Existing Facilities the Educational Standards of Another Era

• Most of the district’s schools were designed in accordance with Existing Facilities the educational standards of another era. As such, many of the classrooms do not meet current size standards. Also, most The Long Range Facilities Plan is based on an Existing Facilities schools do not adequately provide the specialized spaces Evaluation of each of the district’s school buildings, as required by the advocated in the Newark Facilities Model. New Jersey Department of Education. The evaluation supports a determination of building condition, capacity, and educational adequacy, • The Newark Public Schools provides “neighborhood” schools to as submitted as part of the 1999 FMP and confirmed by the 2002 update. general education students in grades PreK-8 without busing The current state of the district’s infrastructure is summarized below, except in special circumstances. followed by a statistical analysis. • Many schools currently offer little or no on-site parking or play CRITICAL ISSUES: Physical Plant areas. The playgrounds that do exist are severely compromised • The average age of a Newark public school building is for staff parking needs. approximately 83 years. The average age of an Abbott district school is 58 years. The average age of a Newark public school addition is 73 years. The average age of an Abbott district school addition is 35 years. • Except for the Belmont-Runyon Elementary School (completed in 2004 with non-Abbott funding) and a few schools that were constructed or renovated in the 1990s, most Newark public schools requires significant upgrades to repair or replace items that are no longer functional, replace components that have exceeded their life cycle expectancy, and/or to meet current code requirements. The projected cost to correct critical health and safety deficiencies and maintain the existing buildings in operation for the next 5 years before they are replaced or fully renovated is estimated at approximately $200,000,000.

CRITICAL ISSUES: Capacity/Program Spaces • The majority of Newark’s schools were located to serve student population needs of 50 to 100 years ago. Therefore, many schools today are either overcrowded or underutilized, depending upon demographic changes that have occurred during the last century. Most schools that have excess capacity are not located in areas that can help alleviate overcrowding in nearby schools. • Two of the five School Leadership Teams do not have adequate capacity to accommodate the projected enrollments. Three SLTs have surplus capacity due to the demolition of public housing units and population decline, which makes some consolidations possible.

NEWARK PUBLIC SCHOOLS 2005 LONG RANGE FACILITIES PLAN DISTRIC OVERVIEW PAGE B:3 TABLE B.2 District Statistical Summary

CAPACITY & ENROLLMENT INFRASTRUCTURE Capacity per 2004-05 2009 School Number of Bldgs. Total Gross Sq. Ft. GSF/Student Average School Age NJDOE Enroll. Proj. Enroll. Sites (based on capacity) (orig. sect) (acres) SLT I Central 4,963 3,499 3,422 24.56 11 938,715 189.14 East 3.144 4,347 5,228 7.18 9 463,505 147.42 SLT I TOTALS 8,107 7,846 8,650 31.74 20 1,402,220 172.96 108 yrs. SLT II TOTALS 11,230 11,358 12,277 35.90 12 2,231,935 198.75 79 yrs. SLT III North 5,642 4,113 4,707 16.19 9 872,250 154.60 South 3,830 3,327 3,355 16.79 7 702,380 183.39 SLT III TOTALS 9,472 7,440 8,062 32.98 16 1,574,630 166.24 68 yrs. SLT IV East 5,220 5,644 5,977 11.95 11 926,211 177.43 West 2,664 3,475 3,713 10.36 5 357,820 134.32 SLT IV TOTALS 7,884 9,119 9,690 22.31 16 1,284,031 162.86 84 yrs. SLT V East 5,399 3,488 3,811 14.46 8 871,090 161.34 West 3,063 2,775 3,111 10.94 7 432,195 141.10 SLT V TOTALS 8,462 6,263 6,263 25.40 14 1,303,285 154.02 77 yrs. SCHOOL TOTALS 44,611 41,954 44,942 148.33 78 7,779,431 174.38 83 yrs.

NOTES: 2004-05 Enrollments do not include Charter School student or out-of-district placements. Capacity calculations are based on prescribed NJDOE methodologies, including class size.

2005 LONG RANGE FACILITIES PLAN NEWARK PUBLIC SCHOOLS EXISTING FACILITIES PAGE B:4 SLT I Facilities School Leadership Team I serves roughly two Wards of the city—the East and Central. The East Ward contains nine school buildings, including four annexes. Ten schools are located in the SLT I portion of the Central Ward.

The largest part of the East Ward, referred to as the Ironbound, is one of the most densely populated and oldest neighborhoods in Newark. Defined by clear boundaries, the Ironbound is served by rail, air and water connections, which make the area extremely accessible. Close to five hundred above-market-rates housing units have been built and sold in the last five years, and more are being built daily. The Ironbound neighborhood has a vibrant identity and a strong sense of community values. Through the years, the Ironbound has attracted waves of immigrants and new businesses. Residents and businesses have fought many battles to defend the livability of the Ironbound and are currently seeking new ways to improve the quality of life in the community.

Currently, however, the livability of the Ironbound is at risk. Infrastructure and services such as roads, parking, schools, recreation areas, fire stations and other facilities are heavily overloaded. In the case of schools, classes sometimes have as many as forty children and Figure B.1 playgrounds have been turned into parking lots. Due in part to the condition of the outdated facilities, a large percentage of the Ironbound student population attends private institutions, adding to the financial Of the twenty-six schools in Newark that are over one hundred years old, burden of the working-class parents of these children. fourteen are located in SLT I. This includes Lafayette Street School, which, with an original wing built in 1848, is the oldest operating school The Central Ward schools serve an area that was the center of the 1967 building in the State of New Jersey. Following closely behind Lafayette summer riots. During this era, there were 1,409 tenement apartment Street School are two Central Ward schools, Morton Street and Newton houses in the area, of which 1,247 were judged substandard. While the Street, whose original dates of construction are 1851 and 1866, enrollment in the Central Ward has diminished over the years due to respectively. Due to the age of the buildings and the programs that are families leaving or the closing of public and private housing, there is a needed to meet the students’ needs, there is a real need for new schools resurgence of new public and private housing all over this ward. Most of and other major renovations in SLT I. the students attending school in the Central Ward receive free lunch, which is an indication of the economic status of the area. Many students Critical facilities issues are summarized below. A detailed statistical presently live in public housing and come to school in need of assistance summary with infrastructure, existing capacity, projected enrollment, and with health and social needs. Because of the identified needs, most unhoused student data for each SLT I school is provided in Table C.2. schools in the Central Ward provide after-school programs in an attempt to provide safe havens for the children. One school has a new health clinic that opened several years ago.

NEWARK PUBLIC SCHOOLS 2005 LONG RANGE FACILITIES PLAN DISTRIC OVERVIEW PAGE B:5 TABLE B.3 SLT I Statistical Summary

CAPACITY AND ENROLLMENT INFRASTRUCTURE

Grades Existing 2004-05 Site Size Gross Dates of Construction (9/04) Capacity Enrollment (acres) Sq. Ft. Orig. Add. Add. Add. SLT I CENTRAL Burnet Street PK-8 370 296 1.34 84,460 1868 1906 1914 Cleveland PK-6 452 330 1.31 78,235 1932 Dr. M L King, Jr. K-8 650 597 1.92 113,930 1872 1900 1907 1963 18th Avenue PK-6 465 308 2.56 96,300 1871 1900 1915 1923 Harold Wilson/SLT Office Vacant [368] 0 7.60 75,300 1984 Morton Street 1-8 557 338 1.43 102,945 1885 1909 Newton Street K-8 626 477 1.34 98,930 1866 1873 1900 1904 Quitman Street PK-4 900 405 6.50 156,450 1963 Berliner (at Quitman) SE 84 47 38,950 1974 Sussex Avenue 2-8 551 471 1.42 64,429 1892 1954 1996 Sussex Avenue Annex K-1 Incl. Above Incl. Above 0.44 27,525 1970 Warren Street K-8 308 230 0.56 65,690 1891 1908 Subtotal 4,963 3,499 24.56 938,715 SLT I EAST Ann Street K-8 805 1,110 2.62 92,120 1885 1897 1916 1923 Ann Street ECC PK/K Incl. Above Incl. Above Leased 4,000 Hawkins Street K-8 494 615 1.07 64,660 1887 1904 1922 Lafayette Street 1-8 643 765 1.10 75,170 1848 1863 1881 1904 Lafayette Street Annex PK-1 Incl. Above Incl. Above Leased 8,485 1874 Oliver Street PK-8 612 812 0.86 93,115 1869 1903 1915 1922 South Street K-5 296 236 0.69 35,090 1883 1900 Wilson Avenue PK-8 294 809 0.70 82,865 1881 1900 1906 1925 Wilson Avenue ECC PK Incl. Above Incl. Above 0.14 8,000 1900 Subtotal 3,144 4,347 7.18 463,505 SLT I TOTALS 8,107 7,846 31.74 1,402,220

NOTES: 2004-05 Enrollments do not include Charter School student or out-of- district placements Capacity calculations are based on prescribed NJDOE methodologies, including class size.

2005 LONG RANGE FACILITIES PLAN NEWARK PUBLIC SCHOOLS EXISTING FACILITIES PAGE B:4 SLT II Facilities

SLT II consists of the twelve secondary schools. Six serve as comprehensive high schools, four as magnet high schools, and two as alternative high schools. A fifth magnet high school, History High School, is scheduled to open in 2006-07. Additionally, one of the comprehensive high schools houses the Newark Evening School. The original construction of nine of the secondary schools occurred prior to 1935. Eight of the buildings have had additions erected. The average age of the additions, excluding the 1996 addition to Arts High School, is 41 years. Due to the age of these buildings, the high schools require extensive physical plant renovations. More importantly, however, the schools must be prepared to offer students a program of studies that meets the rigorous demands of the 21st century. To do this, schools must have the facilities, technological hardware, and updated curricula to graduate students who are computer, as well as content, literate. As part of the ongoing Facilities Figure B.2 Management Plans, two new High Schools are currently under construction, with the Science Park High School and the new Central The Abbott v. Burke Supreme Court decision mandated that schools High School scheduled to be completed in 2006 and 2008 respectively. address the social needs of their students. Students cannot learn if their The addition and renovation project for West Side High School is in the physical and emotional needs are not met. Consequently, health and final design phase. social services personnel and dropout prevention counselors are provided to address these needs. It has become the function of the schools to serve Newark’s public high schools are redefining their structures to its entire student body by utilizing the resources of the community or accommodate learning communities and academies that provide smaller providing needed services at the school site. To do this, additional group settings. The addition of new and innovative programs has also facilities must be available to service the medical, nutritional, and dental affected the need for an extended school day. No longer is the teacher at needs of students, as well as provide for individual, group and family the front of a classroom with desks neatly aligned in rows. Teachers are counseling sessions. One example of a need that schools are addressing is the facilitators for students who now work in classrooms equipped with the addition of childcare centers where children of students are cared for the latest educational computer hardware and software in every discipline. while their mothers attend classes. Computer and science labs, photography and videography studios, interactive television (ITV) classrooms, telecommunications and state-of- Critical facilities issues determined by the Existing Facilities the-art shops are in constant competition to keep abreast of increased Evaluation and Facilities Condition Report are summarized below. technology. For students to be competitive, they must have access to the A detailed statistical summary with infrastructure, existing most current programs and facilities equipped to meet these needs. capacity, projected enrollment, and unhoused student data for each SLT II school is provided in Table C.3.

NEWARK PUBLIC SCHOOLS 2005 LONG RANGE FACILITIES PLAN DISTRIC OVERVIEW PAGE B:1 TABLE B.4 SLT II Statistical Summary

CAPACITY AND ENROLLMENT INFRASTRUCTURE

Grades Existing 2004-05 Site Size Gross Dates of Construction (9/04) Capacity Enrollment (acres) Sq. Ft. Orig. Add. Add. Add. SLT II Arts High 9-12 817 586 1.15 200,000 1931 1996 Barringer High 9-12 1,650 1,916 5.99 295,450 1964 Central High 9-12 1,202 849 1.58 207,365 1911 1974 East Side High 9-12 1,477 1,549 1.69 225,600 1912 1926 1955 1982 Malcolm X Shabazz 9-12 1,423 1,411 4.36 329,630 1914 1976 Academy of Vocational Careers 9-12 357 211 2.80 115,485 1890 1965 Renaissance Academy (at Various Locations) 6-12 491 Science High (LEASED) 9-12 446 593 60,000 1910 Technology High 9-12 715 591 2.50 149,620 1920 1960 University High 7-12 864 536 3.08 140,015 1957 Weequahic High 9-12 786 1046 2.00 186,125 1933 1976 Newark Vocational 9-12 625 93 4.26 157,390 1957 West Side High 9-12 868 1,486 5.18 165,255 1926 1982 SLT II TOTALS 11,230 11,358 35.90 2,231,935

NOTES: Projected enrollments assume that special education students will be equally distributed throughout the district. Capacity calculations are based on prescribed NJDOE methodologies, including class size. Renaissance Academy is a “school within a school” program

2005 LONG RANGE FACILITIES PLAN NEWARK PUBLIC SCHOOLS EXISTING FACILITIES PAGE B:4 SLT III Facilities

School Leadership Team III serves generally the South Ward, which is split by I-78 into north and south sections. It includes sixteen physical sites and the Bruce Street School for the Deaf, which is housed in George Washington Carver Elementary School. .

While enrollment at many of the schools has decreased during the past two decades due to the demolition of housing, a tremendous amount of redevelopment is being realized throughout the SLT III area. The newest school within the District was opened in 2003 to replace the existing Belmont Runyon School, approximately two blocks from the existing site. Townhouses are built and opening in the area served by the Avon Avenue Elementary School. Apartment houses have been refurbished along Elizabeth Avenue, affecting Maple Avenue and Maple Avenue Annex. In addition, a large townhouse development is being planned for the area served by the Dayton Street School.

The majority of students attending schools in SLT III receive free lunch, indicative of the economic condition of the area. As a result, many students come to school in need of health and social attention. Many extended day programs have been developed at the schools to provide enhanced academic programs and safe environments for our students during after school hours. “Schools of Promise” is an initiative being implemented at four of the schools. These schools provide an intense after-school program as well as comprehensive medical and dental services for all students. In addition, two schools have school-based Figure B.3 health clinics to serve students.

Project Grad has been a major initiative implemented in eight schools that feed into Malcolm X Shabazz High School. It has been expanded to include Central High School and its feeder schools as well. This project allows the vision of all students to attend college to become a reality.

NEWARK PUBLIC SCHOOLS 2005 LONG RANGE FACILITIES PLAN DISTRIC OVERVIEW PAGE B:1 TABLE B.5 SLT III Statistical Summary

CAPACITY AND ENROLLMENT INFRASTRUCTURE

Grades Existing 2004-05 Site Size Gross Dates of Construction (9/04) Capacity Enrollment (acres) Sq. Ft. Orig. Add. Add. Add. SLT III NORTH Avon Avenue K-8 488 543 2.06 93,035 1905 1925 Belmont-Runyon PK-5 544 432 6.60 115,000 2004 Bragaw Avenue K-8 484 369 1.15 69,515 1928 Clinton Avenue K-3 309 279 1.14 43,570 1969 Hawthorne Avenue K-8 510 346 1.13 72,440 1895 1900 1908 1914 Louise A. Spencer PK-8 1,055 759 4.82 196,545 1976 Madison PK-6 715 526 1.29 92,265 1890 1926 Miller Street K-8 665 446 1.49 83,855 1913 1963 William H. Brown 4-8 872 413 1.87 106,025 1900 1908 1963 Subtotal 5,642 4,113 16.19 872,250 SLT III SOUTH Chancellor Avenue 3-8 614 595 2.80 93,035 1930 Chancellor Avenue Annex K-2 Incl. Above Incl. Above 3.71 46,765 1959 Dayton Street K-8 702 429 2.33 134,350 1950 George W. Carver Pk-8/SE 1,168 885 3.98 209,500 1979 Maple Avenue 3-8 467 595 1.37 68,905 1924 Maple Avenue Annex K-2 Incl. Above Incl. Above 0.54 21,000 1954 Peshine Avenue K-8 879 823 2.06 128,825 1911 1963 Subtotal 3,830 3,327 16.79 702,380 SLT III TOTALS 9,472 7,440 32.98 1,574,630

2005 LONG RANGE FACILITIES PLAN NEWARK PUBLIC SCHOOLS PAGE B:12 SLT IV Facilities

School Leadership Team IV serves the North Ward and the northern part of the Central Ward. SLT IV operates eleven buildings in the North Ward and four buildings in the Central Ward. There are also two annexes and the Early Childhood Center located in the former Arlington Avenue School building.

The North Ward is one of most densely populated areas in Newark. It is adjacent to the downtown area and is accessible through public transportation and the city subway. This access makes the area very desirable for living and working. Older homes and multiple dwelling units are common in the area. Through the years, the North Ward has attracted immigration from South America, the Caribbean, and other Spanish- speaking countries.

Most parts of the North Ward are very commercial and congested, while some are affected by the elimination of former housing projects. This is the situation in the Broadway Elementary School area, where the Bishop Walsh Projects were torn down and are slowly being replaced by low- income subsidized townhouses.

Immigration is flourishing in all areas of the North Ward, causing the area to rapidly grow and overcrowd most schools. Most schools are very old. Figure B.4 Elliott Street, Benjamin Franklin, Roberto Clemente, Dr. William Horton, Sussex Avenue, and Roseville predate 1900, while Ridge Street, The schools located in the northern Central Ward are in an impoverished Abington, Branch Brook, First Avenue and part of McKinley were all area affected by the summer riots of 1967. Tenement apartment houses built in the early 1900’s Small classrooms, crowded playgrounds, narrow and two-family homes are abundant in the area, with many of them in hallways, and very limited cafeteria spaces are some of the facilities sub-standard condition, although that is rapidly changing with the challenges that these schools must face daily. Ridge Street School and introduction of new 3- and 3-family homes and renovated apartment First Avenue house an average of 38-40 students per classroom. All buildings. Schools in this area were mostly built around the 1920’s, available space is used for instruction including auditorium and small except Dr. E. Alma Flagg, which was constructed in the early 1970s. offices. Overcrowding is a persistent problem in these schools as well.

NEWARK PUBLIC SCHOOLS 2005 LONG RANGE FACILITIES PLAN EXISTING FACILITIES PAGE B:12 TABLE B.6 SLT IV Statistical Summary

CAPACITY AND ENROLLMENT INFRASTRUCTURE

Grades Existing 2004-05 Site Size Gross Dates of Construction (9/04) Capacity Enrollment (acres) Sq. Ft. Orig. Add. Add. Add. SLT IV EAST Branch Brook K-5 47 159 1.00 39,960 1925 Broadway / Munoz Marin K-4/5-8 1,111 1051 4.51 206,625 1955 Elliot Street K-4 513 662 0.75 79,975 1871 1890 1905 1921 Franklin K-4 592 538 1.09 110,185 1889 1922 Gladys Hillman-Jones 7-8 351 316 1.23 91,836 1911 1998 McKinley PK-6 1,046 787 3.15 157,345 1915 1959 Rafael Hernandez K-8 564 749 3.50 107,100 1995 Ridge Street K-8 493 868 1.15 41,405 1911 Ridge Street ECC PK/K Incl. Above Incl. Above 0.87 14,040 1924 Roberto Clemente K-4 503 612 0.96 77,740 1883 1897 1927 Subtotal 5,220 5,644 11.95 926,211 SLT IV WEST Abington Avenue K-8 728 881 1.01 93,400 1900 1913 1925 Dr. E Alma Flagg K-8 405 674 4.33 75,300 1984 Dr. William H. Horton K-8 713 896 1.37 105,800 1893 1914 1960 1976 First Avenue K-8 583 813 1.54 59,100 1928 Roseville Avenue K-4 235 211 0.25 24,220 1883 Subtotal 2,664 3,475 8.50 357,820 SLT IV TOTALS 7,884 9,119 20.45 1,284,031

NOTES: 2004-05 Enrollments do not include Charter School student or out-of-district placements. Capacity calculations are based on prescribed NJDOE methodologies, including class size.

2005 LONG RANGE FACILITIES PLAN NEWARK PUBLIC SCHOOLS EXISTING FACILITIES PAGE B:14 SLT V Facilities

Geographically, SLT V serves the West and the western parts of the Central Ward. SLT V is split by the Garden State Parkway into east and west sections. The SLT operates seven elementary schools serving a variety of grade levels, four elementary/middle schools, two middle schools, and one special education school serving children with severe handicap disabilities. (New Jersey Regional Day School is also under the SLT V umbrella but is located in the South Ward and not included in the plan since it is a state-owned, district-operated facility.) Mount Vernon School, one of the existing elementary/middle schools, is a large, multicultural, multilingual school representing over thirty different languages. In the past two years, grades five through eight have been phased out as part of a restructuring plan for this school. These grades are being phased into Vailsburg Middle School since is currently under populated.

SLT V houses about 40% of the special education population in The Newark Public Schools due to the availability of classroom space. John F. Kennedy serves children with severe handicap disabilities from the ages of eleven to twenty years of age. Other schools with significant special education populations are Boylan, Alexander, Camden, Camden Middle, Fifteenth Avenue, Fourteenth Avenue, Lincoln, Mount Vernon, South Seventeenth, Thirteenth Avenue and Vailsburg Middle. Although SLT V offers the full continuum of special education placement, the program of choice is inclusion, which is offered whenever appropriate to Figure B.5 the students’ needs.

The unique physical characteristics of SLT V buildings vary from school to school. Overall, at least two-thirds of the schools are reaching or have passed the one hundred-year mark of existence. These schools include Alexander, Boylan, Fifteenth Avenue, Fourteenth Avenue, Lincoln, South Seventeenth, Speedway and Harriet Tubman and Vailsburg Middle. Some of the schools are currently full or overcrowded while others are less well underutilized. The surrounding areas of Harriet Tubman, South Seventeenth, Fourteenth Avenue Schools are undergoing major revitalization, bringing in new single and multiple family dwellings. However, the existing school facilities do not reflect the revitalization of their neighborhoods.

NEWARK PUBLIC SCHOOLS 2005 LONG RANGE FACILITIES PLAN EXISTING FACILITIES PAGE B:14 TABLE B.7 SLT V Statistical Summary

CAPACITY AND ENROLLMENT INFRASTRUCTURE

Grades Existing 2004-05 Site Size Gross Dates of Construction (9/04) Capacity Enrollment (acres) Sq. Ft. Orig. Add. Add. Add. SLT V EAST Camden Street PK-4 991 511 2.47 161,785 1968 Camden Street Middle 5-8 901 573 2.94 170,900 1973 Fifteenth Avenue PK-8 567 284 1.04 90,575 1891 1897 1917 1926 Fourteenth Avenue K-4 340 196 1.15 59,265 1906 Harriet Tubman PK-6 365 291 1.14 51,095 1876 1974 John F. Kennedy SE 279 113 0.91 46,180 1967 South 17th Street PK-8 578 523 1.37 84,770 1911 1950 1973 Thirteenth Avenue PK-8 1,378 674 3.44 206,520 1971 Subtotal 5,399 3,488 14.46 871,090 SLT V WEST Alexander Street 1-5 617 384 0.71 77,720 1886 1903 1918 1921 Boylan Street PK-1 50 165 1.36 24,245 1927 Lincoln K-5 415 496 0.79 65,400 1908 Mount Vernon K-5, 7-8 1,024 1055 5.29 116,565 1954 1996 Speedway Avenue K-4 283 204 1.03 35,035 1916 1972 Valisburg Middle 6-8 674 471 1.76 113,230 1931 1957 Subtotal 3,063 2,775 10.94 432,195 SLT V TOTALS 8,462 6,263 25.40 1,303,285

NOTES: 2004-05 Enrollments do not include Charter School student or out-of-district placements Capacity calculations are based on prescribed NJDOE methodologies, including class size

2005 LONG RANGE FACILITIES PLAN NEWARK PUBLIC SCHOOLS EXISTING FACILITIES PAGE B:14