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NJ Spotlight - Bill to Give More Local Say Over School Closures Progresses in Senate…But another measure just starting to come together would spell out how state-run districts can return to local control
Star Ledger - Senate Committee passes bill giving schools boards a say in school closings
NJ Spotlight - Portrait of NJ High-School Students Includes Many Who Study the Fine Arts…Nearly half -- almost 200,000 statewide -- took at least one class, mostly in visual arts and music
NJ Spotlight - Two New Charter Networks Win Endorsement to Operate in Camden…Superintendent announces choice of two well-regarded, established organizations to operate up to eight new schools
NJ Spotlight - Bill to Give More Local Say Over School Closures Progresses in Senate
John Mooney | January 31, 2014
But another measure just starting to come together would spell out how state-run districts can return to local control
A bill that would give more local say over school closures, even in state-run districts, won important backing yesterday, with the Senate’s education committee endorsing it unanimously.
But a more significant bill may be on the horizon that would clarify and potentially speed the end of state control in New Jersey’s four takeover districts.
The Senate committee passed the bill sponsored by state Sen. Ronald Rice (D-Essex) that would give local school boards a binding say before any school is closed or sold. The vote was 4-0, with one abstention.
The bill is aimed especially at the state-controlled Newark schools, where superintendent Cami Anderson has moved ahead on a district reorganization that would include closing or consolidating more than a dozen schools.
Parents and community activists have loudly protested the moves, although Anderson has shown no signs yet of backing off.
Rice testified on behalf of the bill yesterday, as did several Newark parents who said that they have felt left out of Anderson’s decisions to close schools and reorganize others.
Legislators were sympathetic. “Nobody said they don’t recognize the need for change in some of our school districts,” said state Sen. Teresa Ruiz (D-Essex) in voting in favor.
“The issue at hand is we don’t know in a clear and concise way what is happening [with these closures],” she said.
State Sen. Shirley Turner (D-Mercer) said this was not just a Newark issue.
“It’s Newark today, but it could be Trenton tomorrow,” she said. “It could be coming to a neighborhood near you.”
The bill moves next to the Senate vote and also the Assembly, where it has yet to be posted in committee. Even if approved, however, few foresee it would ever be signed by Gov. Chris Christie, who appointed Anderson as well as the superintendents in the three other takeover districts.
Nonetheless, it has clearly touched a nerve with the Legislature, and Ruiz said that she has asked the legislative staff to start drafting a separate bill that would clarify the exit strategy for state takeovers in general, three of four of them now entering their third decade.
“We can’t stand here and say that state takeover leads to success,” she said. “We just can’t say that.”
The new bill would require that the state relinquish control of specific area of the district’s operation -- be it finance, instruction or other defined areas – if the district met 80 percent of the benchmarks required under the state’s monitoring.
Currently, the law triggers consideration at 80 percent, but State Education Commissioner Chris Cerf still has discretion. Cerf has used that discretion in delaying return of at least partial control in Newark.
Ruiz said her bill would remove that discretion. “If you are meeting 80 percent, it’s automatic [return] -- no discretion,” she said after the meeting.
Rice wrote the existing monitoring law, and said he would support any change to clarify it. He said the discretionary piece was put in as part of the negotiation over the bill, but it had backfired on districts like Newark.
“We didn’t like it then, but it was a compromise,” he said. “It should be taken out, there should be no discretion.”
But Rice said he hoped that it would not mean his closure bill would be slowed down in deference to the larger bill.
“The changes don’t need to be all in one bill,” he said. “You don’t hold up one bill that is needed right now.”
The Newark parents on hand yesterday said they were encouraged that their arguments are at least being aired in the Statehouse.
“It’s happening quickly, we didn’t expect it that fast,” said Hassan Manning, parent-teacher association president of Maple Avenue School in Newark, which would be closed to become a preschool center.
Added Geraldine Howard, also of Maple Avenue and a parent leader at Weequahic High School, another affected school: “We feel that as parents, we haven’t been heard. We were closed out of everything that was going on with our children. That’s why so many parents are so angry.”
Star Ledger - Senate Committee passes bill giving schools boards a say in school closings
By Peggy McGlone/The Star-Ledger The Star-Ledger
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on January 30, 2014 at 6:05 PM, updated January 30, 2014 at 9:27 PM
Parents and community activists from Newark, Montclair and Camden testified before a state senate committee this morning in favor of a bill that requires local school boards to approve the closing of schools.
Sponsored by Sen. Ronald Rice (D-Essex), the bill was prompted by Newark Superintendent Cami Anderson’s school reorganization plan, which will move, consolidate and close several buildings in the state-controlled district, while transferring other neighborhood schools to charter schools.
Rice told the Senate Education Committee the bill is “simple … but very important” because it makes certain that local citizens’ representatives have a say in any school closing plan.
“We need input from the people we put on the board,” Rice said. “If we allow things to happen in Newark now, it’s going to happen in Paterson and Camden.”
Anderson’s plan has been met with vocal opposition since its introduction last month. Some of the same critics traveled to Trenton to repeat their criticism.
“These are our schools, our children,” Newark resident and parent Frank Adao, of Parents Against One Newark, told the panel. “Reform is needed, but this is not a well-thought out plan.”
Several others testified that the bill is needed to protect school districts not under state control.
Julia Rubin of Save Our Schools told the panel most citizens probably think school boards must approve such an action. This bill codifies what is common sense, she said.
“You can’t do something as radical as closing a school without getting the approval of the community,” she said.
If passed, the bill would require the Newark School Advisory Board to approve the changes proposed by Anderson, which seems unlikely.
The board “enthusiastically supports” the bill, said chairwoman Antoinette Baskerville-Richardson.
“I am confident that, given the opportunity in law, the majority of the members of the Newark Board of Education will act in accordance with the needs of Newark’s children and the will of their constituents and turn back the One Newark Plan,” she said.
Committee chairwoman Teresa Ruiz (D-Essex) said the bill would give “pause, or reassessment” to the events in Newark.
“No one has said they don’t recognize there is a need for change,” she said before the vote. “The issue at hand is we don’t know precisely what is happening. This isn’t about interfering with change. This is about respect. This is about inclusion. This is about transparency.”
NJ Spotlight - Portrait of NJ High-School Students Includes Many Who Study the Fine Arts
Colleen O'Dea | January 31, 2014
Nearly half -- almost 200,000 statewide -- took at least one class, mostly in visual arts and music
Nearly half of New Jersey’s high-school students took at least one arts class last year, according to this year’s state report cards, a statistic that thrilled arts enthusiasts and educators.
Many found the large percentage of students taking classes in visual arts, music, theater and dance, as measured by the School Performance Reports released earlier this week, especially encouraging. They noted that the state requires only one full-year course in the fine arts for graduation and busy students can have a tough time fitting arts electives into their schedules.
“It is a challenge for students to fit arts courses in their schedules but many find a way,” said Joe Jacobs, president of the New Jersey Music Educators Association and a teacher at Ventnor Middle School. “The arts play a vital and essential role in the education of our students … The arts not only inspires our students but teach creativity and problem solving.”
This was the first year that any information about the arts was included in the annual school report cards issued by the state Department of Education. New Jersey officials say it was also the first time that participation in arts education has been included in any of the state’s annual school-level reporting.
More than 47 percent of New Jersey’s high school students, or almost 200,000, took at least one arts class in 2012-13. Visual arts courses – drawing, painting, sculpture and the like – were most popular, taken by three in 10 students. About 17 percent took a music class, while 4 percent took drama or theater and 2 percent took dance. The latter two classes are not offered in many schools.
New Jersey requires students to take a five-credit arts course in order to graduate from high school. The data show students on average are taking twice the minimum requirement.
“Research shows a strong connection between arts education and success in college and career,” said Chris Cerf, the state education commissioner. “Arts education is crucial in unleashing the creativity and innovation that are needed to succeed in today’s workforce. I’m proud that New Jersey is at the forefront of this effort.”
Numerous studies have shown a correlation between the arts and student achievement. A 2012 report by the New Jersey Arts Education Partnership found that Garden State students involved in the arts were more likely to have higher scores in language arts literacy and were more likely to enroll in college.
There are a few specialty schools in the state – vocational, charter and magnet performing arts schools – where student participation in the arts exceeded 90 percent last year. In 55 schools, more than two-thirds of students took at least one class in the arts. On the other hand, there were about 20 schools that reported fewer than 1 in 10 students took classes in the arts.
During times of tight budgeting, such as districts have faced in recent years, arts classes can wind up on the chopping block, particularly as schools are forced to offer other mandated courses – the current senior class is the first that had to complete 2.5 credits, or a half-year course, in financial literacy.
“Regardless of changes, the arts remain a graduation requirement,” said Robert Morrison, chair of the Arts Education Partnership. ”That said, we have heard about scheduling challenges, fewer section offerings and the addition of the financial literacy component as all being issues.”
“During the difficult economic times of the past few years, art programs throughout the state suffered budget cuts and reduction in staff, as well as in the number of courses offered at the high school level,” said Ellen Hargrove, president of Art Educators of New Jersey and a teacher in Haddon Township.
Another issue for some high-achieving students in particular can be a lack of time within their schedules to fit arts classes. Students taking Advanced Placement classes, for instance, may have longer class periods and thus less free time in which to fit electives. Or arts classes conflict with required courses.
“Scheduling difficulties occur when fewer courses are offered, creating a situation that further impacts the availability of art electives so fewer students are able to reap the benefits of a thorough arts education,” continued Hargrove. “We are hopeful that the inclusion of the Visual and Performing Arts in this report officially confirms the importance of these subjects to a child’s future success, and that we will see support for, and measurable growth in, art programs in school districts across the state.”
“I say you cannot achieve your educational goals by excluding the arts,” Morrison said. “We do not teach our students math because they will all become mathematicians or language arts because we want our students to become writers any more than we teach the arts to create the next generation of artists. We teach the arts to create empathetic, creative, great people regardless of their educational pathway or chosen avocation.”
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NJ Spotlight - Two New Charter Networks Win Endorsement to Operate in Camden
John Mooney | January 31, 2014
Superintendent announces choice of two well-regarded, established organizations to operate up to eight new schools
Camden Schools Superintendent Paymon Rouhanifard
Following up on this week’s unveiling of his strategic plan for improving what is arguably New Jersey’s most troubled school district, Camden Superintendent Paymon Rouhanifard yesterday announced that two charter school organizations have been chosen to operate new “renaissance schools” in the city and reported progress on the long-sought rebuilding of Camden High School.
The state-run district announced that it will recommend that the Mastery Charter Schools network and the Uncommon Schools network to be the next organizations to be approved under the Urban Hope Act, the 2012 state law that allows a hybrid version of charter schools to open in Camden, one of three pilot districts covered under the legislation.
The two were chosen from seven applicants who responded to the district’s request for proposals. Two charter organizations that are already established in the city were turned down.
While both networks chosen this week aim to open schools this year, specifics of actual plans are not yet determined. Each put forward broad proposals: Mastery seeks to open three elementary schools in time for the next school year, while Uncommon proposed opening five schools over several years, spanning kindergarten through 12th grade.
But those plans are the starting points, officials said, and the next step in the process requires the school district and the charter organizations to develop detailed plans before submitting them to the state for final approval.
Rouhanifard said he will hold meetings around the city over the next month as part of public discussions of his strategic plan before it is made final. The local advisory board will be presented that final plan in late February before it is submitted to the state, he said.
Both charter organizations will be new to Camden, but each has built a notable track record elsewhere.
Mastery has been prominent in Philadelphia, focusing on turning around existing public schools with new leadership and programs, and is now involved with 15 schools in that city. Its proposal for Camden could involve the same “turnaround” model or opening new schools, or a combination of the two, said Scott Gordon, chief executive of Mastery.
“The powerful thing about the Urban Hope Act is we serve at the pleasure of the district and fit into the superintendent’s strategy,” Gordon said in an interview. “If it’s turnarounds, we’d be delighted to do that, or if stand-alones, we’d be happy to do that.”
In a separate application process, Mastery is seeking state permission to open a stand-alone charter school in the Camden district.
Uncommon Schools is one of the country’s best-known charter organizations and was one of New Jersey’s first, starting in Newark with the North Star Academy charter schools in 1998. It now has 38 schools in Newark, New York City, Rochester and Troy, NY.
In Camden, it has proposed a network of five schools serving more than 2,300 students, starting with an elementary school and growing into a new high school to be opened in 2019.
“We are excited about the opportunity to potentially serve the students and families of Camden, in partnership with the district,” said Barbara Martinez, spokeswoman for Uncommon Schools. “We look forward to engaging with the Camden community in the upcoming citywide meetings.”
Meanwhile, Rouhanifard added in the announcement that the district had received assurances from the Schools Development Authority about the long-awaited major renovation of Camden High School, a project that has stalled for nearly a decade.
The SDA’s new director, Charles McKenna, met with Rouhanifard to discuss the project this week. Details were unavailable, but the SDA has been active since McKenna’s arrival, moving forward in some high-profile projects, including work on Trenton High School.
Efforts to speak with McKenna yesterday were unsuccessful, but he said in a statement released through the district that the Camden High project is now on the SDA’s active list of capital projects, the first step in the process of new design and construction.
“I am excited about the opportunity to work with Superintendent Rouhanifard, and we are committed to remedy the building conditions at Camden High School,” McKenna said in the statement.
