| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Star Ledger - 'Issues facing N.J. public schools, students tackled by gubernatorial candidates'...TRENTON -- As the race for New Jersey governor entered the fall, the three major candidates spent a lot of time in places well-known to most state residents: public schools. With 2,500 public schools and nearly 1.4 million children attending them, New Jersey has no shortage of educational issues..."
Star Ledger - Gov. Jon Corzine details how he would close N.J.'s $8B budget deficit. (For the first time...)
Issues facing N.J. public schools, students tackled by gubernatorial candidates
October 07, 2009, 7:00AM
TRENTON -- As the race for New Jersey governor entered the fall, the three major candidates spent a lot of time in places well-known to most state residents: public schools.
With 2,500 public schools and nearly 1.4 million children attending them, New Jersey has no shortage of educational issues.
New Jersey is putting $11.1 billion into state aid to public schools this year. Close to half that money goes to 31 mostly urban districts designated by state Supreme Court rulings in the Abbott vs. Burke case. But this year the court approved a School Funding Reform Act designed to gradually shift some of that spending to other districts that have large percentages of children from low-income households.
The state is also putting billions into building new schools. After the Schools Construction Corp. ran out of funds amid allegations of waste and mismanagement, the Schools Development Authority was created and in 2008 was authorized to spend $3.9 billion in state funds, or a total of $5.4 billion including local contributions.
Meanwhile student performance in poor and urban districts has continued to lag, feeding debate on whether more charter schools, voucher programs or changes in teacher tenure rules are needed.
Q: Do we now have the right formula for distributing state aid to public schools?
Gov. Jon Corzine: "We have a funding formula that is designed to assure that dollars follow children’s needs, built by those who assess what academic adequacy is. ... We’ve taken into account the ability of a community to pay, and also take into account what is necessary to have adequate funding for the individual child." When the economy improves and the state has additional resources, "we will have additional dollars going to schools on a need basis, not on a political basis."
Corzine pushed for the new school funding law, and his latest budget increased school aid by close to $300 million (although advocates at the Education Law Center say it would have taken an additional $300 million to fully fund the formula).
"We had tough choices in the budget. In a budget we reduced by $4 billion, to increase spending on education by $300 million is a pretty remarkable accomplishment and a clear statement of what our priorities are."
Chris Christie: "I don’t think that it’s good enough. I didn’t like it when it passed. We have to do a much better job in dealing with the inequities with the funding formula. You look at the affect the school funding formula is having on suburban districts and charter schools. The Learning (Community) Charter School in Jersey City is receiving a funding cut from $10,500 to $8,900," while per per-pupil spending for Jersey City public schools this year is $17,500. "I think we have to go back and start over."
Chris Daggett: "I think the concept is good. I think we need to monitor it and make sure it works." How to fully fund the new formula is "the $64,000 question, if you will. We have just an incredibly dire financial situation facing us next year. I don’t think people appreciate the significance of it. The Office of Legislative Services is projecting an $8 billion budget gap. ... This is a monster problem that will affect our ability to do a lot things including fully funding the education formula. Would I like to? Sure. We’ve got to look at all the other priorities bearing down on us."
NOTE: The 1996 law that created charter schools in New Jersey public school districts said they would be funded at 90 percent of what their local districts receive in certain categories of state aid and local tax funding. Under the new school funding formula, state aid is affected by the numbers of low-income and special education students. That can reduce the per-pupil aid in a case like Learning Community Charter School, which has lower percentages of students receiving subsidized lunches and of special education students than the Jersey City district as a whole, according to the Department of Education. Some districts also receive "adjustment aid" from the state, meant to prevent steep jumps in local taxes, that they are not required to share with charters.
Previous coverage
N.J. gubernatorial candidates tout plans to boost business
N.J. governor's race provides local focus on national health care debate
Full Star-Ledger coverage of the New Jersey Governor's Race
Q: As a result of past court orders, the state pays for free pre-kindergarden education in the former Abbott districts. Should the state extend that to other school districts and can it afford to do so?
Corzine: "It is the single most important educational reform. Study after study, decades of studies, confirm that. I believe in it passionately. ... Even this year we’re expanding the number of children that have access to quality preschool. It’s at a slower pace than we’d like, but we have a national recession that is unprecedented since the 1930s."
The governor increased spending for preschool in New Jersey by $94 million this year to $596 million. But a planned expansion of preschool to 82 working-class districts was halted when Corzine cut about $25 million from the state budget this spring. "As soon as we get growth in the economy, it is at the top of our priority list," he said.
"It (preschool) is a major difference between my opponent and myself. He is completely disconnected from what educators believe is the fundamental foundation for success of a child in school."
Christie: "We cannot afford to have universal pre-K and mandate it across the entire state. We
should not be mandating that school districts provide the service. There’s a constitutional requirement (to provide preschool) in the (former) Abbotts. I would not expand it beyond what we have now. We have a thriving private preschool industry that we shouldn’t be destroying through government action. If we are going to do something ... we should do something in partnership with them. ... I’m not saying pre-K isn’t worthwhile, I’m saying we can’t afford it."
Daggett: "I’m a big supporter of education and the evidence shows that in Abbott districts, one of the successes we’ve had are ... at the preschool level." But the state would have to "devise necessary funding mechanisms" to pay for preschool. "Instead we create programs but don’t deal with the underlying problems of the state budget." He would continue the program "to the degree that we can afford it. But to expand it in the face of the budget problems? Probably not going to happen."
Q: Should parents of public school students have more choice in where they can send their children, and if so what methods do you favor?
Corzine: "Choice is fine if you define that as our young people having the opportunity to go out of their schools in their district, or in our specialized districts, or if you’re talking about charter schools."
"I do believe in charter schools as an alternative choice." During his term the number of charter schools has increased from 51 to 68, and the number of children served by them from 14,500 to just over 22,000. Corzine said he fast-tracked the application process to create charter schools, but while New Jersey has some very well-performing charter schools, some are weak and "we’ve had to weed some out."
He said a system of vouchers for students to go outside the public schools "is a way to undermine the fiscal stability of our public school system, undermine what is an extraordinarily successful system on balance."
Christie: "There will be a lot more charter schools if I’m governor. ... Are we going to continue to accept a failing model or are we going to better the lot of the urban student who is not learning? ... The Department (of Education) is an impediment, not an assistant, in helping charter schools expand. My Department of Education will partner with responsible (charter organizations) to help them broaden the options children have in public education. We should be broadening options."
Christie said he supports the use of school vouchers "just in failing urban districts." He also supports a bill that would give tax credits to companies that offer scholarships to help low-income families in poor-performing districts attend private and parochial schools. Such programs should be used "to provide choice to parents who want their child to get a better education that they can’t do in districts that are failing. We need to take steps like vouchers, like increasing the numbers of charters, to change the status quo in these failing urban districts, or we’re going to lose a generation of urban kids."
Daggett: "I have no problem seeing charters expanded. We ought to do things to encourage people in failing districts to try alternative ways. If that means charters, fine." Charters schools should be funded on par with their local school districts. On vouchers, "We have to have that conversation. I don’t have a knee-jerk reaction against it, if it is solving the problem of getting kids educated."
Daggett also said he would be interested in the bill to provide tax credits to companies that offer private school scholarships to low-income children.
Q: In general, what is your view of how well New Jersey’s public schools perform?
Corzine: "Our overall performance is outstanding. In almost every category, we’re in the top five." While some people take issue with the state’s high school graduation rate, which includes students who graduated via the "alternative" SRA graduation test, New Jersey is a leader on national assessments. On the National Assessment of Educational Progress, in 2007, New Jersey fourth-graders ranked higher than those in 46 other states and jurisdictions, and eighth-graders outperformed those in 35 states. "We’re closing the achievement gap for our urban children by double digits in the last five years. It has a lot to do with early childhood education."
Christie: "We have a lot of hard-working teachers who are trying to do their job, but we aren’t giving them the tools they need to do their job to the best of their ability. Nationally, academic achievement has been flat for many years, and our public schools no longer are the envy of the world. Unfortunately, New Jersey is suffering from the same stagnation when we should be pushing for greater student achievement and academic excellence. Ultimately, we need to change the course we’re headed on because while we spend a great deal of money per-pupil, we aren’t getting the kind of return our children deserve."
Daggett: "I think it’s mixed. ... For all the money spent, we ought to have better achievement relative to the rest of the country. ... I have a great respect for teachers and teaching. I think the overwhelming majority are good teachers. But we don’t have enough accountability in the system."
Daggett is opposed to the continued use of the Special Review Assessment, a test given to students who fail the high school exit exam three times. He said it inflates the state’s graduation rate and leaves students unprepared for life after high school. "I find it defying common sense that a child can fail the HSPA (High School Proficiency Assessment) three times and then miraculously pass the SRA. ... It basically is delaying the day of reckoning."
Q: Should changes be made in the public school teacher tenure system?
Corzine: "I believe in teacher quality. We need stronger teacher quality assessment and an ability to make sure we have quality teachers in the classroom. ... That doesn’t mean tenure is bad. ... It’s not about tenure, it’s about the performance of the teacher in the classroom."
Christie: "In districts where you have students who are failing, every aspect in those failing districts needs to be re-examined. That’s where you start. Sit down with school administrators, parents, teachers and see what they think about a system that might be better for failing urban schools. I’m open to a whole number of suggestions, but I’d like those to come from experts: teachers, parents and school administrators and get input from all of them."
Daggett: "End it" for newly hired teachers. "End it for supervisors and administrators (as well). Get rid of tenure in the public school system." Replace it with a five-year renewable contract with a "good observation system" to help evaluate teacher performance. (He said he would not seek to eliminate tenure for teachers who already have it.)
Teacher contracts should be tied, in part, to student performance. "Give teachers who are found wanting a road map to improve. If not, then get rid of them."
"I recognize that in some schools kids come with enormously difficult home-based circumstances. We should take that into account. ... But you can’t have a system that has no focus on outcomes."
Q: Is the state on the right track with its public school construction program?
Corzine: "School construction got off to a horrible start. We reformed it, we put auditors and accountability standards in, budget plans, and held people to them. I think it is now very much a success." Since the Schools Development Authority took over in 2007, 38 school projects have opened. Some of those were begun under the Schools Construction Corp. and cost far more than their original budgets, but "you’re talking about something that happened before I became governor. ... We are going to stay on budget and on time on these things."
Christie: "The School Development Authority continues to waste hundreds of millions of dollars in a non-competitive bidding process that artificially inflates construction costs. We should not be borrowing any more money without voter approval, and we need to lower costs and increase construction efficiency by standardizing the design and construction of all new schools. We start doing this by prioritizing projects and working with the private sector to find new and creative ways to develop new facilities."
Daggett: "It’s shameful that we let all of that money get wasted without any investigation, without anyone having to pay a price for all that money. A full accounting of that program should be done and people held accountable."
By Jeanette M. Rundquist and Kristen Alloway
Gov. Jon Corzine details how he would close N.J.'s $8B budget deficit
By Claire Heininger/Statehouse Bureau
October 08, 2009, 8:32PM
For the first time, he gave details on how he will close the state's budget gap.
Bottom of Form
NEWARK -- After spending months accusing his Republican rival of having no plan to solve New Jersey’s financial woes, Gov. Jon Corzine revealed for the first time today details of his own proposals to close a looming budget gap.
Corzine also made an uncharacteristically blunt case for four more years in the Statehouse, saying he has made progress tackling the state’s entrenched problems but has more ground to cover.
"There’s not the quick fixes that people would like to see," Corzine said. "I’d like the ability to change all of these things. That’s why I want another shot at it."
If elected to a second term, Corzine said, he would look to close an estimated $8 billion deficit next year through a series of steps -- a smaller contribution to the state pension system, a 2,000-employee reduction in the state workforce and the possible continuation of an income tax surcharge on the wealthy.
Full Star-Ledger coverage of the New Jersey Governor's Race
The remainder could come from an expected $2 billion in federal stimulus money and grants, and not fully funding state aid to local school districts, the governor said in a meeting with The Star-Ledger’s editorial board.
Corzine stressed it is impossible to predict exactly how he would close the gap -- or even the size of the gap itself -- given the volatility of state revenues in an uncertain economy. But, he said, the moves he sketched out would nearly eliminate the $8 billion deficit estimated by the Office of Legislative Services earlier this year.
The Democratic governor said his plans are in sharp contrast to those of Republican Chris Christie, who has given broad outlines of his philosophy -- cutting spending and cutting taxes -- but offered few concrete numbers.
Among the steps Corzine called "incremental progress" made in his first term were raising the retirement age for public employees from 55 to 62, requiring public employees to contribute to their health benefits, shrinking the state workforce by 8,000 people and imposing a 4 percent cap on annual property tax increases.
He accused his opponents -- chiefly Christie, but also independent Chris Daggett -- of oversimplifying the challenges the next governor will face.
"We’re making meaningful step-by-step approaches to resolving some of the questions, and there are people that think you can just snap your fingers and solve all these problems," said Corzine, who has cut into Christie’s lead in recent polls.
Corzine, who made a series of unpopular moves to balance this year’s $29 billion budget -- including trimming property tax rebates and raising taxes on the wealthy and businesses -- acknowledged his plans would likely lead to more criticism. Among the most controversial, he said, is the idea of extending a one-time income tax increase on the wealthy -- this year, the higher rate was on incomes greater than $400,000 — to generate about $1 billion.
Christie has hammered Corzine on taxes, saying the governor is "suffocating" residents out of the state. Corzine says he made difficult choices to raise taxes on those who could most afford it, while prioritizing spending on education and seniors
"It will be determined by circumstance what we do on taxes" next year, Corzine said. "I haven’t taken a no-tax pledge. It’s certainly not where we want to go.”
Cutting the state’s pension contribution would save about $2 billion from the OLS budget gap estimate, and continuing a hiring freeze in the state workforce would save between $500 million and $1 billion, the governor said. He said he may be able to save $500 million by not fully funding the school funding formula while still having "some incremental increase in funding for schools."
Corzine said the state can expect about $1 billion in federal stimulus money for Medicaid, $500 million for education and $500 million in other federal grants.
Republicans have criticized Corzine for using non-recurring stimulus funding to balance the budget. But Corzine says Christie would’ve put the state in danger by refusing some of the money.
