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Newjerseynewsroom.com ‘Poll: New Jerseyans appreciate teachers, dislike NJEA’ Residents oppose Christie's expansion of charter schools and school vouchers... New Jerseyans oppose 71 - 25 percent cutting aid to public schools, with no group in support of such a cut...
Wall Street Journal - NY REGION ‘Bond Rating Drop Ignites Pension Fight’
Bloomberg ‘Christie Pension Cuts Resonate With New Jersey Voters, Poll Says’
Njspotlight.com ‘Union City Schools: A Test Case (?) for Christie Reforms’
Newjerseynewsroom.com ‘Poll: New Jerseyans appreciate teachers, dislike NJEA’
Residents oppose Christie's expansion of charter schools and school vouchers... New Jerseyans oppose 71 - 25 percent cutting aid to public schools, with no group in support of such a cut...
by Tom Hester sr., newjerseynewsroom.com, Wednesday, 09 February 2011 19:31
New Jerseyans, by a 62 - 17 percent margin, have a favorable opinion of public school teachers, but their opinion of the New Jersey Education Association (NJEA), the statewide teachers' union is 44 - 27 percent unfavorable, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday.
The teacher union, New Jerseyans say 52 - 36 percent, are playing a negative role in improving public education, residents. The poll found New Jerseyans favor merit pay for teachers who do an outstanding job by 68 - 27 percent, and they favor limiting teacher tenure by 62 to 30 percent. The oppose school vouchers by52 - 43 percent and oppose charter schools by 50 - 41 percent.
"Voters agree overwhelmingly that Gov. Christopher Christie has one tough problem on his hands as he prepares to submit his budget Feb. 22," Maurice Carroll, the poll's director, said. "What would they like that budget message to say? They like the idea of a ‘Millionaires' Tax' on high-income people. And they don't want to cut state school aid.
"They like their kids' teachers, but don't like the teachers' union," Carroll added. "And they favor two items that the union hates — merit pay and some limits on teacher tenure. But voters are unenthusiastic on two school items that Governor. Christie likes — vouchers and charter schools. More than two-thirds of voters agree with Christie's move to curb school superintendent salaries. One-quarter think it's meddling in local affairs."
Christie's proposed cap on salaries for school superintendents is a good way to help balance the budget, 68 percent of New Jerseyans say, while 25 percent say it is meddling in local government. A majority of New Jerseyans support the salary cap for teachers.
By substantial margins, New Jerseyans support layoffs, wage freezes and reduced pensions for state workers, the poll found.
They approve 53 - 41 percent of the way Gov. Chris Christie is handling the state budget, but split 47 - 48 percent in their approval of how he is handling education, the poll finds.
The state government's budget problems are serious, 82 percent of New Jerseyans say, while 15 percent say they are "somewhat serious." To balance the budget, 64 percent of them say cut services, while 26 percent say raise taxes. Among measures New Jerseyans support:
· 56 - 38 percent support layoffs for state workers. Democrats oppose layoffs 53 - 40 percent and New Jerseyans with a union member in the household oppose layoffs 53 - 44 percent.
· 65 - 24 percent support furloughs for state workers, including 61 - 25 percent among Democrats and 61 - 28 percent in union households.
· 77 - 20 percent support wage freezes for state workers, including 72 - 23 percent among Democrats and 64 - 34 percent in union households.
· 66 - 29 percent are for reducing pensions for new state workers, including 56 - 39 percent among Democrats and 57 - 42 percent in union households.
"As the reality of tough budgets begins to sink in — in New Jersey and everywhere else — voters are starting to get tougher on state workers," Maurice Carroll, the poll's director, said. "Furloughs and wage freezes had won some approval in the past. Now voters approve even layoffs and reduction in pension benefits for new workers."
New Jerseyans support 55 - 34 percent the so-called "Millionaires' Tax." Support is 72 - 21 percent among Democrats and 55 - 32 percent among independents, while Republicans oppose the tax 53 - 33 percent.
New Jerseyans oppose 71 - 25 percent cutting aid to public schools, with no group in support of such a cut.
They split 47 - 48 percent on tax cuts for corporations to help stimulate the state economy.
From Feb. 3 through Monday, Quinnipiac surveyed 1,347 registered voters with a margin of error of plus or minus 2.7 percentage points. Interviewers called land lines and cell phones.
Wall Street Journal - NY REGION ‘Bond Rating Drop Ignites Pension Fight’
FEBRUARY 10, 2011, BY LISA FLEISHER AND JEANNETTE NEUMANN The fight over New Jersey's public-worker pension system heated up when a major credit-rating firm downgraded the state and its agencies. Standard & Poor's Wednesday cited the state's underfunded pension system, liabilities for health care and other retirement benefits and high debt levels in downgrading the state to AA- from AA. The outlook is stable.New Jersey now is one of the seven lowest-rated states in the country, according to Standard & Poor's…
Bloomberg ‘Christie Pension Cuts Resonate With New Jersey Voters, Poll Says’
By - Feb 10, 2011
New Jersey’s voters back firing workers, freezing wages and cutting pensions in a poll released the day after Standard & Poor’s cut the state’s bond rating because of underfunded retiree and health-care liabilities.
Fifty-six percent of respondents in a Quinnipiac University poll said they support firing state employees, while almost four out of five said they would support freezing wages. Two-thirds said they are in favor of reducing pension payouts.
Governor Chris Christie, a Republican who has said retiree benefits may bankrupt the state, has called on lawmakers to undo a 9 percent pension increase enacted in 2001, raise the retirement age to 65 and freeze cost-of-living increases. Christie on Feb. 22 will introduce his second budget as legislative budget analysts project he may face a deficit of as much as $10.5 billion.
“As the reality of tough budgets begins to sink in -- in New Jersey and everywhere else -- voters are starting to get tougher on state workers,” said Maurice Carroll, director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. “Furloughs and wage freezes had won some approval in the past. Now voters approve even layoffs and reduction in pension benefits for new workers.”
Respondents were almost evenly split on whether they approve of how Christie is handling education, as 47 percent said they backed him compared with 48 percent against.
Rating Cut
The Quinnipiac survey comes a day after credit rating firm S&P cut by one notch its ranking of New Jersey’s debt to AA-, fourth-lowest, citing its growing pension and health-care obligations. S&P’s downgrade means only California, whose rating was reduced last year, and Illinois have lower investment grades than New Jersey.
In a Quinnipiac survey released yesterday, 54 percent of voters said Christie’s first year in office was “a success” and more than half said they approve of his job performance.
Sixty-five percent of those tallied also said they back unpaid furloughs for state employees and 64 percent said they would prefer cutting services to balance the budget as opposed to tax increases. More than half, 53 percent, of voters said they support the way Christie is handling the state budget.
The Quinnipiac poll echoed one from last November in which 54 percent of voters said they would support reducing the state workforce, and in similar numbers supported wage freezes and furloughs.
Researchers at Hamden, Connecticut-based Quinnipiac surveyed 1,347 registered New Jersey voters from Feb. 3-7. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.7 percentage points.
To contact the reporter on this story: Terrence Dopp in Trenton at tdopp@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Mark Tannenbaum at mtannen@bloomberg.net
Njspotlight.com ‘Union City Schools: A Test Case (?) for Christie Reforms’
As the governor and his reforms pay a visit, Union City's vaunted schools try to make their case
, February 10 in Education
Union City’s public schools have long been held up as the gold standard of New Jersey’s urban districts, with its scores on state tests approaching if not exceeding statewide averages.
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Certainly, among the 31 urban districts falling under the state Supreme Court’s Abbott v. Burke school equity rulings, the district of nearly 10,000 mostly Hispanic students is always at or near the top of the list in student achievement.
Still, it’s been an insecure time for New Jersey's public schools of late, with severe aid cuts and tight tax caps on the fiscal side and calls for tenure reform and teacher reform and every other reform on the education side.
So, when Gov. Chris Christie yesterday chose the Hudson County enclave for his 17th town hall meeting -- one dominated by the governor’s education reform agenda -- Union City school superintendent Stanley Sanger wasn’t going to miss the chance to stand up for his schools.
"We have met the intent of the Supreme Court ruling in Union City," Sanger said in an interview afterward. "We have evidence that if an urban child is given the opportunity and the resources, they can succeed."
"We’re just hoping that any type of reform doesn’t diminish those resources," he said, "because we would like to continue."
So far, the cuts have been pretty well spread across all school districts, with suburban districts taking arguably the worst hit of the group in last year’s state budget.
The Urban Battleground
But by all indications, the attention could soon shift to urban districts. The Christie administration is hunkering down to battle back the Abbott mandates in a pending court challenge, and Republicans already are looking to make funding cuts in those districts, including their popular preschool programs.
Christie wasn’t showing his full hand just yet yesterday, but he left a few clues and surely wasn’t backing off on his year-long campaign to reign in school spending and bring some accountability to all districts -- especially their teachers.
In a lengthy question and answer session where more than half the questions were about education, Christie was asked specifically about the budget fate of the Abbott mandates for all-day preschools. Senate Republicans have reportedly called for sharply reducing that funding, and shifting it to the suburban districts.
Christie smiled briefly to the question, but didn’t bite just yet. As for all-day pre-K, I’ll have some things to say about that in two weeks in the budget address," Christie said.
That left Sanger cringing a little. His district has roughly 1,800 three- and four-year-olds enrolled in full-time preschool.
"No question, that will have an impact," he said. "It’s the ground, it gives you the solid foundation. And I think it has shown that with a solid literacy foundation, they have a good chance of making it."
Necessary Changes
Still, Sanger wasn’t looking to pick a fight with Christie. When asked about Christie’s calls for tenure reforms and changes in how teachers are evaluated, he said some changes were probably necessary.
"Things have to happen, probably a few things need addressing in the long run," he said. "For Union City, [tenure] hasn’t been an issue, but I don’t know elsewhere. It could be an issue."
As for last year’s cuts in state aid, amounting to $10 million for the district, Sanger also said the district was able to survive intact. He said the money was mostly found in some staff attrition and outsourcing things like transportation and technology.
"Even losing $10 million, not one person had their job taken a way," he said. "And the biggest thing is it didn’t have any impact on the kids in the classroom."
For all the student gains, Union City schools have never been the big spenders among the Abbott districts, either. Last year, it spent about $18,100 per pupil, more than the state average of about $15,500 but far below places like Asbury Park, which have been especially targeted by Christie.
Still, the needs are only mounting, he said. Nearly 90 percent of his students are poor enough to qualify for subsidized lunch, and nearly half have limited English language skills, a population that is growing ever more challenging.
"We are getting more and more kids from outside the United States with no formal education, eighth and ninth graders with first-grade reading skills," Sanger said.
"Dominicans, Ecuadorans, but what we are finding more and more from the rural parts of those countries. There isn’t a proficiency in their native language, never mind English," Sanger noted.
