher
- Claire Chamberlain
- Jack Fornaro
- Edithe Fulton
- Ernest P. Lepore
- Andrew J. Mulvihill
- J. Peter Simon
- Dr. Dorothy S. Strickland
- Vacant
- Vacant
Statistics
The following table displays the state's top 10 school districts by total student enrollment.
| Student enrollment |
|---|
| 1.) Newark |
| 2.) Jersey City |
| 3.) Paterson |
| 4.) Elizabeth |
| 5.) Toms River Regional |
| 6.) Edison Township |
| 7.) Passaic |
| 8.) Woodbridge Township |
| 9.) Camden City |
| 10.) Hamilton Township |
Demographics
The following table displays the ethnic distribution of students in New Jersey as reported in the National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data for 2011-2012.[4]
| Demographic Information for New Jersey's K-12 Public School System | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | Students | State Percentage | United States Percentage** | |
| American Indian | 1,735 | 0.13% | 1.10% | |
| Asian | 121,434 | 8.95% | 4.68% | |
| African American | 220,238 | 16.24% | 15.68% | |
| Hawaiian Nat./Pacific Isl. Students | 3,153 | 0.23% | 0.42% | |
| Hispanic | 305,026 | 22.49% | 24.37% | |
| White | 693,416 | 51.12% | 51.21% | |
| Two or More | 11,429 | 0.84% | 2.54% | |
| **Note: This is the percentage of all students in the United States that are reported to be of this ethnicity. | ||||
In the news
Newark Superintendent Cami Anderson
Since 1995, the New Jersey state government has exercised control over Newark Public Schools. In 2013, the Newark Students Union led two mass boycotts against state control of the district in April and November, with the April walkout reportedly drawing about 1,000 students.[5][6] Superintendent Cami Anderson, who was appointed by Governor Chris Christie, has put forward a controversial district reform plan labeled "One Newark" that includes school closures, teacher layoffs, Teach for America hirings and changes to the district's enrollment system for both traditional and charter schools.[7] American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten sent a letter to Governor Christie criticizing Superintendent Anderson's plan to use teacher performance evaluations instead of seniority in deciding which teachers to layoff. She concluded the letter by arguing that the state should relinquish control of the school district.[8][9]
In May 2014, Anderson publicly rejected calls for her resignation and objections to her reforms in an interview with NJTV.[10] In the interview, she stated, "I’m an optimist and I believe our kids deserve us to keep them at the core of every decision and I believe so strongly that we can do what we need to do for our kids that I am absolutely committed to staying the course and putting kids at the core of every decision."[11] She received a three-year contract extension from the Christie administration on June 27, 2014.[12]
Superintendent Anderson's relationship with the Newark Advisory Board has also grown increasingly contentious. During a January 2014 board meeting with hundreds of parents, residents and district educators in attendance, Superintendent Anderson was heckled continuously by the crowd. AFT President Randi Weingarten also attended to denounce Superintendent Anderson's reform proposals, encouraging the opposition in the crowd by pledging AFT's support and stating, "the nation is watching Newark."[13] Superintendent Anderson and her staff left the meeting after community activist Natasha Allen allegedly referred to the superintendent's biracial child by asking, "Do you not want for our brown babies what you want for your brown baby?"[14] In February 2014, Superintendent Anderson announced that she will no longer attend board meetings on the basis that they "are no longer focused on achieving educational outcomes for children."[15]
State law
Common Core
Common Core, or the Common Core State Standards Initiative, is an American education initiative that outlines quantifiable benchmarks in English and mathematics at each grade level from kindergarten through high school. The New Jersey State Board of Education adopted these standards on June 23, 2010, and fully implemented them during the 2013-2014 school year.[16]
In 2014, Governor Chris Christie (R) issued an executive order that reduced the impact of student standardized test scores on teacher evaluations for the next two school years. Test scores will count for 10 percent of a teacher's evaluation during the 2014-2015 school year and for 20 percent of the evaluation during the 2015-2016 school year. Prior to the executive order, test scores would have counted for 30 percent of a teacher's evaluation beginning in the 2014-2015 school year. The executive order also established a task force to review the Common Core-aligned exams created by the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) testing consortium, along with other potential standardized tests.[17]
A year later, in 2015, Christie announced that he officially opposes the Common Core standards, stating that it was "simply not working."[18] Christie also announced that New Jersey would be pulling out of Common Core and that a panel of teachers, educators and parents would be developing new standards for the state.[19]
School board composition
New Jersey school board members are generally elected by residents of the school district, although some school board members are appointed. New Jersey school board elections typically follow one of these three methods, or a mixture thereof:
- At-large: All voters residing in the school district may vote for any candidates running, regardless of geographic location.
- Trustee area: Only voters residing in a specific geographic area within the school district may vote on certain candidates, who must also reside in that specific geographic area.
- Trustee area at-large: All voters residing in the school district may vote for any candidates running, but candidates must reside in specific geographic areas within the school district.
School boards typically consist of seven or nine members. School board members serve three-year terms.[20]
District types
New Jersey contains two primary types of school districts and several variations:[21]
- Type 1 districts are dependent on municipal, township or county governments or the state government for fiscal management or school board appointments or both, depending on the district.
- Type 2 districts are traditional districts with an elected governing body that can change tax levies and issue bonds for voter approval.
- Consolidated districts are a Type 2 district variant that were formed from two or more school districts in the past.
- All purpose regional districts are a Type 2 district variant that provides all school services in a region and thereby replace any other Type 1 or Type 2 districts in the area.
- Limited regional districts are a Type 2 district variant that provides a limited number of specialized services for other school districts in the region.
Term limits
New Jersey does not impose statewide term limits on school board members.[22]
School board elections
Upcoming elections
- See also: New Jersey school board elections, 2015
A total of 18 New Jersey school districts among America's largest school districts by enrollment held elections for 58 seats in 2015. Two districts held elections on April 21, 2015, and the remaining 16 districts held their elections on November 3, 2015.
Here are several quick facts about New Jersey's school board elections in 2015:
- The largest school district by enrollment with an election in 2015 was Newark Public Schools with 35,588 K-12 students.
- The smallest school district by enrollment with an election in 2015 was Jackson School District with 9,224 K-12 students.
- Four districts tied for the largest number of seats on the ballot in 2015 with four seats up for election each.
The districts listed below served 274,059 K-12 students during the 2012-2013 school year, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Click on the district names for more information on the district and its school board elections.
Path to the ballot
To qualify for the ballot as a school board candidate in New Jersey, a person must be:
- Able to read and write
- A resident of the school district for at least one year before filing for office
- Registered to vote in the school district before filing for office
A person must not be:
- Serving in another elected office
- Serving as a mayor or as part of a municipal or county governing body
- Convicted of certain crimes
- Involved in a claim against the board
- Holding or having a stake in a contract with the board
The process of running for office as a school board candidate begins with filing nomination petitions that include a minimum of 10 signatures from qualified voters in the district. Petitions must be filed with the secretary of the board if it is for an April election or with the county clerk if it is for a November election. Candidates must also adhere to all campaign finance reporting requirements to stay on the ballot.[20]
Campaign finance
New Jersey requires all school board candidates who receive contributions of any amount to file a "Certificate of Organization and Designation of Campaign Treasurer and Depository" form with the Election Law Enforcement Commission. Campaign finance reporting deadlines vary according to whether the district holds its elections in April or November.[20]
See also
- School board elections portal
- United States school districts
- List of school districts in New Jersey
- New Jersey Department of Education
- Public education in New Jersey
- New Jersey
External links
- New Jersey Department of State
- New Jersey Department of Education
- New Jersey School Boards Association
- American Federation of Teachers - New Jersey
- New Jersey Education Association
- National Center for Education Statistics school district search tool
References
- ↑ State of New Jersey Department of Education, "New Jersey Public Schools Fact Sheet," accessed August 8, 2013
- ↑ State of New Jersey Department of Education, "2012-2013 Enrollment," accessed August 8, 2013
- ↑ State of New Jersey Department of Education, "New Jersey State Board of Education Members," accessed June 13, 2014
- ↑ United States Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, "Common Core of Data (CCD), State Nonfiscal Public Elementary/Secondary Education Survey, 2011-2012," accessed May 7, 2014
- ↑ Al Jazeera, "Newark students walkout over cut backs," April 10, 2013
- ↑ Teacher Under Construction, "Newark Students Organize Boycott, Demand Local Control of Schools," November 1, 2013
- ↑ The Washington Post, "Gov. Christie’s new crisis: Protests grow over state control of Newark schools," February 27, 2014
- ↑ American Federation of Teachers, "Letter from Randi Weingarten to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie on the school crisis in Newark," February 26, 2014
- ↑ The Star-Ledger, "Newark schools chief warns of massive teacher layoffs; wants pink slips tied to performance," February 25, 2014
- ↑ Education Week, "Despite Calls for Resignation, Newark Superintendent Vows to Stay," June 2, 2014
- ↑ NJTV News, "In NJTV Exclusive, Cami Anderson Says She Plans to Stay on in Newark," May 29, 2014
- ↑ The Star-Ledger, "NJ officials renew contract of embattled Newark schools chief," June 27, 2014
- ↑ NJ Spotlight, "Raucous Newark Crowd Drives Superintendent From School Board Meeting," January 29, 2014
- ↑ The Huffington Post, "Newark School Chief Cami Anderson Ditches Rowdy Meeting After Remarks About Her ‘Brown Baby'," January 30, 2014
- ↑ The Star-Ledger, "Cami Anderson, Newark schools superintendent, at loggerheads with school board," February 27, 2014
- ↑ Common Core State Standards Initiative, "Core Standards in your State," accessed July 12, 2014
- ↑ Education Week, "N.J. to Reduce Influence of Common-Core Tests on Teacher Evaluation," July 15, 2014
- ↑ Politico, "On Common Core, Jeb Bush is a party of one," May 29, 2015
- ↑ Alabama.com, "Common Core is done in New Jersey, Chris Christie says," May 28, 2015
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 New Jersey School Boards Association, "How to Become a School Board Member," accessed July 11, 2014
- ↑ United State Census Bureau, "New Jersey," accessed July 11, 2014
- ↑ National School Boards Association, "Survey of the State School Boards Associations on Term Limits for Local Board Members," accessed July 8, 2014
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