Quality Public Education for All New Jersey Students

 

 
     5-1-12 Department of Education Release explains policy rationals for new rate methodology, federal requirements for revision of gradnuation rates
     4-11,12-12 p.m - Governor's Press Release re Priority, Focus and Rewards Schools Final list...PolitickerNJ and NJ Spotlight articles
     3-30-13 Education in the News - Dept of Education-State Budget, Autism Rates in NJ
     3-20-12 Education Issues in the News
     GSCS State Budget FY 2012-2013 Testimony
     2-29-12 NJTV on NJ School Funding...and, Reporters' Roundtable back on the aire
     2-26-12 State budget, School Elections, and Federal Grant funds for local reform initiatives
     2-24-12 Headlines from around NJ - from Google (hit on nj education-nj budget)
     2-23-12 Education in the News - Education reform noted in state budget message; Facebook grant to Newark teachers
     STATE AID DISTRICT LIST - PROPOSED for FY 2012-2013
     Education Funding Report on School Funding Reform Act (SFRA) issued 2-23-12
     Text of Gov. Christie's State Budget Message, given Feb. 21, 2012
     2-22-12 School Aid in State Budget Message - Is There a Devil in the Details
     2-21-12 State Budget Message for Fiscal Year 2012-2013
     1-24-12 Supreme Court Justices Nominated by Governor Christie
     1-17-12 Breaking News - Governor delivers State of the State Message, Signs 'November Vote' bill, A4394
     List of PRIORITY, FOCUS and REWARDS SCHOOLS per DOE Application on ESEA (NCLB) Waiver
     Education Transformation Task Force Initial Report...45 recommendations for starters
     9-12-11 Governor's Press Notice & Fact Sheet re: Education Transformation Task Force Report
     7-14-11 State GUIDANCE re: Using Additional State Aid as Property Tax Relief in this FY'12 Budget year.PDF
     7-14-11 DOE Guidance on Local Options for using Additional State School Aid in FY'12 State Budget.PDF
     FY'12 State School Aid District-by-District Listing, per Appropriations Act, released 110711
     7-12-11 pm District by District Listing of State Aid for FY'12 - Guidelines to be released later this week (xls)
     6-1-11 Supreme Court Justice nominee, Anne Paterson, passed muster with Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday by 11-1 margin
     4-26-11 School Elections, Randi Weingarten in NJ, Special Educ Aid, Shared Services bill
     4-25-11 Charter Schools in Suburbia: More Argument than Agreement
     4-24-11 Major Education Issues in the News
     4-21-11 Supreme Court hears school funding argument
     4-14-11 Governor Releases Legislation to Address Education Reform Package
     4-13-11 Governor's Proposed Legislation on Education Reform April 2011
     4-5-11 Education Issues in the News
     4-8-11 Education Issues in the News
     4-7-11 Gov. Christie - 'Addressing New Jersey's Most Pressing Education Challenges'
     4-7-11 Early news coverage & press releases - Governor's Brooking Inst. presentation on his education reform agenda
     4-3-11Press of Atlantic City - Pending Supreme Court ruling could boost aid to New Jersey schools
     4-2-11 The Record - Charter school in Hackensack among 58 bids
     4-1-11 N.J. gets 58 charter school applications
     3-30-11 Acting Commr Cerf talks to School Administrators about Gov's Education Reform agenda
     3-26-11 New Jersey’s school-funding battle could use a dose of reality
     Link to Special Master Judge Doyne's Recommendations on School Funding law to the Supreme Court 3-22-11
     3-22-11 Special Master's Report to the Supreme Court: State did not meet its school funding obligation
     GSCS 3-7-11Testimony on State Budget as Proposed by the Governor for FY'12 before the Senate Budget Committee
     3-4-11 'Teacher Evaluation Task Force Files Its Report'
     3-6-11 Poll: Tenure reform being positively received by the public
     Link to Teacher Evaluation Task Force Report
     GSCS Take on Governor's Budget Message
     Gov's Budget Message for Fiscal Year 2010-2011 Today, 2pm
     Tenure Reform - Video patch to Commissioner Cerf's presentation on 2-16-10
     2-16-11 Commissioner Cerf to introduce education reform plans...School construction...Speaker Oliver on vouchers
     2-16-11 Commissioner Cerf talks to educators on Tenure, Merit Pay , related reforms agenda
     9-23-10 Breaking News - Star Ledger ‘Facebook CEO Zuckerberg to donate $100M to Newark schools on Oprah Winfrey Show’
     1-7-11 Opinion: The Record - Doblin: ‘Students are collateral damage in Christie’s war’
     2-7-11Grassroots at Work in the Suburbs
     1-13-11 Supreme Court Appoints Special Master for remand Hearing
     1-20-11 GSCS Testimony before Senator Buono's Education Aid Impact hearing in Edison
     12-16-10 p,m. BREAKINGS NEWS: Christopher Cerf to be named NJ Education Commissioner
     GSCS Board of Trustees endorsed ACTION LETTER to Trenton asking for caution on Charter School expansion
     12-12-10 'Rash of upcoming superintendent retirements raises questions on Gov. Christie's pay cap'
     12-8-10 Education & Related Issues in the News - Tenure Reform, Sup't Salary Caps Reactions, Property Valuations Inflated
     12-7-10 Education Issues continue in the news
     12-6-10 njspotlight.com 'Christie to Name New Education Commissioner by Year End'
     12-5-10 New York Times 'A Bleak Budget Outlook for Public Broadcasters'
     12-5-10 Sunday News - Education-related Issues
     GSCS Education Forum Stayed Focused on Quality Education
     11-19-10 In the News - First Hearing held on Superintendent Salary Caps at Kean University
     11-15-10 GSCS meeting with Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver
     11-18-10 Superintendent Salary Caps to be publicly discussed tonight at Kean University
     Governor's Toolkit Summary - Updated November 2010
     10-8-10 Education Issue in the News
     9-29-10 Christie Education Reform proposals in The News
     9-15-10 'Governor Christie outlines cuts to N.J. workers' pension, benefits'
     9-1-10 Education in the News
     8-31-10 Latest development: Schunder's margin notes reveal application error
     8-27-10 later morning - breaking news: Statehouse Bureau ‘Gov. Chris Christie fires N.J. schools chief Bret Schundler’
     8-27-10 Star Ledger ‘U.S. officials refute Christie on attempt to fix Race to the Top application during presentation’
     8-25-10 Race to the Top articles - the 'day after' news analysis
     8-24-10 Race to the Top Award Recipients named
     8-23-10 S2208 (Sarlo-Allen prime sponsors) passes 36-0 (4 members 'not voting') in the Senate on 8-23-10
     8-18-10 Property Tax Cap v. Prior Negotiated Agreements a Big Problem for Schools and Communities
     8-16-10 Senate Education hears 'for discussion only' comments re expanding charter school authorization process; Commissioner Schundler relays education priorities to the Committee
     7-22-10 'Summer school falls victim to budget cuts in many suburban towns'
     7-21-10 List of bills in Governor's 'Toolkit'
     Governor's Toolkit bills listing
     7-16-10 GSCS Information & Comments - S29 Property Tax Cap Law and Proposal to Reduce Superintendent salaries ....
     7-15 & 16 -10 'Caps - PLURAL!' in the news
     7-12-10 Assembly passes S29 - the 2% cap bill - 73 to 4, with 3 not voting
     GSCS re:PropertyTax Cap bill - Exemption needed for Special Education enrollment costs
     7-8-10 Tax Caps, Education in the News
     GSCS:Tax Cap Exemption needed for Special Education Costs
     7-3-10 Governor Christie and Legislative leaders reached agreement today on a 2% property tax cap with 4 major exemptions
     7-1 and 2- 10 Governor Christie convened the Legislature to address property tax reform
     6-29-10 GSCS - The question remains: ? Whither property Tax Reform
     GSCS On the Scene in Trenton: State Budget poised to pass late Monday...Cap Proposals, Opportunity Scholarship Act in Limbo
     GSCS On the Scene in Trenton: Cap Proposals, Opportunity Scholarship Act in Limbo
     6-11-10 In the News: State Budget moving ahead on schedule
     6-10-10 Op-Ed in Trenton Times Sunday June 6 2010
     Recently proposed legislation S2043 brings back Last Best Offer (LBO) for school boards in negotiations
     6-8-10 Education issues in the news today - including 'hold' on pension reform, round two
     6-8-10 (posted) Education & Related Issues in the News
     6-4-10 Education News
     6-3-10 RTTT controversy remains top news - articles and editorials, column
     6-2-10 RACE TO THE TOP (RTTT) 'NJ STYLE': It is what it is ...but what exactly is it? Race to the Top application is caught in a crossfire of reports - more information and clarity is needed
     6-2-10 RACE TO THE TOP (RTTT) 'NJ STYLE' :It is what it is ...but what exactly is it? Race to the Top application is caught in a crossfire of reports - more information and clarity is needed.
     GSCS 'QUICK' THOUGHT - Will the Administration's reform legislation being introduced just this month- May - have a fair chance for productive debate and analysis
     5-11-10 njspotlight.com focuses on NJ's plans for and reactions to education reform
     ADMINISTRATION'S PLANS CITED FOR ROUND 2 - RACE TO THE TOP GRANT
     5-8 & 9-10 Education Reform Proposals Annoucned
     5-9-10 'Gov Christie to propose permanent caps on salary raises for public workers'
     5-3-10 Newsflash! Governor Christie makes NJ Supreme Court appointment
     Office on Legislative Services Analysis of Department of Educaiton - State Budget for FY'11
     4-23-10 Education issues remain headline news
     4-22-10 School Elections - in the News Today
     Hear about Governor Christie's noontime press conference tonight
     4-21-10 News on School Election Results
     4-21-10 Assoc. Press 'NJ voters reject majority of school budgets'
     4-18-10 Sunday Op-eds on school budget vote: Jim O'Neill & Gov Christie
     4-19-10 Lt. Gov. Guadagno's Red Tape Review Group initial Report released
     4-13-10 Commissioner Schundler before Senate Budget Committee - early reports....progress on budget election issue
     4-12-10 'Gov. urges voters to reject school districts' budgets without wage freezes for teachers'
     4-6-10 'Gov. Chris Chrisite extends dealdine for teacher salary concessions'
     4-2-10 'On Titanic, NJEA isn't King of the World'
     Administration's presentation on education school aid in its 'Budget in Brief' published with Governor Christie's Budget Message
     4-1-10 New Initiatives outlined to encourage wage freezes - reaction
     3-29-10 The Record and Asbury Park Press - Editorials
     3-26-10 GSCS: Effective & Well-Reasoned Communication with State Leaders is Critical
     3-23-10 GSCS Testimony presented to Senate Budget Committee on State Budget FY'11
     3-23-10 ' N.J. Gov. Chris Christie signs pension, benefits changes for state employees'
     3-21-10 Sunday News from Around the State - School Communities, School Budgets and State Budget Issues
     3-17-10 Budget News - Gov. Chris Christie proposes sacrifices
     3-16-10 Link to Budget in Brief publication
     3-15-10mid-day: 'Gov. Christie plans to cut NJ school aid by $800M'
     3-14-10 'Christie will propose constitutional amendment to cap tax hikes in N.J. budget'
     3-15-10 'N.J. taxpayers owe pension fund $45.8 billion' The Record
     3-11-10 'GOP vows tools to cut expenses, tighter caps'
     3-9-10 'NJ leaders face tough choices on budget'
     3-5-10 HomeTowne Video taping + interviews of GSCS Summit@Summit
     3-5-10 GSCS Summit@Summit with Bret Schundler to be lead topic on Hall Institute's weekly 2:30 pm podcast today
     3-4-10 'School aid cuts unavoidable during NJ budget crisis'
     3-3-10 'Public Education in N.J.: Acting NJ Comm of Educ Bret Schundler says 'Opportunity'
     Flyer: March 2 Education Summit Keynote Speaker - Education Commissioner Bret Schundler - Confirmed
     2-25-10 Gov. Christie's Red Tape Review Comm., chaired by Lt. Gov. Guadagno, to hold public hearings In March
     2-22-10 Christie and unions poised to do batttle over budget cuts'
     2-22-10 Trenton Active Today
     2-19-10 'Acting NJ education commissioner hoping other savings can ward off cuts'
     Flyer for March 2 Education 'Summit@Summit'
     2-16-10 'Christie Adopts Corzine Cuts, Then Some'
     2-14-10 'FAQ's on NJ's state of fiscal emergency declaration by Gov. Christie'
     2-12-10 Assembly Budget hearing posted for this Wednesday, Feb. 17
     FY2010 Budget Solutions - PRESS PACKET
     State Aid Memo (2-11-10) 2 pgs
     2-12-10 News Coverage: Governor Christie's message on actions to address current fiscal year state budget deficits
     2-11-10 Gov Christie address to Joint Session of the Legislature on state budget and current year aid reduction remains scheduled for today
     2-10-10 'Schools are likely targets for NJ budget cuts'
     2-9-10 News article posted this morning notes potential for large loss of current year school aid
     2-8-10 Northjersey.com editorial 'Tightenting our Belts'
     2-8-10'Gov Christie, lawmakers proporse sweeping pension, health care changes for public employees'
     2-2-10 GSCS BOARD TO MEET WITH COMMISSIONER BRET SCHUNDLER TODAY
     1-28-10 School Surplus plan to supplant State Aid in this year gaining probability
     Governor Christie's Education Team Transition Report
     Governor Christie Education Transition Team Report , released 1-22-10
     1-21-10'N.J.'s Christie won't rule out layoffs, furloughs to close unexpected $1.2B deficit'
     1-20-10 Editorials, Commentary on New Governor in Trenton
     1-19-10 Chris Christie - Inauguration Day
     1-18-10 Advance news on 'Christie as new Governor'
     1-14-10 'N.J. Gov.-elect Christie targets teachers' union with Schundler appointment'
     1-14-10 'To lead schools, Christie picks voucher advocate'
     1-13-10 More articles, plus Wikipedia information re New Education Commissioner, Bret Schundler
     1-13-10 Christie Press Conference reports
     1-13-10 Christie's New Commissioner of Education to be announced today - 12:30 Statehouse Press Conference
     1-13-10 New Commissioner of Education to be announced today - 12:30 Statehouse Press Conference
     1-12-10 Moving on...'Budget plan a wrinkle for districts'
     1-11-10 Transition News
     1-7-10 'N.J. Gov-elect Christie blast Democrats for lame-duck actions'
     12-27-09 'New Jersey competes for education reform stimulus money' (aka 'Race to the Top' funds)
     12-23-09 GSCS: Governor Corzine targets excess school surplus to replace state aid payments starting in Feb '10 - lame duck legislation anticipated
     12-15-09 GSCS is working with the Christie Transition Team
     12-12 & 13-09 Education Issues in the News
     12-11-09 'Gov.-elect Chris Christie's team got its signals crossed on education funding application'
     12-9-09 Governor-elect Christie talks more about his thougths for education
     12-5-09 'Once powerful teachers union faces tough times with Christie'
     12-3 Governor-Elect Chris Christie Announces Key Appointments
     12-3-09 'Gov.-elect Christie visits North Brunswick to talk with educators on district challenges'
     (12-8-09) GSCS Board of Trustees representatives to meet with Christie 'Red Tape' Group
     11-23-09 Governor-elect Christie names Transition Team Subcommittee members
     11-13-09 Chrisite's Budget Transition Team Annouced
     11-13-09 Education Week on: Gov-elect Christie's Education Agenda; Race to the Top Funds Rules
     11-12-09 Governor-elect Christie names his 10 member transition team
12-12-10 'Rash of upcoming superintendent retirements raises questions on Gov. Christie's pay cap'
Star-Ledger, Sunday 12-12-10, click on More here to read this in-depth article front page article that researched how similar proposals have impacted New York, Minnesota and other states

Rash of upcoming superintendent retirements raises questions on Gov. Christie's pay capPublished: Sunday, December 12, 2010, 11:00 AM Updated: Sunday, December 12, 2010, 2:52 PM Jessica Calefati/The Star-Ledger Robert Sciarrino/The Star-LedgerBernard Josefsberg, center, the Leonia Public School Superintendent, meets with Nancy Brophy, a teacher of the ABA program left, and Karen Poretzky, supervisor of special services, as they discuss the district's program for children with autism.Leonia School District Superintendent Bernard Josefsberg determines spending plans and decides when schools are closed for snow. He translates complex education jargon for parents and visits classrooms to read with elementary students, many of whom he knows by name in a district of about 1,800 students.In June, Josefsberg is retiring, in part because of a pay cap imposed by Gov. Chris Christie that is set to take effect in February after the current required period of public comment ends.The cap links a superintendent’s salary to the size of a district, limiting pay for the largest school systems to a maximum $175,000, the governor’s salary."The pay cap wasn’t the only factor in my decision, but it didn’t encourage me to stay longer," said the 30-year educator who makes about $190,000 and has spent his last seven years in Leonia. Were Josefsberg to stay, he would have to swallow a salary cut of nearly $35,000.Josefsberg, 61, is one among a flood of veteran and mid-career superintendents expected to retire or seek new jobs in neighboring states because of a compensation limit they consider arbitrary and unfair, according to the New Jersey Association of School Administrators. Even Mark Raivetz of Haddon Township, the association’s superintendent of the year, has pledged retirement come 2012 when his current contract expires, capping a 40-year career in education. Former state education officials, search firms and a 2008 report predict the pay cap will dilute the caliber of school district leaders. They say the quality of the state’s many high-performing schools will suffer.PREVIOUS COVERAGE:• Sparks fly at Gov. Christie's Parsippany town hall meeting regarding superintendent salaries• Gov. Christie faces opposition from N.J. public school advocates in superintendent salary cap measure• School officials say Christie's superintendent pay cap will cost N.J. talent• Gov. Christie slams Parsippany school board for approving superintendent salary above planned cap• Gov. Christie reveals plans to limit N.J. superintendents' salaries, base pay on meritNew York and Minnesota placed ceilings on superintendents’ salaries in the 1990s but Minnesota lifted it after seven years because their schools chiefs were being poached by other states and they had a hard time finding qualified superintendents to replace them.Christie insists the cap is necessary and overdue, pledging savings of $9.8 million when salaries of 366 highly paid superintendents are cut after their current contracts expire.During a keynote address on Nov. 30 to a nonprofit education foundation, Christie described this latest chapter in his battle with New Jersey educators as a "conspiracy among superintendents.""To be the super of the schools – that’s a hard job [they say] … but I’ll tell you this – it’s no harder than my job, and I make $175,000 a year," Christie said, adding "‘How about this? You don’t make any more than me.’"When Christie first proposed the cap over the summer, he acknowledged some superintendents may leave because of them. "But if that’s the sole reason they’re here, then goodbye," he said.This assessment of superintendents’ responsibilities and motivations is ill-informed, said Jim O’Neill, superintendent for the Districts of the Chathams, who plans to retire next year after the salary cap goes into effect. Though a precipitous drop in school district quality is not likely, "those districts will be different places" in four to six years, he said of the state’s high-achieving suburban school systems, many of whom receive relatively little state aid."School districts are complex institutions whether the governor likes it or not," O’Neill said. "To reduce all of that to the single metric of enrollment is a callous action that indicates his complete lack of understanding for the dynamics of the position."Gordon MacInnes, a former assistant education commissioner and Princeton University scholar, said New Jersey relies heavily on its excellent suburban schools to attract new homeowners and their families to the state.Though residents in Westfield, Millburn and Ridgewood pay some of the highest property taxes in the nation, those taxes approximate the cost of private school tuition in exchange for access to some of the state’s highest achieving public districts, said MacInnes, a Democrat who also served in the state assembly and senate.He criticized the governor for not publicizing research that affirms his position about the cap. "If I say these caps will be grievously harmful to New Jersey’s public schools, show me the proof that it won’t be," MacInnes said. "Show me what you can get for $130,000."A 2008 report by the American Institutes for Research, a non-partisan nonprofit, comparing superintendent salaries in New Jersey to the tri-state area and the country indicates districts can’t get much. The report highlighted the number of baby boomers reaching retirement age, and the shortage of qualified superintendents in the pipeline to replace them."If the highest salaries of superintendents in New Jersey had been significantly lower than those in neighboring states, it would have a limiting effect on its ability to attract the most qualified candidates for the superintendent position in these highly paid areas," the report states.Average superintendent salaries in New York’s Westchester and Nassau counties are $248,087 and $243,754 respectively. In Connecticut’s Fairfield County it’s $195,585 and in Pennsylvania’s Bucks County, the average is $160,400.The report also notes that while compensation for the superintendency may seem high to some, it is relatively low compared to executives in other lines of work, such as hospital administrators, public and private college presidents and CEOs."To ensure that each child in New Jersey has access to a world-class education, it is critical that districts in the state be allowed to make decisions and remain competitive in the market for the best school leaders available," the report’s conclusion states. "The children of New Jersey deserve nothing less."Come February, school boards will have significant monetary restraints on the candidates they can attract to fill their top spot.The New Jersey School Boards Association has conducted 25 percent more superintendent searches this year than last because of increasing numbers of retirements. Association spokesman Frank Belluscio said it’s too early to know if that figure will fluctuate next year once the cap goes into effect.Chatham School Board Member Jonathan Chatinover asks Gov. Christie why the school board can't make their own decision on how much to pay a superintendent at a Dec. 3 town hall meeting.New Jersey is not the first state to limit superintendents’ salaries. In 1993, New York capped the salaries of superintendents who serve the state’s 37 Boards of Cooperative Educational Services at $166,762. They would be equivalent to New Jersey’s county superintendents. Minnesota also limited superintendent salaries in the mid-90s to 95 percent of its governor’s $120,000 salary. Along with New Jersey, these may be the only two states to try capping district schools-chiefs’ pay.New York’s cap, which is still in place, had a "dramatic, negative effect" on the volume and quality of candidates for the state’s BOCES positions, said Bob Reidy, executive director of the New York State Council of School Superintendents."Some candidates have never been superintendents before," Reidy said. What had been a career capstone, he said, "is no longer a position that experienced superintendents aspire to."School boards in Minnesota faced such difficulty hiring qualified administrators to run their public schools that the state legislature lifted the cap after seven years."It was no longer possible to retain people for that amount of money," said Charlie Kyte, executive director of Minnesota’s Association of School Administrators. "The national search firms swarmed all over us. They saw us as fertile recruiting ground."Seton Hall University professor Michael Osnato knows the superintendent’s community well. He has conducted searches for New Jersey school boards and served as a superintendent himself. His spouse is the Northern Valley Public Schools’ current superintendent. He said the cap has created a high degree of anxiety."Bright, young supers have already started jumping to larger districts and considering jobs out of state," Osnato said.Verona Superintendent Charles Samson presides over a district of about 2,200 students, but he’s vying for a chance to manage the Freehold public schools, a district of about 11,600 whose superintendent salary could exceed the $175,000 cap with approval from the Department of Education."I’m 39 – the younger side of the spectrum," Samson said. "Ultimately the cap will lead me to make difficult decisions that would have been made in a different manner without the cap.