Newark Public Schools

Newark Public Schools
756 Broad Street
Newark, NJ 07102
District information
Grades PreK-12
Superintendent Roger Leon
Business administrator Valerie Wilson
Schools 80
Affiliation(s) Former Abbott district
Students and staff
Enrollment 35,543 (as of 2011-12)[1]
Faculty 2,546.0 FTEs
Student-teacher ratio 13.96:1
Other information
District Factor Group A
Website www.nps.k12.nj.us
Ind.Per pupilDistrict
spending		Rank
(*)		K-12
average		%± vs.
average
1ATotal Spending$24,28199$18,89128.5%
1Budgetary Cost17,3039414,78317.0%
2Classroom Instruction8,864578,7631.2%
6Support Services3,5861012,39249.9%
8Administrative Cost1,8571001,48525.1%
10Operations & Maintenance2,675961,78350.0%
13Extracurricular Activities19027268-29.1%
16Median Teacher Salary60,7093164,043
Data from NJDoE 2014 Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending.[2]
*Of K-12 districts with more than 3,500 students. Lowest spending=1; Highest=103
Headquarters

Newark Public Schools is a comprehensive community public school district that serves the entire city of Newark in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. The state took over the district in 1995 and returned control in 2018, after 22 years.[3][4] The district is one of 31 former Abbott districts statewide,[5] which are now referred to as "SDA Districts" based on the requirement for the state to cover all costs for school building and renovation projects in these districts under the supervision of the New Jersey Schools Development Authority.[6][7]

As of the 2011-12 school year, the district's 80 schools had an enrollment of 35,543 students and 2,546.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 13.96:1.[1]

The total school enrollment in Newark city was 75,000 in 2003. Pre-primary school enrollment was 12,000 and elementary or high school enrollment was 46,000 children. College enrollment was 16,000. As of 2003, 64 percent of people 25 years and over had at least graduated from high school and 11 percent had a bachelor's degree or higher. Among people 16 to 19 years old, 10 percent were dropouts; they were not enrolled in school and had not graduated from high school.[8]

The district is classified by the New Jersey Department of Education as being in District Factor Group "A", the lowest of eight groupings. District Factor Groups organize districts statewide to allow comparison by common socioeconomic characteristics of the local districts. From lowest socioeconomic status to highest, the categories are A, B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I and J.[9]

The district is one of three districts in New Jersey (along with Jersey City Public Schools and Paterson Public Schools) under "state intervention", which authorizes the state Commissioner of Education to intervene in governance of a local public school district (and to intervene in the areas of instruction and program, operations, personnel, and fiscal management).[10] Chris Cerf was the state appointed superintendent of Newark.[11] Cerf said he would resign on February 1, 2018, the day local control was be returned to the district.[12]

Roger Leon, a life long Newark resident and educator was elected by the local school board to replace Cerf by a unanimous 9-0 vote and took office July 1, 2018.

Administration

Core members of the district's administration are:[13][14]

  • Roger Leon, District Superintendent of Schools
  • Valerie Wilson, School Business Administrator

State intervention

The district is one of three districts in New Jersey under "state intervention", which authorizes the Commissioner of Education to intervene in governance of a local public school district (and to intervene in the areas of instruction and program, operations, personnel, and fiscal management) if the Commissioner has determined that a school district failed or was unable to take corrective actions necessary to establish a thorough and efficient system of education.[10]

State intervention has been criticized as undemocratic and racist.[15][16] Some also have suggested that children were significantly harmed during state control.[17] State intervention in Newark has not produced significant gains,[18] as evidenced by the fact that NPS does not show up in the top ten of New Jersey districts (in terms of achievement, in every tested grade, for math and English) after more than two decades of state control.[19] When viewed through the lens of student growth percentiles, which is a contested measure of growth, NPS may be higher. However, NPS may have had equally high growth before state intervention, so no comparisons are possible.

Chris Cerf and others paid by the state of New Jersey have suggested state control has been good for Newark.[20] However, no measures of the quality of NPS's broad offerings before, during, or after state intervention have been identified. No measures of progress are available for earth science, physics, biology, chemistry, health, citizenship, world history, US history, literature, sociology, anthropology, ethnic studies, New Jersey history, gender studies, media studies, Africana studies, economics, politics, astronomy, geology, philosophy, archaeology, or performing arts. No measures of students' physical wellbeing, social wellbeing, or emotional wellbeing are available before, during, or after state control. No measures of parental wellbeing have been identified.

Performance

The Newark Public Schools is the largest school system in New Jersey. The city's public schools had been among the lowest-performing in the state, even after the state government took over management of the city's schools in 1995, which was done under the presumption that improvement would follow.

Although the school district continues to struggle with low high school graduation rates and low standardized test scores, the former mayor of Newark, Cory Booker, insisted in 2010, "Newark, New Jersey can become one of the first American cities to solve the crisis in public education."[21] This vision for better school district is also shared by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, who made a $100 million donation to Newark Public Schools in 2010. "Every child deserves a good education. Right now that's not happening," he said.[22] The management has been criticized: while interviews with administration regarding Newark's schools were always positive, highlighting only the good aspects of the huge monetary donation, new contracts were being created, money was being hemorrhaged, and the district was going broke.[23][24] According to The New Yorker, Anderson, Booker, Zuckerberg, and Christie, "despite millions of dollars spent on community engagement—have yet to hold tough, open conversations with the people of Newark about exactly how much money the district has, where it is going, and what students aren't getting as a result."

Awards, recognition and rankings

Ann Street School of Mathematics and Science was awarded the Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence by the United States Department of Education, the highest award an American school can receive, during the 1998-99 school year.[25]

Branch Brook Elementary School, a Pre-Kindergarten through 4th grade school, was awarded the Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence, during the 2004-05 school year.[26]

During the 2007–08 school year, Harriet Tubman School was recognized with the Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence by the United States Department of Education.[27][28]

During the 2009-10 school year, Science Park High School was awarded the Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence.[29]

For the 2005-06 school year, the district was recognized with the "Best Practices Award" by the New Jersey Department of Education for its "A Park Study: Learning About the World Around Us" Science program at Abington Avenue School. The curriculum was written, implemented, and submitted to the State of New Jersey by Abington Avenue School kindergarten teacher, Lenore Furman.[30]

After efforts at his dismissal as New Jersey's poet laureate, Amiri Baraka was named the school district's poet laureate in December 2002.[31]

Schools

Preschools

  • Ann Street Annex[32]
  • Boylan Early Childhood Center (78; PreK-K)
  • Early Childhood Academy of Excellence (72; PreK)
  • Lafayette Street Annexes[33]
  • Wilson Street Annex[34]

Elementary schools

  • Abington Avenue School[35] (692; PreK-8)
  • Alexander Street School (501; 1-8)
  • Ann Street School[36] (1,241; PreK-8)
  • Avon Avenue[37] (572; K-8)
  • Belmont Runyon Elementary School[38] (545; PreK-7)
  • Bragaw Avenue School (312; K-8)
  • Branch Brook School[39] (170; PreK-4)
  • Camden Street Elementary School[40] (579; PreK-8)
  • Roberto Clemente School[41] (589; PreK-4)
  • George Washington Carver School[42] (509; PreK-8)
  • Chancellor Avenue School[43] (142 in K-2 and 306 in 3-8)
  • Cleveland School of Publishing and Technology[44] (308; PreK-8)
  • Dayton Street School at Peshine Avenue (283; PreK-8)
  • Elliott Street Elementary School[45] (463; PreK-4)
  • First Avenue School[46] (1,082; PreK-8)
  • Fourteenth Avenue School[47] (215; K-4)
  • Dr. E. Alma Flagg School[48] (521; K-8)
  • Benjamin Franklin School[49] (550; PreK-4)
  • Hawkins Street School[50] (500; PreK-8)
  • Hawthorne Avenue School[51] (316; K-8)
  • Rafael Hernandez School[52] (598; PreK-8)
  • Dr. William H. Horton School[53] (824; K-8)
  • Ivy Hill School[54] (546; PreK-8)
  • Lafayette Street School[55] (1,085; PreK-8)
  • Lincoln Elementary School[56] (386; PreK-8)
  • Madison Avenue Elementary School (369; PreK-5)
  • Maple Avenue School (413; K-8)
  • Luis Muñoz Marín Middle School[57] (39; K-8)
  • McKinley Elementary School[58] (830; PreK-8)
  • Miller Street School[59] (432; PreK-8)
  • Mount Vernon Place School[60] (662; PreK-8)
  • Newton Street School (358; PreK-8)
  • Oliver Street School[61] (860; PreK-8)
  • Park Elementary School[62] (744; PreK-8)
  • B.R.I.C.K. Peshine Academy[63] (460; PreK-8)
  • Quitman Street Community School[64] (483; PreK-8)
  • Ridge Street School and Early Childhood Center[65] (570; K-8)
  • Roseville Avenue School (126; K-4)
  • South Seventeenth Street School[66] (488; K-8)
  • South Street School[67] (329; PreK-5)
  • Speedway Academies[68] (438; PreK-8)
  • Louise A. Spencer School[69] (540; PreK-8)
  • Sussex Avenue Renew School of Mathematics[70] (426; PreK-8)
  • Thirteenth Avenue School / Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. School[71] (616; PreK-8)
  • Harriet Tubman School[72] (266; PreK-6)
  • Wilson Avenue School[73] (796; PreK-8)

High schools

Ungraded

  • Samuel L. Berliner School (44)
  • Bruce Street School for the Deaf[89] (42)
  • John F. Kennedy School[90] (154)
  • New Jersey Regional Day School - Newark[91] (119)

School uniforms

Beginning in the 2008-2009 school year, students in elementary and middle school were required to wear school uniforms.[92] Beginning in September 2010 high school students were required to wear uniforms.[93]

References

  1. 1 2 District information for the Newark Public Schools, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  2. ↑ Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending April 2013, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed April 15, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Newark finally gets control of schools -- What we learned about N.J.'s state takeovers". NJ.com. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  4. ↑ "22 years of state control over Newark schools: A Timeline". NJ.com. Retrieved 2017-11-30.
  5. ↑ Abbott School Districts, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed July 14, 2017.
  6. ↑ About SDA Archived 2016-08-16 at the Wayback Machine., New Jersey Schools Development Authority. Accessed July 14, 2017.
  7. ↑ SDA Districts Archived 2016-11-29 at the Wayback Machine., New Jersey Schools Development Authority. Accessed July 14, 2017.
  8. ↑ "US Census". Census.gov. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
  9. ↑ NJ Department of Education District Factor Groups (DFG) for School Districts, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed March 18, 2015.
  10. 1 2 Governance and Urban School Improvement: Lessons for New Jersey From Nine Cities (PDF). Institute on Education Law and Policy, Rutgers–Newark. October 2010. pp. 65–68.
  11. ↑ "Office of the Superintendent". Newark Public Schools. 2014-08-24. Retrieved 2017-11-30.
  12. ↑ Yi, Karen. "Newark to pick own schools chief for first time in 22 years", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, December 26, 2017. Accessed December 27, 2017. "The state-appointed superintendent for Newark schools will step down in February, paving the way for the district to select its own leader for the first time in 22 years. Superintendent Christopher Cerf announced last week he would resign on Feb. 1 -- the same day the state's takeover of Newark schools will officially end."
  13. ↑ Office of the Superintendent, Newark Public Schools. Accessed October 14, 2015.
  14. ↑ New Jersey School Directory for Essex County, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed December 29, 2016.
  15. ↑ "N.J. Sen. Rice calls for feds to look into state control of Newark, Jersey City and Paterson schools". NJ.com. Retrieved 2017-11-30.
  16. ↑ "#WeChoose Campaign". Journey For Justice. 2017-02-14. Retrieved 2017-11-30.
  17. ↑ "Parents Unified for Local School Education". Parents Unified for Local School Education. Retrieved 2017-11-30.
  18. ↑ "'States cannot run school districts': 10 reactions to historic Newark moment". NJ.com. Retrieved 2017-11-30.
  19. ↑ "PARCC Results: NJ's Top Performing School Districts, And More". Toms River, NJ Patch. 2016-02-03. Retrieved 2017-11-30.
  20. ↑ "Newark Public Schools on road to reclaiming local control, but more work remains". Politico PRO. Retrieved 2017-11-30.
  21. ↑ Booker, Cory (September 25, 2010). "A Historic Opportunity". Huffington Post. Retrieved 7 April 2013.
  22. ↑ Sahba, Amy (September 24, 2010). "Facebook founder announces $100 million donation". Retrieved 7 April 2013.
  23. ↑ Russakoff, Dale (19 May 2014). "Schooled: Cory Booker, Chris Christie, and Mark Zuckerberg had a plan to reform Newark's schools; They got an education". The New Yorker.
  24. ↑ "Was Zuckerberg's $100M school gift a waste?". MSN Money. 14 May 2014.
  25. ↑ Blue Ribbon Schools Program: Schools Recognized 1982-1983 through 1999-2002 (PDF), accessed May 11, 2006.
  26. ↑ U.S. Department of Education Blue Ribbon Schools Program: Schools Recognized 2003 through 2005 (PDF), accessed June 5, 2006.
  27. ↑ Addison, Kasi; and Juri, Carmen. "Three Essex schools capture blue ribbon", The Star-Ledger, October 7, 2007. Accessed October 14, 2007. "Principals in three Essex County schools found out last week their buildings joined an exclusive club of exemplary schools when the U.S. Department of Education named the nation's latest batch of No Child Left Behind -- Blue Ribbon Schools.... The three Essex County schools are Oakview School in Bloomfield, Millburn High School and Harriet Tubman School in Newark."
  28. ↑ No Child Left Behind - Blue Ribbon Schools Program: 2007 Schools, United States Department of Education. Accessed October 15, 2007.
  29. ↑ 2009 Blue Ribbon Schools: All Public and Private Schools, United States Department of Education. Accessed October 29, 2009.
  30. ↑ New Jersey Department of Education Best Practices Award recipient for 2005-06, accessed October 23, 2006
  31. ↑ Jacobs, Andrew. "Criticized Poet Is Named Laureate of Newark Schools", The New York Times, December 19, 2002. Accessed September 19, 2008. "A longtime Newark resident who was pivotal in the Black Arts Movement of the 1960s, Mr. Baraka has ignored calls from Gov. James E. McGreevey and others that he resign the post, which pays a stipend of $10,000."
  32. ↑ Ann Street Annex, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  33. ↑ Lafayette Street Annexes, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  34. ↑ Wilson Street Annex, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  35. ↑ Abington Avenue School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  36. ↑ Ann Street School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  37. ↑ B.R.I.C.K. Avon Academy, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  38. ↑ Belmont Runyon Elementary School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  39. ↑ Branch Brook School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  40. ↑ Camden Street Elementary School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  41. ↑ Roberto Clemente School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  42. ↑ George Washington Carver School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  43. ↑ Chancellor Avenue School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  44. ↑ Cleveland School of Publishing and Technology, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  45. ↑ Elliott Street Elementary School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  46. ↑ First Avenue School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  47. ↑ Fourteenth Avenue School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  48. ↑ Dr. E. Alma Flagg School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  49. ↑ Benjamin Franklin School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  50. ↑ Hawkins Street School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  51. ↑ Hawthorne Avenue School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  52. ↑ Rafael Hernandez School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  53. ↑ Dr. William H. Horton School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  54. ↑ Ivy Hill School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  55. ↑ Lafayette Street School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  56. ↑ Lincoln Elementary School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  57. ↑ Luis Muñoz Marín Middle School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  58. ↑ McKinley Elementary School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  59. ↑ Miller Street School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  60. ↑ Mount Vernon Place School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  61. ↑ Oliver Street School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  62. ↑ Park Elementary School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  63. ↑ B.R.I.C.K. Peshine Academy, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  64. ↑ Quitman Street Community School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  65. ↑ Ridge Street School and Early Childhood Center, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  66. ↑ South Seventeenth Street School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  67. ↑ South Street School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  68. ↑ Speedway Academies, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  69. ↑ Louise A. Spencer School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  70. ↑ Sussex Avenue Renew School of Mathematics, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  71. ↑ Thirteenth Avenue School / Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  72. ↑ Harriet Tubman School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  73. ↑ Wilson Avenue School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  74. ↑ Arts High School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  75. ↑ American History High School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  76. ↑ Barringer S.T.E.A.M. Academy, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  77. ↑ Barringer Academy of the Arts and Humanities, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  78. ↑ Central High School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  79. ↑ East Side High School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  80. ↑ Fast Track Success Academy, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  81. ↑ Malcolm X Shabazz High School Archived 2014-11-06 at the Wayback Machine., Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  82. ↑ Newark Leadership Academy, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  83. ↑ Newark Vocational High School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  84. ↑ Science Park High School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  85. ↑ Technology High School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  86. ↑ University High School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  87. ↑ Weequahic High School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  88. ↑ West Side High School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  89. ↑ Bruce Street School for the Deaf, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  90. ↑ John F. Kennedy School, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  91. ↑ New Jersey Regional Day School - Newark, Newark Public Schools. Accessed November 10, 2014.
  92. ↑ "Facts for Parents about School Uniforms." Newark Public Schools. Accessed March 2, 2010.
  93. ↑ "Dear Parents of High School Students:" Newark Public Schools. June 22, 2009. Accessed March 2, 2010.

Coordinates: 40°44′16″N 74°10′16″W / 40.737868°N 74.171044°W / 40.737868; -74.171044

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