SOUTH ORANGE / MAPLEWOOD, NJ — The South Orange-Maplewood Board of Education entertained a discussion at its July 20 meeting to withdraw from the Garden State Coalition of Schools, an association of approximately 100 school districts that advocates for quality public education at the state level.
Although the board members did not vote at the July 20 meeting, they seemed willing to leave the GSCS in favor of hiring a district employee to lobby for the South Orange-Maplewood School District in Trenton.
Board member Jeffrey Bennett, a staunch watchdog for state educational funding, broached the subject, arguing that the GSCS does not support suburban, middle-class school districts, such as South Orange-Maplewood. Bennett argued that GSCS does nothing to balance funding inequities — and, even more so, does not recognize them.
In an extensive history of GSCS, Bennett explained the coalition’s origin. It was formed in 1990 to advocate for non-Abbott districts. In 1985, as a result of Abbott v. Burke, the state recognized certain urban, low-income districts that were not being supported in the same way as wealthier districts. In 1990, a second Abbott ruling ordered states to fund the then-28 Abbott districts at the average level of the state’s wealthiest districts. There are now 31 Abbott districts.
Bennett explained that Department of Education could have gone one of two routes. The first, and more advantageous for districts like the SOMSD, would be to increase funding to Abbott districts and decrease funding to wealthier districts. Due to lobbying, this was rejected, leaving it that Abbott districts had to be given the same funding as wealthy districts. While the first option would have equalized state educational funding in New Jersey, the second creates a bell curve, with districts like SOMSD receiving less money than both the wealthy and Abbott districts.
The state attempted to erase this inequality in 2008 when it passed the School Funding Reform Act, but the NJ Supreme Court blocked attempts to eliminate the Abbott district designation. Referring to SFRA, Bennett said, “A law like that isn’t a law. It’s a joke.”
According to Bennett, when he contacted GSCS Executive Director Lynne Strickland, she claimed not to believe that there were disparities. Bennett said he felt that Stickland did not want to discuss funding inequalities in order to avoid offending the wealthier districts. He said GSCS may pay more attention to the issue if the SOMSD leaves the coalition.
Strickland did not provide a comment to the News-Record by press time.
Nevertheless, the inequality is evidenced in the numbers. Looking at the projected state school aid for each district in the 2014-2015 school year — found on the DOE’s website — the wealthy Marlboro Township Public Schools received much more funding per student than the less-wealthy SOMSD. Marlboro received $11,603,887 while the SOMSD received $4,216,218. According to the DOE, Marlboro has fewer students than the SOMSD. With only 5,092 students, Marlboro effectively receives $2,278 per student; with 6,858 students, the SOMSD only receives $614 per student.
Due to all this, Bennett firmly believes the SOMSD should leave the coalition, adding that the district will save its $2,500 membership fee.
“I don’t think they fight for us. I don’t think they disperse information very well. I think they are too soft,” Bennett said.
Board President Wayne Eastman suggested that the board could hire someone to lobby directly for the district down in Trenton — a move that has been benefiting the Montclair district.
Other board members agreed, but wanted to hold off on a vote until member Elizabeth Daugherty was present, as she is the board’s representative to the GSCS. Until further discussion has taken place, the board gave interim Superintendent of Schools James Memoli permission to proceed with the GSCS as usual.