Our Children/Our Schools
A newsletter about New Jersey school funding and reform
  July 2009 - Issue 20
In This Issue
Resources

The Garden State has been a national leader in school funding equity. But the School Funding Reform Act of 2008 may change that. The new aid formula underfunds many New Jersey schools and programs and removes the historic Abbott "special needs" designation for poor, urban schools. In addition, the new formula does little to change New Jersey's over-reliance on local property taxes to fund education. Our Children/Our Schools seeks to inform the public debate on these important issues and advocate for high quality education for all New Jersey children.

Education issues were on the front burner in NJ this spring. The NJ Supreme Court issued a decision in the Abbott SFRA case; there was much discussion about education funding in the FY 2010 state budget; and advocates challenged the NJDOE on a number of proposals. OC/OS members and the campaign as a whole were active on these and other issues.
NJ has decided to make high school harder. Now the challenge will be to make it better. On June 17, the NJ State Board of Education approved Commissioner Davy's High School Redesign proposals including tougher new course requirements. The plan also authorizes creation of a new category of State assessments that students must pass to graduate.
The Urban Youth Research Initiative has created an online survey about NJ's new high school graduation requirements. The youth researchers are teams of high school students from Newark, Paterson, and Jersey City who are investigating the academic and "opportunity to learn" issues raised by the new graduation standards.
On May 26, Ramsey School District administrators and representatives from Abbott Leadership Institute and the Newark Public Schools had an opportunity to talk about the common denominator for all schools: students and doing what is best for them. The meeting was organized by ALI and Dollar$ and Sense, two OC/OS member organizations.
The New Jersey Department of Education is proposing new regulations that give Executive County Superintendents broad powers to impact special education student placement. Advocates are challenging those regulations at hearings around the state.
On June 15, the New Jersey Department of Education issued guidelines to all NJ school districts outlining new procedures for the Special Review Assessment (SRA) during the 2009-2010 school year. The changes are likely to limit the number of students who earn a high school diploma by using the SRA to meet state graduation standards.
Losing Funding Ruling, Abbott School Advocates Vow to Stay the Course
N.J. Toughens High School Graduation Requirements
Urban Superintendents Group Discusses New Funding Formula
Changes in Store for State's Alternative Graduation Exam
Supreme Court Ruling on Abbott Should Lead New Jersey to Continue Preschool Expansion
Moving Education Equity to the Next Level
On the Menu: Sign-up for Free Lunches
2009 Lunchtime Teleconferences: Education Advocacy Series, presented by the Statewide Parent Advocacy Network (SPAN), Wednesdays through July, teleconference presentation from noon to 1 p.m., with Q&A from 1-2 p.m. For more information, visit www.spannj.org.
Abbott Leadership Institute's Youth Media Symposium, summer session held Monday to Thursday, July 6 through August 13, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Room 148, Bradley Hall, Rutgers - Newark. For more information, contact Program Coordinator Kandi N. Berryman at 973-687-8434 or kandib@andromeda.rutgers.edu.
Our Children/Our Schools General Meetings, Thursday, July 16, 10 a.m. to noon, via conference call; Thursday, August 21, 10 a.m. to noon. For more information, contact info@ourchildrenourschools.org.
We Are 100 - Ensuring Our Legacy, New Jersey State Conference of NAACP Annual Convention, September 18-20, Doubletree Hotel, Somerset. For more information, visit www.njnaacp.org.
Charting a Course with the Next Generation, 27th Annual New Jersey Black Issues Leadership Convention, October 8-10, Hyatt Regency, New Brunswick. For more information, visit www.njbic.org.
Send announcements of upcoming events for the Our Children/Our Schools Calendar to info@ourchildrenourschools.org

"At its core, a constitutionally adequate education is one that will prepare public school children for a meaningful role in society, enable them to compete effectively in the economy and contribute and participate as citizens and members of their communities."

CONTACT INFORMATION

Email: info@ourchildrenourschools.org

Phone: (973) 624-1815

Web: http://www.ourchildrenourschools.org

If you wish to change your email address, or if this newsletter was forwarded to you by a friend and you would like to join our mailing list directly, please send your request to info@ourchildrenourschools.org