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Email: gscschools@gmail.com
Phone: 609-394-2828 (office)
732-618-5755 (cell)
Mailing Address:
Garden State Coalition of Schools
Elisabeth Ginsburg, Executive Director
160 West State Street
Trenton, New Jersey 08608
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GSCS Board of Trustees endorsed ACTION LETTER to Trenton asking for caution on Charter School expansion
GSCS: "As you are no doubt aware, the NJ legislature will be acting on new and revised charter school legislation in the coming weeks. There are many critical points that will directly impact GSCS districts, and the Coalition has been closely following the development of legislation, urging legislators and Department of Education officials to consider factors that might negatively impact GSCS districts.
The attached letter was written by the Princeton Regional Board of Education and fully endorsed by the GSCS Board of Trustees at its December 1st meeting. We suggest that you, as a GSCS member district, take the following actions:"
Garden State Coalition of Schools
204 W. State St., Trenton, NJ 08608 • (609) 394-2828 • www.gscschools.org •gscs2000@gmail.com
December 6, 2010
To all GSCS Superintendents and Board of Education Members:
As you are no doubt aware, the NJ legislature will be acting on new and revised charter school legislation in the coming weeks. There are many critical points that will directly impact GSCS districts, and the Coalition has been closely following the development of legislation, urging legislators and Department of Education officials to consider factors that might negatively impact GSCS districts.
The attached letter was written by the Princeton Regional Board of Education and fully endorsed by the GSCS Board of Trustees at its December 1st meeting. We suggest that you, as a GSCS member district, take the following actions:
• Discuss at the Board of Education level with the goal of getting endorsement from your Board
• Send the letter on your letterhead and signed by your Board to your district's legislators and mayor, members of the Senate Ed and Budget Committees, the Assembly Ed and Budget Committees, the Acting Commissioner, the Governor, and your local media. (Some of the addresses you will need are attached.)
• Complete this in December if at all possible, as time is of the essence. If it takes until early January, it is still worth completing the endorsement and dissemination.
As always, we appreciate your feedback and thank you in advance for your efforts in this important initiative.
Lynne Strickland
Executive Director
Garden State Coalition of Schools
______________________
Letter:
December 2010
To Our Governor, Acting Commissioner of Education, State Legislators:
We urge you to pay close attention to the issues surrounding charter school legislation. New Jersey residents hold high expectations for their public schools, invest in education at high rates and are proud of New Jersey’s strong record of excellence in public education. Nonetheless, we recognize that there are examples of failure and that there are great needs which must be addressed.
Please take time to learn from other states’ successes and from their failures. In many states, there has not been educational or fiscal accountability on the part of charter schools. Charters’ success rates are mixed and millions of dollars have been poorly invested in some charter schools. While developing policy and legislation, please examine reliable research. A 2010 federal study by Mathematica demonstrated minimal or negative impact of charter schools on the performance of higher income and higher achieving students.
We eagerly stand accountable for providing the best and most cost effective education possible for ALL children, and implore you to protect what is sound and serving children well in New Jersey. As you move forward with legislation that insures equity and excellence for all of our students we specifically request the following:
- Establish criteria for proof of educational need of charter schools in each community. In the midst of a recession we cannot afford to divert funds from successful programs in order to fund “boutique” schools designed for small and segregated populations with special wants. Needs and wants are very different bases for the investment of public dollars.
- Use taxpayer dollars wisely and respect taxpayers’ needs and opinions. Taxpayers should vote on approval of their tax dollars being directed to new charters or expansion of current charters. Additionally, taxpayers should vote for members of the charter schools’ boards just as they elect representatives to traditional school boards. THERE SHOULD BE NO TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION.
- Hold charters to high standards for educational outcomes by collecting performance data that demonstrates their students are out-performing comparable cohorts in traditional schools.
- Assure the public that all legislation created to insure accountability and oversight of traditional public school districts will also apply to all charters.
- Do not approve for-profit charter school systems since they are profiting from public funding.
- Do not sub-contract to other institutions the authority to approve charter applications since it minimizes the State Department of Education’s role, subjugates taxpayer authority and increases costs.
- Monitor enrollments closely so that we do not further segregate our beautifully diverse and enriching population. One of the backbones of public education is preparing a diverse population of students to together become the understanding, creative and talented thinkers and leaders of the 21st century.
Much is at stake. We ask that as leaders of our fine state you listen and study closely so that wise and balanced decisions are made regarding the education of ALL of our children and the investments of all of our taxpayers.
Sincerely,
The Princeton Regional Board of Education
Trenton Contact Information
Governor's Office Governor Chris Christie PO Box 001 Trenton, NJ 08625 609-292-6000 Note: If calling, please leave the message that charter school legislation must be studied carefully so that it does not negatively impact on public school districts. Email: You can only email the Governor by visiting www.gov.state.nj. Click on his website in the upper right corner and follow the prompts from there.
Senate President Sen. Stephen M. Sweeney 935 Kings Highway, Suite 400, West Deptford, NJ 08086 Email: sensweeney@njleg.org
Senate Budget & Appropriations Committee Chairperson: Sen. Paul A. Sarlo 207 Hackensack St., 2nd Floor, Wood-Ridge, NJ 07075 Email: sensarlo@njleg.org
Vice Chair: Sen. Brian P. Stack 5801 Palisade Ave., West New York, NJ 07093 Email: senstack@njleg.org
Sen. James Beach 1309 Route 70 West, Cherry Hill, NJ 08002 Email: senbeach@njleg.org
Sen.Anthony R. Bucco 75 Bloomfield Ave., Suite 302, Denville, NJ 07834 Email: senbucco@njleg.org
Sen. Barbara Buono 2 Lincoln Highway, Suite 401, Edison, NJ 08820 Email: senbuono@njleg.org
Sen. Sandra B. Cunningham 1738 Kennedy Blvd., Jersey City, NJ 07305 Email: sencunningham@njleg.org
Sen. Michael J. Doherty 127 Belvidere Ave., Washington, NJ 07882 Email: sendoherty@njleg.org
Sen. Kevin J. O'Toole 155 Route 46 West, Suite 108, Wayne, NJ 07470 Email: senotoole@njleg.org
Sen. Steven B. Oroho 115 Demarest Rd., Suite 2B, Sparta, NJ 07871 Email: senoroho@njleg.org
Sen. Joseph Pennacchio 330 Changebridge Rd., Suite 102, Pine Brook, NJ 07058 Email: senpennacchio@njleg.org
Sen. Teresa Ruiz 166 Bloomfield Ave., Newark, NJ 07104 Email: senruiz@njleg.org
Sen. Bob Smith 216 Stelton Rd, Suite E-5, Piscataway, NJ 08854 Email: sensmith@njleg.org
Sen. Jeff Van Drew 21 N. Main St., Cape May Court House, NJ 08210 Email: senvandrew@njleg.org
Senate Education Committee Chairperson: Sen. Teresa Ruiz 166 Bloomfield Ave., Newark, NJ 07104 Email: senruiz@njleg.org
Vice Chair: Sen. Jim Whelan 511 Tilton Rd., Northfield, NJ 08225 Email: senwhelan@njleg.org
Sen. Diane B. Allen 11 W. Broad St., Burlington, NJ 08016 Email: senallen@njleg.org
Sen. Thomas H. Kean, Jr. 425 North Ave., E., Suite C, Westfield, NJ 07090 Email: senkean@njleg.org
Sen. Shirley K. Turner 1440 Pennington Rd., Trenton, NJ 08618 Email: senturner@njleg.org
Assembly Speaker Asw. Sheila Y. Oliver 15-33 Halsted St., Suite 202, East Orange, NJ 07018 Email: aswoliver@njleg.org
Assembly Budget Committee Chairperson: Asm. Louis D. Greenwald 1101 Laurel Oak Rd, Suite 150, Voorhees, NJ 08043 Email: asmgreenwald@njleg.org
Vice Chair: Asm. Gary S. Schaer 1 Howe Ave., Suite 302, Passaic, NJ 07055 Email: asmschaer@njleg.org
Asm Peter J. Barnes, III 3 Stephenville Pkwy, Suite 2E, Edison, NJ 08820 Email: asmbarnes@njleg.org
Asm. John J. Burzichelli 935 Kings Highway, Suite 400, West Deptford, NJ 08086 Email: asmburzichelli@njleg.org
Asm. Albert Coutinho 73-75 Ferry St., Newark, NJ 07105 Email: asmcoutinho@njleg.org
Asm. Gordon M. Johnson 545 Cedar Lane, Teaneck, NJ 07666 Email: asmjohnson@njleg.org
Asm. Joseph R. Malone, III 311 Farnsworth Ave., Bordentown, NJ 08505 Email: asmmalone@njleg.org
Asm. Declan J. O'Scanlon, Jr. 32 Monmouth St., Red Bank, NJ 07701 Email: asmoscanlon@njleg.org
Asw. Nellie Pou 100 Hamilton Plaza, Suite 1405 Paterson, NJ 07505 Email: aswpou@njleg.org
Asw. Joan M. Quigley 235 Ninth St., Jersey City, NJ 07302 Email: aswquigley@njleg.org
Asm. Jay Webber 760 Route 10 W., Suite 101, Whippany, NJ 07981 Email: asmwebber@njleg.org
Asm. David W. Wolfe 852 Highway 70, Brick, NJ 08724 Email: asmwolfe@njleg.or
Assembly Education Committee Chairperson: Asm. Patrick J. Deignan, Jr. 908 Oak Tree Ave., Unit P, South Plainfield, NJ 07080 Email: asmdeignan@njleg.org
Vice Chair: Asw. Joan M. Voss 520 Main St., Fort Lee, NJ 07024 Email: aswvoss@njleg.org
Asm. Ralph R. Caputo 148-152 Franklin St., Belleville, NJ 07109 Email: aswcaputo@njleg.org
Asw. Elease Evans 100 Hamilton Plaza, Suite 1400, Paterson, NJ 07505 Email: aswevans@njleg.org
Asw. Mila M. Jasey 15 Village Plaza, Suite 1B, South Orange, NJ 07079 Email: aswjasey@njleg.org
Asm. Joseph R. Malone, III 311 Farnsworth Ave., Bordentown, NJ 08505 Email: asmmalone@njleg.org
Asm. Paul D. Moriarity 129 Johnson Rd., Suite 1, Turnersville, NJ 08012 Email: asmmoriarity@njleg.org
Asm. Ruben J. Ramos, Jr. 70 Hudson St., Hoboken,NJ 07030 Email: asmramos@njleg.org
Asm. Scott T. Rumana 155 Rt. 46 West, Suite 108, Wayne, NJ 07470 Email: asmrumana@njleg.org
Asm. Brian E. Rumpf 620 W. Lacey Rd., Forked River, NJ 08731 Email: asmrumpf@njleg.org
Asw. Bonnie Watson Coleman 226 W. State St., Trenton, NJ 08608 Email: aswwatsoncoleman@njleg.org
Asm. David W. Wolfe 852 Highway 70, Brick, NJ 08724 Email: asmwolfe@njleg.org
NJ Department of Education Acting Commissioner Rochelle Hendricks PO Box 500, Trenton, NJ 08625 Fax: 609-777-4099 Email: rochelle.hendriks@gov.doe.nj.us
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