tracking progress engaging communities Abbott Indicators Technical Report
Union City new jersey
Education Law Center
spring 2005
tracking progress engaging communities Abbott Indicators Technical Report
Union City new jersey
Education Law Center
union cit y
Executive Summary
Public education helps today’s children prepare for an adulthood when they can take meaningful roles in society, compete in the labor market, and contribute as members of their communities. All of New Jersey’s children and youth have a constitutional right to a “thorough and efficient” free public education. This represents our state’s promise to provide an education that at least equips students with the knowledge and skills to meet the state’s rigorous academic standards. Until all of New Jersey’s children receive the same high-quality education, this constitutional promise is not realized. union cit y
Executive Summary
Several years ago, education stakeholders We wrote this report with Union City’s recognized that children did not receive the education stakeholders in mind. The report is same education throughout the state. Urban a tool to help them identify and support what and suburban school districts did not have is working and ensure that remaining chal- the same resources to support their schools. lenges are overcome. The goal of an equally Thanks to the efforts of education profession- sound education for all New Jersey students als, parents, and advocates, the lowest income is reachable with their continued support and cities and the wealthiest suburbs now have commitment. the same funding to support general educa-
tion. The poorest urban school districts were Union City Abbott Indicators Project and Report required to undergo a series of reforms and improvements to ensure that the funds are Union City is one of 31 urban school districts used to fulfill the constitutional promise. in New Jersey known as Abbott districts. Who should support these reforms and As an Abbott district, Union City receives ensure that the schools continue to improve? funding to equalize its per student general Everyone who cares about public education. education budget with the most successful Schools belong first to the community and suburban school districts in the state. Union everyone in the community has a stake in City’s children and youth are also entitled to them. Parents want their children to have the universal, high-quality preschool; reforms to best education possible. Homeowners and help them meet the state’s rigorous standards businesses support public education through for academic achievement in Kindergarten taxes. Community members want to be sure through Grade 12; safe, healthy, and educa- that their collective investment is used wisely tionally adequate school facilities; and many and effectively to educate the children. other programs and services to ensure that they come to school ready to learn. Through
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Executive Summary
a series of indicators, the Union City Abbott K-12 education (including standards-based Indicators Report presents the status of these reform and student and family supports), and reforms and student progress to date. school facilities construction. All of the rem- The Union City Abbott Indicators Report edies work together to ensure a seamless plan and three others we are releasing this year in for school improvement. They are presented Camden, Newark, and Trenton are products of separately because they have distinctive logics the Abbott Indicators Project at the Education and requirements. Law Center. The report is written for a wide The indicators cover a broad range of audience: everyone with a stake in public edu- topics about school practices and a number cation in Union City. The project goals are to: of student outcomes. We break down school 1. Inform people in Union City about the status practices into six “elements of effective of school improvement efforts and student schooling.”1 Ultimately, maximizing opportu- outcomes. nities for students to learn is the main focus of 2. Engage people in Union City in exploring and discussing what is working and what still needs school improvement efforts. Other elements to be done. of effective schooling are needed to provide 3. Develop and put a plan into action that students with these opportunities. These are: supports school improvement. student and family supports, teacher qualifica- 4. Establish a system of accountability practices that local education stakeholders can use in tions and supports, budget, leadership, and years to come. school facilities. Key findings of the Union City Abbott Academic progress and student well-being Indicators Report are presented below. First, are the end products of all of the elements of we list indicators about Union City as a com- effective schooling. We encourage readers to munity and the students who are enrolled in view student outcomes in light of how well all the public schools. The remaining findings of the elements of effective schooling have are organized by Abbott remedy: preschool, been implemented. In the full report that
Educ ation L aw Center union city abbott indic ators Technic al report union cit y
Executive Summary
follows this summary, all indicators findings Union City students move a great deal more are presented with accompanying tables and than New Jersey students on average—nearly one in five students entered or left their school discussion. at least once during the 2002–03 school year. High student mobility can disrupt educational progress and negatively affect student learning. Key Findings
The Community and Students The Preschool Program Union City is the most densely populated city By 2005–06, each Abbott district is required in New Jersey, with a land area just over one to serve 90 percent of its eligible population. square mile and a population of about 67,000. Union City met the enrollment requirement In 2000, more than one in five residents in two years before the state deadline. In 2003– Union City lived below the poverty level, 04, it served 90 percent of the city’s eligible compared to the state average of eight percent. children in its preschool program. More than one in four Union City children lived To serve all of the children in the district, the in families earning below the poverty level, Union City Board of Education contracts with compared to about one in nine statewide. 29 private provider and Head Start programs In 2000, the unemployment rate in Union City to offer Abbott preschool in 36 locations. The was 12 percent, about double that of the state district also runs six preschool programs in its as a whole. own school buildings. More than half of Union City’s residents were To date, the district has used extensive and cre- born in another country, compared to only 18 ative strategies to identify and recruit children percent statewide. into its preschool program. More than 90 percent of Union City’s 11,600 The law requires schools and districts to provide students are eligible for free- or reduced-price children with disabilities with appropriate edu- lunch. cational experiences that are tailored to their in- dividual needs. For as much time as possible, this Nearly fifteen percent of the student enrollment education must be provided in inclusive, rather come from families that recently immigrated. than separate settings. In Union City, most of the Almost half of the students enrolled in the 43 preschoolers with disabilities were educated district do not speak or write English fluently. in self-contained classrooms or received special Nearly all (98%) of the English language learn- education services outside of the preschool set- ers in the district speak Spanish at home. ting for up to three hours per day.
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Executive Summary
Union City’s district and community provider In 2003–04, Union City preschool teachers and programs use the same high-quality, research- administrators were introduced to the Early based curricula. Spanish-speaking preschoolers Language Assessment System (ELAS). The ELAS with limited English proficiency receive the will be used statewide to generate information same high-quality curriculum, with an addi- about how preschoolers are doing and help tional bilingual component. preschool teachers tailor their instruction to The Kindergarten curriculum was recently made children’s needs. more challenging to adapt to the improved The Union City Board of Education is keep- skills of children entering from the Union City ing track of student progress in preschool and preschool program. beyond with the intention of evaluating the Nearly all of the 116 teachers in Union City’s preschool program in the future. preschool program had earned at least a Better program quality and child outcome four-year college degree and were certified as measures are needed for all Abbott preschool required under Abbott. programs to help stakeholders understand the In Union City, the average preschool teacher strengths, weaknesses, and challenges confront- salary was $40,735 in 2004–05. On average ed by Abbott preschool programs. preschool teachers in district-run programs earned about $7,900 more than did teachers in any other provider type. The reasons for this K-12 Education continued difference in salaries is unclear. When Research shows that children in the early compared to teachers in community provider elementary grades benefit from smaller class programs, district teachers have similar levels sizes. Abbott funding has had some immedi- of education, certification, and years serving as ate, clear effects on conditions in Union City lead preschool teacher. schools: average class sizes are smaller than the At $9,164 in 2003–04, Union City’s preschool Abbott standard in most grades. Limited class- program had less money on a per student basis room space hampered the district’s progress in than the other Abbott districts on average. Grade 6, however, where class sizes were larger District staff report that preschool costs are than the Abbott standard. kept down by conducting intensive budget At both the elementary and secondary levels, training for community providers and monitor- students in Union City spend more time on ing expenditures through monthly, rather than instruction than do students in the wealthiest quarterly reporting. districts, the other Abbott districts, or students throughout New Jersey.
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Executive Summary
Union City has 851 special needs students ages In 2003–04, Union City did better than other six to 21. Almost half of the district’s students Abbott districts, the state average, and even with disabilities go to school in “very inclusion- the wealthiest school districts in the state in ary” settings (spending 80% or more of their the percent of elementary school teachers who day with the general education population) were “highly qualified” under the federal defini- compared to 27 percent in the other Abbott tion. Almost all of the district’s high school districts and 42 percent in the state overall. teachers were “highly qualified.” Content-specific curriculum committees made The Union City Board of Education offers up of district staff and teachers develop and its teachers ongoing and varied professional review the district’s instructional programs on development activities throughout the year and a staggered, five-year cycle to ensure that they during the summer. The district uses methods are current and aligned with the state’s curricu- that stretch its professional development bud- lum standards. get and capitalize on the experience of veteran Union City’s high schools offer an array of teachers. honors and advanced placement courses to Property wealth is an important indicator of help students become more competitive local capacity to support its public services applicants and prepare them for college. We including education. In 2003, New Jersey’s compared Union City’s honors and AP course wealthiest suburbs had more than four times offerings to those in Tenafly, an “I” district more property wealth per student than Union several miles away. Union City offers 21 honors City. The state average was triple that of and advanced placement courses compared to Union City. Tenafly’s 31. At $10,337 per student, Union City has had as Every school in the district has a “Support Ser- much as the successful suburban districts to vices Task Force,” that helps students who have support general education since Abbott parity health, mental health, academic, or behavioral funding began. problems. The task force coordinates support In 2003–04, Union City received $819 per stu- services at school and makes referrals to com- dent in supplemental program aid to support munity-based agencies. the second half-day of Kindergarten and other Union City faculty attendance improved programs and services to meet the needs of between 1994–95 and 2002–03. At 97 percent students and families. This figure is much lower in 2002–03, the faculty attendance rate was than the $2,017 that the other Abbott districts at about the same level as the most successful receive because Union City did not request any suburban districts in the state. Additional Abbott Aid from the state.
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Executive Summary
Over the years, the district has received grant Union City’s fourth grade general education funds to support technology initiatives and students made gains in language arts literacy student services. According to the district, these and math, and scored well above the proficien- grants make up a small portion of the budget. cy threshold between 1999–00 and 2002–03. Elementary school attendance rates were about Union City’s general education scores rose most the same as the wealthiest districts in the state, dramatically in 2000–01, as did the scores in while high school attendance was consistently many districts throughout the state. better than in the other Abbott districts. On average, Union City’s language arts and Union City compared poorly with the state on math achievement scores in Grades 8 and 11 two indicators of child and youth well-being. have stayed at or slightly above the proficiency The teen birth rate remained steady, but was threshold between 2000 and 2003. About 90 almost double the state average. The number percent of eighth graders scored proficient on of substantiated child abuse and neglect cases language arts literacy in 2002–03. Abbott has more than doubled between 1998 and 2002. As truly yet to provide for students in middle and a central public institution of the urban com- high schools. munity, schools play a critical role in ensuring In New Jersey, there was no official graduation the well-being of children and youth. Schools data until recently. In this report, we estimated are not alone in their responsibility—parents, historical graduation rates using a cumulative elected officials, and public and private agencies promotion index. Our estimates suggest that in the city must all play a role. As the African half of Union City’s class of 2001–02 gradu- proverb so famously says: “It takes a whole vil- ated from school. The district’s promotion index lage to raise a child.” declined from a high of 61 percent seven years None of Union City’s schools qualify as “persis- earlier. tently dangerous” under federal law. Less than half of the class of 2002–03 in Union At four percent, the district’s 2002–03 elemen- City graduated by passing the traditional High tary school suspension rate was just above School Proficiency Assessment. Most of the the average rate in the wealthiest suburbs. In remaining graduates that year took the alterna- 1995–96, the rate was two percent. tive test, the Special Review Assessment. At seven percent, Union City’s 2002–03 high school suspension rate was about the same as the wealthiest suburbs, on average. The high school suspension rate rose from about four percent in 1995–96.
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Executive Summary
More than four out of five Union City high Two school projects were initially delayed school seniors took the SAT in 2002–03, sur- because the state wanted the existing build- passing the state average. Union City student ings to be renovated instead of demolished due performance on the verbal and math tests to their historical landmark status. This issue remained below the state average between was resolved when an agreement was made 1994–95 and 2002–03. to remove and preserve certain parts of those buildings.
School Facilities Construction Union City was the only district in New Jersey Endnotes to renovate a private preschool provider-owned building under its first-round Long Range Facili- 1. We thank Fred Fre- ties Plan. low of the Rockefeller Foundation for sug- Union City is one of the few Abbott districts gesting this approach. that has any completed buildings and has made good progress in getting projects through the pipeline. At least part of the district’s success with school facilities construction can be credited to the strong, close involvement and support of the Mayor and city council, particularly around finding suitable land sites. Union City was one of six districts awarded a “Demonstration Project:” a new school to replace Emerson High School and an athletic complex at the site of Roosevelt Stadium. Through its designation as a School Renais- sance Zone, Union City will also have a new magnet school.
TR ACKING PROGRESS, ENGAGING COMMUNITIES Educ ation L aw Center union cit y
Executive Summary
Look for meeting announcements. Look for Next Steps for Education Stakeholders events and meetings where other people in your community will be discussing this report Read the report. Try to make the time to read in particular or school improvement in general. the whole technical report: it contains a lot of You can find out about them on local television useful context and information. If you cannot, stations and in local newspapers. read the summary report. Both are available on the Education Law Center website: Take part. Attend local meetings and engage www.edlawcenter.org. in conversations about what you learned with your neighbors, school and district staff, and Talk about what you learned. Discuss what your school board members. you read with your friends, family, congregation members, and work colleagues. Push for solutions. Remember the goal is to support school improvement. It is not enough Dig deeper. Ask why and how. If you read about to identify strengths and weaknesses. Once you something that pleases or concerns you, learn talk about the findings with your neighbors, more about why and how it came to be that decide what needs to be done and help make way. Ask about quality. The indicators may tell sure that it happens. you that a program or practice exists but not how well it is being implemented. Stay involved. School improvement is a multi year investment. It will take your continued Look at other sources of information. The commitment. Abbott Indicators are comprehensive, but not exhaustive. Other sources of information will be needed to get a clear idea of what the schools are doing. For example, low-perform- ing schools undergo an external review process called Collaborative Assessment and Planning for Achievement (CAPA). If your school had a CAPA review, you can read the resulting report.
Educ ation L aw Center union city abbott indic ators Technic al report xi xii TR ACKING PROGRESS, ENGAGING COMMUNITIES Educ ation L aw Center union cit y
Contents
iii Executive Summary 24 Educational Attainment of Preschool 60 Alternative Education teachers 61 college and Work Transition Programs xv List of Figures 25 preschool Teacher Certification 62 After-School Programs 26 preschool Teacher Experience 63 summer Programs 1 introduction 26 preschool Teacher Salary 64 Art and Music 2 Abbott v. Burke 27 performance Evaluation 64 K-12 Teacher Qualifications and 2 the Abbott Indicators Project 28 professional Development Supports 4 the Report 29 Preschool Budget 64 student-Teacher Ratio 5 organization of the Report 30 Preschool Leadership 65 Faculty Attendance 7 the Indicators 30 Preschool Student Outcomes 65 highly QualifiedT eachers 7 reading the Tables and Charts 32 the Status of Preschool: A Summary 67 staffingP atterns 9 summaries 69 professional Development 37 3. K-12 Education 71 K-12 Budget 11 1. The Community and Students 38 abbott Overview 71 overview 38 opportunities for Students to Learn 71 Fiscal Distress 15 2. The Preschool Program 38 whole School Reform 73 school Finance 16 abbott Overview 43 program Structure 78 K-12 Leadership 16 opportunities for Students to Learn 46 programs for Students with Disabilities 78 school Leadership Councils 16 preschool Enrollment 47 programs for English Language Learners 80 Abbott Advisory Council 16 program Setting 50 curriculum 81 Local Support Team 17 recruitment and Outreach 52 Student and Family Supports 81 K-12 Student Outcomes 18 programs for Children with Disabilities 53 Abbott Overview 82 student Attendance 20 program Content 53 Full-Day Kindergarten 83 child and Youth Well-Being 23 student and Family Supports 54 Early Literacy 85 school Safety 23 program Quality 55 parent Involvement 89 suspension 24 Preschool Teacher Qualifications and 56 health and Social Services 90 student Achievement Supports 58 Access to Technology 107 high School Completion
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Contents
109 routes to Graduation 111 college Entrance Exams 112 the Status of K-12 Education: a Summary 119 4. School Facilities Construction 120 abbott Overview 120 the First-Round Long-Range Facilities Plans 120 the Planning Process 122 preschool Facilities Planning 123 Leadership 123 community and Other Input 124 Progress and Challenges 128 the Status of School Facilities construction: A Summary
131 Appendices 132 abbott Indicators List 136 district and Community Reviewer Letters 138 List of Abbott Districts 139 data Collection and Analysis 141 data Sources and Definitions 154 Glossary
166 Acknowledgements 169 About The Education Law Center 170 About The Authors
xiv TR ACKING PROGRESS, ENGAGING COMMUNITIES Educ ation L aw Center union cit y
List of Figures
Introduction 21 Figure 2.5 3. K-12 Education 2 Figure A Educational Environment of Preschool 38 Figure 3.1 Abbott v. Burke: New Jersey’s Framework for Students with Disabilities: All Other Abbott Union City Schools, Grade Structure, and Urban School Improvement Districts, 2003–04 Enrollment: 2003–04 6 Figure B 24 Figure 2.6 43 Figure 3.2 Elements of Effective Schooling Preschool Teachers by Provider Type: Total Instructional Time (in minutes) by Union City, 2004–05 School Level and District Grouping, 2002–03 25 Figure 2.7 44 Figure 3.3 1. Union City: The Community and Students Preschool Teacher Educational Attainment by Average Class Size by Grade: Union City, 12 Figure 1.1 Provider Type: Union City, 2004–05 2002–03 Conditions of Living and Learning 26 Figure 2.8 44 Figure 3.4 in Union City Preschool Teacher Certification by Provider Elementary School Average Class Size by 13 Figure 1.2 Type: Union City, 2004–05 District Grouping, 1994–95 to 2002–03 Characteristics of Students in Union City 27 Figure 2.9 45 Figure 3.5 14 Figure 1.3 Preschool Teacher Average Years as Lead Elementary School Enrollment: Union City, Languages Spoken by English Language Teacher: Union City, 2004–05 1994–95 to 2002–03 Learners: Union City, 2003–04 28 Figure 2.10 46 Figure 3.6 Average Preschool Teacher Salary High School Average Class Size by District by Provider Type: Union City, 2004–05 Grouping, 1994–95 to 2002–03 2. The Preschool Program 16 Figure 2.1 29 Figure 2.11 47 Figure 3.7 Preschool Enrollment: Union City, Per Student Preschool Aid by Source: High School Enrollment: Union City, 1994–95 1999–00 to 2004–05 Union City and All Other Abbott Districts, to 2002–03 2002–03 and 2003–04 17 Figure 2.2 48 Figure 3.8 Preschool Population Served: Union City, 30 Figure 2.12 Educational Environment of Students with 2000–01 to 2004–05 Per Student Preschool Aid: Disabilities Ages 6 to 21 by District Grouping, Union City and All Other Abbott Districts, 2003–04 18 Figure 2.3 2002–03 and 2003–04 Preschool Enrollment by Provider Type: Union 54 Figure 3.9 City, 1999–00 to 2002–03 33 Figure 2.13 Kindergarten Average Class Size by District Abbott Preschool Program: Grouping, 2000–01 to 2002–03 21 Figure 2.4 Benchmark Status in Union City Educational Environment of Preschool Students with Disabilities: Union City, 2003–04
Educ ation L aw Center union city abbott indic ators Technic al report xv union cit y
List of Figures
55 Figure 3.10 76 Figure 3.20 86 Figure 3.30 Cumulative Percent Change in Kindergarten Per Student General Education Funding by NCLB (Category B) Index by District Grouping: Enrollment by District Grouping, 1999–00 to District Grouping, 2002–03 and 2003–04 High Schools, 1999–00 to 2002–03 2003–04 77 Figure 3.21 88 Figure 3.31 60 Figure 3.11 Average School Tax Rate by District Grouping, Suspension Rate by District Grouping: Student-Computer Ratio by District Grouping, 1998–2003 Elementary Schools, 1995–96 to 2002–03 1997–98 to 2002–03 78 Figure 3.22 89 Figure 3.32 64 Figure 3.12 Per Student Supplemental Program Aid by Suspension Rate by District Grouping: High Student-Teacher Ratio by District Grouping, Source: Union City and All Other Abbott Schools, 1995–96 to 2002–03 1994–95 to 2002–03 Districts, 2003–04 90 Figure 3.33 65 Figure 3.13 79 Figure 3.23 New Jersey’s Adequate Yearly Progress Targets Faculty Attendance by District Grouping, Per Student Supplemental Program Aid: Union for Language Arts Literacy 1994–95 to 2002–03 City and All Other Abbott Districts, 2002–03 90 Figure 3.34 66 Figure 3.14 and 2003–04 New Jersey’s Adequate Yearly Progress Targets Highly Qualified Teachers by District 82 Figure 3.24 for Math Grouping: Elementary Schools, 2003–04 Student Attendance by District Grouping: 92 Figure 3.35 67 Figure 3.15 Elementary Schools, 1994–95 to 2002–03 Categories and Action Steps for Schools Not Highly Qualified Teachers by District 83 Figure 3.25 Making Adequate Yearly Progress Grouping: High Schools, 2003–04 Student Attendance by District Grouping: 93 Figure 3.36 68 Figure 3.16 High Schools, 1994–95 to 2002–03 Grade 4 Language Arts Literacy Average Score Percent of Schools with Required Abbott Staff 84 Figure 3.26 by District Grouping, 1999–00 to 2002–03 Positions: Union City and All Other Abbott Child and Youth Well-Being Indicators: Union 94 Figure 3.37 Districts, 2002–03 to 2003–04 City and New Jersey, 1997–2002 Grade 4 Language Arts Literacy Proficiency: 72 Figure 3.17 85 Figure 3.27 Union City, 1998–99 to 2002–03 Average Property Value per Student by Category A Offenses by District Grouping: 94 Figure 3.38 District Grouping, 1998–2003 Elementary Schools, 1999–00 to 2002–03 Grade 4 Language Arts Literacy Proficiency by 73 Figure 3.18 85 Figure 3.28 Subgroup: Union City, 2002–03 Average Equalized Tax Rate by District Category A Offenses by District Grouping: 95 Figure 3.39 Grouping, 1998–2003 High Schools, 1999–00 to 2002–03 Grade 4 Math Average Score by District 74 Figure 3.19 86 Figure 3.29 Grouping, 1999–00 to 2002–03 General Education Funding by Source: NCLB (Category B) Index by District Grouping: Union City, 2003–04 Elementary Schools, 1999–00 to 2002–03
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List of Figures
96 Figure 3.40 103 Figure 3.50 107 Figure 3.60 Grade 4 Math Proficiency: Union City, Grade 11 (HSPT) Reading Average Score by Union City Schools Not Making Adequate 1998–99 to 2002–03 District Grouping: 1997–98 to 2000–01 Yearly Progress: Grade 11, 2003–04 96 Figure 3.41 103 Figure 3.51 108 Figure 3.61 Grade 4 Math Proficiency by Subgroup: Union Grade 11 (HSPT) Reading Proficiency: Union Percent Scoring Above National Median on City, 2002–03 City, 1997–98 to 2000–01 TerraNova by Grade and School: Union City, 97 Figure 3.42 104 Figure 3.52 2002–03 Union City Schools Not Making Adequate Grade 11 (HSPA) Language Arts Literacy 108 Figure 3.62 Yearly Progress: Grade 4, 2003–04 Average Score by District Grouping: 2001–02 Cumulative Promotion Index by District 98 Figure 3.43 to 2002–03 Grouping, 1994–95 to 2001–02 Grade 8 Language Arts Literacy Average Score 104 Figure 3.53 109 Figure 3.63 by District Grouping, 1999–00 to 2002–03 Grade 11 (HSPA) Language Arts Literacy Graduation by Traditional (HSPA/HSPT) Grade 98 Figure 3.44 Proficiency: Union City, 2001–02 to 2002–03 11 Exam by District Grouping, 1994–95 to Grade 8 Language Arts Literacy Proficiency: 105 Figure 3.54 2002–03 Union City, 1998–99 to 2002–03 Grade 11 (HSPA) Language Arts Literacy 110 Figure 3.64 99 Figure 3.45 Proficiency by Subgroup: Union City, 2002–03 Graduation by Alternative (SRA) Grade 11 Grade 8 Language Arts Literacy Proficiency by 105 Figure 3.55 Exam by District Grouping, 1994–95 to Subgroup: Union City, 2002–03 Grade 11 (HSPT) Math Average Score by 2002–03 99 Figure 3.46 District Grouping: 1997–98 to 2000–01 111 Figure 3.65 Grade 8 Math Average Score by District 106 Figure 3.56 SAT Participation by District Grouping, Grouping, 1999–00 to 2002–03 Grade 11 (HSPT) Math Proficiency: 1994–95 to 2002–03 100 Figure 3.47 Union City, 1997–98 to 2000–01 112 Figure 3.66 Grade 8 Math Proficiency: Union City, 106 Figure 3.57 SAT Verbal Average Score by District 1998–99 to 2002–03 Grade 11 (HSPA) Math Average Score by Grouping, 1994–95 to 2002–03 101 Figure 3.48 District Grouping: 2001–02 to 2002–03 113 Figure 3.67 Grade 8 Math Proficiency by Subgroup: Union 106 Figure 3.58 SAT Math Average Score by District Grouping, City, 2002–03 Grade 11 (HSPA) Math Proficiency: 1994–95 to 2002–03 102 Figure 3.49 Union City, 2001–02 to 2002–03 114 Figure 3.68 Union City Schools Not Making Adequate 107 Figure 3.59 Summary Table. Abbott K-12 Programs Yearly Progress: Grade 8, 2003–04 Grade 11 (HSPA) Math Proficiency by Benchmark Status in Union City Subgroup: Union City, 2002–03
Educ ation L aw Center union city abbott indic ators Technic al report xvii List of Figures
4. School Facilities Construction 121 Figure 4.1 Union City’s First-Round Facilities Plan Overview 126 Figure 4.2 Overview of Union City’s Current Projects 127 Figure 4.3 Status of Facilities Projects: Union City and All Other Abbott Districts
xviii TR ACKING PROGRESS, ENGAGING COMMUNITIES Educ ation L aw Center union cit y
Introduction
Unlike anywhere else in the nation, in New Jersey, the poorest urban school districts and the wealthiest suburbs have the same funding to support a general public education. Young people in our state’s urban
districts are also entitled to a broad range of remedies.
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Introduction
These include: The Abbott reforms began in earnest in figure A Universal, high-quality preschool; 1997 when the state equalized school funding Abbott v. Burke: New Jersey’s Framework Reforms to help them meet the state’s rigorous between the wealthiest suburbs and poor- for Urban School Improvement standards for academic achievement in Kinder- est cities. Local planning for state-financed garten through Grade 12; school facilities construction started in 1998. Safe, healthy, and educationally adequate school facilities; and In 1999, Abbott elementary schools started orm Parity ref Fu An array of programs and services to help implementing Whole School Reform. In that d nd se in students come to school ready to learn and Ba g year, districts could apply to the state for s succeed in school. rd a d funding to support supplemental programs, n a S t t and high-quality preschool became available. S u d 2 e Urban school districts did not always 1 n All of the reforms envisioned in Abbott are - t
K a receive the same resources as their peers, 2
n now underway across the state. d
F
a and could not afford to support the programs
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i
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y and services needed to help students thrive in
P S u The Abbott Indicators Project
r
e p school. These benefits were won as a result of
s p
c o
h r
o t o s the efforts of advocates, parents, educational l Under Abbott, there are means available to professionals, and the urban schoolchildren, n io improve New Jersey’s urban schools. The ct tru represented by lawyers in a series of lawsuits Sc ons challenge now is to ensure that the children hool Facilities c before the New Jersey Supreme Court, col- get the education to which they are entitled. lectively known as Abbott v. Burke, or simply The Education Law Center started the Abbott “Abbott.” The main goal of the resulting Indicators Project with this concern in mind. reforms is to ensure a high-quality education To ensure that all students achieve at high for urban public school students and to close levels, and that money is spent with their the achievement gap between them and their educational needs as the top priority, it is suburban peers. essential to develop a way for policy makers,
TR ACKING PROGRESS, ENGAGING COMMUNITIES Educ ation L aw Center union cit y
Introduction
parents, community members and the public We are issuing two versions of the Abbott In- at large to gauge the progress of reform. The dicators Reports. This technical report contains the findings from all indicators analyses with specific goals and action steps of the Abbott additional contextual information and appen- Indicators Project are as follows: dices. A shorter summary version contains a Goal 1: Inform stakeholders about the briefer introduction to the report and the key findings on a subset of indicators. status of school improvement efforts and Goal 2: Engage stakeholders in exploring student outcomes. We need a way to know what the schools are doing well and where and discussing what is working and what Like dashboard lights, more progress needs to be made. The indica- still needs to be done. the indicators provide some but not all of the tors in this report are similar to the dials and answers. School and community stakehold- lights on the dashboard of a car. They help ers need to ask more questions and engage readers understand what is working and what in conversations about what the schools are might need closer attention. doing to support student learning. The Education Law Center identified ques- tions that stakeholders have about schools and The Education Law Center will work with com- developed a set of indicators to address their munity members in each of the four cities to questions. hold meetings to discuss issues raised in the We gathered and analyzed indicator informa- report and ask more questions. tion and summarized it in this and three other We will help to establish a climate in which Abbott Indicators Reports—one each in school and community stakeholders can talk Camden, Newark, and Trenton. together constructively and do a closer inspec- District staff and school-community stakehold- tion where needed. ers were invited to participate in a review of The discussions will focus on what the schools the draft report. We incorporated their input are doing well so that they can be encouraged wherever possible. Reviewers were invited to to continue the good work. They will also ex- submit additional comments and recommenda- amine areas where the schools could do better. tions. Any comments they submitted appear in an Appendix to this report.
Educ ation L aw Center union city abbott indic ators Technic al report union cit y
Introduction
Goal 3: Develop and put strategies into The Report action to address report findings. Knowl- edge is only helpful if we use it to take the The purpose of this report is to inform ev- steps needed to support school improvement. eryone who cares about public education in The Education Law Center will support district Union City about what the schools are doing to and community partners as they prioritize among the findings to identify strengths that support student learning and student prog- will need to be supported and areas of concern ress to date. The report is intended for a wide that can be addressed. audience to serve as an information, advo- We will then assist them in working together to cacy, and planning tool. select and adopt effective strategies to address strengths and weaknesses. In this report, we focus on how the district A timeline will be set when stakeholders can implements the elements of effective school- get together to review the progress made. ing within the context of New Jersey’s Abbott Goal 4: Establish a system of account- reforms, the federal No Child Left Behind ability practices that local education Act, and the state’s academic standards. Pub- stakeholders can use in years to come. These lic education is not a completely local mat- actions need to continue on a regular basis to ter, however. The New Jersey Department of elevate the dialogue about schools and ensure Education has specific responsibilities under student learning. The final goal of the Abbott the law and plays a critical role in how the Indicators Project is to help school districts law gets translated into action. The state has and their communities put these practices varied its implementation and enforcement into action in the years to come. of urban school reform in New Jersey—as Education Law Center will work with district and administrations have replaced one another community stakeholders to plan ways to con- and even within administrations. Throughout tinue information gathering, school-community conversations, strategic planning, and this report, we note specific instances where follow-through. changes have affected district practices.
TR ACKING PROGRESS, ENGAGING COMMUNITIES Educ ation L aw Center union cit y
Introduction
These shifting winds have surely affected supports), and school facilities construction. New Jersey’s Abbott districts. But state-level All of the remedies work together to ensure changes have not affected Abbott districts a seamless plan for school improvement, we in the same way. School districts have dif- present them separately because each has its ferent community characteristics, local own distinctive logic and legal framework. political contexts of their own, and strengths In Sections 2 (The Preschool Program) and and weaknesses. Most importantly, districts 3 (K-12 Education), we present the indicators make different programmatic choices, and within a framework of the elements of effec- To ensure that all have different student outcomes. In this tive schooling.3 The core elements of effective report, we highlight the unique local cir- schooling are: students achieve at high cumstances and choices. School-community Student and Family Supports: To ensure that conversations that follow will focus primarily all students come to school ready to learn and levels, it is essential are equipped to succeed in school, additional on these local issues. supports must be available to meet the unique to develop a way for needs of students and their families; Organization of the Report Teacher Qualifications and Supports:Teachers stakeholders to gauge need to be well-prepared and supported; This report is organized into five sections. In Budget: The district must have enough revenue the progress of reform. this introduction we present a brief overview to support a high-quality education; of Abbott v. Burke, the Abbott Indicators Proj- School Facilities Construction: School facili- ect, and the general approach of the report. ties must be healthy, safe, and educationally adequate; and Section 1 includes a profile of the commu- Leadership: School and district leadership nity served by the school district and of the should be informed, inclusive, and effective. students attending the schools. Sections 2 through 4 are organized by Abbott remedy: All of these interlocking features must be preschool, K-12 education (including stan- in place and functioning well to ensure that dards-based reform and student and family there are:
Educ ation L aw Center union city abbott indic ators Technic al report union cit y
Introduction
Opportunities for Students to Learn: Op- figure B portunities for learning should be effective, Elements of Effective Schooling developmentally appropriate, aligned to state standards, varied, and enriched. These elements—and the indicators select- accountability ed to measure them—are the gauge by which we can assess a school district’s progress to School Facilities date. The elements of effective schooling are also conditions and characteristics that we community context can change for the better. Budget At the end of Sections 2 and 3, we pres- ent a range of student outcomes. As Figure B suggests, student well-being and academic Teachers and Opportunities Student success are the end products of all of the ele- Teacher for Students Outcomes Supports to Learn ments of effective schooling. We urge readers to view the student outcomes in light of what is presented about the full range of school Student and district practices. Family Supports Section 4, School Facilities Construction, contains information about the district’s first-round long-range facilities plans, plan- Leadership ning process, and progress to date on state- supported projects.
TR ACKING PROGRESS, ENGAGING COMMUNITIES Educ ation L aw Center union cit y
Introduction
The Indicators Any requirements or standards under Abbott, or Indicators Project staff and colleagues at the other state or federal law; Education Law Center worked with a commit- A brief description of its importance to educa- tional effectiveness; tee of education experts to select a wish list of Where applicable, any current debates about its indicators. We selected indicators that would role or importance; and finally help to answer a range of questions that stake- Indicators findings. holders have about the elements of effective schooling. Presented in this report are all Reading the Tables and Charts of the indicators we were able to collect that All indicators findings are summarized in the were of sufficiently high quality and enabled text of this report. Many are also presented comparisons with other districts, over time, in tables or charts. Most tables and charts or both. show trends over time, comparisons between The indicators are comprehensive but by district groupings, or both. no means exhaustive. We have included all of Time trends. Trends over time are clearly the information we collected that was reliable labeled in the charts and explained in the text. and valid. We could not answer all of the ques- The length of the trend varies from indicator tions that education stakeholders have about to indicator depending on the available data. schooling, however. We recognize and regret We always included all of the years for which that some readers will find some of their most we had reliable data. In all cases, the latest pressing questions unanswered. A complete year of data that we report is the last year of list of the Abbott indicators appears in an Ap- data we have. For example, 2002–03 is the pendix to this report. most recent year for achievement test results. As the indicators are introduced through- Statewide 2003–04 results became available out this report, we present: weeks before this report was completed, but there was not enough time to include them.
Educ ation L aw Center union city abbott indic ators Technic al report union cit y
Introduction
We invited the districts to submit letters with Union City and other Abbott districts to these their updated results. That letter appears in school districts on several indicators. In New an Appendix to this report. We encourage Jersey, school districts are rated by the New readers to read the letter(s) and compare all Jersey Department of Education into eight of the data in this report with new informa- “district factor groups” (DFGs), ranging tion that becomes available. from A to J. The wealthiest towns are classi- District groupings. Unless otherwise fied as I and J districts; most Abbott districts Student well-being noted, we compare indicator results for the are classified as DFG A or B. DFGs are based district—Camden, Newark, Trenton, and on Census information about the following and academic success Union City, in their respective reports—with characteristics of each school district: 1) adult results for all other Abbott districts, the educational attainment level, 2) adult occu- are the end products wealthiest suburban districts, and the state. pation, 3) population density, 4) income, 5) of all the elements of For these reports, the Abbott districts unemployment, and 6) poverty. Throughout include the 30 school districts that have this report, we refer to these school districts effective schooling. received the court-ordered remedies since interchangeably as the “wealthiest suburbs,” 1997–98 (see Appendix). A 31st district, “most successful suburban districts,” and the Salem, became an Abbott district in Spring “I and J” districts. 2003–04, but is not included among the After the pilot district, the other Abbotts, Abbott districts. and the wealthiest suburbs, the final com- Differences in resources, educational parison made in this report is to statewide quality, and student performance between averages. All public school districts—except Abbott districts and the wealthiest New vocational, educational services and join- Jersey suburbs were central to the Abbott v. ture commissions, and charter schools—are Burke lawsuits and rulings, so we compare included in statewide averages.
TR ACKING PROGRESS, ENGAGING COMMUNITIES Educ ation L aw Center union cit y
Introduction
Due to space considerations, most indica- Summaries tor findings are reported at the district or Key findings are summarized in the Executive district grouping level. In recognition that Summary and at the end of report sections. readers may be interested in a single school Sections 2 and 3 contain text and table sum- or how conditions vary from school to school, maries—Section 4 includes a text summary we have collected, analyzed, and prepared only. Summary tables include the subset of a number of school-level tables and charts indicators that have measurable standards when appropriate information was available. or requirements under Abbott or other state The Education Law Center will make these or federal law. Summary tables list these available to school boards, district and school requirements along with the status of the staff, and other groups representing commu- district on each. nity stakeholders. Data definitions. The tables and charts Endnotes in this report present summary statistics for each district grouping described above. The 2. More information about 3. We thank Fred Frelow of the Abbott v. Burke is available at Rockefeller Foundation for method we used to summarize the findings is www.edlawcenter.org. suggesting this approach. generally indicated in the tables and charts. Detailed data sources and definitions of terms are included in an Appendix to this report. Data collection and analysis. A summary of data collection and analysis methods is contained in an Appendix to this report.
Educ ation L aw Center union city abbott indic ators Technic al report 10 TR ACKING PROGRESS, ENGAGING COMMUNITIES Educ ation L aw Center union cit y
The Community and Students
Living in concentrated poverty negatively affects the well-being and academic performance of children and youth. If our schools are to help all students meet the state’s academic standards and grow up to take meaningful roles in their communities, these effects will need to be countered in New Jersey’s poorest 1 cities. In this section, we present indicators of community distress that inform the elements of effective schooling in Union City. union cit y
1 The Community and Students
Union City, located in Hudson County, is a figure 1.1 small city with a land area of just over one Conditions of Living and Learning in Union City square mile. With a population of about 67,000, it is the most densely populated city in New Jersey. Figure 1.1 shows the gaps N new Municipal Characteristics Union City Jersey between Union City and the state average on Population 67,088 8,414,350 several indicators. For example, fewer adults Female Head of Household Families With Children 17 and Under 30% 18% are in the labor force and unemployment is Highest Educational Attainment of Adults 25 and Over twice as high in Union City than in the state as Less Than High School Diploma 46% 18% a whole. Not surprisingly, household income diploma or GED 25% 29% is also a great deal lower. More than one in some College 17% 23% five adults and more than one in four children bachelor’s Degree 7% 19% under the age of 17 lived below the poverty graduate or Professional Degree 5% 11% level in 2000. More than half of Union City’s Labor Force Participation 57% 64% residents were born in another country, com- Unemployment Rate 12% 6% pared to only 18 percent statewide. Median Household Income $30,642 $55,146 Although many single mothers are Population Below Poverty Level 21% 8% Population 17 and Under Below Poverty Level 28% 11% economically successful, the percentage of Foreign-born 59% 18% female-headed family households remains Rent-income Ratio 28% 26% a strong indicator of community poverty. Renter-occupied Housing 82% 34% Figure 1.1 shows that almost a third of Union Vacant Housing 4% 7% City’s families are led by single mothers Violent Crime Rate (Per 1,000) 4.6 3.8 compared to 18 percent statewide. As parents,
source uniform Crime Report, 2002; 2000 US Census high school dropouts may be less trusting of schools and have fewer of their own academic
12 TR ACKING PROGRESS, ENGAGING COMMUNITIES Educ ation L aw Center union cit y
The Community and Students 1 skills to support their children’s learning. Al- figure 1.2 most half of Union City adults have not earned a high school diploma. Characteristics of Students in Union City The students who attend the public schools reflect the families who live in Union City. All Other Their unique characteristics must inform the Abbott I and J New Union City districts districts Jersey educational content, the staff needed to teach Total Enrollment 11,606 and support teaching, the space and facilities Eligible for Free-/Reduced-price Lunch 92.1% 67.7% 3.3% 26.2% in which teaching and learning occur, and Race/Ethnicity the leadership that guides the whole educa- black 0.9% 43.1% 4.4% 17.1% tional process. Programs that meet the needs Latino/a 94.5% 40.5% 3.6% 17.1% of Union City’s children and youth—such as white 3.5% 13.2% 80.3% 58.5% bilingual programs and nutrition programs— Asian 1.1% 2.9% 11.5% 7.1% also entail different budget needs. native American 0.0% 0.2% 0.1% 0.2% Nearly all of the children in Union City Limited English Proficiency (LEP) 46.7% 10.8% 1.5% 4.8% are described by the district as Hispanic, and Students with Disabilities (IEP) 11.5% 12.6% 12.0% 13.1% almost half are not fluent English speak- Immigrant 12.6% – – – ers (Figure 1.2). The rest of these English Homeless 0.2% – – – language learners speak 18 different lan- Student Mobility Rate 19.5% 22.9% 5.2% 12.2% guages when they are at home. More than 90 percent of Union City’s enrollment is eligible source Fall Survey, 2003-04; School Report Card, 2002-03; Union City Public Schools, 2003-04 for free-or reduced-price lunch under the National School Lunch Program, compared to just under two thirds in the remaining Abbott
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1 The Community And The Students
districts. In 2003–04, 15 children (0.2%) did 10,000 children enrolled in Kindergar- figure 1.3 not have a permanent home. ten through Grade 12 in 2003–04, about 15 Languages Spoken by English Language Learners: Families move between neighborhoods percent are from first-generation immigrant Union City, 2003-04 and into and out of cities, so some amount of families. In the Union City public schools, student mobility is unavoidable. Students who most recent immigrants are from the Domin- lep students move between districts or schools often have ican Republic and several nations of South Language Number Percent to “catch up” with their classmates and teach- and Central America. (The 2000 Census Spanish 4,351 98.0% ers must spend time to bring them up to date. estimated that roughly equivalent proportions Arabic 36 0.8% Gujarati 14 0.3% When many children move into and out of a of residents originally came to Union City Mandarin 6 0.1% district, it can disrupt educational progress from Puerto Rico, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Portuguese 6 0.1% and affect test scores and other indicators Central America, and South America, respec- Tagalog 5 0.1% of student learning. Student mobility is very tively.) According to the district, almost all Hindi 3 0.1% high in Union City with almost one in five students who are “Limited English Proficient” Sinhales 3 0.1% students moving into or out of their school (98%) speak Spanish as their first language. Akan 2 0.0% Bengali 2 0.0% during a school year. Actual student mobil- Cantonese 2 0.0% ity may be even higher, because districts may Pashta 2 0.0% not count an individual student leaving and Wolof 2 0.0% returning to the same school several times Fuk 1 0.0% throughout the year as multiple incidents. Italian 1 0.0% One of the characteristics that most distin- Polish 1 0.0% guishes Union City students from their peers Russian 1 0.0% Serbo/Croatian 1 0.0% across the state is that many are children of Urdu 1 0.0% relatively recent immigrants. Of the nearly TOTAL 4,440 100.0%
source union City Board of Education, 2003–04.
14 TR ACKING PROGRESS, ENGAGING COMMUNITIES Educ ation L aw Center union cit y
The Preschool Program
The New Jersey Supreme Court’s Abbott preschool mandate is based on research showing that intensive, high-quality preschool programs can help lower-income children better perform in school and participate in the life of their communities as adults. The Abbott preschool program began in 1999–2000. All Abbott districts are 2 required to serve 90 percent of the eligible population by 2005–06. union cit y
2 The Preschool Program
The major features of the Abbott preschool Union City Board of Education toward serving figure 2.1 program are: its community’s three-and four-year-olds. Preschool Enrollment: Union City, 1999–00 to 2004–05 Six-hour school day,180 days a year; Union City preschools served 1,631 children
Provisions for full-day, full-year wraparound in 2003–04, or 90 percent of the estimated services4 2,000 number of three-and four-year-olds liv- Certified teacher and an assistant for ing in the city. The district has met this state 1,750 each class; 1,500 Maximum class size of 15 students; requirement two years in advance of the 1,250 deadline. 800 Adequate facilities; 1,000 675 Transportation, health and other related 1631 1742 750 473 services, as needed; Program Setting 399 500 Developmentally appropriate curriculum that 645 698 Abbott districts can operate their own pre- 250 meets the state’s Early Childhood Education 404 351 school programs or enter into contracts with 0 Program Expectations Standards of Quality and 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 is linked with New Jersey’s Core Curriculum Head Start and/or other private provider Content Standards (CCCS); programs. There are two types of Head Start 4-year-old Enrollment Adequate state funding for all programs; and programs: Enhanced Head Start, the pro- 3-year-old Enrollment All three-and four-year-old children residing in Total Actual Enrollment the school district are eligible, with enrollment gram under which existing Head Start seats Total Projected Enrollment on demand.5 are upgraded to meet Abbott standards; and Expanded Head Start, the program serving source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of EarlyC hildhood children previously not enrolled in the Fed- programs, 2003; New Jersey Department of Education: Office of Opportunities for Students to Learn school Funding, 1999-2003 eral Head Start program. Preschool Enrollment Since the Abbott preschool program began To meet Abbott requirements, all districts in 1999–00, more children have been placed must serve at least 90 percent of their eligible in community programs than in district-run preschool populations by 2005–06. Figures programs. The percentage of children served 2.1 and 2.2 show the strides made by the in community programs in Union City has
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The Preschool Program 2 grown over the years: 93 percent were in com- diatricians; placing public service announce- figure 2.2 munity programs in 2002–03 compared to 68 ments on local television, newspapers, and percent in 1999–00 (Figure 2.3). The Union public transportation; and hanging banners Preschool Population Served: Union City, 2000–01 to 2004–05 City Board of Education contracted with 29 on the preschool buildings. It is important providers to offer Abbott preschool in 36 that outreach materials and communications 100% locations in 2004–05 (two of these were Head be clear and culturally sensitive. Start programs). There were also six district- Our findings suggest that the district is 80% run preschool programs in Union City: at quite successful at informing parents and 60% 96.3% Edison, Hudson, Jefferson, Veterans’ Memo- recruiting students. The Union City Abbott 90.2% 40% 84.7% rial, Robert Waters, and Wilson schools. Many preschool program has been advertised in 73.0% 45.6% programs are quite small with about three local English and Spanish newspapers, and on 20% classrooms on average. cable television and local radio stations. The 0 district has provided flyers and brochures to 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 Recruitment and Outreach neighborhood schools and businesses, adult Actual Population Served If districts are to reach the Abbott goal of 90 education programs, recreation centers, Projected Population Served percent enrollment, they need to identify libraries, Housing Authority buildings and unserved families and obstacles to enrollment local clinics. Back to School Night programs, and then conduct intensive outreach and re- and PTA and other parent meetings are ad- cruitment efforts. Some promising methods ditional places where the preschool program source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of EarlyC hildhood programs, 2003; New Jersey Department of Education: Office of for reaching parents of three-and four-year- is introduced. While Union City has had much school Funding, 1999-2003 olds include: door-to-door visits; distribut- success in this area, reaching the remain- ing informational brochures in places that ing children is likely to be more difficult and families with young children frequent, such expensive than the district’s efforts to date. as churches, neighborhood centers, and pe-
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2 The Preschool Program
Programs for Children with Disabilities. Transition. Before children with dis- figure 2.3 Federal and state laws guide the education of abilities can receive the educational pro- Preschool Enrollment by Provider Type: individuals with disabilities.6 The law re- grams and services they need, they must be Union City, 1999–00 to 2002–03 quires that children with disabilities be edu- identified and evaluated. One way for this
100% cated in the “least restrictive environment.” to happen is through the Early Intervention This means that, to the maximum extent System, a statewide system of services for 80% 48.9% possible, students are educated in the school infants and toddlers, birth to age three, with 68.0% 73.6% 60% they would have attended if they did not have developmental delays or disabilities, and 92.7% a disability, and participate in academic, non- their families. The New Jersey Department 40% academic, and extracurricular activities with of Health and Senior Services oversees this 51.1% 20% system. Families who are referred to early 32.0% students who do not have disabilities. The 26.4% 7.3% general education classroom is the preferred intervention by agencies such as hospitals and 0 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 placement for children with disabilities; child care programs should meet with a family however, school districts must also offer a service coordinator to determine whether In District range of alternative services for students who an evaluation is necessary. Evaluation Other Private Providers cannot be educated in the regular classroom results are used to develop an Individual- for part or all of the day. The law also states ized Family Service Plan (IFSP) that outlines source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of EarlyC hildhood programs, 2003; New Jersey Department of Education: Office of that children with disabilities should only be needed services and describes how they will school Funding, 1999-2003 placed in separate classes or schools, or re- be implemented. Early intervention also moved from the general education classroom helps children and families with the transi- when the nature or severity of the disability tion to preschool by providing information prevents them from being educated in the about preschool policies and services, and general education classroom, even with the meeting with families to plan the preschool use of supplemental aids and services. experience and determine the most ap- propriate program for each child. Children
18 TR ACKING PROGRESS, ENGAGING COMMUNITIES Educ ation L aw Center union cit y
The Preschool Program 2 not identified through the Early Intervention and family to determine the most appropriate Program can be identified prior to enrolling program for each child. in preschool. The district’s Child Study Team, Educational environment. The law made up of the school psychologist, social requires schools and districts to provide chil- worker, and learning disabilities teacher- dren with disabilities with appropriate edu- consultant conduct an initial evaluation to cational experiences and quality services that determine a child’s eligibility for special are tailored to their individual needs. While education and related services. Evaluation the law does not specify a target percentage, it results shape the Individualized Education does state that for as much time as possible, Program (IEP) that specifies the child’s needs children with disabilities must be educated in for special education and related services, and inclusive, rather than separate settings. determines the setting where the child will be According to a report released by the New educated. Jersey Council on Developmental Disabilities, Union City Board of Education staff told the state of New Jersey overall, lags behind us that the district’s child study teams (CSTs) the nation in the percentage of preschoolers have a positive working relationship with the with disabilities who receive their education city’s Early Intervention Team (EIT). At age in inclusion programs. In 2002, about one two and a half, the family of a child with dis- in four (22%) New Jersey preschoolers with abilities receives information about district disabilities were placed in general education policies and services. The district and the classrooms, compared to 35 percent nation- EIT hold a meeting with the family soon after wide. In light of this context, we might expect to begin planning the child’s transition into to see educational placements in Union City preschool. The CST and the district’s Office of and the other Abbott districts that are similar Early Childhood Education work with the EIT to those for the state as a whole.
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2 The Preschool Program
Figures 2.4 and 2.5 below show the per- category also includes preschoolers with dis- centage of preschool children with disabilities abilities who receive services in a hospital or in various educational environments—in other community based settings. Union City and all other Abbott districts, respectively. In 2003–04, almost half of Program Content Union City’s 43 preschoolers with disabilities New Jersey Department of Education’s Early were in self-contained (special education) Childhood Education Program Expectations: classrooms compared to two thirds of similar Standards of Quality set standards for learning students in the other 29 Abbott districts. Two outcomes and outlines how teachers should percent were in inclusion programs in Union conduct specific activities. Since they were City, compared to nine percent in the other released in 2002–03, the Expectations have Abbott districts. Seven percent of preschool- become the benchmark for determining how age children in Union City were taught in effectively the classroom curriculum is being “separate” schools outside of the school implemented. district. Two in five (42%) preschoolers with Curriculum. Specialists in early childhood special needs received “itinerant services,” education debate if it is better to have a single compared to only three percent in the other curriculum across a district or if providers Abbott districts. Students categorized as should be allowed to select their own curricu- receiving “itinerant services” are those who la. On one hand, a single curriculum ensures receive special education services outside of that students in a district with high student the preschool setting for up to three hours per mobility like Union City will receive the same day. This category includes students who are program no matter where they move. Profes- “pulled out” of general education classrooms sional development is also easier to provide to receive their special education and related with a uniform curriculum. On the other services or speech-language services. The hand, uniformity is not as important as using
20 TR ACKING PROGRESS, ENGAGING COMMUNITIES Educ ation L aw Center union cit y
The Preschool Program 2 research-based, developmentally appropri- Curriculum adoption and review. figure 2.4 ate programs that provide enough teacher Preschool and Kindergarten teachers first support to ensure quality instruction. Pro- developed the district’s early childhood cur- Educational Environment of Preschoolers with Disabilities: Union City, 2003–04 (N=43) gram and teacher buy-in are also important riculum in 1998 for each grade level between to ensure good implementation. Below, we preschool and Grade Three. Because so many describe the approach taken by district, Head of Union City’s children are English-language Start, and other private provider programs in learners, the district added a bilingual Union City. component to its curriculum in 2000. General Education 2% The district reports that the preschool Preschool, Kindergarten, and first grade Separate School 7% curriculum was adapted by district staff from teachers—in collaboration with the Early Itinerant Services 42% High/Scope to be aligned with the state’s Childhood Principal and Supervisor—revise Self-Contained 49% Expectations.7 Organized by theme, the cur- the curricula every two years and teachers figure 2.5 riculum encourages active learning, focusing receive training on the revisions. The district on helping students to develop pre-reading recently made the Kindergarten curriculum Educational Environment of Preschoolers with Disabilities: All Other Abott Districts, 2003–04 skills. High/Scope activities also help stu- more challenging to adapt to the increased dents develop physically, cognitively, and proficiency of incoming preschool students. socially. Spanish-speaking preschoolers with A math component was also added to the cur- limited English proficiency receive the same riculum in response to teacher requests for high-quality curriculum, with an additional help with math instruction. General Education 9.3% bilingual component. In-district and other Programs for English language learners. Self-Contained 66.2% General/Special 8.6% private provider programs use the curricu- The district administers a language survey Itinerant Services 3.5% lum. Head Start teachers have been exposed to incoming preschool students to iden- Separate School 11.7% to the High/Scope curriculum but continue to tify the language they speak at home. At age *Home and residential placements, less than one percent. use their own curriculum. four, Spanish-speaking children are given 8 source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of EarlyC hildhood the IDEA Proficiency Test (IPT) so teach- programs, 2003; New Jersey Department of Education, Office of special Education, 1999-2003.
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2 The Preschool Program
ers can tailor instruction to their levels of ongoing communication and cooperation proficiency. The district told us that all of its among staff in sending and receiving pro- master preschool teachers have an English as grams; 3) prepare children for transition; and a Second Language (ESL) specialization, and 4) involve parents in transition planning. can help teachers administer the IPT and en- Abbott districts are required to include gage English language learners in classroom in their three-year operational plans a plan activities. A bilingual component was added for transition of children from the preschool Union City recently made to the curriculum (described above) in 2000. program to Kindergarten. Union City district The transition into Kindergarten. The staff told us they have several measures to its Kindergarten curricu- transition from preschool to Kindergarten ensure a seamless transition from preschool can be stressful for young children as they to Kindergarten. Assemblies are offered lum more challenging to leave a familiar, comfortable setting for one for preschool students at local elementary adapt to the increased that is new and different. Successful transi- schools and district staff offer workshops tion is most likely to happen when children for preschool parents. We also learned that proficiency of incoming have been prepared ahead of time, parents elementary school principals visit neighbor- have been involved in the process, and hood preschool programs and the Principal of preschool students. preschool and Kindergarten teachers com- Early Childhood Programs attends elemen- municate on a regular basis. We present best tary school principals’ meetings. practices in preschool-Kindergarten tran- Kindergarten teachers receive basic skills sition and compare them with activities in and language survey results for every incom- Union City. ing student. In 2003–04, Union City pre- The National Association for the Education school and Kindergarten teachers were being of Young Children (NAEYC) provides four trained to use the Early Language Assessment recommendations to guide transition efforts: System (ELAS). In future years, ELAS results 1) ensure program continuity; 2) maintain will also be provided to Kindergarten teach-
22 TR ACKING PROGRESS, ENGAGING COMMUNITIES Educ ation L aw Center union cit y
The Preschool Program 2 ers (See description in Preschool Student self-contained programs are provided with Outcomes section below). transportation.
Student and Family Supports Program Quality Health services. Through the ACCESS pro- The New Jersey Department of Education gram, the North Hudson Community Action formed the Early Learning Improvement Corporation (NHCAC) is under contract with Consortium (ELIC), a group of university- the district to provide visual, auditory, dental, based preschool specialists, to conduct ongo- and lead screenings to preschool students. ing research on preschool program quality. In Students are able to receive additional medi- 2002–03, the state-funded ELIC to assess 310 cal and dental care from physicians at the Abbott preschool classrooms throughout New NHCAC clinic; and immunizations are offered Jersey. ELIC rated these classrooms on the to preschool students, even those without Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale private healthcare insurance. The district also (ECERS-R). Although the Union City pre- has a psychiatrist on-staff who is available one school program took part in the ELIC study, to two times per week to provide counseling, we do not present the findings here, because prescribe medication, and identify potential too few Union City preschool classrooms were neurological issues. If additional services are included to enable anyone to draw conclu- needed, referrals are made to mental health sions about the district’s program quality. agencies off-site. All New Jersey districts with a public pre- Transportation. Union City is quite small school program are required to undergo self- and students are placed in preschool pro- evaluation, using a guide called the Self-As- grams located in their neighborhoods so sessment Validation System (SAVS) developed transportation services are not needed. Only by the Office of Early Childhood Education those preschool students with disabilities in at the New Jersey Department of Education.
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2 The Preschool Program
Districts used it for the first time in 2003–04. figure 2.6 Preschool Teacher Qualifications and Supports The results are intended for use in planning Preschool Teachers by Provider Type: Union City, 2004–05 the district’s programs. The program qual- As expected, a large majority of Union City’s ity assessment is an important section of the preschool teachers work in other private pro- SAVS. Although the state encourages dis- vider programs that contract with the school tricts to use tools like the ECERS-R, it is not district. There was a total of 116 preschool required. teachers in 2004–05: six percent were in ELIC staff we spoke with said that they have Head Start; 81 percent in other community In District (n=15) 12.9% been working with district master teachers programs. Just 13 percent of the district’s Enhanced Head Start (n=7) 6.0% (officially called educational program spe- preschool teachers work in Union City public Other Private Provider 81.9% (n=94) cialists in Union City) on the use of the Early school buildings. Childhood Environment Rating Scale (EC- source union City Board of Education, 2004-05 ERS), along with the Supports for Early Lit- Educational Attainment of
eracy Assessment (SELA) and the Preschool Preschool Teachers Classroom Mathematics Inventory (PCMI) to All Abbott preschool teachers are required to assess instructional quality.9 They also said have a bachelor’s degree. This standard ap- that more program quality data will become plied immediately to teachers in district-run available in 2005. We think that the best way programs. Teachers in community programs to understand the strengths, weaknesses, and who needed fewer than 30 credits were eli- challenges confronted by Abbott preschool gible for an extension until September 2006. programs is to have a consistent and reliable Head Start teachers have four years from the method of measuring program quality that is date when their program first contracted used regularly in all public preschool pro- with the Abbott district to complete these grams, including the Abbott districts. requirements.
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The Preschool Program 2
Postsecondary training can equip teach- new teachers entering Abbott preschool pro- figure 2.7 ers with the knowledge and skills they need grams. One route teachers can use to earn the to be effective in the classroom. We present P-3 is to first obtain a provisional “certificate Preschool Teacher Educational Attainment by Provider Type: Union City, 2004–05 information about the educational attain- of eligibility” (CE) or a certificate of eligibility ment of Abbott preschool teachers as a proxy with advanced standing (CEAS). While teach- 100% for teacher preparedness and because Abbott ing in a preschool program, teachers then 4.2% 3.4% requires all preschool teachers to have un- complete a series of mentoring and evalua- 80% 60.0% dergraduate degrees. We present the findings tion sessions. CE candidates must also take 60% 85.7% 77.7% 75.9% by provider type so that we can see how well part in early childhood instructional training. 40% teachers in different settings have progressed Teachers with a standard certificate to teach toward meeting the degree requirement. students in nursery school through Grade 8 20% 40.0% 20.7% About 97 percent of Union City’s 116 (N-8) and at least two years of full-time 14.3% 18.1% 0 In District Enhanced Other Private Total preschool teachers had earned at least a four- teaching experience in an early childhood (n=15) Head Start Provider (N=116) year college degree by 2004–05. Figure 2.7 setting also fulfill the certification require- (n=7) (n=94) shows that Union City’s preschool teachers ment under a “grandfather clause” in the No Degree in every setting have either met or are well on regulations. Teachers with special education BA/BS their way to meeting this state requirement by certification may only teach self-contained Graduate Degree September 2006.10 early childhood classrooms or serve as a second teacher in an inclusion classroom. source union City Board of Education, 2004-05 Preschool Teacher Certification Teachers with N-8 and special education In addition to earning a bachelor’s degree, certificates are not required to obtain the Abbott preschool teachers must also be certi- specialized education and training in early fied.11 The New Jersey Department of Educa- childhood education that the P-3 certification tion considers the preschool through Grade process provides. 3 certification (P-3) to be the standard for all
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2 The Preschool Program
Figure 2.8 shows the status of the Union percent have P-3 and 40 percent are special figure 2.8 City preschool program in 2004–05 on the education certified. Preschool Teacher Certification by ProviderT ype: road toward 100-percent teacher certifica- Union City, 2004–05 tion. Overall, 88 percent of teachers have Preschool Teacher Experience
4.2% 1.1% 3.5% 3.4% provisional (regular or advanced standing) or Figure 2.9 shows how long teachers in Union 100% 5.2% 14.9% preschool to Grade 3 (P-3) certification; three City’s preschool program have served as lead 80% 40.0% 42.8% 13.8% percent have N-8 certification, and five per- preschool teachers. As of October 2004,
60% cent are special education certified (one of the Union City preschool teachers had five years special education certified teachers is teach- of experience on average. Teachers in district- 28.6% 79.8% 40% 74.1% 60.0% ing in an inclusion classroom with another run programs had six years as lead preschool
20% certified teacher). All seven (100%) Head teachers. (Years of experience gained before 28.6% Start teachers have at least provisional certifi- the Abbott program began were probably as 0 In District Enhanced Other Private Total (N=116) cation: 29 percent have certificates of eligibil- lead teachers in Head Start or other private (n=15) Head Start Providers (n=7) (n=94) ity, 43 percent have N-8, and 29 percent have provider programs.) Teachers in Union City’s
Uncertified P-3. Eighty percent of the 94 teachers work- other private provider programs had about Nursery or Elementary Certification (N-8) ing in other private provider programs have four years of similar experience; and En- Special Education earned full P-3 certification; an additional 15 hanced Head Start teachers had eight years. Certificate of Eligibility (CE or CEAS) Preschool to Grade 3 (P-3) percent have provisional certification (regular or advanced standing), and one percent have Preschool Teacher Salary source union City Board of Education, 2004-05 N-8, while another 4 percent still need to All other things being equal, school dis- attain certification. District staff report that tricts that pay teachers well are more likely another three teachers will have certifica- to attract a broader pool of applicants for tion by the 2005–06 school year. All 15 of the teaching positions. Improving preschool preschool teachers working in district-run teacher pay may also help to improve pre- programs have sufficient certification: 60 school program quality by reducing teacher
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The Preschool Program 2 turnover and boosting teacher morale. The have similar levels of education, certification, figure 2.9 New Jersey Supreme Court recognized this and years on the job.12 in 2002 when it ordered the New Jersey Preschool Teacher Average Years as a Lead Teacher by Provider Type: Union City, 2004–05 Department of Education to provide addi- Performance Evaluation tional funding to help Head Start and other Even the best teachers benefit from informed 20 private provider programs raise their teacher peer and supervisor feedback. Such feed- 18 salaries to levels equal to those of teachers in back and direction is even more important to 16 14 district-run programs. Here, we present the ensure that less experienced and less capable 12 average preschool teacher salary in Union City teachers do a better job. Some feedback can 10 by provider type to compare salaries paid in happen on an informal basis; some should 8 6 these settings. There should be no systematic be part of a more formal procedure known in 4 7.7 5.6 difference by provider type because all pro- many professions as “performance evalua- 2 4.3 4.6 0 viders should have access to applicant pools tion.” In Union City, performance evaluation In District Enhanced Other Private Total (n=15) Head Start Provider (N=116) of equivalent size and quality and because procedures are different for preschool teach- (n=7) (n=94) Abbott preschool teachers do equivalent work ers in district-run, Head Start, and other source union City Board of Education, 2004-05 regardless of setting. private provider programs. In 2004–05, the average preschool teacher Early childhood staff told us that in dis- salary in Union City is $40,735. Teachers in trict-run programs, non-tenured preschool district-run programs earned higher salaries teachers are evaluated three times a year. The than those in other private provider programs school principal conducts the first and third ($47,581 compared to $39,724). The reasons evaluations; district administrators conduct for this continued difference in salaries is the second evaluation. Tenured district staff unclear. When compared to teachers in com- are evaluated once a year by the school prin- munity provider programs, district teachers cipal. Teacher performance is evaluated on the developmental appropriateness of their
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teaching and the presence of appropriate ideas with colleagues; improve their teach- figure 2.10 instructional materials throughout the ing skills; and learn about current issues Average Preschool Teacher Salary: Union City, 2004–05 classroom. Evaluators observe and tell teach- in education. No matter how many years of ers how well they do the following: 1) provide experience teachers have, in order to keep up
$60,000 opportunities for active learning; 2) follow with the changing times, they must be willing curriculum and classroom schedules; 3) to update their knowledge and skills. When $45,000 meet the state’s Expectations; and 4) evaluate teachers take part in ongoing, high-quality children’s progress using the Early Language staff development focused on instruction, $30,000 Assessment System (described in greater classroom practice improves. $47,581 $39,651 $39,724 $40,735 detail under Preschool Student Outcomes Union City district staff told us that master $15,000 below). preschool teachers make weekly rounds to Teachers in Head Start and other private observe instruction in all of the classrooms. 0 In District Enhanced Other Private Total (N=116) (n=15) Head Start Provider provider programs are evaluated by their own Master teachers (called education program (n=7) (n=94) program directors. A district administrator specialists in Union City) know what cur- conducts ongoing, informal evaluations of ricular themes should be taught and when, both in-district and private provider teachers. they ensure that the teachers are on sched- ule and that both teachers and students are Professional Development “integrating the theme.” They model lessons In addition to feedback, teachers also ben- for less experienced teachers, role-play and source union City Board of Education, 2004-05 efit from opportunities to continue learning coach, and review lesson plans to make sure through activities such as outside confer- the curriculum is presented to the students as ences, in-school workshops, weekly teacher intended. meetings, and coaching and mentoring from The people we spoke with also reported peers and supervisors. In these sessions, that preschool and Kindergarten teachers teachers share experiences and exchange meet once a week to coordinate their efforts.
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The Preschool Program 2
Four times a year, they attend workshops Preschool Budget figure 2.11 together; sometimes Kindergarten teachers take part in workshops intended for preschool The Abbott preschool program is funded by Per Student Preschool Aid by Source: Union City and All Other Abbott Districts, 2002–03 and 2003–04 teachers. Union City’s preschool teachers the state from two different sources. Early attend High/Scope trainings and receive Childhood Program Aid (ECPA) is allocated $12,000 ongoing guidance on the use of the Early Lan- to all Abbott districts and another 102 school $10,000 guage Assessment System (described in more districts serving low-income students. $4,262 $8,000 $3,292 detail under Preschool Outcomes). Teach- Since 2002–03, Abbott districts also receive $3,714 ers in Head Start and other private provider Preschool Expansion Aid (PSEA) to cover $6,000 $753 programs participate in district professional the costs of expanding the programs to meet $4,000 $6,385 $6,555 $5,914 $5,451 development and use materials purchased by full enrollment. $2,000 the district. As required by the state, teachers Figures 2.11 and 2.12 below show the 0 who are certified through the alternate route amount of preschool aid received by Union 2002-03 2003-04 2002-03 2003-04 Union City All Other Abbott Districts program receive 20 days of mentoring from City and all other Abbott districts in 2002–03 retired teachers. and 2003–04. In 2002–03, Union City Preschool Expansion Aid Three things play a role in what professional received a total of $6,667 per preschooler: Early Childhood Program Aid development activities the district selects for $5,914 from ECPA, and $753 from PSEA. That source new Jersey Department of Education, Office ofS chool Funding, its preschool teachers: teacher requests, trends year, Union City’s preschool program received 2002-2004 in the field of early childhood education, and fewer dollars per student (in total and by ensuring the alignment of the preschool cur- source) than did the other Abbott districts on riculum with the state’s Expectations. average. Although Union City saw a slight de- crease in their ECPA funding in 2003–04, the PSEA increased almost 400 percent ($3,714), making the total per-student amount $9,164.13
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In 2003–04, the district’s per student aid was Union City’s Early Childhood Educa- figure 2.12 still lower than the other Abbott districts. In tion Advisory Council (ECEAC) includes Per Student Preschool Aid: Union City and response, district staff report that a number 15 people: the Superintendent, Assistant All Other Abbott Districts, 2002–03 and 2003–04 of mechanisms are in place to keep preschool Superintendent, general and special educa-
$14,000 costs down. They include: intensive training tion teachers, private preschool providers,
$12,000 for community providers on budget develop- Child Study Team members, a City Commis-
$10,000 ment, and sioner, and representatives from the district
$8,000 monitoring of provider spending through early childhood education office. The ECEAC
$6,000 monthly, rather than the required quarterly meets four times per year to review and dis- $10,817 $9,164 $9,678 reports. cuss curriculum and facilities planning. The $4,000 $6,667 district business administrator has several $2,000 meetings with the ECEAC to elicit their input 0 Preschool Leadership Union City All Other Abbott Districts during budget development. The ECEAC also State regulations require each Abbott participated in the design of the district’s 2002-03 school district to organize and convene an Early Childhood Center, slated for completion 2003-04 Early Childhood Education Advisory Council in December 2005. (ECEAC). The ECEAC is a group of stake- source new Jersey Department of Education, Office ofS chool Funding, 2002-2004 holders who are interested in the education Preschool Student Outcomes and welfare of preschool-age children. The purpose of the ECEAC is to meet regularly, We turn now to the outcomes of the Abbott review the school district’s progress towards preschool program to ask if the elements we full implementation of high-quality preschool have discussed so far—supports for students programs, and participate in program plan- and families, opportunities for students to ning, budget development, and early child- learn, teacher qualifications and supports, hood facilities planning. and leadership—have worked together to
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The Preschool Program 2 improve student learning among the district’s English language learners were tested twice. three-and four-year-olds. Unfortunately, as First, they took the TVIP-R (in Spanish) and a recent report published by the United States had an average standard score of 88.3. These Government Accountability Office noted, New children scored in the 32nd percentile in Jersey’s public preschools do not currently the nation. When tested in English, their generate consistent and reliable informa- average standard score was 79.2, in the 18th tion that will help us to understand how well percentile. In light of the small number children are doing statewide. of children who were tested, we must note New Jersey’s public pre- Fortunately, the Union City preschool that these scores may not accurately reflect program was part of a study conducted by the preschoolers’ language development in the schools do not currently Early Learning Improvement Consortium district as a whole. (ELIC) to assess the language development In 2003–04, Union City preschool teach- generate consistent and of preschoolers. In 2002–03, ELIC tested ers and administrators were introduced to the reliable information that the vocabularies of 84 students entering Early Language Assessment System (ELAS) Kindergarten from the preschool program. that will be used statewide to help preschool will help us understand They used the Peabody Picture Vocabulary teachers tailor their instruction to children’s Test (PPVT-III) in English, and the TVIP-R in needs. The ELAS was developed and piloted how well children are Spanish.14 We report the results below in stan- by the New Jersey Department of Educa- doing statewide. dard scores and national percentile ranks. tion–Office of Early Childhood Education Scores between 90 and 109 are considered and the Early Learning Improvement Con- to be in the “average” category. The average sortium, a group of university-based early standard score15 of the 12 English-speaking childhood specialists throughout the region. children was 93.8. These children scored Preschool teachers and administrators from in the 41st percentile of a national sample Union City and six other pilot districts were of children who took the same test. The 72 trained by consortium members on the ELAS
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The Status of Preschool: A Summary in 2003–04. They learned how to observe students, record their observations, and We conclude this section by presenting key collect and assess student work samples. The findings in two ways. First, we present an ELAS underwent revisions during the sum- overview of the progress made to date and mer of 2004. In 2004–05 and in future years, the challenges that lie ahead for Union City’s Union City preschool teachers will use the Abbott Preschool Program. We then pres- ELAS to help them adapt their instructional ent a summary Figure showing the status of methods and will share ELAS results with the program on a smaller set of indicators Kindergarten teachers as students transition alongside relevant standards or requirements out of preschool. District early childhood staff under Abbott or other state or federal law. told us that the district is also keeping track of student progress in preschool and beyond Opportunities for Students to Learn with the intention of evaluating the Union By 2005–06, each Abbott district is required City preschool program in the future. to serve 90 percent of its eligible population. Union City met the enrollment requirement It is not yet clear if this information can two years before the state deadline. In 2003– be used to assess how well preschoolers are 04, it served 90 percent of the city’s eligible learning on a district or statewide basis. children in its preschool program. To serve all of the children in the district, the Early childhood education specialists are Union City Board of Education contracts with reluctant to do widespread assessment of 29 private provider and Head Start programs young children; however, we need to strike to offer Abbott preschool in 36 locations. The district also runs six preschool programs in its a balance between these concerns and the own school buildings. need to know exactly how well Abbott pre- Information provided by the district suggests schoolers are doing. that it has used extensive and creative strate- gies to identify and recruit children into its preschool program. It will be a great deal more challenging and expensive for the district to bring the remaining children into the program.
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The Preschool Program 2
The law requires schools and districts to earned $7,900 more than did teachers in any provide children with disabilities with appropri- other provider type. The reasons for this con- figure 2.13 tinued difference in salaries is unclear. When ate educational experiences that are tailored Abbott Preschool Program: Benchmark Status In Union City to their individual needs. For as much time as compared to teachers in other private provider possible, this education must be provided in in- programs, district teachers have similar levels clusive, rather than separate settings. In Union of education, certification, and years serving as City, most of the 43 preschoolers with disabili- lead preschool teacher. Benchmark Status ties were educated in self-contained classrooms District must serve at least 90 percent of Met or received special education services outside eligible populations by 2005-06 of the preschool setting for up to three hours. Preschool Budget District teachers required to have Met Union City’s district and community provider At $9,164 in 2003–04, Union City’s preschool bachelor’s degree programs use the same research-based curricu- program had less money on a per student basis lum—High/Scope. Spanish-speaking preschool- Head Start teachers have four years from Met than the other Abbott districts on average. the date their program contracted with the ers with limited English proficiency also receive District staff report that preschool costs are district to earn bachelor’s degree instruction in the same curriculum, with an kept down by conducting intensive budget additional bilingual component. training for community providers and monitor- District teachers required to have Met certification. More data on program quality—such as the ing expenditures through monthly, rather than results of reliable measures like the Early Child- quarterly reporting. Head Start teachers have four years from the date their program contracted with hood Environment Rating Scale-Revised—are district to earn certification. Met needed to help us understand the strengths, weaknesses, and challenges confronted by Preschool Leadership Abbott preschool programs. The representative body that governs Union City’s preschool program meets to discuss curriculum and facilities issues. They have met Preschool Teacher Qualifications with the district business administrator to pro- and Supports vide input during budget development and have also participated in the design of the district’s Nearly all of the 116 teachers in district-run, new Early Childhood Center. Head Start, and private provider programs had earned at least a four-year college degree and were certified, as required under Abbott. Preschool Student Outcomes In Union City, the average preschool teacher salary was $40,735 in 2004–05. On average Union City’s Kindergarten curriculum recently preschool teachers in district-run programs was made more challenging to adapt to the in-
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creasing proficiency of students entering from its preschool programs. The Union City Board of Education is keep- ing track of student progress in preschool and beyond with the intention of evaluating the preschool program in the future. In 2003–04, Union City preschool teachers and administrators were introduced to the Early Language Assessment System (ELAS). The ELAS will be used statewide to generate information about how preschoolers are doing and help preschool teachers tailor their instruction to children’s needs. Public preschool programs in New Jersey do not yet generate consistent, reliable informa- tion that will help us to understand how well preschoolers are doing. We need to strike a balance between the concerns of early child- hood education specialists about widespread assessment of young children and the need to know how well the programs are serving Abbott preschoolers. Better program quality and child outcome measures are needed for all Abbott preschool programs to help stakeholders under- stand the strengths, weaknesses, and challenges confronted by Abbott preschool programs.
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Endnotes
4. The New Jersey Department 7. High/Scope is based on the ideas 10. By September 2005, the district 14. The Peabody Picture Vocabulary of Education covers the costs for of developmental psychologist projects that there will be only Test, Third Edition (PPVT-III) six-hours,180 days per year of pre- Jean Piaget and views children as one teacher still working toward a is a quick and accurate test of school education. The New Jersey active learners. A central principle college degree. receptive (hearing) vocabulary. Department of Human Services is that children learn best from The PPVT-III is useful in testing funds the mandated before-and activities that they plan, carry out, 11. As with the Abbott preschool pre-school children; screening for after-school “wraparound” care and then think about afterwards. teacher education requirement, both giftedness and developmental and care during the summer to Children are encouraged to take the certification standard ap- delays; measuring English language provide a ten-hour, 245-day per part in a range of experiences that plied immediately to teachers in proficiency in people whose first year program. help them to make choices, solve district-run programs. Teachers language is not English; and problems, and actively contribute in community provider programs identifying language difficulties. 5. Age eligibility for three-and to their own development. have until September 2006, and The test can be given to people four-year-olds is based on the date Head Start teachers have four years between the ages of 2 1/2 and 90. the district uses to determine age 8. The IDEA Proficiency Test from the date when their program The Spanish version is known as eligibility for Kindergarten. (IPT) assesses children’s spoken contracted with the Abbott district. “Test de Vocabulario en Imagenes language and early literacy skills in Peabody” (TVIP). 6. Federal laws guiding the educa- both English and Spanish. It is only 12. In these analyses, preschool tional environment of people with administered to four-year-olds in teacher salary includes wages only 15. The number of questions a child disabilities include: the Individuals the preschool program. and does not include fringe ben- answers correctly is converted into with Disabilities Education Act efits. Any tuition reimbursement a standard score. Standard scores (amended in 2004) 20 U.S.C.§ 9. The Supports for Early Lit- paid to alternate route teachers is range from a low of 40 to a high 1400, et seq; Section 504 of the eracy (SELA) is used to examine not included. of 160. Rehabilitation Act (1973) 29 classroom practices that support U.S.C. §794; and less directly, the children’s early language and 13. Revenues may not be evenly Americans with Disabilities Act literacy skills. The Preschool distributed across provider types. of 1990 42 U.S.C. § 2131, et seq. Classroom Mathematics Inventory Some providers may receive less State regulation is New Jersey (PCMI) assesses the materials aid per preschooler than this Administrative Code 6A:14, and and teaching strategies used to district average. state statute is New Jersey Statutes support and enhance children’s Annotated 18A:46. math skills.
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K-12 Education
New Jersey’s Core Curriculum Content Standards define what all students should know and be able to do at each grade and by the time they graduate from high school. Abbott provides several means to help students in low-income, urban districts achieve these standards. 3 union cit y
3 K-12 Education
These include: figure 3.1 Opportunities for Students to Learn Funding at the same level as the wealthiest Union City Schools, Grade Structure, and Enrollment: 2003-04 (“I and J”) suburban districts in the state; Whole School Reform Class size limits; When Abbott first began, every elementary Comprehensive, or “whole-school” reform; school was required to select a Whole School School Name Grade Range Enrollment Programs and services to meet the needs of 16 Jefferson PK g4 315 students and families; Reform model. Whole School Reform is Hudson PK g6 415 Assessment in each content area to measure an all-around approach to improve student Thomas A Edison PK g8 1,417 student improvement at the classroom, school, Robert Waters PK g8 1,262 learning and achievement. All models are and district levels; and Sara M Gilmore Kg g6 390 not alike, but many have characteristics in Roosevelt Kg g8 1,079 Ways to help “low-performing” schools Washington Kg g8 1,000 improve. common. In general, Whole School Reform Woodrow Wilson G1 g8 355 models: 1) give decision-making authority In 2003–04, Union City schools enrolled Christopher Columbus G6 g8 351 to school-based teams that are representa- Emerson High G9 g12 1,506 about 10,000 students in 11 public schools Union Hill High G9 g12 1,409 tive of the district and the neighborhood; (not including children enrolled in private source Fall Survey, 2003-04 2) provide help and training to schools by preschool programs). Among the nine schools external experts; and 3) specify supports for serving young people in preschool through teachers, students, and parents, including Grade 8, there were seven different grade what the district can do to lead school im- configurations. Four served children from provement efforts. The New Jersey Depart- Kindergarten to Grade 8; two of those schools ment of Education chose Success for All as had preschool classrooms. In addition to the the primary model for Abbott schools be- other four elementary schools, there were two cause they thought it had the best track re- high schools and one middle school. cord for urban school improvement. Abbott schools were free to choose one of five other models: the Comer School Development Program, Accelerated Schools, Coalition for
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K-12 Education 3
Essential Schools, Community for Learning, 1992, for example, the district was already and Modern Red Schoolhouse.17 Schools could fully committed to ground-up management propose other models, including ones that by school-based teams. By 1995, the state they or their district had developed. These removed Union City from the list of troubled models had to be approved by the New Jersey school districts. In other words, when Abbott Department of Education. required that schools adopt Whole School Over the years, state support and enforce- Reform models, Union City’s schools had ment of the Whole School Reform require- already begun implementing many of the ment has varied. Recently, the state has reforms that were now required. The issue is outlined ways for high-performing schools to how the new Whole School Reform mandate opt out of their Whole School Reform models. added to its existing efforts. The New Jersey Department of Education also Within the first few years after the re- requires that low-performing schools use quirement, most Union City’s schools, alternate approaches. including secondary schools—selected one In this section, we review how Union City of four models. The Comer School Develop- responded to Abbott’s Whole School Reform ment Program was being implemented at the requirement and what models it chose. In Edison, Hudson, Jefferson, Robert Waters, 1989, after receiving an “Abbott” district and Washington Schools. The Coalition of Es- designation, the Union City Board of Educa- sential Schools model was used at Columbus tion was ordered to develop and enact an Middle, Woodrow Wilson, and Emerson and improvement plan or be taken over by the Union Hill High Schools. Gilmore Elementary New Jersey Department of Education. In used Success For All, and Roosevelt used the response, the district started a set of reforms Accelerated Schools Model. including curriculum, cooperative learning, (continued on page 42) and school-based management teams. By
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Comer School Development Program Accelerated Schools
The program developer, James Comer, recog- The Accelerated Schools developer (Henry nized that many children living in inner cities Levin) believed that too many urban schools come to school unprepared for school success lacked challenging curricula and high expec- and that many teachers never really learned tations for their students. Schools using this about how children develop, and how home model offer all students the kind of curricula When Abbott required cultures affect their academic success. The and instructional approaches typically used School Development Program aims to help with gifted-and-talented children. School- that schools adopt teachers understand child development, im- based teams work together to make every Whole School Reform prove relations between schools and parents, classroom a “powerful learning” environment, and of course, increase student achievement. where students and teachers think creatively, models, Union City The main program elements are: a school- explore interests, and achieve. The model is based management team that develops and not prescribed: instead, it offers a process and schools had already monitors the use of a comprehensive school philosophy that will help schools develop begun implementing plan; a student and staff team focused on im- their own programs. The philosophy is based proving school climate and providing support on unity of purpose, empowerment and many of the reforms. services; and a parent team that promotes responsibility, and building on strengths. The parent involvement. The program is known “inquiry process” helps schools and com- for its blame-free approach to problem solv- munity partners analyze their problems, take ing, and its emphasis on collaboration and actions to make improvements, and assess shared decision-making. A special unit of the the results. management team is also assigned to address curriculum, literacy skills, teacher develop- ment, and other instructional issues.
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K-12 Education 3
Coalition of Essential Schools Success For All/Roots & Wings
The Coalition of Essential Schools, developed Success for All/Roots & Wings created by Robert Slavin, by Ted Sizer, is not a specific model.I nstead, Nancy Madden, and a team of developers at Johns Hopkins it is based on the belief that schools must de- University, is designed to boost the basic skills achievement velop their own approach that will match the of all students while building problem solving skills, creativity, needs of their students. CES operates accord- and critical thinking. The purpose of the model is to create ing to common principles. The overarching well-structured curricular and instructional approaches for all goal is to teach young people to use their core academic subjects, preschool to Grade 6, using research- minds well. To do so, teachers and students based principles of instruction, assessment, classroom man- must know one another well. Students in agement, motivation, and professional development. Success CES schools are encouraged to gain deep for All schools have a full-time facilitator to help implement knowledge and skills in a few areas rather the program, a family support team to improve community than broad content coverage. The approach and parent involvement, and a school-based advisory team also emphasizes documenting progress, that advises the principal on general direction and goals and budgeting for learning, school-community evaluates school climate. Many of the elements of Success for collaboration, and seeing the whole school All—such as intensive early literacy, tutoring for elementary as the unit of change. grades students who are not reading on grade level, and fam- ily support teams—are required under Abbott, even in schools that do not adopt this model. The Roots & Wings version of the program adds to the original, reading-only model added instructional components in math, social studies, and science.
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School and district staff told us that they by their feeder schools. The two high schools had come a long way on their own and that also agreed to adopt the same model because most model developers did not offer enough of high student mobility in the district. Robert added value to warrant a full contract. These Waters Elementary selected the Comer School schools purchased specific services from their Development Program because staff agreed model developers or attended conferences that they needed to consider the whole child on an as-needed basis. In 2003–04, Success and have ongoing communication with and for All was the only model developer under involvement by parents in school activities. contract to the Union City Board of Education. In 2003–04, Veterans’ Memorial School Among the five schools we visited in the was looking most closely at Success For All, district, three used the Coalition for Es- because of the strong evidence of effective- sential Schools, one used the Comer School ness at improving language arts and literacy Development Program, and one newer school achievement. Veterans’ teachers visited an- had not yet selected a Whole School Reform other school in the district that used Success model. The schools using the Coalition for for All and liked what they saw: the materials Essential Schools model, Union Hill and and technical assistance really helped both Emerson High Schools, unanimously said teachers and students make the most of the that they chose it because: 1) it was consistent reading classes. Another model, called Co- with their school’s vision and values; and Nect, was also being considered, because it 2) it did not require detailed, step-by-step stressed learning across the subjects and used procedures. Even though the high schools projects to organize learning. Veterans’ staff were not required to adopt a model, both were told us that they would probably make their interested in adopting an approach that would final model selection after their first-year test help them improve teaching and learning data were out. and be compatible with the approaches used
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Program Structure a striking difference between Union City figure 3.2 Across all whole school reform models, stu- schools and any other district grouping. At dents in Grades 1 through 4 have 23 periods a both the elementary and secondary levels, Total Instructional Time (in minutes) by School Level and District Grouping, 2002–03 week (or at least three a day) of “humanities” students in Union City spend more time on instruction, including language arts/literacy, instruction than do students in the wealthiest 480 social studies, tutoring, and enrichment ac- districts, the other Abbott districts, or stu- 420 tivities. Ten periods a week are scheduled for dents throughout New Jersey. Teaching and 360 uninterrupted math instruction; and seven learning occur for six hours a day in Union 300 periods for special classes such as gym, world City’s elementary schools and six hours and 240 400 languages, art, music, computer science, and forty minutes in the city’s high schools. 180 359 338 337 336 354 356 349 120 health or science. One period is devoted to Of course, hours and minutes alone do not 60 library activities, and four are reserved for indicate that high-quality instruction and 0 teachers to use to help their classes complete active learning are occurring: we turn to other Elementary Secondary or brush up on the materials scheduled for indicators to understand precisely what might Union City that week. be happening in the classroom. All Other Abbott Districts Similarly, students in Grades 5 through 8 Class size research suggests that smaller I and J Districts New Jersey spend 23 periods each week in humanities class sizes can help teachers spend less instruction, 10 periods in math, and seven time on behavior management and more source school Report Card, 2002-03 in “special” classes such as physical educa- time on instruction that is better attuned to tion, languages, and art. In addition, students their needs. In fact, there is strong evidence in the middle grades spend five periods in that smaller class sizes help students in the health or science instruction. early elementary grades to perform better in The amount of time that students spend school. Evidence on the benefits of smaller learning is one indication that the school day class sizes for students in later grades is less is being used productively. Figure 3.2 shows clear. In recognition of the potential benefits
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to students of all ages. Abbott schools have figure 3.3 figure 3.4 class size standards as follows: Average Class Size by Grade: Union City, 2002–03 Elementary School Average Class Size by District Grouping, Kindergarten through grade 3: 21 1994–95 to 2002–03 Grades 4 through 5: 23 Grades 6 through 12: 24 25 30
25 Figure 3.3 shows the average class size by 20 grade for Union City, compared to the Abbott 20 15 standards. In the most recent year in which we 25.1 15 22.1 22.1 21.5 have information, Union City’s average class 10 19.5 20.1 19.8 18.2 18.2 18.1 18.4 10 15.6 size was smaller than the maximum allowed by 5 5 Abbott in every grade except Grade 6.
0 Figure 3.4 shows a comparison of elemen- 0 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th tary school class sizes by district grouping Union City Union City from 1994–95 to 2002–03. Elementary school All Other Abbott Districts Abbott Standard class sizes across the state and in the wealthi- I and J Districts New Jersey est districts have stayed at about 20 students between 1994–95 and 2002–03. Meanwhile,
source school Report Card, 2002-03 source school Report Card, 1994-95 to 2002-03 elementary school class sizes in the Abbott districts (other than Union City) have de- creased from 21 to just less than 19. Union City class sizes started at about the same level as the other Abbott districts, increased to a high of 26 in 1999–00, and shrunk again to just over 20 children per class during this same period. Class size can increase
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K-12 Education 3 for a number of reasons. The most common about 19 in 2002–03. Meanwhile, the aver- figure 3.5 reasons are lack of space, a growing student age high school class size remained steady population, or a lack of resources to hire at about 20 in all other district groupings. Elementary School Enrollment: Union City, 1994–95 to 2002–03 teachers. Whatever the reason this occurred Understanding why class sizes grew in the in Union City, the larger class sizes in the elementary grades may help us to understand 9,000 elementary grades at the turn of the century why they grew in 2002–03 in the high schools. 8,000 no longer seem to be a problem. If the elementary school student enrollment 7,000 Why did class size change in Union City’s grew in the late-1990s, these larger classes 6,000 5,000 elementary schools? Changes in classroom may be just now entering the high schools. 4,000 space, number of teachers, and enrollment A rising student enrollment, combined with 3,000 could explain the class size trends. Figure 3.4 limited space could explain the rise in class 2,000 shows the district’s total elementary school sizes. Later in this report, we turn to Union 1,000 0 enrollment from 1994–95 to 2002–03. We City’s school facilities construction efforts for 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 can see that K-8 enrollment rose from just a closer look at this issue. under 6,200 in 1994–95 to over 7,900 in Do enrollment patterns explain the source school Report Card, 1994-95 to 2002-03 1999–00; and then decreased to 7,135 in changes in high school class sizes in Union 2002–03. These data suggest that the changes City? Figure 3.7 shows that Union City’s in enrollment may have been a factor in the high school enrollment grew by 23 percent class size changes experienced during this between 1994–95 and 2002–03. Enrollment period. changes, then, helped to explain the overall We see almost a mirror image of the growth in class size since 1999–00, but not elementary school class size trends in Figure the dramatic improvements in class sizes that 3.6. Union City’s high school class sizes occurred beforehand. decreased during the mid-1990s, stayed at about 15 for several years, and rose again to
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Programs for Students with Disabilities The law requires schools and districts to figure 3.6 Federal and state laws guide the education provide children with appropriate educa- High School Average Class Size by District Grouping, 1994–95 of individuals with disabilities.18 The law re- tional experiences and quality services that to 2002–03 quires that children with disabilities be edu- are tailored to their individual needs. For as cated in the “least restrictive environment.” much time as possible, this education must 30 This means that, to the maximum extent be provided in inclusive, rather than sepa- 25 possible, students are educated in the school rate settings. Below, we discuss the settings 20 they would have attended if they did not have where Union City’s special needs students are 15 a disability, and participate in academic, non- educated.
10 academic, and extracurricular activities with Before and since Abbott, the Union City students who do not have disabilities. The school district made conscious efforts to re- 5 general education classroom is the preferred duce the number of children with disabilities 0 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 placement for children with disabilities; who were educated in self-contained class- Union City however, school districts must also offer a rooms or “pulled out” of class for separate All Other Abbott Districts range of alternative services for students who instruction. Almost half of Union City’s 851 I and J Districts cannot be educated in the regular classroom students with disabilities go to school in a New Jersey for part or all of the day. The law also states “very inclusionary” setting (spending 80% that children with disabilities should only be or more of their day with the general educa- source school Report Card, 1994-95 to 2002-03 placed in separate classes or schools, or re- tion population), compared with 27 percent moved from the general education classroom in the other Abbott districts and 42 percent when the nature or severity of the disability in the state overall (Figure 3.8). Of the four prevents them from being educated in the district groupings we analyzed, students with general education classroom, even with the disabilities in the wealthiest districts are most use of supplemental aids and services. likely to be taught in classrooms with general
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K-12 Education 3 education students for 80 percent or more of Below, we describe the types of programs figure 3.7 the day (56%). available for students in Union City whose More than one in four (27%) students with first language is not English. High School Enrollment: Union City, 1994–95 to 2002–03 disabilities in Union City are in self-con- For elementary school students. Union tained classrooms for most of their school City’s elementary schools offer a Bilingual/ 3,500 day (spending less than 40% of the day in English as a Second Language (ESL) Program, 3,000 general education classrooms)—a much which uses a transitional bilingual education 2,500 greater percentage than for the state as a model. All students are tested upon entry 2,000 whole (17%) and the I and J districts (8%). Six into the district, and annually thereafter. 1,500 percent of special needs children are placed The IDEA Proficiency Test (IPT) is used in 1,000 in a school outside of the district, compared preschool through Grade 7, and the Maculaitis 500 to nine percent statewide, and seven percent Assessment of Competencies (MAC) is used 0 in the wealthiest districts.19 In addition, more in Grades 8 through 12.20 In 2005–06, the 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 than two percent receive instruction at home English Language Development Assessment compared to a smaller percentage statewide (ELDA), which will be the state standard in source school Report Card, 1994-95 to 2002-03 or in any other district grouping. 2006, will be piloted in Union City.21 Spanish-speaking English language Programs for English Language Learners learner students are placed in the Transitional School districts are required to identify Bilingual/ESL Program, based on their results eligible limited English proficient (LEP) on the IPT or MAC. The goals of this pro- students at the time of enrollment. Once the gram are to ensure that: 1) students enter the district has identified the language proficien- mainstream classroom within a one- to four- cy of students, it must provide the programs year period; 2) English language learners and services needed to enable LEP students to are provided with an educationally equitable meet the Core Curriculum Content Standards. environment; and 3) diversity is respected. In
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the program, students gradually move from figure 3.8 native language-assisted instruction to the Educational Environment of Students with Disabilities Ages 6–21 by District Grouping, 2003–04 three levels of instruction in English: begin- ner, intermediate, and advanced. Beginner 2.2% level students receive instruction in Spanish 100% 6.2% 7.2% 9.3% 13.5% and two forty-minute periods of ESL, one in a 90% 8.0% core curriculum content area. The intermedi- 17.2% 80% 27.6% ate level emphasizes instruction in English in 70% 32.1% 28.1% some core curriculum content areas; the ad- vanced level provides all content area instruc- 60% 14.0% 30.4% tion using English language only. Non-Span- 50% ish speaking ELL students must be placed in 40% 26.4% the advanced program, but are provided with 30% 56.1% 49.8% additional support if needed. Students in all 20% 42.3% three groups receive full-time programs of 27.0% 10% instruction and tailored small group instruc- 0 tion (from support teachers) that targets spe- Union City All Other I & J Districts New Jersey cific areas in need of improvement. They can Abbott Districts also participate in bilingual and ESL classes after school and in the summer. Home <40% Inclusion >80% Inclusion Separate School 40–79% Inclusion Project SELL (Spanish-English Lan-
NOT E: Less than one percent are educated in a residential setting in all district groupings. Less than one percent are guage Literacy) is a dual language program educated at home in All Other Abbott Districts, I & J Districts, and the State. currently being implemented at Roosevelt
source new Jersey Department of Education: Office ofS pecial Education Programs, 2003-04 School. Through two-way immersion, Project SELL enhances and enriches students’ first
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K-12 Education 3 language (either Spanish or English) and all English language learner students are develops their second language at the same given the Maculaitis again in the spring. time. The goals of the program are to: 1) At the first level of ESL, ESLReading/Writ - develop bi-literacy and critical thinking skills ing New Entrant, students are introduced to in English and Spanish; 2) maintain academic the English language and American culture. achievement at grade level; and 3) develop The focus of this course is on the development and promote multicultural understand- of basic listening, speaking, reading, and ing. The program’s curriculum is aligned writing skills in English. The next three lev- to the New Jersey Core Curriculum Content els, ESL Reading/Writing Beginner, ESL Reading/ Standards (NJCCCS), the New Jersey World Writing Intermediate, and ESL Reading/Writing Languages Content Standards and the Teach- Advanced meet the needs of students who have ers of English to Speakers of Other Languages achieved higher levels of competency in Eng- (TESOL) Standards. lish. Once students have mastered basic skills For high school students. When Eng- in listening, speaking, reading, and writing, lish language learner students first enter they can take the ESL C course to help them high school, they are given the Maculaitis to ultimately function in a monolingual English determine placement in one of the district’s class. Special attention is given to developing six levels of the English as a Second Language the skills needed to pass the Grade 11 stan- (ESL) program. At the end of each marking dardized test. At the sixth level, students are period, students are re-assigned based on placed in a monolingual English classroom classroom performance and teacher recom- taught by a teacher certified in ESL as well as mendation (some students may remain at the in English. same level, others may jump several levels). All elementary and secondary teachers in As part of the district’s assessment protocol, Union City who work with English language learners are required to take courses leading
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to the attainment of a Bilingual or ESL certifi- five-year cycle to ensure that they are current cate. The district pays for these courses. and aligned with the CCCS. Curriculum cycles are staggered to ensure that different content Curriculum areas can be addressed each year. In March In 1996, New Jersey was among the first states 2004, the district had recently completed to adopt curriculum standards, called the revising the math curriculum for students in Core Curriculum Content Standards (CCCS). Grades 1 through 4 and was beginning revi- The CCCS describe what students should sions to the math curriculum for Grades 5 know and be able to do in nine content areas through 8. Curriculum development meetings at each grade level from Kindergarten to are held weekly during the winter. Grade 12 and upon high school graduation. High school action plan. In the spring of The content areas are: career education and 2003, the district’s new administrative team consumer, family, and life skills; comprehen- recognized that the two high schools required sive health and physical education; language extensive assistance and intervention. A arts literacy; mathematics; science; social major area of concern was the district’s poor studies; technology; visual and performing scores on the Grade 11 test, particularly in arts; and world languages. The CCCS define a math. Secondary teachers were asked to com- “thorough and efficient education,” to which plete a survey to elicit their opinions about all New Jersey residents are entitled under the the problem and provide recommendations State Constitution. about how secondary education in Union City In Union City, K-12 curricula are devel- could be improved. In response to feedback oped by content-specific committees that central office administrators received, the include district staff and elementary, middle, district hired a math coordinator, whose role and high school teachers. District policy re- is to ensure that the math program in Kinder- quires curricula be reviewed and revised on a garten through Grade 12 is rigorous.
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The math coordinator worked with completion; 2) entering ninth grade students administrators, supervisors, teachers, and from Edison School who were identified as outside consultants, to develop a three-year needing remediation in math participated in action plan for improving the math program. a summer pilot program designed to enhance In 2003–04, the first year of the plan, the their math skills (this will be expanded to following activities took place: 1) the Algebra include identified students in all Union City 2 curriculum was realigned and sequenced to schools in 2005–06); 3) general math classes reflect the Core Curriculum Content Stan- were eliminated from the district academic dards (CCCS) and the Grade 11 test; 2) tutorial program (all students were enrolled in a core classes for eleventh graders were offered math course such as algebra or geometry; and before school, during lunchtime, and after if necessary, a supplemental course such as school; 3) eleventh grade teachers had regular HSPA skills); 4) Algebra 1 and Geometry cur- planning meetings to address student place- riculum guides were realigned and sequenced ment, classroom techniques and curriculum to reflect the CCCS and the Grade 11 test; alignment; 4) two online assessments were and 5) at both high schools, math labs were given to eleventh graders to identify student created as resource centers for students and weaknesses; and 5) eleventh grade students teachers. in danger of failing the Grade 11 test attended In 2005–06, the district intends to: 1) six-week review sessions either three days develop plans for improving articulation be- after school or on Saturday mornings. tween Grades 6 through 9; 2) plan for better In 2004–05, the district added the follow- transition between eighth and ninth grade; 3) ing activities: 1) summer packets that provide establish a pre-algebra program for seventh math concept review and enrichment were grade students; 4) improve the district’s given to incoming eleventh grade students eighth grade Algebra 1 program; 5) purchase and incoming ninth grade students for new text books for Geometry and Algebra 2;
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and 6) develop summer packets for all incom- district several miles away. Union City offers ing students in Grades 6 through 11. 21 courses compared to Tenafly’s 31. Tenafly College preparatory classes. Nationwide, offered additional honors courses such as: high school students of color are under-rep- Creative Writing, French, Italian, Japanese, resented in college admissions. One reason Latin, Precalculus, Russian, Spanish, and might be a lack of opportunity to learn chal- Western Civilization. Tenafly students also lenging material in high school. Union City’s take AP courses in Computer Science, English high schools offer a number of courses to pre- Language, English Literature, French, Music pare students for college. Honors courses are Theory, Physics, and Statistics. offered to students in Grades 9 through 12 in
the following subjects: World History (Grade Student and Family Supports 9), Biology with Lab (Grades 9 through 10), Algebra (Grades 9 and 11), English (Grades 9 Abbott Overview through 12), Geometry (Grade 10), American Under Abbott, the New Jersey Supreme Court History (Grades 10 through 11), Chemistry requires the state to fund and implement with Lab (Grade 11), Calculus (Grade 12), and “supplemental programs.” The purpose of Physics with Lab (Grade 12). Beginning in these programs is to address disadvantages Grade 10, Union City students also have the experienced by young people who grow up in opportunity to take Advanced Placement (AP) poor cities. There are two kinds of supple- courses for college credit in American His- mental programs under Abbott. Some pro- tory, Biology, Calculus, Chemistry, English grams are required. They are: Literature, Spanish Language, and Spanish Full-day Kindergarten Literature. Intensive Early Literacy We compared Union City’s honors and AP Parent involvement course offerings to those in Tenafly, an “I” Class size limits
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Health and social service referral discuss the type of supplemental programs Access to technology available to the young people attending Union Alternative education and dropout prevention City’s public schools. If a program is not listed Early math instruction below, it does not mean that it is not available: Professional development only that we did not gather information about Violence prevention and school security it to include in this report. School-to-work and college transition
Funding to support others is available if a Full-Day Kindergarten school or district can show that the students Children who attend full-day Kindergarten need them. These are: learn more reading and math than those On-site social and health services in half-day classes. Children in small Kin- Literacy supports for schools not using dergarten classes learn more than those in Success for All medium-sized or large classes. The research After-school instructional programs shows that children from low-income fami- Summer instructional programs Nutrition programs lies learn more in smaller classes that are led Exemplary music, art, and special education by a teacher and supported by an instructional School-based management and budgeting aide. All students enrolled in Kindergarten We were able to gather information on in an Abbott district are entitled to a full supplemental programs and services by visit- day of school in a class that is no larger than ing schools and by reviewing budgets and 21 children and taught by a teacher and an other documents. We did not catalog all of instructional aide. the supplemental programs in Union City or All of Union City’s Kindergarten classes the other Abbott districts, nor did we assess have been full day at least as early as 1998–99, their quality. Such extensive study was beyond as have the majority throughout the state. The the scope of our project. In this section we findings below show the average size of its
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Kindergarten classes from 2000–01 to 2002– sizes and illustrates the actual enrollment figure 3.9 03 compared to all other Abbotts, the wealthi- trend over time including all of the ups and Kindergarten Average Class Size by District Grouping, est districts, and the state average (Figure downs in between. Reading left to right, the 2000–01 to 2002–03 3.9). The findings reveal—for every district points show the cumulative percent change in
25 grouping we analyzed—Kindergarten class Kindergarten enrollment since 1998–99. The ABBOTT STANDARD sizes were smaller than the Abbott standard of first point shows the percent change between 20 21 and rose to close to the maximum class size 1998–99 and 1999–00, the second shows that
15 by 2002–03. Union City’s Kindergarten class change plus the change between 1999–00 and size was 12.4 in 2000–01 and 20 in 2002–03. 2000–01, and so on. 10 The average Kindergarten class size in all Union City Kindergarten enrollment 5 other Abbott districts was 12 in 2000–01 and remained between 720 and 750 students 20 in 2002–03. from 1998–99 to 2001–02. Kindergarten 0 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 These findings suggest a combination of enrollment then dropped 10 percent between Union City possible factors that could affect Kinder- 2001–02 and 2003–04. All Other Abbott Districts garten class sizes across the state: limited I and J Districts Early Literacy New Jersey classroom space for Kindergarten, a growing
Kindergarten enrollment, and/or districts Under Abbott, schools are required to provide
source school Report Card, 1994-95 to 2002-03 have either dropped Kindergarten teacher 90-minute blocks of reading instruction to staff lines that did not keep pace with en- children in Kindergarten through Grade 3. In rollment. Figure 3.10 shows the cumulative addition, students in Grades 1 through 3 who percent changes in Kindergarten enrollment are not reading at grade level must receive for Union City, all other Abbott districts, and one-on-one tutoring; older elementary grade the state from 1998–99 to 2003–04. We use students not reading at grade level must re- cumulative percent change because it allows ceive small-group tutoring. us to compare district groupings of unequal
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Union City is one of 11 New Jersey school Jefferson, Roosevelt and Wilson Schools are figure 3.10 districts involved in the Reading First early using similar strategies in their Kindergarten literacy program.22 The program is designed classrooms. Cumulative Percent Change in Kindergarten Enrollment by District Grouping, 1999–00 to 2003–04 to measure student progress through ongoing Veterans’ Elementary School tests stu- screening and classroom assessments; iden- dents’ reading skills three times a year and 0.10 tify children at risk for reading failure; pro- places them into different early literacy 0.05 vide professional development for teachers instructional groups based on their perfor- -0.00 using research-based reading programs; and mance: “benchmark” (grade level), “stra- -0.05 work with parents to promote parent partner- tegic” (moderately at-risk), or “intensive” -0.10 ships, parent literacy, and reading at home. (high-risk). High-risk, or “intensive” -0.15 Kindergarten through Grade 3, special and students in Grade 1 receive tutoring with a -0.20 general education students and teachers take reading specialist during the day. Second and -0.25 part in the program. Like Success for All and third graders at high risk receive after-school 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 the Abbott requirements for all other schools, tutoring. The remaining students work with Union City Reading First also includes a 90-minute teacher tutors. Robert Waters School provides All Other Abbott Districts I and J Districts intensive early literacy period for students Reading Recovery tutoring to students scoring New Jersey in the early elementary grades. In 2003–04, in the lowest 20 percentile of the same test.
Edison and Washington Schools were the source school Report Card, 1994-95 to 2002-03 first to participate because they were desig- Parent Involvement nated as “needing improvement” under the Emerging research suggests that children No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. Beginning with parents who are involved in their learning in Fall 2004, the district began implement- are more likely to attend school, earn higher ing Reading First at Gilmore, Veterans’ and grades, improve their social skills, graduate Robert Waters Schools. Although not formally from high school and go on to college. Parent designated as Reading First schools, Hudson, involvement in the school can be important
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too if it is linked to improving learning, principals, faculty, and parents to establish developing specific skills or encouraging chil- parent groups, and communicate the objec- dren to take more challenging classes. Parent tives of continuous school improvement. involvement can also build a sense of commu- Parent involvement is also a large component nity accountability for student learning. of the early childhood program. Every private Under the No Child Left Behind Act of preschool provider has a family worker, and 2001, districts are required to use a portion every in-district school has a parent-commu- of their federal funding to form and support nity coordinator. a District Parent Advisory Council. Abbott SLC chairs at the five schools we visited schools are required to make efforts to involve told us that there are parent representatives parents and caregivers in their children’s on their management teams. The district also education and in general school decision- has a parent handbook that includes parent making. At the very least, each school should involvement policies, opportunities for train- have a parent-community coordinator and ing, and policies on visiting the school and parent representation on its SLC. meeting school staff members. In Union City, every school has a parent- community coordinator. According to the Health and Social Services district’s handbook for parent-community Referral and coordination. Abbott schools coordinators, the coordinator’s mission is should have staff dedicated to connect par- “to build a bridge between school and home ents, caregivers, and children with needed by helping parents, grandparents, and/or health and social services. The goals of this guardians get the information, help and staff are: 1) to ensure that the children are support they need to ensure their children’s able to come to school every day prepared academic and social success in school.” to learn; and 2) to reduce time taken out by Parent-community coordinators work with teachers to address students’ nonacademic
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K-12 Education 3 problems. Aside from connecting families to plan for each student that outlines strategies neighborhood services, staff should provide that can be implemented before referring the counseling and educational services. At the student to the CST. Representatives on the very least, elementary schools are required team bring this information back to grade- to have a family support team, made up of level meetings. Each team is also responsible a nurse, social worker, counselor, parent for coordinating student services and making liaison, and the whole school reform instruc- referrals for students to community agencies. tional facilitator. At middle and high schools, There is also a districtwide task force that Through “Union City the community services and health and social includes a district-level support services service coordinators do the job of the family supervisor, assistant principals from each Online,” the district support team. school, CST representatives, and medical Union City calls its family support teams and special needs staff. The task force meets placed over 2,000 com- Support Services Task Forces and every school monthly and reviews information on each puters in classrooms, in the district has one. The task forces are referred student’s health and well-being to made up of instructional staff, the assistant determine the appropriate programs and libraries, computer labs, principal, Child Study Team (CST) members, services to address students’ needs. the parent liaison, and a school nurse. The The district substance abuse counselor and media centers in team typically meets once a week to discuss conducts workshops for students through the the mid-1990s. Access to students identified by teachers and/or other Students Against Substance Abuse program. staff as having health, mental health, aca- Students suspected of substance abuse are re- and training in technology demic, or behavioral problems. The task force ferred to the Giant Steps program in Hoboken reviews student test score data, attendance, for testing. Students with other mental health was fully integrated discipline, and other behavior issues to issues are referred to the School Based Youth determine if each referred student is at risk Services Program or St. Mary’s Hospital. The by 2003–04. of dropping out. The team develops a written school social worker provides parents with
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information about agencies where they can with support to prevent them from dropping bring their children for needed health and out of school. The 15 mothers who currently social services. North Hudson Community receive these services drop their children Action Corporation staff (NHCAC) also offer off at the program’s day care before going to parents information about immunization class, participate in group activities with other and talk with them about state-sponsored mothers after school, and receive information health insurance programs such as New Jersey on topics such as parenting and nutrition. The KidCare. district hopes to receive additional funding to On-site services. Under Abbott, if social expand these services in the future. and health services are not easy to access outside of school, schools may request fund- Access to Technology ing to support an on-site clinic. The Union Abbott districts are required to have at least City Board of Education did not request one media specialist and one technology co- supplemental funds through Abbott. Emer- ordinator who make sure that: students mas- son High School offers health and social ser- ter the technology needed to reach the state’s vices on site through the School-Based Youth Core Curriculum Content Standards; class- Services Program, funded by the New Jersey rooms and libraries have adequate equip- Department of Human Services. Services ment; and technology is effectively used to are offered daily until 9 P.M., and include support teaching and learning. There should mentoring, mental health counseling, career be no more than five students to each com- counseling, employment skills training, and puter in each school throughout the district. workshops.23 The district recently received a In the early-to mid-1990s, before Abbott grant to expand the program to middle school funding began, the Union City Board of Edu- students. School-Based Youth Services also cation combined local school revenues with provides teenage mothers in the district funding from private enterprise and federal
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K-12 Education 3 grants to support a massive investment in a build, and maintain small-to medium-sized network that linked classrooms and school networks. The district felt that CISCO certifi- libraries, district offices, public libraries, and cation helps to make students more attractive Union City’s government offices. The project, job candidates. Through the Teen Tech pro- known as “Union City Online,” placed over gram, Union Hill High school students work 2,000 computers in the classrooms, libraries, with the technology facilitator to diagnose and computer labs and media centers. Develop- repair computer equipment for credit. Union ment of the district’s website also began dur- Hill students can also participate in a summer ing this period. web design program for credit and wages. When we visited the district in 2003–04, The new Veterans’ Memorial Elementary access to and training in technology was fully School is a wireless building and each grade integrated throughout the district. Through has two carts of laptops. The district pro- a web-based system known as “Class Link” vides laptop computers to all teachers at the
Union City students accessed and submitted school and all lesson plans are submitted to homework on-line. Teachers corrected, com- the principal electronically. The school has mented, and returned student work on-line a technology curriculum with benchmarks, too. Through Project Hiller, 30 ninth graders and all students in Preschool through Grade at Union Hill High School received laptops 5 are enrolled in computer skills classes. For and printers for their homes. This project example, preschool students master reading provided students who would not otherwise software; third and fourth grade students do have access to computers the opportunity to Internet research. Veterans’ has a partner- use up-to-date technology to complete their ship with the Sony Corporation that enables homework and school projects. Students can students to take “electronic field trips.” Most also take a CISCO certification course that recently, Veterans’ students communicated teaches students the skills needed to design, with students at Pascack Valley High School.
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Students at both schools role-played and ber of students to every computer decreased figure 3.11 asked one another questions. steadily from 10.7 to 4.8. Student access to Student–Computer Ratio by District Grouping, Figure 3.11 shows the number of students computers also improved throughout the 1997–98 to 2002–03 to every computer in Union City, the other state. Although there was a two-year period
20 Abbott districts, the wealthiest districts in (1999–00 to 2000–01) when it worsened the state, and statewide. We expected to see in the wealthiest districts, student access to 15 a smaller number of students to each com- computers improved over all during this time puter, given the district’s extensive efforts period. 10 at upgrading and using technology. We have information about the student-computer Alternative Education 5 ratio beginning in 1997–98, so we can see if Abbott districts are also required to identify student access to computers improved in the and provide services to students at risk of fail- 0 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 years after Abbott funding came in. Figure ing and dropping out as soon as possible and Union City 3.11 shows that Union City students had easier prevent those negative outcomes. At a mini- All Other Abbott Districts access to computers than their peers in any mum, the districts should provide alternative I and J Districts New Jersey other district grouping we analyzed through- programs for young people in middle and out the time period. In 1997–98, there were high school, and be adequately staffed with
source school Report Card, 1997-98 to 2002-03 only 4.3 students to every computer; in dropout prevention specialists. 2002–03 there were 3.2, better than (be- In Union City, the middle school alter- low) the standard of five students to every native education program is an alternative computer. setting for eighth grade students identified Across the other Abbott districts during as at-risk by the Support Services Task Force the same time period, student access to com- of their school. Students are eligible for the puters improved by over 100 percent. In the program if they have poor academic per- other 29 Abbott districts, the average num-
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K-12 Education 3 formance, social and emotional problems, graduated, it looked for a way to address this and/or difficulties in the home environment. problem. The school provides a Focus on Suc- The program is operated at three schools: cess Program to 32 ninth grade students who Edison has two classes, Washington and Jose are at risk of dropping out. Union Hill High Marti each have one class. Classes can have no School also has a Focus on Success program more than 15 students. The curriculum is tai- servicing 32 ninth graders. Students in these lored to the educational needs of each student programs typically come from eighth grade with special provisions made for students who alternative education programs in the district. need remediation and tutoring. Skills needed Focus on Success keeps these students to- for the Grade 8 test are strongly emphasized. gether with a small number of teachers as they Students receive individual and group coun- move up through high school. seling from the school social worker who also holds formal parent meetings eight times a College and Work Transition Programs year. In addition to the academic program, High schools in Abbott districts are also students work as volunteers in county hos- required to provide programs to help stu- pitals and nursing homes. Twice a year, their dents transition to their chosen pathways supervisors grade their performance. Stu- after graduation. These programs should dents who successfully complete the middle help students: 1) explore their interests and school alternative education program may strengths; 2) improve their skills and prepare enter the mainstream high school environ- for responsible self-reliance in adulthood; ment, or if necessary, may go on to the high and 3) prepare for college admissions and/or school alternative education program. employment applications. When Emerson High School staff discov- Union Hill and Emerson High Schools ered that only about half of the 480 students both have the Road to College program. The who entered the school as ninth graders program aims to expose students to college
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and the application process in Grade 9. Stu- professions. Through the Business Commu- dents visit local and out-of-state colleges and nity Education program, seniors work in local universities. Union City students attend sum- businesses and juniors work in places such as mer enrichment programs at nearby colleges, City Hall. The district pays for student trans- and some have the opportunity to attend these portation to their jobs. A Career Exploration schools tuition-free. The high schools also Class is offered to students in Grade 9. hold meetings with students at every grade Abbott high schools are level to discuss issues such as college applica- After-School Programs tions and entrance examinations. District staff told us that they view extended also required to provide There are also three College Nights day, or after-school programs, as an ex- throughout the year for students and their tension of the classroom. Teachers in af- programs to help stu- families. The first meeting is intended to help ter-school programs are reported to be in dents transition to their students and their families explore their op- constant communication with classroom tions on the Internet. At the second meeting teachers to make sure there is continuity with chosen pathways after students and their families can practice filling the school-day classroom. At the elementary out college applications with assistance from school level, students receive after-school graduation. school staff. The third meeting is reserved tutoring. Students in Grades 3 and 4 can pre- for assistance and information on financial pare for standardized tests before and after aid forms. Union City College Nights are school and on weekends leading up to the test. conducted in English and Spanish. Each fall, At the high school level, there is before-and English teachers also review seniors’ college after-school tutoring for the Grade 11 exam essays and classes are offered on interviewing and SAT tutoring on Saturdays. and professional dress. The district recently received a 21st Cen- Current and former Union City residents tury Community Learning Center Grant to come to the high schools to talk about their support extended day programs in its lowest
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K-12 Education 3 achieving schools.24 Through this and the Summer Programs Even Start program, parents can participate in The district has a four-week instructional English as a Second Language (ESL), comput- summer program for students needing extra er, and parenting skills courses after school help in math or reading. Eligibility for this hours.25 Childcare services are provided. program is based on test scores. The district Some schools have extracurricular activities also runs summer enrichment programs for after school such as sports teams, cheerlead- English language learners and students with ing, clubs (for example, drama and art), peer disabilities. mediation, peer leadership, and student gov- The Union City Department of Recreation ernment. There is a nurse available at every provides activities for students in Grades location with an after-school program. 1 through 8 from 8:00 A.M. to 1:00 P.M In 2003–04, all of Union City’s elemen- throughout the summer. High school teams tary schools had a Math Night, where general have weeklong clinics in football, soccer, and education and bilingual teachers team-taught basketball. The district also employs approxi- children and their parents or caregivers. mately 800 students to work in the community. Teachers received training from Rutgers At the high school level, students can par- University in Family Math instruction to help ticipate in the web design program to receive parents work with their children on math. credits and wages. Through the Summer Parent liaisons are also involved in this proj- Scholars program, high school students can ect. The program started with fourth grade also attend summer programs at universities students and will be expanded in future years such as New Jersey Institute of Technology, to include third graders and their families. New Jersey City University, Harvard, and Princeton. Eighth graders identified as being at-risk of failing or dropping out receive extra
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help during the summer before they enter who traveled from classroom to classroom. figure 3.12 high school. Robert Waters Elementary students received Student–Teacher Ratio by District Groupings, music instruction once a week in the cafeto- 1994–95 to 2002–03 Art and Music rium. After school, there was choral music
16 Art and music programs took place in varied and music technology instruction. There are
14 settings in the schools we visited. Ideally, two art teachers at Robert Waters. 12 instruction should take place in rooms that 10 are dedicated to these subjects and taught by K-12 Teacher Qualifications and Supports 8 specialists in the subject matter. Union Hill 6 High School has a music wing with two rooms There are no wholly adequate ways to assess 4 for the fine and performing arts programs. teaching quality without observing instruction 2 The school also has choral music and instru- and talking to teachers, parents, and chil- 0 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 mental programs, and a video production dren. These methods are beyond the scope
Union City department which films school events and of our project, however. We offer, instead, All Other Abbott Districts sells DVD’s to raise money for the school. information about the number, type, and I and J Districts New Jersey At Emerson High School, music is taught qualifications of teachers; teacher attendance in blocks in a dedicated music room. At the on the job; training that is made available to
source school Report Card, 1994-95 to 2002-03 new Veterans’ School, music instruction is teachers; and information about how their conducted on the stage of the auditorium, colleagues and the district help them to do the which can be converted into a classroom. The best job they can do. dedicated art room was still under construc- tion when we visited in 2003–04, so art was Student-Teacher Ratio taught in another classroom. At Columbus Student-teacher ratios are different from Middle School, students received art and class size. With class size we can see how music instruction from specialized teachers many children are in the classroom on aver-
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K-12 Education 3 age, while student-teacher ratios show the stress, and therefore faculty attendance. figure 3.13 relationship between the total number of Teachers say that student misbehavior and certificated faculty on staff and total enroll- even the change of school reform contribute Faculty Attendance by District Grouping, 1994–95 to 2002–03 ment. Student-teacher ratios may be smaller to stress and burnout. Of course, personal than class sizes if classes are team-taught, circumstances, such as health and family re- 100% or if specialized faculty are present in the sponsibilities, also account for some teacher classrooms—such as reading specialists, or absence. Next we examine the faculty atten- 95% bilingual or special education aides. dance rates in Union City, compared to other 90% By 2001–02 and 2002–03, there were Abbott districts, the wealthiest districts, and 85% fewer students to every teacher in Union City the state as a whole. than there were in the wealthiest districts, or Figure 3.13 shows a positive statewide 80% the state as a whole. Figure 3.12 shows that trend in faculty attendance between 1994–95 75% the student-to-teacher ratio has decreased and 2002–03. Union City faculty attendance 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 in Union City and the other Abbott districts. improved more than any other district Union City Union City had higher student-teacher ratios grouping we analyzed. Of special note is the All Other Abbott Districts I and J Districts than the other district groupings we examined dramatic increase in 1998–99 to over 95 New Jersey in every year before 1999–00. percent attendance. This high level of faculty
attendance in Union City has been main- source school Report Card, 1994-95 to 2002-03 Faculty Attendance tained at about the same level ever since. Research shows that teachers who like their jobs, are involved in decision making at Highly Qualified Teachers school, and who believe that their schools The Federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) support their efforts are absent from the job outlines several measures that schools and less often. The quality of a school’s environ- districts must take to ensure a quality public ment plays a big part in explaining teacher education to all of their students. One provi-
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sion requires that teachers of core subjects who are highly qualified inall subjects, and figure 3.14 must be “highly qualified” in each subject the percent of core subject area classes taught Highly QualifiedT eachers by District Grouping: they teach.26 The requirements of becoming by a highly qualified teacher. Union City does Elementary Schools, 2003–04 highly qualified under federal law depend better than other Abbotts, the state average,
100% on when the teacher is hired and what type and even the wealthiest school districts in the 90% of school he or she teaches in. In general, a state when it comes to the percent of elemen- 80% teacher must hold a four-year college degree, tary school teachers who are qualified in one 70% 60% be fully certified, and show a level of knowl- or all subjects (Figure 3.14). Nearly all of the
50% 98.4 98.2 96.3 97.7 97.0 95.0 97.2 90.3 94.0 94.6 edge in his or her subject matter by passing a elementary school teachers in the district are 85.1 87.4 40% state test. New middle and high school teach- highly qualified. 50% 60% ers must also have college credit in the subject Union City compares well with the state 70% matter they teach. The law applies equally to average and is just slightly below the wealthi- 0 Percent Highly Percent Highly Percent Core teachers who teach many core subjects (such est districts on the percent of core classes Qualified in at Least Qualified in Academic Classes in ONE Subject ALL Subjects School Taught by as many elementary school and special educa- taught by highly qualified teachers. There are Highly Qualified Teachers tion teachers), those who specialize in a single two reasons why we might see a difference
Union City subject (such as many middle and high school between the percent of highly qualified All Other Abbott Districts teachers), basic skills teachers, and bilingual teachers on the one hand and the percent I and J Districts and ESL teachers. of classes taught by them on the other. The New Jersey Figures 3.14 and 3.15 show the percentage percent of classes may be lower if highly of highly qualified teachers in Union City, the qualified teachers have lighter course loads. source highly QualifiedT eacher Survey, 2004 wealthiest districts in the state, and statewide, Also, teachers may be asked to teach subjects in elementary and secondary schools respec- other than the ones they are highly qualified tively. Reading left to right, the three sets of for. In Union City, highly qualified teachers grouped bars show the percent who are highly carry the same course load as their colleagues qualified in at leastone subject, the percent and are assigned to teach the subjects they
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K-12 Education 3 are qualified in. All in all, when we compare Several staffing positions are needed to figure 3.15 Union City with the other Abbott districts, put the Abbott reforms into action. Some more elementary school teachers are highly positions are required in all schools, oth- Highly QualifiedT eachers by District Grouping: High Schools, 2003–04 qualified and more core classes are taught by ers are specific to elementary or secondary highly qualified teachers. schools. Below, we compare Union City and 100% Figure 3.15 shows the same results in the other Abbott districts on the percent of 90% Union City’s two high schools. Almost all of schools with each position in 2002–03 and 80% 70% the district’s high school teachers are highly 2003–04. Findings are shown separately for 60%
50% 98.0 96.7 98.6 qualified in one or all of the subjects they schools serving students in the elementary 96.4 92.0 96.2 96.4 93.6 96.6 94.9 85.4 87.4 teach, and almost all classes are taught by grades, students in Grades 6 through 12, and 40% 30% these highly qualified teachers. Union City all schools. 20% compares well with the wealthiest districts Under Abbott, children in Grades 1 10% 0 and does better than the other Abbotts and through 6 who are not reading at grade Percent Highly Percent Highly Percent Core Qualified in Academic Classes in the state average on all three measures. level are entitled to tutoring sessions. Each Qualified in at Least ONE Subject ALL Subjects School Taught by school should have teacher-tutors to provide Highly Qualified Teachers
Staffing Patterns one-on-one tutoring to students in Grades Union City Abbott districts electronically submit their 1 through 3 and small-group tutoring to stu- All Other Abbott Districts school-by-school staffing plans to the New dents in Grades 4 through 6. Abbott elemen- I and J Districts Jersey Department of Education each year. tary schools should also have an instructional New Jersey We present the districts’ submissions as facilitator to coordinate Whole School Reform source highly QualifiedT eacher Survey, 2004 estimates of the true number of staff that are efforts and act as a mentor and information employed. These numbers do not reflect any resource to his or her teacher-colleagues. new hires or layoffs that occurred after these Finally, each elementary school should have a data were reported by the district to the state. social worker to work as an integral part of the
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Family Support Team coordinating supportive figure 3.16 services for students. Percent of Schools with Required Abbott Staff Positions: Union City and All Other Abbott Districts, Figure 3.16 shows that a majority of Union 2002-03 to 2003-04 City’s schools serving students in the elemen- tary grades had all of the required staffing Union City All Other Abbott Districts positions in 2003–04 while only one in five Elementary Schools Staff 2002-03 2003-04 2002-03 2003-04 did so in 2002–03. All or almost all Union Instructional Facilitator 88.9% 87.5% 97.5% 95.3% Social Worker 88.9% 100.0% 69.2% 68.0% City elementary schools employed instruc- Teacher Tutor 25.0% 62.5% 24.6% 39.8% tional facilitators and social workers in both All Positions 25.0% 62.5% 20.2% 32.9% years. In 2002–03, only one in five schools
Union City All Other Abbott Districts had a teacher tutor for students not read- Middle and High Schools Staff 2002-03 2003-04 2002-03 2003-04 ing on grade level. More tutors were hired in Attendance/Dropout 2003–04, however. Union City was in better Prevention Officer 50.0% 37.5% 49.3% 52.4% Health-Social Service Coordinator 87.5% 50.0% 32.6% 36.7% compliance with elementary school staffing All Positions 37.5% 12.5% 24.2% 25.6% requirements than the other Abbott districts in 2003–04, and about the same as the other Union City All Other Abbott Districts Abbott districts in the previous school year. All Schools Staff 2002-03 2003-04 2002-03 2003-04 Abbott requires each school serving mid- Family Liaison (Parent-Community Coordinator) 91.7% 91.7% 67.8% 70.4% Guidance Counselor 83.3% 75.0% 94.1% 94.1% dle and high school-age students to have two Librarian/Media Specialist 91.7% 75.0% 89.4% 91.5% staff positions: dropout prevention coordina- Nurse/Health Specialist 91.7% 91.7% 97.4% 97.2% Security Officer 91.7% 100.0% 88.0% 88.7% tor and health and social services coordinator. Technology Coordinator 91.7% 100.0% 82.2% 85.9% Dropout prevention coordinators work with All Positions 83.3% 50.0% 56.6% 57.0% staff, parents, and students to identify stu- source doENET Abbott School-Based Budget StaffingT ables, 2002-03 to 2003-04 dents at risk of dropping out and intervene by referring students to needed services. Health
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K-12 Education 3 and social service coordinators ensure that ists, but more with at least one technology students get the services they need to come to coordinator or security officer. Half of the school ready to learn, benefit from instruc- schools had all of the required positions. Most tion, and succeed in school. schools in the other Abbott districts had at Figure 3.16 shows how well Union City’s least one guidance counselor, media special- schools serving students in Grades 6 through ist, nurse, and security officer too. Fewer, 12 complied with Abbott staffing require- though still a majority, had a parent-commu- ments. In 2002–03 most of these schools nity coordinator (family liaison) or a technolo- had a health and social service coordinator gy coordinator. About half of the schools in the and half had a dropout prevention officer. other Abbott districts were in compliance with In 2003–04, fewer schools had either staff the full staffing requirements in both years. position and only one in eight had both. In the other Abbott districts, about a half of the Professional Development middle and high schools had dropout preven- All teachers, regardless of their level of tion coordinators and about a third had health experience, can benefit from opportunities and social service coordinators in both years. to update their knowledge and sharpen their Finally, Figure 3.16 lists the positions that skills. Most importantly, when teachers are every Abbott school should have and com- provided with the supports they need to work pares Union City’s compliance with all of the effectively in the classroom, instructional other Abbott districts. Almost all of Union practice tends to improve. Below, we present City’s schools had each of the positions re- the types of professional development offered quired under Abbott and a majority had all of to Union City’s K-12 teachers. the required positions staffed in 2002–03. In For teachers. In Union City, three full days 2003–04, there were somewhat fewer schools are allotted for district-wide professional de- with guidance counselors and media special- velopment for teachers. The first and last two
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days of the school year are also professional Teachers have other opportunities for development days. For example, the first two training outside of regular school hours. On days are used to orient staff to curriculum Super Saturdays, teachers districtwide partic- changes. The district would like to increase ipate in off-site training on reading and math the number of professional development days instruction. In 2004, for example, preschool to five in coming years. and Kindergarten teachers were trained on a We also learned that schools and the new curriculum published by Pearson/Scott district conduct informal staff development Foresman. There is also an optional mid- activities. During school hours, these activi- summer institute, held off-site, where teach- ties include: weekly grade-level meetings ers select the workshops they would like to and other meetings where teachers discuss attend. Teachers who take part in after-hours how to ensure that their curricula are aligned training are paid for their time. from grade to grade. District supervisors visit For administrators. There are also a classrooms and model instructional practices number of opportunities for administra- for newer teachers and teachers who need tors—principals, assistant principals, and help. These teachers are also encouraged to district supervisors—to take part in trainings. observe more experienced teachers in their There are after-school workshops on curricu- own school and other schools in the district. lum, union issues, education law, and teacher Teachers attend conferences, particularly evaluation procedures. Every year, district those sponsored by the Whole School Reform and school administrators take part in an models and the Reading First program. The administrative retreat, informally referred to district does a lot of turnkey training as well: as “Camp Sanger” (named after the district’s the few teachers who attend off-site train- Superintendent). They have attended confer- ings provide information or training to other ences given by the Global Institute for Lead- teachers when they return. ership, Reading First, Whole School Reform
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K-12 Education 3 model developers, and software companies what schools and district offices do to provide serving the district. Union City schools are or children with a sound public education. Of will be undergoing accreditation through the course, schools and districts need money to Middle States Association’s Accreditation for pay for the elements of effective schooling Growth (AFG) program; principals receive we have discussed. An adequate budget is, in professional development in preparation for itself, another essential element of effective this process. schooling. School and district staff told us that ideas Unlike any other state in the nation, New for professional development activities come Jersey ensures that the poorest urban school from three sources: 1) teacher surveys admin- districts have enough money to provide istered during the district’s planning process; children in preschool through Grade 12 with 2) performance evaluations; and 3) teachers’ a sound public education. In this section, we own Professional Improvement Plans. The describe the fiscal conditions in New Jersey’s district keeps track of evaluations and staff cities that resulted in a funding gap between development activities with a software appli- its urban and suburban districts. We then cation known as Filemaker Pro. Administra- recount efforts led by New Jersey residents to tors use Filemaker Pro to ensure that teachers help close that gap. Finally, we explore how have participated in the professional develop- these efforts have affected the money that is ment activities recommended to them. available to Union City and other school dis- tricts throughout the state to support public
K-12 Budget education.
Overview Fiscal Distress Up to this point, we have explored the char- Union City, like several cities in the United acteristics of Union City and its children, and States, entered into a state of fiscal distress in
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the mid- to late-20th Century. A pattern of tion is supported in large part by local taxes.27 figure 3.17 urban decline was marked by a loss of private- When property tax revenues decline, cities Average Property Value Per Student by District Grouping, sector employers and residents at the upper have less money to pay for education. 1998–2003 end of the income scale. Job and resident Figure 3.17 compares the property wealth losses continued in a downward spiral that in Union City, the other Abbott cities, the $1,000,000 resulted in decreasing property values and wealthiest suburbs in the state, and the state
$750,000 local tax revenues. over all. Because local taxes are based on Neighborhoods in these cities began to property values, property wealth is a good in- $500,000 experience the all-too-common symptoms dicator of the availability of money to support of urban distress, including unemployment, education and other services provided by New $250,000 high crime, and public health problems. Jersey’s towns and cities.28, 29 The most strik- Compared to those who left, the lower-in- ing feature of Figure 3.17 is the enormous gap 0 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 come residents who remained placed a great- in property wealth between Union City and
Union City er demand on public services such as public the other Abbott cities on the one hand and All Other Abbott Districts assistance, law enforcement, and subsidized the wealthiest (I and J) suburbs on the other. Wealthiest Suburbs health care and housing. State and federal In 1998, per student property values were four New Jersey money that helped cities meet the increased and a half times higher in the wealthy suburbs
source new Jersey Department of Community Affairs: Office of Local demand for these services decreased over the ($628,955) than in Union City ($135,414). government Services, 1998-2003 same time period and did not make up for the Between 1998 and 2003, property values lost local revenues. rose dramatically across the state: by 46 Public education is, of course, an essential percent on average and by 44 percent in service provided by local governments and Union City. By 2003, there was more than education costs are higher in school districts four times as much property wealth per with high concentrations of low-income student in the I and J suburbs ($882,773 per households. In New Jersey, public educa- student) than in Union City ($195,612). The
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K-12 Education 3 state average of nearly $600,000 of property 3.2, still higher than any other district group- figure 3.18 wealth per student was nearly triple that of ing shown. Union City in the same year. Average Equalized Tax Rate by District Grouping, 1998–2003 Strapped for money to pay for public ser- School Finance vices, distressed cities could either increase Abbott districts receive two kinds of state 5 their property wealth or raise local tax rates. aid in addition to funding available to other It would not be an easy task to reverse the school districts in New Jersey. The first 4 process of decline and replace lost property type, Abbott Parity Aid, ensures that Abbott 3 wealth. As a result, many cities were forced to districts have as much money per student to 2 raise taxes, even though higher taxes might support a general education as the most suc- prevent potential residents and employers cessful suburban districts in the state. Abbott 1 from moving in. Parity Aid has been distributed to Abbott 0 Figure 3.18 compares the total equalized districts every year since 1997–98. Abbott 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 tax rates in Union City with those found in the districts must apply to the state to receive a Union City other Abbott cities, the wealthiest suburbs, second type of state aid, which we call Addi- All Other Abbott Districts Wealthiest Suburbs 30 and across the state. Union City’s rate was tional Abbott Aid. Along with other state and New Jersey 4.1 in 1998, almost twice as high as in the federal funding, Additional Abbott Aid sup- wealthiest suburbs the same year (2.2) and ports programs and services such as intensive source new Jersey Department of Community Affairs: Office of Local government Services, 1998-2003 much higher than the 3.0 maximum recom- early literacy, full-day Kindergarten, on-site mended by two state commissions created to school clinics, and after-school and nutrition study local taxes in New Jersey. On the whole, programs.31 local tax rates in New Jersey have declined In this section, we examine the resources between 1998 and 2003: by 11 percent across that Union City has had to support its educa- the state and by 23 percent in Union City. In tional program for students in Kindergarten 2003, Union City’s total equalized tax rate was through Grade 12. General education fund-
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ing and supplemental programs funding are CEIFA provided several forms of st ate aid that figure 3.19 presented separately below. are still distributed to school districts to this General Education Funding by Source: Union City, 2003–04 General education funding. As a result of day. Core Curriculum Standards Aid (CCSA) property wealth differences and New Jersey’s was intended to make up the difference be- heavy reliance on the property tax to fund tween what school districts could afford and public schools, a large funding gap opened what the state—at the time—considered to be between New Jersey’s urban and suburban an adequate level of school funding to support
Tax Levy 14% school districts. By 1989, New Jersey’s low- a thorough and efficient education. Some CCSA 58% income communities had $1,500 less per stu- districts also receive Supplemental CCSA to Supplemental CCSA 6% dent in general education funding.32 Although ease their local tax burdens. A third type of Abbott Parity Aid 22% the State Constitution grants the right to a funding that comes from CEIFA, Stabilization “thorough and efficient” education, the real- Aid, goes to districts that might otherwise lose source new Jersey Department of Education, Office ofS chool Funding, ity was that students in low-income, urban too much CCSA from year to year because of 2002-03 to 2003-04 districts did not receive the same educational enrollment changes. resources as their suburban peers. From In a groundbreaking Abbott decision, the the 1970s onward, education stakeholders New Jersey Supreme Court found the school throughout the state fought for the rights of funding solution under CEIFA to be unconsti- children in urban school districts to have the tutional. The justices said that the cost of edu- same resources as their peers. The lawsuits, cation in the poorest urban districts should be known collectively as Abbott v. Burke, were determined by what successful districts spend integral to this effort. and identified the wealthiest suburban (I and In 1996, the state legislature enacted J) districts as their standard. Since 1997–98, the Comprehensive Educational Improve- Abbott Parity Aid makes up the difference be- ment and Financing Act of 1996 (CEIFA) to tween what these urban districts could afford restructure the state’s school finance system.
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(plus CCSA) and what the wealthiest districts Figure 3.20 shows that Abbott Parity Aid, actually spent on average.33 in combination with other state aid, now pro- Figure 3.19 shows the sources of fund- vides the Abbott districts with a per-student ing for general education in Union City in general education budget about on par with 2003–04. Fourteen percent of the revenue the wealthiest suburban school districts. We came from local taxes. Union City drew the turn now to school taxes, the portion of local largest portion (58%) of its revenue from taxes that pays for public education. Like the Core Curriculum Standards Aid. One fifth total tax rate, a school tax rate is expressed as (22%) of the money came from the state in a fraction of the assessed property value. An the form of Abbott Parity Aid. important benefit of the Abbott decisions was We now compare Union City’s general to allow the urban districts to freeze locally- education funding with general education supported school spending at the 1997 level. funding in the other Abbott districts, the If property values rise and school spending is wealthiest (I and J) districts, and the state av- frozen, then school tax rates should drop in erage (Figure 3.20). (The figures have all been proportion. divided by the resident enrollment in each We have shown (Figure 3.17) that property category to provide “per student” amounts.) wealth increased in Union City between 1998 Union City, the other Abbott districts, and the and 2003. As expected, Union City’s school I and J districts had about the same amount tax rates declined at the same time (Figure of aid per student in both 2002–03 and 3.21). In 1998, Union City homeowners paid 2003–04. For example, Union City had $9,813 $1.28 in school taxes for every $100 of as- in 2002–03 compared to an average of $9,832 sessed property value, a somewhat lower rate per student in the other Abbott districts and than in the wealthiest suburbs (1.31), the oth- $9,972 in the I and J districts. The state aver- er Abbott cities (1.35) or across the state on age for 2002–03 was $9,218 per student. average (1.40). Property values increased in
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the other district groupings and their school figure 3.20 tax rates also fell between 1998 and 2003. Per Student General Education Funding by District Grouping, 2002–03 and 2003–04 Union City’s school tax rates fell 37 percent during this time period, more sharply than in the other Abbott cities (29%), the wealthi- $12,500 est suburbs (10%), and statewide (8%). By 2003, Union City’s school tax rate was 0.81, $10,000 lower than in the other Abbott cities (0.96), the wealthiest suburbs (1.17), or the state on $7,500 average (1.28). Supplemental programs funding. To be
$10,337 $10,378 $10,535 ready and successful learners, the children $5,000 $9,813 $9,832 $9,973 $9,729 $9,218 and youth of Union City have unique needs for health, nutrition, and social services that $2,500 must be addressed. There are three sources of money to support supplemental programs in 0 Abbott districts: one comes from the fed- Union City All Other I & J New Jersey eral government and two from the state. The Districts Abbott Districts federal funding is called Title I and provides funding for schools serving children from 2002–03 2003–04 low-income families. The money is intended to improve educational quality and give
source new Jersey Department of Education, Office ofS chool Funding, 2002-03 to 2003–04 extra help to struggling students. The sec- ond supplemental programs funding source, Demonstrably Effective Program Aid (DEPA),
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K-12 Education 3 has been provided by the state since CEIFA. lower than the other Abbott districts ($2,017) figure 3.21 DEPA is targeted to school districts serving because Union City did not request any Ad- poor children and calculated on a per student ditional Abbott Aid (Figure 3.22). Union City Average School Tax Rate by District Grouping, 1998–2003 basis. Both Abbott and non-Abbott districts received $453 per student from the state, and may receive Title I and DEPA funds. $366 per student from the federal govern- 1.50 Only Abbott districts receive Additional ment. On average, the other Abbott districts 1.25 Abbott Aid, the third source of supplemen- received $1,097 per student in Additional tal programs funding. Each Abbott district Abbott Aid, $414 per student in DEPA, and 1.00 must apply to the state for Additional Abbott $406 per student in Title I.34 0.75 Aid and justify its request with evidence of Figure 3.23 shows that the amount of 0.50 student need. The New Jersey Department of money the district had to support supplemen- 0.25 Education reviews district requests and issues tal programs decreased by $81 per student 0 its decisions. The state may fully fund, deny between 2002–03 and 2003–04. (Again, 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 portions, or fund programs at lower levels Union City did not request Additional Abbott Union City than requested by the districts. School dis- Aid in either year; all of the district’s supple- All Other Abbott Districts Wealthiest Suburbs tricts may appeal the state’s decision in court. mental program funding came from Title I New Jersey Not surprisingly, this process has been a and DEPA.) source of conflict between the Abbott districts It is unclear how the Union City Board of source new Jersey Department of Community Affairs: Office of Local and the New Jersey Department of Education Education supported the array of supplemen- government Services, 1998-2003 since it began in 1999. tal programs we have described throughout How did the Union City Board of Educa- this report. We note several programs that tion support its supplemental programs and have been supported by grant funds raised by how much money did it have? In 2003–04 the district. For example: the School-Based Union City had $819 per student to support its Youth Service Program is supported by the supplemental programs. This figure is much New Jersey Department of Human Services;
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the district’s technology initiatives have been representatives and the Whole School Reform figure 3.22 supported by private-sector grants as well as a facilitator. Sometimes the SLC includes Per Student Supplemental Program Aid by Source: grant from the National Science Foundation; students. Some SLC members are elected by Union City and All Other Abbott Districts, 2003–04 some after-school programs are supported by the groups they represent, such as staff and
$2,500 a 21st Century Community Learning Center parents. The principal appoints community grant awarded by the U.S. Department of representatives from a candidate pool. SLC $2,000 $506 Education. District staff report, however, that members serve at least two years with stag- $1,500 these grants only make up a small portion of gered terms. The SLC should meet at least $414 the budget. once a month. $1,000 SLCs should take part in a wide variety of $366 $1,097 $500 K-12 Leadership activities to carry out their functions, includ- $453 ing: reviewing needs assessment and achieve- 0 Union City All Other Abbott Districts School Leadership Councils ment data, reviewing school-based budgets State regulations require every school in the prepared by the central office and making Title I Abbott districts to have a School Leadership recommendations to amend them, and par- DEPA Additional Abbott Aid Council (SLC). The SLC is a group that serves ticipating in training provided by the district on a volunteer basis to represent school staff or New Jersey Department of Education. source new Jersey Department of Education, Office ofS chool Funding, and the neighborhood. Its primary purpose SLCs that are trained to perform personnel 2002-03 to 2003–04 is to help improve teaching and learning. functions may also interview school principal The SLC does this by taking part in program candidates and recommend candidates to the planning and decision-making and encour- district’s Superintendent. The following types aging broad participation by school staff and of training should be made available to SLC neighborhood stakeholders. Typically, SLC members by the district or the New Jersey membership includes the principal, teachers, Department of Education: SLC member roles non-instructional staff, parents, community and responsibilities; budgeting and planning;
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K-12 Education 3 needs assessment; state and federal laws and ed told us that that SLC had less input into its figure 3.23 regulations; the CCCS; personnel functions; plan than was previously allowed because the and programs for English language learners school had not met the state’s Adequate Yearly Per Student Supplemental Program Aid: Union City and All Other Abbott Districts, 2002–03 and 2003–04 and students with disabilities. Progress benchmarks, standards developed
In Union City, each SLC is made up of by the state to comply with the federal No $2,500 the principal, teachers, non-instructional Child Left Behind Act. A district staff mem- support staff, parents and caregivers, com- ber believed that school-based planning had $2,000 munity representatives, and the Whole School moved the district’s central office to upgrade $1,500 Reform facilitator. SLC meetings are held at its information management system to keep $1,000 $2,060 $2,017 different times (after school and evening) to up with the schools. increase the chance that parents and commu- Along with the other Abbott districts, $500 $900 $819 nity members will attend. Union City used school-based budgeting in 0 The people we spoke with said that the the early years of Abbott. These budgets were Union City All Other Abbott Districts SLCs in the district follow New Jersey De- zero-based, that is, they specified each and partment of Education regulations about the every needed program and staff member 2002-03 purpose of the council and the roles and re- from the ground up. In general, SLCs took the 2003-04 sponsibilities of its members, including par- lead in school-based planning and budgeting ticipation in plan and budget development. efforts getting input from a variety of school source new Jersey Department of Education, Office ofS chool Funding, 2002-03 to 2003–04 Before the SLCs developed their schools’ staff and community members on needed three-year operational plans, members programs and staffing. reviewed student data and surveyed staff, stu- In all Abbott districts, control over dents, and parents to find out what programs budgeting and planning moved away from and services should be brought in to address the schools and their SLCs and returned to needs. An SLC member at one school we visit- the district office in 2002–03. Since then,
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budgeting has begun with the district’s busi- budget development and review. The business ness administrator, who sets school budgets administrator notifies SLC members when based on a state template, previous spend- budget cuts are going to take place and the ing levels, and a cost-of-living increase. The anticipated impact on their schools and the district’s business administrator sends a copy district over all. We also learned that, in the of each school’s budget to its SLC for review past, SLCs had received professional develop- and modification. Any SLC request over the ment from their Whole School Reform model Each Abbott district three-percent allowance must be reviewed for developers. approval by the district office. SLCs may then should have an Abbott be asked to support and sign their school’s Abbott Advisory Council budget before it is packaged with the district’s The Abbott Advisory Council (AAC), formerly Advisory Council to budget and sent to the New Jersey Depart- known as the district Whole School Reform review district policies and ment of Education. In some of the Union City Steering Committee is a steering commit- schools we visited, SLC members voted on tee consisting of district and community procedures and imple- both three-year operational plans and bud- representatives. The responsibilities of the gets: a majority vote was needed for them to Abbott Advisory Council are to: 1) review ment the Abbott reforms. pass. In other schools, SLC members simply the district’s policies and procedures that signed their name to show support. implement the Abbott reforms; 2) review the SLC members receive training from the district’s three-year operational plan and district business administrator once per annual modifications prior to submission year. The business administrator informs for board approval; and 3) assess efforts to them about how the district budget oper- improve teaching and learning in the dis- ates and reviews every component of the trict, celebrate successes, and identify ways budget with members so that they have the to overcome obstacles that may exist. Each knowledge needed to make decisions during
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Abbott district should have an Abbott Advi- of school and district plans and budgets, sory Council. the use of data for school improvement, and The Union City Abbott Advisory Council alignment of federal programs (e.g., NCLB) (AAC) is made up of 20 members including: with district and school plans. the Superintendent who serves as chairper- District and school staff had positive things son, two Assistant Superintendents, the busi- to say about their local support team (LST). ness administrators, two district supervisors, According to them, LST members have been Whole School Reform facilitators from each of active participants in district activities. They the district’s 12 schools, one parent, and one have attended SLC and other meetings to community representative. AAC members help schools develop budgets and three-year typically participate on other school/district operational plans. LST members provided committees, such as an SLC. Meetings are students and staff with information about held once a month. The focus of Union City testing and attended special events such as AAC activities during the 2003–04 school Back to School Night, Test Pep Rallies, and the year was on the revision of the district’s Eighth Grade Ring Ceremony. three-year operational plan.
K-12 Student Outcomes Local Support Team Formerly known as School Review and Im- Historically, educational success has been provement Teams (SRI), local support teams largely determined by student, family, and (LST) are New Jersey Department of Educa- neighborhood characteristics. On average, tion staff who provide districts and schools children who grow up in wealthy communi- with technical assistance on the development ties do better in school than their peers who grow up in concentrated poverty. As educa-
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tion stakeholders, our job is to change this. Student Attendance figure 3.24 The educational success of our children is a Students who feel safe at school and are Student Attendance by District Grouping: Elementary Schools, product of elements of schooling that we can engaged in their academic work tend to go to 1994–95 to 2002–03 affect: opportunities for students to learn; school more often. Of course, students also supports for students and families; staff to 100% miss school because of other reasons such as teach students, and supports for that staff; poor health and family problems. In general, 90% financial resources to work with; the physical we think that student attendance is an impor-
80% environment; and the leadership and plan- tant indicator that school is a positive expe- ning at the school, district, and state levels to rience for children and youth and that the 70% guide the whole process. students’ families, the district, and the larger
60% The Abbott remedies were intended to community are addressing any obstacles to support efforts of schools, districts, parents attendance that may exist. It is presented 50% 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 and advocates to put the elements of effective here as a leading indicator: students can only Union City schooling in place and overcome the effects of benefit from opportunities to learn if they All Other Abbott Districts poverty on student well-being and academic attend school regularly. Below, we examine I and J Districts performance. All of the elements should be in student attendance rates in elementary and New Jersey place and working together in a coordinated high schools separately.
source school Report Card, 1994-95 to 2002-03 fashion for schools to provide a chance for At the elementary school level, atten- children to succeed. We encourage readers dance across New Jersey was high, at about to consider the student outcomes presented 95 percent in 1994–95 and stayed just as below in light of what we have presented up to high right through 2002–03 (Figure 3.24). this point and in Section 5 of this report. Union City’s elementary school student at- tendance was at 94 percent in 1994–95 and rose slightly but steadily to 96 percent in
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2002–03, about the same as in the wealthi- vice to children and their families or help link figure 3.25 est districts in the state. them with needed services provided in the High school attendance rates were lower community. Service provision and linkage are Student Attendance by District Grouping: High Schools, 1994–95 to 2002–03 across the state when compared to the el- essential parts of the jobs of health and social ementary schools (Figure 3.25). Union City’s services coordinators, parent-community 100% high school attendance was consistently bet- coordinators, social workers, and guidance ter than in the other Abbott districts, rang- counselors, to name a few. As a central public 90% ing between 92 to 95 percent over the years. institution of the urban community, schools 80% Across the state, between 92 and 93 percent of play a critical role in ensuring the well-being high school students attended school in every of children and youth. Schools are not alone 70% school year between 1994–95 and 2002–03. in their responsibility—parents, elected of- 60% High school attendance was slightly higher ficials, and public and private agencies in the 50% in the wealthiest suburbs than in Union City, city must all play a role. As the African prov- 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 with the exception of 1999–00 when at- erb so famously says: “It takes a whole village Union City tendance in those districts dropped to 90 to raise a child.” All Other Abbott Districts percent. Measures of child and youth well-being are I and J Districts New Jersey not part of the information typically collected Child and Youth Well-Being or reported by school districts. Such informa- source school Report Card, 1994-95 to 2002-03 Children and youth who are physically, so- tion is usually generated by the various state cially, and emotionally healthy are better able and local agencies charged with the health and to learn at school. Abbott’s supplemental pro- welfare of children. We present below a small grams are intended to improve the well-being number of citywide indicators of child and of children and youth of New Jersey’s cities youth wellbeing (Figure 3.26) for Union City so that they can come to school prepared to and the State of New Jersey. Our expectation learn. School staff either provide direct ser- was that Union City would compare poorly
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with the state because of the many challenges figure 3.26 faced by its families, but that we would see Child and Youth Well-Being Indicators: Union City and New Jersey, 1997–2002 some improvement on these indicators over the past several years. We expected to find im-
Union City New Jersey provement because of the many school-based Time 1 Time 2 time 1 time 2 services available to Union City students and the district’s efforts to link students and their Indicator Time Period number per 1,000 number per 1,000 per 1,000 per 1,000 Child Death 1997-2000 1 0.1 0 0.0 0.2 0.2 families to needed services outside of the dis- Teen Death 1997-2002 0 0.0 0 0.0 0.4 0.3 trict. Our findings were mixed in this regard. Births to Teens (10–14) 1998-2002 * * 3 1.4 – 0.5 On two critical measures, Union City Births to Teens (15–19) 1998-2002 124 56.1 118 53.3 34.1 28.8 compares extremely well to the state: the Child Abuse and Neglect 1998-2002 43 2.2 102 5.3 4.2 3.4 number of child and teen deaths. Obviously, no children or teens should die in any year. source new Jersey Center for Health Statistics, 1998-2002; 2000 US Census; Annie E. Casey Foundation, 2004 Kids Count; Association for children of New Jersey, 1997-2002 Kids Count And in Union City in 1997, none did. In 2002, * Unknown one Union City child died, resulting in a rate of 0.2 per 1,000 (no teens died in 2002). A total of 124 teen girls, ages 15 to 19, gave birth in 1997 and 118 did so in 2002. The Union City teen birth rate is holding steady, but at almost double the state average. Teen birth is an area for the district to continue to address, along with its community partners, through prevention and postvention programs such as those offered by School-Based Youth Services (described in Health and Social Services).
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The rise in the child abuse and neglect rate figure 3.27 figure 3.28 between 1998 and 2002 is troubling. Forty- three cases of abuse or neglect were substan- “Category A” Offenses by District Grouping: “Category A” Offenses by District Grouping: Elementary Schools, 1999–00 to 2002–03 High Schools, 1999–00 to 2002–03 tiated by the New Jersey Division of Youth and
Family Services in Union City in 1998. That 8 8 PERSISTENTLY DANGEROUS THRESHOLD PERSISTENTLY DANGEROUS THRESHOLD number more than doubled in 2002, when 7 7 102 cases of abuse or neglect were substanti- 6 6 ated in Union City alone. Across the state, 5 5 child abuse and neglect decreased during the 4 4 same period. 3 3 2 2
1 1 School Safety 0 0 For many years, federal law has required every 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 school and district to report the violence and Union City Union City vandalism that occur in schools. The New All Other Abbott Districts All Other Abbott Districts I and J Districts I and J Districts Jersey Department of Education compiles New Jersey New Jersey annual counts and reports them publicly. The
No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) specified a source new Jersey Department of Education: Office ofP rogram Support source new Jersey Department of Education: Office ofP rogram Support standard of safety beyond which schools are services, Division of Student Services, 1999-2003 services, Division of Student Services, 1999-2003 defined as “persistently dangerous.” Under the Unsafe School Choice Option, the law provides that families of children who are victims of violence or who go to a persistently dangerous school may choose to send their
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child to another public school in the district figure 3.29 figure 3.30 or a charter school in the same city. NCLB (Category B) Index by District Grouping: Elementary NCLB (Category B) Index by District Grouping: High Schools, A school is called persistently dangerous if Schools, 1999–00 to 2002–03 1999–00 to 2002–03 it meets either one of the two following condi-
1.50 1.50 tions for three consecutive years: 1) Seven or more of the following types of inci- 1.25 1.25 PERSISTENTLY DANGEROUS THRESHOLD PERSISTENTLY DANGEROUS THRESHOLD dents, known as Category A offenses: firearm 1.00 1.00 offenses; aggravated assaults on another student; assaults with a weapon on another 0.75 0.75 student; and assaults on a school district staff member. 0.50 0.50 2) An index rating of 1 or more Category B inci- 0.25 0.25 dents (calculated by a ratio of the sum of inci- dents over the square root of the enrollment), 0 0 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 including: simple assault, weapons possession or sales (other than a firearm), gang fight, rob- Union City Union City bery or extortion, sex offense, terroristic threat, All Other Abbott Districts All Other Abbott Districts arson, sales or distribution of drugs, and harass- I and J Districts I and J Districts ment and bullying. New Jersey New Jersey The persistently dangerous classification has been roundly criticized by many camps source new Jersey Department of Education: Office ofP rogram Support source new Jersey Department of Education: Office ofP rogram Support services, Division of Student Services, 1999-2003 services, Division of Student Services, 1999-2003 and on many grounds. The most important criticisms, for the purposes of this report, are related to reporting accuracy. Our first concern is the likelihood of under-report- ing by schools and districts. Principals and superintendents who abide to the letter of the law feel that they are unfairly penalized while
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K-12 Education 3 schools and districts that “fluff” their reports cause it is the only available statewide infor- are not. We suspect that such fluffing is fairly mation, and 2) because of the critical impor- widespread in New Jersey, considering the tance of school safety. Figures 3.27 through critical importance of school safety to parents 3.30 show the number of Category A offenses and children and the attention given to the and the NCLB (Category B) Index for Union annual publication of such incidents. Under City, all other Abbotts, the wealthiest dis- newly adopted regulations, school districts tricts, and the state from 1999–00 to 2002– have the power to penalize any employee who 03. Under NCLB, the persistently dangerous knowingly falsifies incident reports.35 The threshold is the same for elementary and high new regulations do not outline what powers schools. We report the results separately be- the New Jersey Department of Education has low because the types of incidents that occur to penalize school districts that knowingly in elementary schools tend to differ in nature falsify reports. from those that occur in high schools. Schools Our second concern involves the role of serving students in the middle grades are interpretation. State guidelines urge schools included with the elementary schools. and districts to consider if an incident is Figure 3.27 shows the number of Category indeed an offense or merely developmentally A offenses that took place in elementary appropriate behavior. The New Jersey De- schools between 1999–00 and 2002–03 by partment of Education trains school district district grouping. The bar across the top of personnel on how to recognize and classify the chart shows the level at which, after three incidents. The system is not yet perfect, consecutive years, a school would be con- however. sidered persistently dangerous. The most We report information from New Jersey’s striking finding is that none of the district Violence and Vandalism Reporting System groupings we analyzed has an average that despite our concerns for two reasons: 1) be- comes anywhere near this level. Union City’s
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elementary schools had an average of less est districts appear to be the safest, averaging figure 3.31 than one incident from 1999–00 through fewer than one Category A incident each year Suspension Rate by District Grouping: Elementary Schools, 2001–02. Although an average of 1.7 incidents during the same time period. 1995–96 to 2002–03 in 2002–03 is relatively low, it stands out Turning to the NCLB index of Category B against the district’s positive track record. incidents in the elementary schools, Figure 50% Actually, Union City tracked the state aver- 3.29 shows a trend that is similar to that seen 40% age very closely until that year. Elementary in Figure 3.27 above. From 1999–00 through schools in all other Abbott districts averaged 2001–02, Union City elementary schools 30% about 1.2 incidents per year until 2002–03, had an index at about the state average and 20% when the average dropped below 1. Elementa- far below the persistently dangerous thresh-
10% ry schools in the wealthiest (I and J) districts old. In 2002–03, the index rose to 0.6, still appear much safer by this measure: they aver- below the threshold, but much higher than in 0 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 aged fewer than one-tenth of an incident per previous years. In contrast, the average NCLB
Union City school during the same time period. index in the other district groupings has been All Other Abbott Districts Figure 3.28 shows the number of Category stable over the time period with the wealthiest I and J Districts A offenses in high schools between 1999–00 districts the lowest, the state average slightly New Jersey and 2002–03 by district grouping. Union above that, and the other Abbott districts just City’s high schools reported that none of these above the others (ranging from 0.2 to 0.3). source school Report Card, 1995-96 to 2002-03 incidents occurred between 1999–00 through Union City’s high schools had fewer 2001–02 and three occurred in 2002–03. Category B incidents than any other district High schools in the other Abbott districts av- grouping between 1999–00 through 2001–02 eraged 4.1 Category A incidents in 1999–00, (Figure 3.30). The NCLB index rose in rising to just over five incidents per school in 2002–03, bringing the district’s index score 2001–02, and falling again to just under four to 0.85. In contrast, the other district group- in 2002–03. The high schools in the wealthi- ings had about the same index rating over the
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K-12 Education 3 four-year period. The index scores for the Suspension figure 3.32 high schools in the wealthiest districts stayed Students are suspended from school for at about 0.2, the state average at about 0.3, reasons usually explained in a district’s dis- Suspension Rate by District Grouping: High Schools, 1995–96 to 2002–03 and the other Abbott districts at 0.45. ciplinary code. Low suspension rates suggest The violence and vandalism trends sug- a number of positive things about a district’s 50% gest that something changed in Union City’s schools. For example, suspension rates may schools in 2002–03. Given the criticisms of be low because the students genuinely behave 40% the reporting system we outlined above, it is well, they understand and accept the rules, 30% possible that the district changed the way it or because the disruptions that occur are reported violent incidents. Did the district addressed without removing students from 20% receive training or did it merely begin abiding the classroom. Figures 3.31 and 3.32 show 10% to the letter of the law? In response to this suspension rates in Union City compared with 0 question, we learned that reporting practices the other Abbott districts, the I and J districts, 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 had indeed improved with the change in and the state average. Disciplinary issues and Union City the district’s administration that year. The suspension rates differ between elemen- All Other Abbott Districts Union City Board of Education should not be tary and high schools, so we examine them I and J Districts New Jersey punished for its honesty if better reporting separately. Schools serving students in the explains the apparent rise in violent inci- middle grades are included with the elemen- source school Report Card, 1995-96 to 2002-03 dents. District leadership also reported that tary schools. district and school staff employ the violence Between 1995–96 and 2002–03, Union and vandalism incident data for uses that go City’s elementary suspension rates were well beyond required reporting. They are used lower than or the same as the state average to identify and refer children and youth for and just above the average rates in the I and prevention, intervention, and postvention J districts. Suspension rates rose in all of the services; and to inform district programming. district groupings we examined. In 2002–03,
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the suspension rate in Union City was four figure 3.33 figure 3.34 percent (up from 2%); the state average was New Jersey’s Adequate Yearly Progress Targets for Language New Jersey’s Adequate Yearly Progress Targets for Math six percent (up from 3%); and the average for Arts Literacy the other Abbott districts was nine percent (up from 6%). 100% 100% Compared to the elementary schools, high 80% 80% school suspension rates were higher in all of
60% 60% the district groupings. Between 1995–96 and 2002–03, suspension rates also rose across 40% 40% the board. The Union City suspension rate
20% 20% was lower than all of the other district group- ings until 2002–03 when it was about the 0 0 2002-03 2004-05 2007-08 2010-11 2013-14 2002-03 2004-05 2007-08 2010-11 2013-14 same as the I and J average. In all years, the
Grade 4 Grade 4 other Abbott districts had the highest suspen- Grade 8 Grade 8 sion rates. Grade 11 Grade 11 Student Achievement
source new Jersey Department of Education: Office ofT itle I Program source new Jersey Department of Education: Office ofT itle I Program The federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 planning and Accountability, September 2004 planning and Accountability, September 2004 (NCLB) requires states to have curriculum standards, conduct annual testing, and report test results on a school-by-school basis. An important NCLB goal is for every student to meet state standards by 2013–14, including students in demographic groups that have historically underperformed on standard-
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K-12 Education 3 ized tests. Under NCLB, test results must be every test. Under NCLB, a school is making reported separately for Asian, Black, His- “adequate yearly progress” (AYP) only if every panic, Native American, and white students; group of students meets the state’s target students with disabilities; English language in every test. Figures 3.33 and 3.34 show learners; and students who are eligible for New Jersey’s language arts literacy and math free-or reduced-price lunch. targets. Note that the targets start at different In New Jersey, the fourth grade test is levels in 2002–03 and gradually increase to called the ASK4 (Assessment of Skills and universal pass rates in 2013–14. Knowledge). According to the New Jersey With some exceptions, schools with a Department of Education, it is essentially the subgroup that misses an AYP benchmark for same test as the former ESPA (Elementary two or more years in a row must undertake a School Proficiency Assessment). The 8th series of actions outlined: grade test is called the GEPA (Grade Eight There are many ways to examine achieve- Proficiency Assessment). The 11th grade test ment test results; each way tells a part of the is the High School Proficiency Assessment story. Proficiency percentages tell us how many (HSPA); before 2001–02 high school students students met standards for their grade level, took a different test known as the HSPT (High but do not tell us about small or large changes School Proficiency Test). The HSPT and HSPA that did not cross official proficiency cut- are different tests, so results for each are points. Average test scores show changes that shown separately below. may not register in a proficiency analysis, NCLB also requires states to identify a tar- but do not tell us how many students met the get percentage of students who will pass each state’s standards. test each year. These targets must gradually Below, we present proficiency percentages increase until 2013–14, when every student in and average scale scores for the language arts every demographic group is expected to pass literacy and math tests at Grades 4, 8, and 11,
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respectively. First, we compare average scores figure 3.35 over time for general education students in Categories and Action Steps for Schools Not Making Adequate Yearly Progress Union City, all other Abbotts, the wealthiest (I and J) districts in the state, and the state over
Years not Meeting all. Second, we show the percent of Union Standards Category Action Steps City’s general education students scoring 1 Early Warning No actions are required under NCLB, but schools and within the three proficiency categories over districts should identify areas that need to be improved. time. Third, we compare Union City’s major 2 School Parents are notified and given the option to transfer Improvement their children to a school that made AYP. Schools must student demographic groups according to identify areas needing improvement and work with parents, teachers, and outside experts to develop a plan. the percent scoring in the three proficiency 3 School Tutoring and other supplemental services must be made categories in 2002–03. Fourth, we present Improvement available. schools that did not make adequate yearly 4 Corrective School choice and supplemental services are still progress (AYP) in 2003–04. Finally, in recog- Action available. In addition, schools must undertake at least one of a series of corrective actions, including: staff nition that district averages may mask impor- replacement; curriculum adoption; decreased school authority; external consultant to advise the school; tant differences among schools, we highlight extended school day or year; and/or reorganize school the Union City schools that did well on each governance. test and improved the most over time. 5 Corrective School must develop a plan for alternate school Action governance. Choice, supplemental services, and other Grade 4: ESPA/NJASK 4. Nationally, corrective actions still required. reading achievement scores of students in 6 Restructuring Implement alternate school governance developed in year five. Grade 4 have not improved since 1992. Math scores have improved by 10 percent between source new Jersey Department of Education: Office ofT itle I Program Planning and Accountability, september 2004 1990 and 2003 nationwide, but only by four percent since 2000.36 We turn now to exam- ine the results of the language arts/literacy test given to Grade 4 New Jersey students
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K-12 Education 3 with particular interest in any changes since Figure 3.36 displays the average scores in figure 3.36 the Abbott reforms went into effect. Abbott the language arts literacy between 1999–00 school funding increased in 1997–98, but and 2002–03 for Union City schools, all other Grade 4 Language Arts Literacy Score by District Grouping, 1999–00 to 2002–03 1999–00 was when the first wave of Abbott Abbott districts, the wealthiest districts, and schools started implementing Whole School the state as a whole. This figure shows an in- 300 Reform.37 Students tested in 1999–00 expe- crease between 1999–00 and 2000–01 in all ADVANCED PROFICIENT rienced one year at most of any instructional of the district groupings we examined. None 250 improvements brought about by Abbott. In of the district groupings showed substan- contrast, students tested in 2002–03 could tial improvements in the average language 200 PROFICIENT have experienced up to four years of these im- arts literacy average score in the following provements if they were enrolled in an Abbott two years, however. Union City language 150 school since 1999–00. arts literacy (LAL) average scores of general 100 Given the potential changes to the instruc- education students improved from just below 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 tional program, resources, teaching, and proficient (198) in 1999–00 to 218 in 2002– Union City leadership we might expect to see student 03: a 10 percent rise. The average language All Other Abbott Districts I and J Districts performance begin to improve over this arts literacy score for Grade 4 general educa- New Jersey period. Any positive effects of Whole School tion students in the other Abbott districts
Reform have taken five or more years to oc- was lower overall but rose at a similar pace: source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and Evaluation, 1999-00 to 2002-03; School Report Card, 1999-00 to cur in other school districts throughout the improving from 183 to 207, or by 13 percent. 2002-03 country. In this report, we have learned that In 2002–03, Union City’s fourth graders the district’s intensive early literacy programs scored as well as the children in the wealthiest began years before 1999–00, and that Abbott districts had in 1999–00 and almost as well as resources strengthened its reform efforts, so the state average in the same year. we have high expectations for positive aca- Figure 3.37 shows the percent of Union demic outcomes at the fourth grade level. City’s Grade 4 students scoring in each of
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the three proficiency categories. The most figure 3.37 figure 3.38 striking feature of the chart is the change in Grade 4 Language Arts Literacy Proficiency: Grade 4 Language Arts Literacy Proficiency by Subgroup: proportion of Grade 4 students scoring in Union City, 1998–99 to 2002–03 Union City, 2002–03 the proficient category. In 1998–99, only 45 percent of the district’s fourth graders met 100% 100% 13.8% 20.7% 19.6% or exceeded state standards in language arts 80% 41.8% 80% 35.7% 37.2% 55.4% literacy, compared to 86 percent in 2002–03. 74.3% 68.6% 60% 60% Next, we present the 2002–03 Grade 4 lan- guage arts literacy results for the demographic 75.1% 77.5% 84.1% 40% 40% 57.1% 62.6% 62.0% groups represented in the district (Figure 44.0% 38, 39 20% 20% 3.38). Reading from left to right, we see 25.7% 31.4% 4.3% 3.0% 2.2% 1.1% 1.0% 1.0% the percent scoring in the three proficiency 0 0 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 Hispanic Economically Special Limited English ranges among Hispanic, economically disad- Disadvantaged Education Proficiency vantaged, special education, and limited Eng- Partially Proficient Partially Proficient lish-proficient student subgroups. (2002–03 Proficient Proficient Advanced Proficient Advanced Proficient general education results are shown in Figure 3.37 above.) About two thirds of the Hispanic
source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and and economically disadvantaged children Evaluation, 1998-99 to 2002-03; School Report Card, 1998-99 Evaluation, 2002-03; School Report Card, 2002-03 to 2002-03 in the district scored at least proficient on the Grade 4 language arts literacy exam in 2002–03. In contrast, a third of limited Eng- lish proficient students met state standards in fourth grade language arts literacy as did one in four special education students in the district that year.
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The Union City Schools have put a great Abbott Low-and High-Performing Schools figure 3.39 deal of effort into reworking the elementary grades math curriculum—another effort that Grade 4 Math Average Score by District Grouping 1999–00 to Under Abbott rules, elementary schools may 2002–03 predates the Abbott remedies. These efforts be classified as low- or high-performing continue and appear to show results: Grade 4 depending on how their students perform 300 general eduaction math scores increased by on the Grade 4 language arts literacy exam. ADVANCED PROFICIENT nine percent between 1999–00 and 2002–03 Schools are classified as low performing if half 250 from 208 to 226. The increase in Grade 4 or fewer of the school’s general education math scores is larger in Union City than it is 200 students score at least proficient on the test. PROFICIENT in any other district grouping we analyzed. Schools are high performing if their profi- 150 Math scores in all other Abbotts and the state ciency rates are better than the state average. improved, though less so, and the scores in The New Jersey Department of Education is 100 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 the wealthiest districts remained relatively required to deploy expert teams to review stable. each low-performing school and develop and Union City Figure 3.40 shows the educational progress All Other Abbott Districts monitor a school improvement plan. High- I and J Districts that underlies Union City’s increasing math performing schools may choose to drop or New Jersey scores. The chart shows clearly that fewer change their Whole School Reform models. Grade 4 general education students scored in Under Abbott, there were no low-perform- source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and Evaluation, 1999-00 to 2002-03; School Report Card, 1999-00 the partially proficient range over the years, ing schools in Union City in 2003–04. There to 2002-03 while more and more children scored in the were, however, four high-performing Abbott advanced proficient range. In 1998–99, about schools: Gilmore, Hudson, Jefferson, and Wil- half (48%) met the state’s math standards son Elementary Schools. compared to 76 percent in 2002–03. About one in three (33%) students scored in the
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advanced proficient range in 2002–03 com- figure 3.40 figure 3.41 pared to just eight percent in 1998–99. Grade 4 Math Proficiency:U nion City, 1998–99 to 2002–03 Grade 4 Math Proficiency by Subgroup:U nion City, 2002–03 Figure 3.41 compares the performance of Union City’s various student groups on the
100% 100% 2002–03 Grade 4 math test. About three in
24.3% five children who are Hispanic (60%), or 34.9% 40.3% 80% 42.3% 42.9% 80% 41.8% 52.5% economically disadvantaged (58%) scored 62.4% 72.5% 60% 60% proficient or better on the Grade 4 math 42.6% test in 2002–03. (In both of these groups, 40% 49.4% 40% 39.0% 38.5% 46.2% 49.5% about 20% scored in the advanced proficient 39.3% 33.5% 20% 20% 33.1% 25.7% range.) Among special education students, 20.7% 19.7% 15.7% 1.8% 4.1% 8.2% 11.4% 7.6% about one in four (28%) met state standards, 0 0 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 Hispanic Economically Special Limited English Disadvantaged Education Proficiency and 38 percent of students with limited Eng- lish proficiency scored at least proficient on Partially Proficient Partially Proficient Proficient Proficient the math test that year. Advanced Proficient Advanced Proficient Grade 4: AYP. A school must meet many requirements to make adequate yearly prog-
source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and ress (AYP) under federal law. For the 2003– Evaluation, 1998-99 to 2002-03; School Report Card, 1998-99 Evaluation, 2002-03; School Report Card, 2002-03 to 2002-03 04 Grade 4 exam alone, schools had to meet 40 benchmarks to make AYP: for each of 10 demographic groups, at least 95 percent of the students had to take the test; 68 percent had to score proficient or better on the language arts literacy exam; and 53 percent had to score proficient or better on the math exam. Figure
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3.42 lists the Union City schools that did not among schools. General education students figure 3.42 make AYP as a result of student performance in all of Union City’s schools exceeded the on the Grade 4 exam, the number of indica- No Child Left Behind proficiency threshold Union City Schools Not Making Adequate Yearly Progress: Grade 4, 2003-04 tors on which it fell short, and the number of in Grade 4 literacy (68%). There was some years it did not meet the standard.40 variation around the district’s 86 percent Number Standards Years Not Two Union City elementary schools missed proficiency average in 2002–03. School Not Met Making AYP one or more AYP benchmarks on the Grade Every Grade 4 general education stu- Roosevelt 0 3+ 4 test. Edison missed three AYP targets and dent at Woodrow Wilson Elementary School Thomas A Edison 3 2 Washington missed two. These two schools scored at least proficient on the test that year. Washington 1 2 fell short of state targets for the second year And more than 90 percent scored as well at Robert Waters 0 1* in a row, placing them in the school improve- Roosevelt, Jefferson, and Gilmore Elementary source new Jersey Department of Education: Office ofT itle I Program ment category under NCLB (see Figure 3.35). Schools. planning and Accountability, September 2004 + AYP Hold: School met NCLB standards that it had missed in Parents with children in these schools may Improvement over time is, of course, an previous years. choose to send their children to another important indicator that a school is moving in * Early Warning Hold: School met NCLB standard(s) that it had missed in the previous year. public school in the district or a charter the right direction: Robert Waters and Hud- school in Union City. Two schools that did not son Elementary Schools showed the biggest make AYP in 2002–03 earned hold status in gains in the average score of general educa- 2003–04. Roosevelt Elementary was in school tion students on the Grade 4 language arts improvement, but met the standards on literacy test between 1999–00 and 2002–03. which it had previously fallen short. Simi- Union City schools also scored just as larly, Robert Waters Elementary corrected the well across the board on the Grade 4 math shortfall that put the school in early warning test. Among general education students, all status in 2002–03. schools exceeded the NCLB threshold of 53 AYP results suggest that there may be percent in math. At Woodrow Wilson El- important differences in test performance ementary School, every general education
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student that took the Grade 4 math test scored figure 3.43 figure 3.44 proficient or better. Grade 8 Language Arts Literacy Score by District Grouping, Grade 8 Language Arts Literacy Proficiency:U nion City, Robert Waters Elementary School stands 1999–00 to 2002–03 1998–99 to 2002–03 out among the elementary schools as having
300 100% improved the most between 1999–00 and 14.2% 11.7% 10.4% 19.9% 21.6% 2002–03 with a 45-point gain in the average ADVANCED PROFICIENT 80% 250 math score of general education students.
60% Grade 8: GEPA. Across the nation, reading 200 83.8% 85.3% 89.1% and math achievement results for Grade 8 40% 77.2% 76.4% PROFICIENT have lagged behind those of younger students. 150 20% There has been no significant improvement 2.9% 2.0% 2.0% 3.0% in Grade 8 reading between 1992 and 2003; 100 0 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 math scores have improved by about five Union City percent during the same time period.41 In this Partially Proficient All Other Abbott Districts Proficient section, we begin to explore if Abbott reforms I and J Districts Advanced Proficient New Jersey have produced achievement results with middle school-age students. This relative lack of attention to middle schools is not unique to source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and Evaluation, 1999-00 to 2002-03; School Report Card, 1999-00 Evaluation, 1998-99 to 2002-03; School Report Card, 1998-99 New Jersey’s urban school districts. We expect to 2000-01 to 2000-01 to see achievement test results in Union City, the other Abbotts, and indeed throughout the state that are similar to those found in the na- tion as a whole.43 When compared to the array of instructional programs and reforms for elementary school students, however, Abbott
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K-12 Education 3 has yet to truly provide for students in the figure 3.45 figure 3.46 middle grades.42 Grade 8 general education language arts Grade 8 Language Arts Literacy Proficiency by Subgroup: Grade 8 Math Average Score by District Grouping, Union City, 2002–03 1999–00 to 2002–03 literacy scores show little to no change in any of the district groupings we analyzed (Figure 100% 300 3.43). Union City’s eighth graders consis- 31.2% ADVANCED PROFICIENT 80% 39.9% tently scored between 216 and 219, well above 250
79.7% the proficient level, in all four years. 60% 85.6% Figure 3.44 shows the distribution of 200 40% 68.6% PROFICIENT Union City general education scores on 59.8% 150 the Grade 8 language arts literacy test from 20% 20.3% 1998–99 to 2002–03. In most years, a large 14.4% 0 100 Hispanic Economically Special Limited English 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 majority of the districts met state standards in Disadvantaged Education Proficiency language arts literacy. In 2002–03, 90 percent Union City Partially Proficient All Other Abbott Districts scored in the proficient range, slightly more Proficient I and J Districts than in previous years. *Advanced Proficient, less than one percent. New Jersey In 2002–03, a majority of Hispanic and source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and economically disadvantaged students scored Evaluation, 2002-03 Evaluation, 1999-00 to 2002-03, School Report Card 1999-00 at or above proficient on the Grade 8 lan- to 2000-01 guage arts literacy test (Figure 3.45). About two out of three Hispanic students scored at least proficient, compared to about three out of five economically disadvantaged students. Fourteen percent of the district’s eighth grade special education students and 20 percent
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of the students who were not fluent English Grade 8 math test in 2002–03 (Figure 3.48). figure 3.47 speakers met the eighth grade language arts Fifty-four percent of the Hispanic students Grade 8 Math Proficiency:U nion City, 1998–99 to 2002–03 literacy standards that year. met state standards, compared to 49 per- Over the years, the district’s general edu- cent of the students who were economically
100% cation eighth graders scored about the same disadvantaged. Fifteen percent of the special
30.6% 29.3% 28.5% on the state’s math test, improving from 210 education students and 19 percent of the 37.9% 80% 45.3% to 216. Their peers in the other Abbott dis- limited English proficient students scored at
60% tricts have scored consistently lower, but also least proficient on the Grade 8 math test that improved over the years. In 2002–03, eighth year. 40% 57.8% 57.2% 58.0% 54.2% 50.4% graders in the other Abbott districts scored Grade 8: AYP. Two Union City schools 20% six points below the proficiency threshold on missed one or more AYP benchmarks on the
7.9% 11.7% 13.4% 13.4% average. Eighth grade students in the wealthi- Grade 8 exam. Edison and Washington fell 0 4.3% 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 est districts actually scored a little worse on short on one AYP target each. The 2003–04 the math test in 2002–03 than they did in school year was the second year the two Partially Proficient Proficient 1999–00; the statewide average stayed about schools did not make AYP, placing them in the Advanced Proficient the same over the years. school improvement category under NCLB. Figure 3.47 reveals that the slight rise in Parents with children in these schools may source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and Union City’s eighth grade math scores hap- choose to send their children to another pub- Evaluation, 1998-99 to 2002-03; School Report Card, 1998-99 to 2000-01 pened when fewer students scored in the lic school in the district or a charter school partial proficient range and more scored in Union City. Three schools that did not proficient or higher. In 1998–99, 55 percent make AYP in 2002–03 earned hold status in met the state’s eighth grade math standards, 2003–04: Roosevelt Elementary was in school compared to 71 percent in 2002–03. improvement, but met the standards on There was some variation in the perfor- which it had previously fallen short. Similarly, mance of different student groups on the Robert Waters and Columbus Elementary
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Schools corrected the shortfall that put the lowed by Thomas Edison Elementary School figure 3.48 school in early warning status in 2002–03. with a 12-point gain. Performance on the 2002–03 Grade 8 Grade 11: HSPT/HSPA. The United States Grade 8 Math Proficiency by Subgroup:U nion City, 2002–03 tests did not vary a great deal among Union Department of Education has collected
City schools. As in the Grade 4 test, general achievement test data from students in Grade 100% education students in all schools exceeded 12 since 1990 as part of its National Assess- 80% NCLB targets in language arts literacy and ment of Educational Progress. The results 45.8% 50.8% math. In language arts literacy, the highest of this ongoing national study reveal little 60% 84.9% 80.7% performers were Robert Waters, Christopher change in the reading or math scores of high 40% 44.9% Columbus, and Woodrow Wilson Elementary school seniors over time. We suspect, along 41.7% 44 Schools. In each of these schools, more than with many other education observers, that 20% 18.3% 13.5% 9.3% 7.5% 1.6% 1.0% 90 percent of the Grade 8 general education this lack of progress is the result of a relative 0 Hispanic Economically Special Limited English students scored proficient or better. In math, lack of attention to high schools compared Disadvantaged Education Proficiency the top performers were Thomas Edison El- to elementary and middle schools. In this Partially Proficient ementary and Christopher Columbus Schools: way, the Abbott reforms do not differ from Proficient more than 80 percent of their general educa- standard educational practice across the state Advanced Proficient tion students scored proficient or better or indeed, nationally. As we discussed above, source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and that year. until recently, the Abbott remedies have Evaluation, 2002-03 Two schools showed eight-point gains in provided less in the way of real instructional the average score on the Grade 8 language arts reforms at the middle or high school levels literacy between 1999–00 and 2002–03: Rob- when compared to what has been available ert Waters and Roosevelt Elementary Schools. for younger children. We turn next to the Roosevelt Elementary School showed the results of the Grade 11 assessments with biggest gain in the average score on the Grade moderate expectations. 8 math test during those years (31 points) fol-
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The 11th grade test given throughout the What trends were behind this slight rise in figure 3.49 state changed in 2001–02 from the HSPT to Union City’s high school reading scores? Fig- Union City Schools Not Making Adequate Yearly Progress: the HSPA. HSPT scores ranged from 100 to ure 3.51 shows that more high school juniors Grade 8, 2003-04 500, with 300 as the passing threshold. The passed the Grade 11 reading test in 2000–01 HSPA ranges from 100 to 300, with 200 as the (62%) than in 1997–98 (56%). Number Standards Years Not School Not Met Making AYP proficiency threshold, and 250 as the ad- The high school language arts literacy Roosevelt 0 3+ vanced proficiency threshold. Scores on these results from the last two years tell a similar Thomas A Edison 1 2 two tests are not comparable, so we examine story: Grade 11 general education scores Washington 1 2 them separately below. improved slightly in Union City. Eleventh Christopher Columbus 0 1* Figure 3.50 shows Union City high school graders in Union City and the other Abbott Robert Waters 0 1* students performing about the same as districts scored lower on language arts tests
source new Jersey Department of Education: Office ofT itle I Program their peers in the other Abbott districts on than did their peers in the wealthiest dis- planning and Accountability, September 2004 the Grade 11 exam. While the scores of the tricts or statewide. However, under this new + AYP Hold: School met NCLB standards that it had missed in previous years. district’s general education 11th graders test, a greater portion of Union City and the * Early Warning Hold: School met NCLB standards that it had missed in the previous year. improved by about three percent (from 313 other Abbott districts’ 11th graders met state to 321), their peers’ scores improved by less standards, with about 80 percent passing in than one percent. Grade 11 students in Union Union City and 70 percent in the other Abbott City and all other Abbotts scored consistently districts. A slightly greater percentage of lower than did students the same age in the students in the I and J districts and the state wealthiest districts and throughout the state passed the Grade 11 language arts exam in between 1997–98 and 2000–01. However, 2001–02 and 2002–03. the 11th grade reading scores for both non- About one in three Hispanic and economi- Abbott groups dropped slightly during this cally disadvantaged students in Union City time period. met state standards on the 11th grade language arts literacy exam in 2002–03. That same
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K-12 Education 3 year, 16 percent of special education students figure 3.50 figure 3.51 and 18 percent of limited English proficiency students scored at least proficient on the Grade 11 (HSPT) Reading Average Score by District Grouping, Grade 11 (HSPT) Reading Proficiency:U nion City, 1997–98 to 2000–01 1997–98 to 2000–01 exam. As with the high school reading and lan- 500 100% guage arts literacy scores, we did not expect 37.8% to find a change in Union City’s high school 400 80% 43.5% 42.6% 40.8% math scores. The Union City 11th grade 60% general education math scores improved a 300
PASSING THRESHOLD 40% bit between 1997–98 and 1998–99, but fell in 62.2% 200 56.5% 57.4% 59.2% 2000–01, although the average scale score re- 20% mained above the average of the other Abbott 100 0 districts (Figure 3.55). Grade 11 math scores 1997-1998 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 in other Abbott districts improved by four Union City Percent Not Passing percent (320 to 334) by 2000–01. All Other Abbott Districts Percent Passing Although a majority of Union City’s high I and J Districts school juniors passed the state’s math test New Jersey in every year shown, the percent passing source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and increased from 1997–98 (67%) to 1998–99 Evaluation, 1997-98 to 2000-01. Evaluation, 1997-98 to 2000-01 (74%), and decreased to 70 percent by 2000–01 (Figure 3.56). In the test given to 11th grade students in later years, Union City’s general education scores rose slightly above the average of the other Abbott districts. There was no change in
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high school math scores (in either test) in the figure 3.52 figure 3.53 wealthiest districts or in the state as a whole. Grade 11 (HSPA) Language Arts Literacy Average Score by Grade 11 (HSPA) Language Arts Literacy Proficiency: Fewer than half of the 11th graders in Union District Grouping 2001–02 to 2002–03 Union City, 2001–02 to 2002–03 City or the other Abbotts achieved proficiency
300 100% in 2001–02 and 2002–03. ADVANCED PROFICIENT 21.6% 18.6% The proficiency levels for the subgroups 250 PROFICIENT 80% in Union City on the math exam are similar 200 60% to those of the language arts literacy exam. 150 In 2002–03, about one in three Hispanic 241 241 74.2% 76.7% 216 229 229 40% 100 214 211 211 students and economically disadvantaged
50 20% students scored proficient or better. About 4.2% 4.7% one in six (18%) limited English proficiency 0 0 Union City All Other I & J Districts New Jersey 2001-02 2002-03 Abbott Districts students met state standards compared to only four percent of students in special edu- 2001–02 Partially Proficient 2002–03 Proficient cation programs. Advanced Proficient Grade 11: AYP. Union City’s two compre- hensive high schools missed Grade 11 AYP source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and benchmarks in 2003–04. This was the second Evaluation, 2001-02 to 2002-03; School Report Card, 2001-02 Evaluation, 2001-02 to 2002-03; School Report Card, 2001-02 to 2002-03 to 2002-03 year in which Emerson and Union Hill High Schools did not make AYP, placing them in the school improvement category under NCLB. Under federal law, parents with chil- dren enrolled in these schools may choose to send their children to another public school in the district or a charter school in Union
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City. There are no other public or charter figure 3.54 figure 3.55 schools that serve high school-age students in Union City. NCLB enables parents in such Grade 11 (HSPA) Language Arts Literacy Proficiency by Grade 11 (HSPT) Math Average Score by District Grouping, Subgroup: Union City, 2002–03 1997–98 to 2000–01 circumstances to send their children outside of the district, but this provision of the law has 100% 500 not yet been used in New Jersey. 80% Performance on the Grade 11 test differed 400 71.8% 70.0% only a little between Union City’s two high 60% 83.8% 81.7% schools. The general education students in 300 40% both schools outperformed NCLB targets in PASSING THRESHOLD 200 language arts in 2002–03 (73%), although a 20% 27.2% 28.9% 16.2% 18.3% somewhat higher percentage scored profi- 1.1% 1.1% 0 100 cient at Union Hill (86%) than at Emerson Hispanic Economically Special Limited English 1997-1998 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 Disadvantaged Education Proficiency High School (78%). Fewer than half of the Partially Proficient Union City general education students in both high Proficient All Other Abbott Districts schools scored at least proficient in math, Advanced Proficient I and J Districts however. Union Hill’s students improved New Jersey from 2001–02 to 2002–03 with a four-point source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and gain in the average score of general education Evaluation, 2002-03; School Report Card, 2002-03 Evaluation, 1997-98 to 2000-01 students on both tests. Other testing in the Union City schools. As a requirement of its federal Reading First grant, the Union City Board of Education administered the Terra Nova test to students in Kindergarten, and Grades 1 and 2.45 Re-
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figure 3.56 figure 3.57 figure 3.58
Grade 11 (HSPT) Math Proficiency:U nion City, Grade 11 (HSPA) Math Average Score by District Grouping, Grade 11 (HSPA) Math Proficiency:U nion City, 1997–98 to 2000–01 2001–02 to 2002–03 2001–02 to 2002–03
100% 300 100% ADVANCED PROFICIENT 26.5% 23.3% 33.1% 29.8% 250 80% 80% PROFICIENT 58.1% 57.0% 200 60% 60% 150 40% 240 240 40% 73.5% 76.7% 223 222 66.9% 70.2% 100 196 198 199 196 40.2% 20% 40.1% 20% 50 1.9% 2.9% 0 0 0 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 Union City All Other I & J Districts New Jersey 2001-02 2002-03 Abbott Districts Partially Proficient Percent Not Passing 2001–02 Proficient Percent Passing 2002–03 Advanced Proficient
source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and Evaluation, 1997-98 to 2000-01 Evaluation, 2001-02 to 2002-03; School Report Card, 2001-02 Evaluation, 2001-02 to 2002-03; School Report Card, 2001-02 to 2002-03 to 2002-03
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K-12 Education 3 sults from the reading tests provide the best figure 3.59 figure 3.60 estimate available of how many children are reading on grade level in the early grades in Grade 11 (HSPA) Math Proficiency by Subgroup: Union City Schools Not Making Adequate Yearly Progress: Union City, 2002–03 Grade 11, 2003–04 Union City Board of Education. The percent- age of Union City’s general education stu- 100% Number Standards Years Not dents scoring above the national median on School Not Met Making AYP 80% the reading test in Spring 2003 are shown by Emerson 1 2 68.6% 69.8% school and grade in Figure 3.61, with district 60% 82.4% Union Hill 1 2 95.7% averages across the bottom row. These find- source new Jersey Department of Education: Office ofT itle I Program ings show that Union City’s children in the 40% planning and Accountability, September 2004 lower elementary grades compare extremely 20% 29.6% 28.3% 17.1% 4.3% well with same-age children nationwide. 1.7% 1.8% 1.0% 0 Hispanic Economically Special Limited English Disadvantaged Education Proficiency High School Completion
High school completion is an important event Partially Proficient that greatly affects young people’s chances for Proficient social and economic improvement. Because Advanced Proficient of this, and because it is the culmination of a source new Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment and school system’s responsibilities to its com- Evaluation, 2002-03; School Report Card, 2002-03 munity’s residents, we present graduation as a major indicator of educational success. As we have discussed above, before 2003–04, neither Abbott nor Union City’s own reforms truly addressed instructional programs in the
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high schools, so we approach these findings figure 3.61 figure 3.62 with moderate expectations. Percent Scoring Above National Median on TerraNova by Grade Cumulative Promotion Index by District Grouping, How many students who entered high and School: Union City, 2002–03 1994–95 to 2001–02 school four years ago as ninth graders are graduating this year? Unfortunately, without K 1 2 100% Edison 89 73 39 keeping track of each student, it is impos- 80% 46 Gilmore 61 66 69 sible to answer this question. In fact, up
Hudson 81 86 74 60% until 2002–03, the New Jersey School Report Jefferson 79 35 32 Card reported the percentage of the current 40% Mrs. P’s 100 – – year’s 12th grade students who graduated.
Roosevelt 60 58 46 20% People who study high school graduation UCDC I 100 – – rates nationally have come up with a good way 0 UCDC II 94 – – 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 to estimate true graduation rates. They use Washington 100 72 55 Union City a measure called the Cumulative Promotion Robert Waters 97 83 42 All Other Abbott Districts Index or the CPI. The CPI is the percentage of I and J Districts Woodrow Wilson – 100 81 12th graders who graduate this year adjusted District 84 72 53 New Jersey by an estimate of the school’s promotion source source: Union City Board of Education, 2002-03 source school Report Card, 1994-95 to 2002-03 practices in that year. Like any other estimate we could use, the CPI does not account for the number of students who leave the district after entering high school if they moved or for reasons other than dropping out. It assumes, as do other measures that an equal number of students move into the district as well. We present CPI trends over time as a proxy for a
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K-12 Education 3 true graduation rate in the absence of better 80 percent of their students and the wealthi- figure 3.63 quality data.47 est districts have graduated about 90 percent. Below, we use the CPI to estimate gradu- The other Abbott districts graduated about Graduation by Traditional (HSPT/HSPA) Grade 11 Exam by District Grouping, 1994–95 to 2002–03 ation rates for Union City, all other Abbott 53 percent of their students in 1994–95 and districts, the wealthiest districts, and the state about 62 percent in 2001–02. If the CPI is a 100% from 1994–95 to 2001–02. We estimate that reasonable estimate, these findings reveal 61 percent of the 9th graders who entered troubling news for high schools in Union City 80% in 1990–91 graduated from Union City high and the other Abbott districts. 60% schools in 1994–95. The Union City gradua- tion rate rose between 1995–96 and 1998–99 Routes to Graduation 40% and reached the state average of 79 percent Next, we consider how Union City’s high 20% in 1999–00. By our estimation, however, school seniors showed their readiness to 0 the Union City graduation rate has steadily graduate. In New Jersey, students can gradu- 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 and rapidly declined to a low of 50 percent in ate by passing the traditional High School Union City 2001–02. Part of this decrease occurred as a Proficiency Assessment or the alternative All Other Abbott Districts result of a large increase in Grade 9 enroll- Special Review Assessment (SRA). I and J Districts New Jersey ment in 2001–02. The decrease also reflects High school achievement tests are in- a lower rate of promotion from grade to grade tended to show that students have mastered source school Report Card, 1994-95 to 2002-03 in the two district high schools that year. the content and skills outlined in New Jersey’s Our graduation estimates for Union Hill and Core Curriculum Content Standards. Prior to Emerson have differed widely over the years. 2001–02, it was assumed that most general In 2001–02, however, both schools graduated education students who graduate had shown only about 50 percent of their students. that they had mastered the appropriate con- On average, our estimates suggest that high tent by passing the traditional exam. We pro- schools across the state have graduated about vide information below about how students
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are showing their readiness to graduate and figure 3.64 New Jersey Special Review Assessment White Paper Excerpt whether the change in state policy described Graduation by Alternative (SRA) Grade 11 Exam by District above had a different effect on Union City Grouping, 1994–95 to 2002–03 In a 2003 white paper, the New Jersey Depart- and other Abbott districts than it did on other ment of Education had this to say about the districts in the state. 100% SRA: The original intent of the Special Review People disagree about alternative routes 80% Assessment (SRA) was to provide a way for to graduation like the SRA. Critics argue that students who met specific criteria through the students must show that they have mastered 60% Child Study Team to demonstrate proficiency... curriculum standards to graduate from high 40% Over the course of time the SRA was used school. Supporters praise New Jersey’s SRA
20% for students who have limited English profi- and argue that states with a single high stakes ciency and many special education students. graduation test have a strong incentive to 0 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 Beginning in 1991,...administrative code was push those students out of school who can-
Union City changed to include all students who did not not pass the test. We believe that the people All Other Abbott Districts pass the HSPT in the SRA program. Thus the of New Jersey can do both: maintain high I and J Districts program emphasis shifted from an alternate academic standards and make sure that all New Jersey way for specific students to demonstrate pro- students have the opportunity to earn aca- ficiency to a program that allowed all students demic diplomas. source school Report Card, 1994-95 to 2002-03 the opportunity. Beginning with introduction The figures show the percent of students of the HSPA in 2002, all students who did not graduating via the traditional and alternative score proficient on one or more tests were exams respectively (Figures 3.63 and 3.64). included in the SRA process...The original use In 1994–95 through 2002–03, the wealthiest [of the] SRA for special education students districts consistently had the highest percent- has been replaced by the increased use of the age of students using the traditional route special education exemption process. to graduation (HSPA), followed by the state
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K-12 Education 3 overall. Union City and all other Abbott dis- that Union City’s high school seniors have figure 3.65 tricts closely track one another and have had a been seriously planning to pursue a four-year lower percentage of their students graduating college degree. SAT Participation by District Grouping, 1994–95 to 2002–03 by passing the traditional exam throughout Through its Road to College program, the same time period. All four district group- Union City’s public schools have encouraged 100% ings show a marked drop-off after 2001–02. high school students to pursue college and In Union City and the other Abbott districts, helped them to prepare stronger applica- 80% less than half of the class of 2002–03 gradu- tions (see Student and Family Supports for a 60% ated by passing the traditional Grade 11 exam. description). We expected to see strong SAT 40% Figure 3.64 is a mirror image of Figure participation in Union City, especially since 3.63, suggesting that most students who did the introduction of this program and our 20% not graduate by passing the traditional Grade findings matched our expectations. Between 0 11 exam had indeed taken the alternative SRA. 1994–95 and 2002–03, more Union City high 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 school seniors took the SAT with each passing Union City College Entrance Exams year (Figure 3.65). In 1994–95, 62 percent All Other Abbott Districts I and J Districts Some four-year colleges stopped requir- took the test; and in 1999–00 when the New Jersey ing applicants to submit Scholastic Aptitude program was introduced, 75 percent took the
Test (SAT) scores in the past few years. The test, the same percentage as the average of all source school Report Card, 1994-95 to 2002-03 organization that administers the test recently school districts across the state. By 2002–03, estimated that as many as 56 percent of all Union City surpassed the state average, with four-year colleges and 80 percent of the 83 percent taking the SAT. SAT test-taking in most competitive colleges in the country still the other Abbott districts did not show a simi- require SAT scores (the remaining 44 percent lar trend: 53 percent took the test in 1994–95 accept them on an optional basis). We exam- and 57 percent did so in 2002–03. Almost all ine SAT participation, below, as an indicator seniors in the wealthiest districts in the state
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consistently take the SAT: 90 percent took and well below the scores achieved by their figure 3.66 the test in 1994–95 and 96 percent did so in peers in the most successful suburbs. SAT Verbal Average Score by District Grouping, 2002–03. Students across the state scored higher 1994–95 to 2002–03 Knowing about and taking the SAT are first on the SAT math than on the verbal (Fig- steps toward college entrance. To be competi- ure 3.67). In the other Abbott districts and 600 tive, students must also do well on the test. throughout the state, scores remained about The test is offered in two sections: a verbal the same between 1994–95 and 2002–03. Av- 500 and a math test. Scores on each SAT section erage math scores in Union City were 415 in range from 200 to 800. Nationally, SAT scores 1994–95 and went down to 397 in 2002–03; have risen very slightly in both the verbal and SAT math scores in the wealthiest suburbs 400 math portions of the test. Below, we show how increased from 558 to 578 during the same well students—from Union City, the other time period. 300 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 Abbott districts, the I and J districts, and the
Union City state—have done on the verbal (Figure 3.66) The Status of K-12 Education: A Summary All Other Abbott Districts and math (Figure 3.67) sections of the SAT I and J Districts between 1994–95 and 2002–03. We conclude this section with an overview New Jersey Figure 3.66 shows that average verbal SAT of key findings about K-12 public education scores have remained about the same level in Union City, including standards-based source school Report Card, 1994-95 to 2002-03 between 1994–95 and 2002–03 in all of the reform and student and family supports. We district groupings we analyzed. Union City’s first describe the progress that the district has verbal SAT scores were slightly lower than made and the challenges that still remain in scores earned in the other Abbott districts. each element of effective schooling. We then On average, students in the Abbott districts present a summary table containing findings scored below students throughout the state, for the subset of indicators with specific stan-
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K-12 Education 3 dards or requirements under Abbott or other are offered in Math, English, History, and the figure 3.67 state or federal law. sciences. Seniors can take AP courses for college credit in American History, Biology, Calculus, SAT Math Average Score by District Grouping, Chemistry, English Literature, Spanish Language, 1994–95 to 2002–03 Opportunities for Students to Learn and Spanish Literature. We compared Union City’s honors and AP course offerings to those Research shows that children in the early in Tenafly, an “I” district several miles away. 600 elementary grades benefit from smaller class Union City offers 21 honors and advanced sizes. Abbott funding has had some immedi- placement courses compared to Tenafly’s 31. ate, clear effects on conditions in Union City schools: average class sizes are smaller than the 500 Abbott standard in most grades. Limited class- Student and Family Supports room space hampered the district’s progress in Grade 6, however, where class sizes were larger Every school in the district has a Support 400 than the Abbott standard. Services Task Force, that helps students who Union City has about 851 special needs have health, mental health, academic, or behavioral problems. The task force coordinates students ages six to 21. Almost half of these 300 students go to school in “very inclusionary” set- support services at school and makes referrals 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-00 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 to community-based agencies. A districtwide tings (spending 80% or more of their day with Union City the general education population) compared to task force coordinates the schoolwide support All Other Abbott Districts 27 percent in the other Abbott districts and 42 teams and monitors student progress. percent in the state overall. I and J Districts New Jersey K-12 curriculum development and review pro- K-12 Teacher Qualifications and Supports cedures are thorough and continuous. Content- specific curriculum committees made up of Union City faculty attendance improved source school Report Card, 1994-95 to 2002-03 district staff and teachers develop and review between 1994–95 and 2002–03. At 97 percent the district’s instructional programs on a stag- in 2002–03, the faculty attendance rate was at gered, five year cycle to ensure that they are about the same level as the wealthiest subur- current and aligned with the state’s curriculum ban districts. standards. Union City did better than other Abbott Union City’s high schools offer a variety of hon- districts, the state average, and even the most ors and advanced placement courses to make successful suburban districts in the state in the students more competitive college applicants percent of elementary school teachers who and prepare them for college. Honors courses were highly qualified under the federal defini-
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tion. Almost all of the district’s high school figure 3.68 teachers were also highly qualified inone or all of the subjects they teach, and almost all Summary Table. Abbott K-12 Programs: Benchmark Status In Union City classes are taught by these highly qualified teachers. The Union City Board of Education provides a Benchmark Status variety of opportunities for teacher professional Kindergarten-Grade 3 maximum class size: 21 Met development throughout the year. Develop- ment opportunities are ongoing: teachers take Grades 4 and 5 maximum class size: 23 Met part in mandatory, full-day activities through- Grades 6 through 12 maximum class size: 24 Not Met out the year. Voluntary activities are available on Super Saturdays, and during the summer. Abbott districts have funding parity with the I & J districts Met The district uses methods that stretch its pro- Student to computer ratio is 5 to 1 Met fessional development budget and capitalize on 2003-04 Grade 4 Achievement Tests*: For a school to make Adequate Yearly Progress, each Met in: the expertise of more experienced teachers. of 10 demographic subgroups had to have: 1) 95% test participation; 2) 68% percent score Roosevelt School School and district administrators have many at least proficient in language arts literacy; AND 3) 53% score at least proficient in math. Robert Waters School opportunities for professional development 2003-04 Grade 8 Achievement Tests: For a school to make Adequate Yearly Progress, each Met in: including, after-school workshops, administra- of 10 demographic subgroups had to have: 1) 95% test participation; 2) 58% score at least Roosevelt School tive retreats, and conferences. proficient in language arts literacy; AND 3) 39% score at least proficient in math. Christopher Columbus School Robert Waters School 2003-04 Grade 11 Achievement Tests: For a school to make Adequate Yearly Progress, each Not Met K-12 Budget of 10 demographic subgroups had to have: 1) 95% test participation; 2) 73% score at least proficient in language arts literacy; AND 3) 55% score at least proficient in math. Property wealth is an important indicator of local capacity to support its public services * The New Jersey Department of Education provided 2003-04 Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) data several months prior to releasing statewide 2003-04 achievement test scores. Therefore, we include the 2003-04 AYP data to provide readers with the most updated information available, while achievement test score data is analyzed through including education. In 2003, New Jersey’s 2002-03. wealthiest suburbs had more than four times more property wealth per student than Union City. That same year, the state average was triple that of Union City. At $10,933 per student, Union City had as much as the most successful suburban districts to support general education in 2003–04 as it has since Abbott parity funding began.
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K-12 Education 3
In 2003–04, Union City received $819 per None of Union City’s schools qualify as persis- student in supplemental program aid to sup- tently dangerous under federal law. port the second half-day of Kindergarten and At four percent, the district’s 2002–03 elemen- other programs and services to meet the needs tary school suspension rate was just above the of students and families. This figure is lower average rates in the wealthiest suburbs. than the $2,017 that the other Abbott districts At seven percent, Union City’s 2002–03 high received because Union City did not request school suspension rate was about the same as any Additional Abbott Aid from the state. the wealthiest suburbs on average. The high Over the years, the district has received grant school suspension rate rose from about four funds to support technology initiatives and percent in 1995–96. student services. According to the district, these Union City’s general education fourth graders grants make up a small portion of the budget. made gains in language arts literacy and math, and scored well above the proficiency threshold between 1999–00 and 2002–03. Union City’s K-12 Student Outcomes general education scores rose most dramati- Elementary school attendance rates were about cally in 2000–01, as did the scores in many the same as the wealthiest districts in the state, districts throughout the state. while high school attendance was consistently On average, language arts and math achieve- better than in the other Abbott districts. ment scores in Grades 8 and 11 have stayed Union City compared poorly with the state on at or slightly above the proficiency threshold two indicators of child and youth well-being. between 2000 and 2003. About 90 percent of The teen birth rate remained steady, but was eighth graders scored proficient on language almost double the state average. The number arts literacy in 2002–03. Abbott has truly yet to of substantiated child abuse and neglect cases provide for students in middle and high school. more than doubled between 1998 and 2002. As In New Jersey, there was no official graduation a central public institution of the urban com- data until recently. In this report, we estimated munity, schools play a critical role in ensuring historical graduation rates using a cumulative the well-being of children and youth. Schools promotion index. Our estimates suggest that are not alone in their responsibility—parents, half of Union City’s class of 2001–02 gradu- elected officials, and public and private agencies ated from school. The district’s promotion index in the city must all play a role. As the African declined from a high of 61 percent seven years proverb so famously says: “It takes a whole vil- earlier. By this measure, high schools across lage to raise a child.” the state have graduated about 80 percent of
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their students and the wealthiest suburbs have graduated about 90 percent. Endnotes Less than half of the class of 2002–03 in Union City graduated by passing the traditional Grade 16. The state did not require 18. Federal laws guiding the 11 exam (HSPA). Most of the remaining gradu- middle and high schools to adopt educational environment of people Whole School Reform models, with disabilities include: the ates that year took the alternative test (SRA). because there was not sufficient Individuals with Disabilities Edu- In 2002–03, Union City surpassed the state evidence of their effectiveness cation Act (amended in 2004) 20 average, with 83 percent of high school seniors at those grade levels. The state U.S.C.§ 1400, et seq; Section 504 did recommend the following of the Rehabilitation Act (1973) taking the SAT. Union City student performance models, however, Success For All 29 U.S.C. §794; and less directly, on the verbal and math tests has remained (Preschool to Grade 7), Talent De- the Americans with Disabilities below the state average between 1994–95 and velopment (Grades 6 to 8), Turn- Act of 1990 42 U.S.C. § 2131, et 2002–03. ing Points (Grades 6 to 8), High seq. State regulation is New Jersey Schools That Work (Grades 9 to Administrative Code 6A:14, and 12), and Talent Development High state statute is New Jersey Statutes Schools (Grades 9 to 12). In 2004, Annotated 18A:46. new regulations were adopted that govern secondary school reform in 19. Union City provided us with the Abbott districts. the percentage of students placed within or outside of the district 17. We describe models used in by disability. Among disability Union City schools in this report. categories, students ages 6 to 21 Other models can be reviewed with autism and severe cognitive in greater detail on the Internet. disabilities are the most likely to Excellent descriptions of many be sent out of district. Whole School Reform models can be found at the Northwest Regional 20. The Maculaitis Assessment of Educational Laboratory’s Catalog Competencies II (MAC) measures of School Reform Models (http:// English language proficiency in www.nwrel.org/scpd/ non-native speakers of English catalog/index.shtml) or the in grades K-12. It can be used American Institutes of Research’s for identifying students who are Educators’ Guide to Schoolwide eligible for English as a Second Reform (http://www.aasa.org/is- Language (ESL) or bilingual sues_and_insights/district_ education services; and for place- organization/Reform/approach. ment, achievement, and program htm). evaluation purposes.
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Endnotes
21. The English Language De- representatives of the juvenile 25. The purpose of the Even Start 28. The figures shown in the Figure velopment Assessment (ELDA) justice system, family or foster Family Literacy Program is to help (in thousands of dollars) are aver- is designed to assess English family members, or mental health break the cycle of poverty and age, not total, property values per language proficiency in academic service providers. Typical school- illiteracy by improving educational student in each district grouping language, as well as in social lan- based programs include family, opportunities for families. This because a large city with many guage. It consists of assessments of substance abuse, and employment is accomplished by integrating low-value properties could have listening, speaking, reading, and counseling; health care; pregnancy early childhood education, adult the same total property value as a writing, with a composite score of prevention; after-school tutoring literacy, adult basic education, and smaller, wealthy suburb. listening and reading to indicate a and computer literacy classes for parenting education into a single level of comprehension as required students and their families; and unified program. Even Start is 29. This and all subsequent by No Child Left Behind. The ELDA after-school recreation programs. implemented nationally through analyses of tax rates are based assesses students in the following The program is funded by the cooperative projects that build on on property values that have grade clusters: K-2, 3–5, 6–8, New Jersey Department of Human existing community resources, been equalized by the New Jersey and 9–12. Services through a competitive creating a new range of services for Department of the Treasury, Divi- application process. children, families and adults. sion of Taxation to reflect current 22. Reading First is a program market values. Tax rates used intended to help all students to 24. 21st Century Community 26. Federal law on highly qualified throughout this section are gross become successful early readers. Learning Centers are centers that teachers applies to teachers in figures: they do not include refunds The U.S. Department of Education offer academic, artistic, and the following core content areas: made through the state’s rebate funds states and local school cultural opportunities to students English, reading or language programs. Per student property districts to develop high-quality and their families when school arts, mathematics, science, world wealth was calculated by dividing reading instruction in Kindergar- is not in session. The goal of the languages, civics and government, the total equalized property value ten through Grade 3. The program program is to supplement educa- economics, arts (music, theatre, by the total school enrollment in is especially intended for use by tion in low-performing schools in and art), history, and geography. each district grouping. low-performing schools. high-poverty areas. Centers must New Jersey’s Core Curriculum offer literacy and other educational Content Standards that align with 30. Tax rates are expressed as a 23. The New Jersey School Based services to the families of the par- these content areas are: language dollar amount for every $100 of Youth Services Program, in 45 ticipating students. Funding for arts literacy, science, mathematics, assessed property value. In a city schools statewide, helps students these centers is provided by the social studies, world languages, and with a tax rate of 1.00, a home- address problems in their lives so U.S. Department of Education, the visual and performing arts. owner with a property assessed that they can succeed in school and through a highly competitive at $100,000 would pay $1,000 in gain skills for college or work. Stu- application process. 27. In 2002–03–already many years property taxes. dents participate in the program by into Abbott parity funding–47 per- referral from school staff, cent of New Jersey school districts’ 31. As of school year 2004–05, total revenues and 69 percent of Abbott Parity Aid is known as their general education revenues Educational Opportunity Aid were from local taxes. (EOA) and Additional Abbott Aid is known as Discretionary Educa- tional Opportunity Aid (DEOA).
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Endnotes
32. We focus on general education 36. United States Department of 42. In 2003–04, a statewide 44. Christopher Columbus stu- funding as the foundation of a Education, National Center for work group met and developed dents began attending José Martí school district’s budget. Most Educational Statistics, National recommendations for Abbott Middle School in 2003–04. school districts also receive cate- Assessment of Educational middle and high school reform. gorical aid from the federal and/or Progress, 1990–2003. The group studied successful 45. The Terra Nova is a nationally state governments to provide sup- schools, reform models, and normed test that is aligned to the portive programs and services for 37. Abbott school funding is de- other improvement practices with state’s CCCS. The Complete Battery students with disabilities, English scribed in detail in the K-12 Budget demonstrated effectiveness at is used in Kindergarten; the Basic language learners, and other section of this report. the middle and high school level. Multiple Assessments with Plus, special needs populations. The group’s recommendations to Second Edition (also known as the 38. Results are shown for special California Achievement Test) is education students who took the the Commissioner of Education 33. In Abbott districts, general were adopted in Fall 2004. The used in Grades 1 and 2. A Spanish education revenues support half- ASK4, GEPA, and HSPA. The version is also administered, but results for students with severe regulations require all middle and day Kindergarten. Although the high schools in Abbott districts the results presented here are for other half-day is required under disabilities who took the alternate the English-language version. test are not shown. to phase in several reforms over Abbott, it is considered a Supple- the next four school years. The mental Program and is funded by 46. The New Jersey Department of 39. Students are included in more major reforms include: 1) adoption Education also has a major project Additional Abbott Aid, explored than one category if appropriate. of academic or career-focused below. Preschool is funded sepa- underway to develop a statewide, For example, a student may be curricular themes; 2) formation of student-level database that will rately by the state and is examined categorized by race/ethnicity, lan- small learning communities with in Section 2. address this and many similar guage proficiency, special needs, greater personalization and adult questions we have not been able 34. The average across all other and/or socioeconomic status. attention for each student; and to answer. The project, called 3) implementation of a rigorous, Abbott districts includes all 29 40. A school-by-school listing of NJSMART, was being piloted in 11 other Abbott districts, even if college preparatory curriculum for districts. If adequate funding is missed AYP benchmarks is not all students. they did not apply for Additional included in the report because of secured, it is expected to roll out to Abbott Aid. space limitations, but is available 43. United States Department of the state level in one to two years. 35. The newly adopted regula- upon request. Education, National Center for 47. The CPI estimate may be less Educational Statistics, National As- tion guiding penalizing school 41. United States Department of accurate in the Abbott districts employees who falsify violence and sessment of Educational Progress, than in the other district groupings Education, National Center for 1990–2003. vandalism incident reports is New Educational Statistics, National As- because Abbott districts have Jersey Administrative Code 6:16, sessment of Educational Progress, higher mobility rates. Section 5.3. 1990–2003.
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School Facilities Construction
Many of New Jersey’s urban schools are unsafe, over- crowded, and unsuitable for helping students to achieve the Core Curriculum Content Standards. Under Abbott, the state is required to address this situation. In 2000, the legislature enacted the Abbott School Facilities Construction Program, with several key features. 4 union cit y
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Abbott Overview and progress of the first-round of facilities Key features of the school facilities construc- planning in Union City. Understanding the tion program are: successes and challenges encountered to date Priority to health and safety repairs; will help to inform and improve the district’s Long range plans developed by districts with second-round efforts. community partners; More classrooms to eliminate overcrowding; Space to provide preschool to all eligible The First-Round Long-Range Facilities Plans three-and four-year-olds; 100 percent state-financed; and The Planning Process Schools to accommodate state-of-the-art The first step of the Abbott school facilities teaching and learning. construction program was to develop a dis- More than five years after the Abbott trictwide Long-Range Facilities Plan (LRFP). school facilities construction program began The New Jersey Department of Education with the first round of long-range facilities issued guidelines in September 1998 to help planning, many projects are underway. As this school districts develop them. Districts’ final report was being prepared, Abbott districts plans were due to the state just six months were in a second round of facilities planning. later in March 1999. LRFP development The second round provides districts with an involved several procedures, including: opportunity to build on the strengths and Projecting future enrollments; correct the shortcomings of their first efforts. Assessing the safety and educational adequacy It is another chance for districts to work with of current schools; Planning future educational needs, with a set their constituents to build schools that meet minimum standards as a guideline; the needs of children and encourage the best Engaging parents and other community instructional practices. In this section of the members in the process; and report, we describe the goals, scope, process, Planning for “swing space” while construction is under way.
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School Facilities Construction 4
The LRFP process was a unique chance The Union City Board of Education con- figure 4.1 for school districts to assess their existing tracted with Rivardo, Schnitzer, and Capazzi, schools and, where needed, plan to build bet- an architectural/planning firm to help them Union City’s First-Round Facilities Plan Overview ter ones that would accommodate children’s develop their first-round LRFP following the needs and improved instructional practices. guidelines issued by the state. The firm also The development of the first-round LRFPs served as advisors to the district’s Facilities projects did not go very smoothly for a number of Advisory Board (See description in Leader- N number Percent reasons. Most districts did not have time to ship, below). New Schools 11 61.1% Rehab/Additions 1 5.6% assess their current educational programs. Figure 4.1 summarizes the school con- Conversion 6 33.3% They also did not have the expertise to trans- struction projects outlined in Union City’s Total 18 100.0% late educational practices into new building first-round LRFP. Union City’s first-round source Education Law Center communications with the New Jersey designs. As directed by the Supreme Court, LRFP contained 18 projects. In the ini- schools Construction Corporation, New Jersey Department of the New Jersey Department of Education set tial plan, there were to be 11 new schools Education, and individual districts. standards for the numbers and sizes of edu- constructed, one existing school rehabili- cational spaces plus office and other nonin- tated, and six schools to be converted from structional spaces. These standards provided another use. very little flexibility for districts to forward The LRFP reflects whether and how the innovative designs. The state treated these district used the opportunity to not only meet facilities efficiency standards (FES) as strict Abbott requirements, but also incorporate guidelines, rather than the minimum stan- good educational practices. In addition to dards the Supreme Court intended. In sum, constructing new school buildings, the dis- the time frame, lack of expertise, and rigid trict has decided to change the grade struc- standards worked together to undermine the tures in existing elementary schools from quality of many district LRFPs. preschool to Grade 8 to preschool to Grade 5;
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another middle school will be built to accom- Our community reviewers noted, however, modate students in Grades 6 through 8. that all private providers had to meet require- ments set out by the New Jersey Department Preschool Facilities Planning of Human Services prior to becoming part of Preschool facilities should be healthy, safe, the Abbott preschool program, with its more and adequate to support instruction that meets demanding space and facilities requirements. the state’s early childhood Expectations. The Under the law, private preschool providers Abbott school construction program is in- are eligible to receive Abbott school construc- tended to improve schools housing students at tion funding only if they own their facilities. all grade levels, preschool through Grade 12. Without state funding, it is more difficult for LRFP guidelines required that districts as- providers who lease their facilities to make sess their preschool facilities for educational repairs and upgrades to meet Abbott stan- adequacy. The same assessment was not re- dards or add space to accommodate addi- quired for facilities run by private preschool tional children. In all of the Abbott districts providers. Across the Abbott districts, 70 per- combined, only about one-third (34%) of cent of preschoolers attend private provider the community preschool providers own programs. In Union City, 93 percent attend their own facilities. In Union City, only nine preschool in 37 other private provider and percent own their buildings.48 One private Head Start program locations. Regardless of provider-owned building in Union City was the educational quality of these programs, it is renovated in 2000–01 under the district’s important to know if the facilities meet Abbott LRFP. To date, it is the only provider-owned standards. Because they were not assessed in building that has been renovated in the state. Union City, and indeed in most districts, we The district’s plan is to eventually bring all do not know if these buildings are adequate. four-year-olds into district-run programs; three-year olds will remain in private pro-
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School Facilities Construction 4 vider programs. The 1999 LRFP also outlines and function to this day. Members include a plan for a new Early Childhood Center to parents, teachers, non-instructional staff, serve the increasing number of young chil- and students (high school students are pro- dren in the district. viding input as the new high school is being designed). The FAB meets on an as-needed Leadership basis, typically by grade structure (preschool/ Each Abbott district was required by the New elementary, middle, and high school), to Jersey Department of Education’s guidelines address specific issues around construction The LRFP process was to assemble a facilities advisory board (FAB) projects. to guide the development of the LRFP. The a unique chance to assess FAB was to include parents, teachers, princi- Community and Other Input pals, community representatives, an archi- In Union City, the district has strived to keep existing schools and plan tect, an engineer, and a staff person from the the public informed and engaged throughout to build better ones that New Jersey Department of Education. The the facilities planning process. Jose Marti FAB’s role was to review and refine the rec- Middle School, which opened in September would accommodate chil- ommendations made by an educational facili- 2004, is one example of this. In addition to ties specialist and architect and recommend the actual school, the Marti complex has a dren’s needs and improved the plan for adoption by the school board. The health center and a public library for commu- instructional practice. Education Law Center has recommended that nity use. The North Hudson Community Ac- FABs continue to meet until plans are fully tion Corporation assisted in the development implemented to seek input and guide the dis- of the health-screening program at the health trictwide planning, design, and construction center and the library board was involved in of school facilities. planning the public library. Union City ‘s FAB is one of the very few in The Mayor conducted meetings in neigh- the Abbott districts that continues to meet borhoods where projects are developing to
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talk with residents and businesses about then submitted to and approved by the New the potential impact of the school construc- Jersey Department of Education. Once LRFPs tion. Meeting participants can raise any are approved, districts prioritize projects and issues they have. submit them one by one to the New Jersey In assessing Union City’s educational Department of Education. The Department of needs, the district also received input from Education checks each project for compliance the school board. The district’s Early Child- with the approved LRFP and the FES, and From the outset, all hood Education Advisory Council provided estimates project costs. Once approved by the recommendations for the design of the new Department of Education, projects are sent parties acknowledged Early Childhood Center and members of the to the SCC for predevelopment. In general, council also usually attend bimonthly design a project progresses through the following that the Abbott school meetings with the NJSCC. stages: predevelopment, design, in bid for construction program construction, in construction, and finally, Progress and Challenges complete. The events that occur within each would be a vast under- Progress. The first LRFPs in the state were of these stages is outlined in the text box on approved by the New Jersey Department of the facing page. taking. As with any Education in 2000; the most pressing health From the outset, all parties acknowledged effort this size, it will and safety projects got seriously underway that the Abbott school construction program after Governor McGreevey created a new state would be a vast undertaking. As with any take a long time. agency, the New Jersey Schools Construc- effort this size, it will take a long time. Many tion Corporation (SCC), to oversee the whole schools operate year-round and the district process in 2002.49,50 must have the space to provide an adequate For Abbott districts, LRFPs were developed educational program while facilities projects and approved by their school boards, and
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Abbott School Facilities Projects: Stages Of Progress
Predevelopment In Bid For Construction NJDOE reviews and approves project for Documents for letting bids are approved by educational adequacy. the SCC, the Attorney General, and the If approved by the NJDOE, SCC hires Department of Treasury. architects, engineers, and surveys property. Construction firms begin bidding for When property is available at fair market contract. value and suitable for school construction, SCC negotiates purchase and initial design In Construction documents are prepared. Contract is awarded by SCC to one or more firms. In Design “Shovels in the ground”—construction Architects develop next phase of the design begins. documents and preliminary construction Upon completion, New Jersey Department documents. of Community Affairs inspects construction NJDOE completes final review and and issues Certificate of Occupancy. approves cost. SCC transfers title to district. Architects complete design and construction documents. Complete New Jersey Department of Community Staff and students occupy the building. Affairs reviews construction documents for code compliance.
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proceed. Even though the state finances and ing two new elementary schools and an Early figure 4.2 oversees the process, the district must take Childhood Center. Construction is expected Overview of Union City’s Current Projects great care in pacing the submission of its to begin in early 2005. projects and moving them through the pipe- Union City was one of six districts in the line to completion. state awarded a Demonstration Project. School Type Estimated C completion The Union City Board of Education has Districts submitted proposals to the SCC in Jose Marti M.S. New School complete made great progress with their facilities proj- 2003–04 to build demonstration projects, 35th Street Uptown M.S. new School ects. Figure 4.2 lists current projects. Figure community schools coordinated with citywide Emerson High School new 4.3 shows that, as of September 2004, eight redevelopment efforts. Union City’s demon- D demonstration P project – (44%) of Union City’s 18 projects are already stration project will be a new high school to 34th St Uptown E.S. #1 new School december 2007 in the pipeline toward completion: two (11%) replace Emerson High School and an athletic Columbus K-5 New School september 2007 are in predevelopment, five (28%) are in complex at the site of Roosevelt Stadium. Gilmore PreK-5 New School september 2007 design, none are in construction, and one Union City has also been designated by Magnet K-8 New School – (6%) has been completed. Out of 532 planned the New Jersey Department of Education as Schlem ECC Conversion december 2005 projects across all Abbott districts, 105 are in a School Renaissance Zone. The focus of this source Education Law Center communications with the New Jersey predevelopment (20%), 40 in design (8%), program, led by the Economic Development schools Construction Corporation, New Jersey Department of Education, and individual districts. 49 in construction (9%), and 12 completed Authority (EDA) and the New Jersey Depart- (2%). Throughout the Abbott districts, 207 or ment of Education, is on encouraging private 39 percent of the estimated 532 projects are in investment in the neighborhoods around the pipeline. new schools. A new arts magnet school, Union City is one of the few Abbott dis- located in downtown Union City will be tricts that has completed any buildings.51 The developed as part of the city’s Renaissance Jose Marti Middle School opened in Septem- Zone. The school will include a theater that ber 2004. Architects have been identified for will be used for performances by both the three other Abbott school projects, includ- school and a local theater group.
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School Facilities Construction 4
Aside from community input, another may have difficulty getting the land needed to figure 4.3 remarkable feature of Union City’s school fa- build new schools. The list goes on. cilities construction planning is the close in- In Union City, the Columbus and Gilmore Status of Facilities Projects: Union City & All Other Abbott Districts* volvement and support of Union City’s Mayor projects were initially delayed because the and City Council. This is especially posi- New Jersey Historical Preservation Soci- All Other tive, given the squabbles that have occurred ety wanted these buildings to be renovated Abbott Union City districts between the district offices and city halls instead of demolished due to their histori- number percent percent in some cities, especially over site acquisi- cal/landmark status. This issue was resolved To Be Submitted to NJDOE 10 55.6% 61.3% tion. In Union City, the Mayor has helped the in April 2004 when an agreement was made Pre-Development 2 11.1% 19.7% district find suitable land sites, particularly to remove and preserve certain parts of those In Design 5 27.8% 7.5% those that will also provide a needed boost to buildings. These include: the terracotta Construction Contract Awarded 0 0.0% 9.2% neighborhoods. The site of the new Renais- arches at Columbus and the War Memorial at Completed 1 5.6% 2.3% sance Zone is an example of this. Gilmore. The eagle facade at Roosevelt Sta- Total 18 100.0% 100.0% Challenges. There are many ways for a dium will also be preserved. source Education Law Center communications with the New Jersey school construction project to get hung up schools Construction Corporation, New Jersey Department of on its way to completion. The New Jersey Education, and individual districts. * As of September 2004 Department of Education and the district may disagree about spaces, forcing a prolonged series of negotiations. The SCC may deter- mine, as a result of its own review, that the district should build a new school rather than renovate the existing one. The school district
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The Status of School Facilities Construction: Union City was one of six districts awarded a Demonstration Project: a new school to replace A Summary Emerson High School and an athletic complex at the site of Roosevelt Stadium. We conclude this section with an overview of Through its designation as a School Renais- key findings about school facilities construc- sance Zone, Union City will also have a new magnet school. tion in Union City: both the progress that the Two school projects (Columbus and Gilmore) district has made and the challenges that still were initially delayed because the state wanted remain. the existing buildings to be renovated instead of demolished due to their historical landmark Union City was the only district in New Jersey status. This issue was resolved when an agree- to renovate a community provider-owned ment was made to remove and preserve certain building under its first-round Long Range parts of those buildings. Facilities Plan. Union City is one of the few Abbott districts that has any completed school buildings and has made good progress in getting projects through the pipeline. At least part of the district’s success with school facilities construction can be credited to the strong, close involvement and support of the Mayor and city council, particularly around finding suitable land sites.
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Endnotes
48. This data was collected by 50. The SCC is a quasi-public the New Jersey Department of agency housed within the New Education from 2003–04 provider Jersey Economic Development budgets. This figure reflects the Authority. 35 Union City providers who re- sponded to this specific question. 51. Veterans’ Memorial Elemen- tary School, a project started and 49. Abbott districts were required funded by the district before the to address emergency school state provided full-funding for facilities defects which would di- Abbott School Construction, also rectly affect the “health and safety” opened in September 2003. of children in these buildings. Health and safety projects include: roof repairs, window replacement, asbestos removal, and boiler repairs.
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Appendices union cit y
Abbott Indicators List
The following is the list of Abbott indicators What student characteristics might affect Is the district providing a “high-quality” in this technical version of the report. The the nature and extent of services offered by preschool education to all eligible children? indicators included in the summary report the district? Programs for children with disabilities are highlighted in bold. Findings from all Eligibility free-/reduced-price lunch • Preschool Child Study Team (CST) indicators are included wherever they were Race/ethnicity Curriculum development available and of sufficient quality. English language learners • Curricula used Students with disabilities • People involved Immigrant students • Considerations/inputs to adoption The Community and Students Homelessness • Review frequency Student mobility rate • Alignment to Expectations What conditions of living and learning in the Transition activities (into preschool and community served by the district might affect Kindergarten) children’s and youth’s readiness to learn? The Preschool Program Health and social services Female-headed households with children • Direct services offered Adult educational attainment Opportunities for Students to Learn • Methods for assessment Labor force participation How close is the district to achieving universal • Referral methods Unemployment rate enrollment for all three- and four-year-olds? • Transportation services Median household income Percent of preschool universe served ECERS-R quality scores People living below poverty level (Census/ASSA) Children living below poverty level Total preschool population served Teacher Qualifications and Supports Number of providers by type Foreign-born population Are preschool programs adequately staffed Rent-income ratio Waiting list and are staff adequately supported? Renter-occupied housing Head Start inclusion Vacant housing Outreach activities Number of teachers Violent crimes Identification of unserved families Educational attainment of preschool teachers Preschool teacher certification Preschool teacher experience Preschool teacher salary
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Abbott Indicators List
Performance evaluation Student Outcomes • Review frequency Professional development opportunities Have preschool students developed the skills • Method for ensuring alignment across grade levels • Criteria they will need to continue to learn and de- College preparatory course • Methods velop in Kindergarten? • AP courses • Joint preschool-Kindergarten professional Assessment methods used development • AP course eligibility PPVT-III or ELAS scores • Availability of college preparatory sequence (math and science) Budget Are the preschool programs adequately K-12 Education Student and Family Supports funded? Opportunities for Students to Learn Is the school providing programs and services Preschool revenues Do our schools provide high-quality instruc- to support students’ well-being and academic tion in a range of content areas adequate performance in accordance with demon- Leadership to ensure that students can meet content strated need? To what extent does the district’s ECEAC rep- standards? Full day Kindergarten resent its stakeholders and participate in the Whole School Reform • Class size district’s early childhood program planning • Model chosen Early literacy and decision-making? • Approval of model • 90-minute reading blocks Early Childhood Education Advisory Council • Year adopted • Small group/one-to-one tutoring (ECEAC) • Reason for adoption Health and social services • Representation • Adoption procedures • Referral and coordination • Training Class size • On-site services • Frequency of meetings Programs for children with disabilities Nutrition program • Involvement in program planning, Curriculum development Access to technology budgeting, and facilities planning • Curricula used Student-computer ratio • Other activities • People involved Alternative education program • Considerations/inputs to adoption College and work transition programs
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Abbott Indicators List
After-school programs Property wealth Child death Summer programs Local tax rates Teen death Art and Music programs • Average tax rates Teen births Are strategies in place to ensure effective • School tax rates Substantiated abuse and neglect cases General education budget School violence and vandalism rates parent outreach and involvement? Supplemental programs budget Parent involvement policies and practices Are all students in Kindergarten to Grade Additional Abbott Aid application process 12 learning according to statewide standards? Student attendance Teacher Qualifications and Supports Leadership Suspension rates Are our schools adequately staffed and Do our schools and does our district have Grade 4 Language Arts Literacy and Math supported? adequate and representative leadership? Assessments Student-teacher ratio • Mean scores School Leadership Councils Faculty attendance • Proficiency percentages • Representation of stakeholder groups Highly qualified teachers • AYP status • Training in roles and responsibilities Abbott staffing patterns Grade 8 Language Arts Literacy and Math • Frequency of meetings Professional development Assessments • Involvement in planning and budgeting • Description of instructionally-linked, • Mean scores • Other activities curriculum-specific training • Proficiency percentages Abbott Advisory Council • Inputs to selecting professional development • AYP status • Representation of stakeholder groups opportunities Grade 11 Language Arts Literacy and Math Performance evaluation criteria and methods • Frequency of meetings Assessments Frequency of teacher networking and • Involvement in planning and budgeting • Mean scores collaboration • Other activities • Proficiency percentages Other teacher supports •AYP status Student Outcomes High and low performing schools Budget How physically, socially, and emotionally Kindergarten through grade 2 • Early Language Assessment System scores Are our schools adequately funded? healthy are our children?
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Abbott Indicators List
• Terra Nova Edition 2, where available Estimated completion dates Graduation Cooperation with municipal partners • Estimated rates (cumulative promotion Community input index) Barriers to progress • Graduation via Traditional Grade 11 Exam (HSPA/HSPT) To what extent is there adequate, represen- • Graduation via Alternative Grade 11 tative leadership that encourages meaningful Exam (SRA) public participation for school facilities plan- College Entrance ning and project implementation? • SAT participation Facilities Advisory Board • Verbal and math mean scores • Representation of stakeholder groups • Frequency of meeting (beyond LRFP submission) School Facilities Construction • Involvement in plan development Healthy, Safe and Educationally • Transparency to public Adequate Schools • Other activities What are the district’s long-range facilities plans? LRFP approval status Number and type of planned projects Process of development How much progress has been made toward completing educational facilities projects in the districts? Plans to upgrade preschool facilities Status of projects (complete, construction, design, predevelopment, not yet submitted)
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District and Community Reviewer Letters
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District and Community Reviewer Letters
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List of Abbott Districts
Asbury Park, Monmouth County Paterson, Passaic County Bridgeton, Cumberland County Pemberton Township, Burlington County Burlington City, Burlington County Perth Amboy, Middlesex County Camden, Camden County Phillipsburg, Warren County East Orange, Essex County Plainfield, Union County Elizabeth, Union County Pleasantville, Atlantic County Garfield, Bergen County Salem, Salem County* Gloucester City, Camden County Trenton, Mercer County Harrison, Hudson County Union City, Hudson County Hoboken, Hudson County Vineland, Cumberland Irvington, Essex County West New York, Hudson County Jersey City, Hudson County Keansburg, Monmouth County * Salem became an Abbott district in 2004. It was not included among Long Branch, Monmouth County the Abbott districts in the analyses Millville, Cumberland County that appear throughout this report. Neptune Township, Monmouth County New Brunswick, Middlesex County Newark, Essex County Orange, Essex County Passaic, Passaic County
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Data Collection and Analysis
Project staff collected all indicators data from Indicators staff took longhand notes dur- interviews and secondary data sources. In- ing unrecorded interviews, which lasted from Data Validation Procedures: An Example formation sources are identified throughout 30 minutes (the shortest interview was with the report. For interviews, we identify on what the business administrator) to over two hours. Our procedures for cleaning the data containing type of report our evidence relies: for exam- We summarized the notes, then organized the achievement test proficiency rates provide a use- ple, district staff, school staff, or community summaries by indicator then analyzed them ful example: members. We briefly identify data sources for emerging patterns. Analysis summaries Missing data. The percent of students in any with all Figures and charts; another Appendix appear throughout the report in narrative given school who scored in the three proficiency contains a detailed treatment of data sources form. categories should always sum to 100 percent. Be- and definitions of terms used in the Figures Secondary data. We collected a great deal cause schools are grouped into categories before and charts. of information presented in this report in averaging, it is important that all values—includ- Interviews. We conducted semi-struc- electronic and written (paper) formats from ing zeros—be accurately reflected. All appropriate tured interviews with district and school various offices in the New Jersey Department missing values were recoded to zeros. staff in each of the four pilot districts.52 In of Education, other state agencies, and from Inappropriate cases. We also checked the each district, we interviewed the district the school districts themselves. number of students who were tested in each year, administrator who oversees curriculum Project staff validated and cleaned elec- grade level, and subgroup against the appropriate and instruction, business administration, tronic data before performing analyses. enrollment. All cases that had test enrollments early childhood education, school facilities Procedures were used to check and fix miss- exceeding the number enrolled by more than 20 construction, and—in all but one district—the ing data, impossible and outlier values, and percent were eliminated from the analyses. This Superintendent. We also selected a sample of inappropriate cases. method also ensured that we did not include schools in each district representing a range Data received in paper form were entered schools that did not enroll students in the of neighborhoods, grade levels, and academic in spreadsheets and converted to tables or appropriate grade. performance. We visited each school and graphs. Electronic data were analyzed using interviewed the principal and chairperson of a statistical software application, and results the school’s leadership team. presented in tables and graphs throughout
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the report. Most findings are the result of straightforward descriptive statistics, such as Endnotes
frequency distributions or averages, and are 52. Copies of interview protocols self-explanatory. are available from the Education Law Center upon request. Our sources included school-and dis- trict-level databases only. To approximate student level findings (e.g., all of the stu- dent outcomes and per student revenues), we statistically weighted our data. A simple average across districts would have yielded incorrect results because districts vary in size. For example, an average test score across all of the Abbott districts should not give equal weight to Newark, the district with the largest enrollment, and Burlington City, the Abbott district with the smallest enrollment. Test scores were weighted with test enrollment wherever available. All other student-level findings were weighted using enrollment figures appropriate to the year, grade level, and/or demographic group.
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Data Sources and Definitions
1. The Community and Students Population below poverty level. The percent Figure 1.2 Characteristics of Students in of people who earn below the poverty-level Union City Figure 1.1 Conditions of Living and Learning income threshold for a family of a specific size Total enrollment consists of all students en- in Union City and ages of family members. rolled in preschool through Grade 12, includ- Female head of household families. The Population 17 and under below poverty ing students enrolled in Head Start and other percent of families led by a female head of level. The percent of children under age 18 private provider preschool programs that are household with her own children and no whose family’s income is below the poverty- under contract to the district as well as district spouse. level threshold for a family of that size and programs. All other percentages shown in this ages of the family members. table are of the number of students enrolled Highest educational attainment. The per- in district-run preschool programs and pub- cent of adults ages 25 and over by the highest Rent-income ratio. Gross rent as a percent of lic Kindergarten through Grade 12. level of school completed. household income. Eligible for free-/reduced-price lunch. Labor force participation. The number of Renter-occupied housing. The percent of The percent of students whose families fall nonmilitary people in the labor force as a per- occupied housing units that are not owner- within 185 percent of the poverty level who are cent of civilian population ages 16 and over. occupied. eligible for free-or reduced-price lunch dur- Unemployment rate. The number of people Violent crime. The rate per 1,000 people who ing the school day under the National School ages 16 and over without a job and looking for have been arrested for one of the following Lunch Program. work, as a percent of the civilian labor force. crimes: murder, rape, robbery, aggravated Limited English Proficiency (LEP).The assault, burglary, larceny-theft, or motor Median household Income. The income percent of students whose native language is vehicle theft. level that divides the household income dis- not English and who have difficulty speak- tribution into two equal parts. SOURCE: Violent crime is from the Uniform Crime Report, 2002. All ing, reading, writing, or understanding the other measures are from the 2000 Decennial Census Summary File 3. English language as determined through a language proficiency test.
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Data Sources and Definitions
SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, Office of Early Child- Figure 1.3 Languages Spoken by English hood Education, 2003 District and Provider budgets; New Jersey Students with disabilities. The percent of Department of Education, Office of School Funding, Preschool & students with an individualized education Language Learners Kindergarten Early Childhood Program Aid Enrollments, 1999–2004. program (IEP), regardless of placement and SOURCE: Union City Board of Education, Bilingual Education Depart- program involvement. An IEP contains spe- ment, 2003–04 Home Language Report. Figure 2.3 Preschool Enrollment cial instructional activities to meet the goals and objectives of the student. In-district preschool. A preschool program 2. The Preschool Program housed in school district buildings. Immigrant. The percent of students who were not born in any state and have not at- Figure 2.1 Preschool Enrollment Enhanced Head Start. The program under tended school in any state for more than three which existing Head Start seats are upgraded SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, Office of Early Child- full academic years, as defined in Title I of the hood Education, 2003 District and Provider budgets; New Jersey to meet Abbott standards funded with both Department of Education, Office of School Funding, Preschool & state and federal money. No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. Kindergarten Early Childhood Program Aid Enrollments, 1999–2004. Homeless. As defined in the McKinney-Ven- Expanded Head Start. The program serving children in Abbott districts that were not pre- to Homeless Education Assistance Improve- Figure 2.2 Preschool Population Served ments Act of 2001, the percent of students viously enrolled in Federal Head Start, funded without a fixed, regular, and adequate night- Eligible preschool population. The num- entirely with state money. ber of eligible three-and four-year olds is time residence. Other private providers. Preschool programs estimated by the New Jersey Department of run by private organizations (other than Head Student mobility. The percent of students who Education by doubling the number of stu- Start) under contract to the school district. entered or left school during the school year. dents enrolled in the previous year in Grade 1 in a school district’s public, charter, and SOURCE: Free- and reduced-price lunch eligibility and race/ethnicity SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, Office of Early Child- from the New Jersey Department of Education Fall Survey, 2003–04; nonpublic schools. hood Education, 2003 District and Provider budgets; New Jersey Limited English Proficiency, disabilities, and mobility from the New Department of Education, Office of School Funding, Preschool & Jersey School Report Card, 2002–03; Immigrant and homeless status Kindergarten Early Childhood Program Aid Enrollments, 1999–2004. from the Union City Public Schools, 2003–04.
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Data Sources and Definitions
Figures 2.4 and 2.5 Educational Environment Home. Special education and related services Figure 2.6 Preschool Teachers of Preschoolers with Disabilities are provided at home. SOURCE: Union City Board of Education, Early Childhood Depart- Educational environment is determined by Itinerant services. Students are “pulled ment, 2004–05 the level of inclusion in general education out” of class to receive special education and classrooms. The following are the settings related services for no more than three hours Figure 2.7 Preschool Teacher Educational where preschoolers with disabilities may be a week in a setting other than home. Attainment educated: Separate schools. Buildings without general SOURCE: Union City Board of Education, Early Childhood Depart- General education. An early childhood set- education grades in private schools, educa- ment, 2004–05 ting in a public preschool or Kindergarten, tional services commissions, regional day nonpublic nursery school, day care, or pre- schools, jointure commissions, or special Figure 2.8 Preschool Teacher Certification school with collaborative preschool services. services school districts. This environment, which includes the general Preschool to Grade 3 (P-3). A teaching Residential schools. A separate school in population of students, is regarded as the least credential required for any new preschool which students with disabilities live and for restrictive environment under the Individuals teacher in an Abbott district in either a dis- which the district pays both day and residen- with Disabilities Education Act of 2004. trict program or a community provider set- tial costs. ting. With some exceptions, existing teachers Special education. An early childhood setting must make progress toward attaining the P-3 SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, Office of Special with special education classes in buildings Education Programs, Number of Public Students with Disabilities Ages endorsement by 2005. with general education students. 3–5 by Placement in Districts and Charter Schools, 2003–04. Certification of Eligibility (CE). A provi- General/special education. Special educa- sional credential with lifetime validity issued tion and related services are provided in to individuals who have the completed the both general education and special education required degree, academic study, and ap- settings. plicable test requirements for certification.
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Data Sources and Definitions
A CE permits individuals to seek and accept Figure 2.9 Average Preschool Teacher Years students including the Abbott districts and employment in a preschool program until as a Lead Teacher 102 other districts. Reported are the sum of they complete the additional requirements ECPA funds over the total number of students Average years as a lead teacher. The average for the P-3 certificate. enrolled in any given district grouping. number of years a teacher has been qualified Certification of Eligibility with Advanced to direct the classroom. Preschool Expansion Aid (PSEA). A state aid Standing (CEAS). A provisional credential program for preschool programs in Abbott SOURCE: Union City Board of Education, Early Childhood Depart- with lifetime validity issued to individuals ment, 2004–05. districts to help cover costs associated with who have completed the CE requirements increased enrollment. Reported are the sum plus traditional professional preparation of PSEA funds over the total number of stu- Figure 2.10 Average Preschool Teacher Salary programs. A CEAS permits individuals to dents enrolled in any given district grouping. seek and accept employment in a preschool Average preschool teacher salary. The total SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, Division of Finance, program until they complete the additional of preschool teacher salaries divided by the Office of School Funding, Advertised District Revenues, 2002–03 and requirements for the P-3 certificate. number of preschool teachers in each 2003–04. category. Nursery or Elementary (N-8). Teachers who Figure 2.12 Per Student Preschool Aid have a nursery school or K-8 certificate and SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, Office of Early have two years teaching experience in an early Childhood Education, District and Provider Budgets, 2003–04 and 2004–05; New Jersey Department of Education, UNION CITY Early Per student preschool aid. The total state aid childhood setting are also certified to teach Childhood Plan, 2001–02 & 2002–03. received for early childhood programs divided in a preschool setting through a “grandfather by the actual preschool enrollment. clause” in the regulations. Figure 2.11 Per Student Preschool Aid SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, Division of Finance, SOURCE: Union City Board of Education, Early Childhood Depart- by Source Office of School Funding, Advertised District Revenues, 2002–03 and ment, 2004–05. 2003–04. Early Childhood Program Aid (ECPA). A state aid program for preschool in districts with high concentrations of low-income
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Data Sources and Definitions
Figure 3.9 Kindergarten Average Class Size school day in a general education classroom; 3. K-12 Education 2) 40–79% inclusion: students with dis- Average class size. For the elementary grades, abilities attend general education classrooms average class size is the number of students between 40 and 79 percent of the school day; Figure 3.1 Union City Schools, Grade assigned to regular homerooms over the total and 3) Less than 40% inclusion: students with Structure, and Enrollment number of homerooms. For the high schools, disabilities spend less than 40 percent of the the average is calculated by the number of SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, Fall Survey, 2003–04. school day in a general education classroom. students assigned to an English class divided
by the total number of English classes. SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, Office of Special Figure 3.2 Total Instructional Time Education Programs, Number of Public Students with Disabilities Ages 6–21 by Placement in Districts and Charter Schools, 2003–04. SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, School Report Card, Total instructional time. The amount of time 1994–95 to 2002–03. per day students are engaged in instructional Figure 3.10 Cumulative Percent Change in activities. Figure 3.5 Elementary School Enrollment Kindergarten Enrollment
SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, School Report Card, 2002–03. Figure 3.7 High School Enrollment SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, School Report Card, 1999–00 to 2002–03; New Jersey Department of Education, Fall Survey, 2003–04. Figure 3.3 Average Class Size by Grade SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, School Report Card, 1994–95 to 2002–03. Figure 3.11 Student-Computer Ratio Figure 3.4 Elementary School Average Figure 3.8 Educational Environment of Student-computer ratio. The total number Class Size Students with Disabilities Ages 6 to 21 of students divided by the number of multi- media-capable computers that are accessible Figure 3.6 High School Average Class Size Educational environment. The level of inclusion in general education classrooms: to students for instruction.
1) 80% or more inclusion: students with SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, School Report Card, disabilities spend 80 percent or more of their 1994–95 to 2001–02; 2002–03.
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Figure 3.12 Student-Teacher Ratio Figure 3.15 Highly Qualified Teachers: Teacher tutor. Staff member required in High Schools schools serving students in Grades 1 through Student-teacher ratio. The number of 6 to provide one-to-one or small-group tu- students divided by the combined full-time Highly qualified teachers.The percent of toring to students reading below grade level. equivalents of classroom teachers and sup- teachers that have obtained full State certi- port services staff (e.g. guidance counselors, fication or passed the State teacher licensing Social worker. Required staff member of librarians, etc). examination, and hold a license to teach. New the Family Support Team in schools serving teachers must hold at least a bachelor’s degree students in Kindergarten through Grade 6. SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, School Report Card, and have demonstrated, by passing a State 1994–95 to 2002–03. Attendance/dropout prevention officer. test, subject knowledge and teaching skills Required staff member in schools serving in the core content areas: English, reading or Figure 3.13 Faculty Attendance students in Grades 6 through 12 to assist stu- language arts, mathematics, science, world dents at risk of dropout. Faculty attendance. The average daily at- languages, civics and government, econom- tendance of the faculty (teachers and support ics, arts (music, theatre, and art), history, and Health-social service coordinator. Required services staff) of the school. Attendance is the geography. staff member responsible for the coordina- total number days faculty is present divided tion of and referral of students for health and SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, Highly Qualified by the total number of contracted days ex- Teacher Survey, 2003–04 social services in schools serving students in cluding approved professional days, personal Grades 6 through 12. days, and extended leaves. Figure 3.16 Percent of Schools with Abbott Family liaison (parent-community coordi-
SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, School Report Card, Required Staff Positions nator). Required staff member in all schools 1994–95 to 2002–03. to coordinate family education and encourage Staff member Instructional facilitator. the involvement of parents in the daily school required in schools serving students in Figure 3.14 Highly Qualified Teachers: activities and decision-making. The family Kindergarten through Grade 6 to assist in the Elementary Schools liaison is also a member of the Family Support implementation of Whole School Reform. team.
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Nurse/health specialist. Staff member Security officer. Required staff member in all Average equalized school tax rates. The por- required in all schools as a member of the schools as needed to provide school security tion of local tax revenues used to support pub- Family Support Team. and address student disruptions and violence. lic education expressed as a dollar amount for $100 of equalized, assessed property value. Guidance counselor. Staff member required SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, Office of Fiscal Policy and Planning, DOENET Abbott School-Based Budget Staffing Tables, in all schools as a member of the Family Sup- 2002–03 and 2003–04. SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, Division of port Team. Local Government Services, 1998–2003.
Tech coordinator. Required staff member in Figure 3.17 Average Property Value per Figure 3.20 General Education Funding by all schools to assist in the implementation of Student Source educational technology throughout schools. Figure 3.18 Average Equalized Tax Rate Librarian/media specialist. Required staff Figure 3.21 Per Student General Education member in all schools to ensure that class- Funding rooms and libraries have appropriate Figure 3.19 Average School Tax Rate materials to assist students in mastering the Average property value per student. The Figure 3.22 Per Student Supplemental curriculum. equalized, assessed value of property within a Program Aid by Source district divided by the total resident enrollment. Figure 3.23 Per Student Supplemental Program Aid Average tax rates. The local property taxes levied expressed as a dollar amount for every General education funding. Local and state $100 of equalized, assessed property value. revenues intended for the support of general education. The following revenue sources were used to determine the general education revenue totals: local tax levy, Core Curriculum Standards Aid (CCS), Supplemental CCS,
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stabilization aid, and Abbott parity aid. Abbott Aid is state aid for required programs Figure 3.26 Child and Youth Well-Being (Abbott Parity Aid is known as Educational in Abbott districts in addition to other ap- Indicators Opportunity Aid, or EOA as of 2004–05.) Re- proved programs, such as on-site clinics, that Child death rate. The number of deaths ported are the sum of these revenues. The per the Abbott district must prove are necessary. to children between ages 1 and 14, from all student funding is the sum of these revenues Reported are the sum of these revenues over causes, per 1,000 children in this age range. divided by the total residential enrollment the total residential enrollment in any given any given district grouping. district grouping. Teen death rate. The number of deaths from accidents, homicides, and suicides to teens Total requested budget. The total budget SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, Division of Finance, between ages 15 and 19, per 1,000 teens in amount requested by a district for the upcom- Office of School Funding, Advertised District Revenues, 2002–03 to 2003–04. this age group. ing fiscal year in its initial budget submission to the New Jersey Department of Education. Teen birth rate. The number of births to Figure 3.24 Student Attendance: teenagers between ages 10–14 and 15–19 per Total approved budget. The total budget Elementary Schools 1,000 females in these age groups, respec- amount approved by the New Jersey Depart- tively. ment of Education for a district in the upcom- Figure 3.25 Student Attendance: ing fiscal year. High Schools Child abuse and neglect–substantiated cases. The number of child abuse and/or Supplemental program aid. The state and Student attendance. The percent of students neglect cases for children ages 17 and under federal revenue intended to support health, who are present at school each day on average. per 1,000 children ages 0 to 17 that have been nutrition, and social services in schools. “Ti- Attendance is calculated by dividing the sum verified by the New Jersey Department of Hu- tle I,” is federal funding under the No Child of days present over the sum of all possible man Services, Division of Youth and Family Left Behind Act used to support high-poverty school days for all students. Services. districts and schools. Demonstrably Effective Program Aid (DEPA) is state aid provided to SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, School Report Card, 1994–95 to 2002–03. schools with low-income students. Additional
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SOURCE: Annie E. Casey Foundation, 2004 Kids Count; Associa- NCLB index. The rate of Category B offenses Figure 3.33 New Jersey’s Adequate Yearly tion for Children of New Jersey, Kids Count, 1997–2002; New Jersey Center for Health Statistics: Table N21. Live Births by Age of Mother adjusted for enrollment: (1) simple assaults; Progress Targets for Language Arts Literacy for Selected Municipalities of Residence: New Jersey, 1997–2002; and (2) weapons possession or sales (other than 2000 US Census, Population by Age. a firearm); (3) gang fights; (4) robbery or Figure 3.34 New Jersey’s Adequate Yearly extortion incidents; (5) sex offenses; (6) Progress Targets for Math Figure 3.27 Category A Offenses: terroristic threats; (7) arsons; (8) sales or Adequate yearly progress targets for lan- Elementary Schools distribution of drugs; and (9) harassment and guage arts literacy provide the percent of bullying incidents. Figure 3.28 Category A Offenses: students that should pass the language arts High Schools SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education: Office of Program literacy section of the ASK4, GEPA, and HSPA Support Services, Division of Student Services. Electronic Violence in 2002–03, 2004–05, 2007–08, 2010–11, and Vandalism Reporting System, 1999–2003. Figure 3.29 NCLB (Category B) Index: and 2013–14. By 2013–14, 100% of all stu- Elementary Schools dents should pass the language arts literacy Figure 3.31 Suspension Rate: exam. Elementary Schools Figure 3.30 NCLB (Category B) Index: Adequate yearly progress targets for math High Schools Figure 3.32 Suspension Rate: High Schools provide the percent of students that should Category A offenses. The total number of pass the math section of the ASK4, GEPA, Suspension rate. The percent of students the following types of offenses: (1) firearm and HSPA in 2002–03, 2004–05, 2007–08, who were suspended—in-school or out-of- offenses; (2) aggravated assaults on another 2010–11, and 2013–14. By 2013–14, 100% of school—at least once during the school year. student; (3) assaults with a weapon on another all students should pass the math exam. Students suspended more than one time are student; and (4) assaults on a school district counted once. SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education: Office of Title I Pro- staff member. gram Planning and Accountability, 2004.
SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, School Report Card, 1994–95 to 2001–02; 2002–03.
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Figure 3.35 Categories and Action Steps mental services are still available. In addi- Figure 3.43 Grade 8 Language Arts Literacy for Schools Not Making Adequate Yearly tion, schools must undertake at least one of Average Score Progress a series of corrective actions, including: staff replacement; curriculum adoption; decreased Figure 3.46 Grade 8 Math Average Score Categories and actions steps for schools not school authority; external consultant to advise making adequate yearly progress include: the school; extended school day or year; Figure 3.50 Grade 11 (HSPT) Reading Aver- Early warning. The first year of miss- and/or reorganize school governance. In the age Score ing one or more AYP threshold. No actions fifth year, the school must develop a plan for are required under NCLB, but schools and alternate school governance. Choice, supple- Figure 3.52 Grade 11 (HSPA) Language Arts districts should identify areas that need to be mental services, and other corrective actions Literacy Average Score improved. still required. Figure 3.55 Grade 11 (HSPT) Math School improvement. The second and third Restructuring. The sixth consecutive year of Average Score consecutive year missing AYP threshold. In missing AYP threshold. Schools must imple- the second year, parents are notified and ment alternate school governance developed Figure 3.57 Grade 11 (HSPA) Math Average given the option to transfer their children to in year five. Score a school that made AYP. Schools must iden- SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education: Office of Title I Pro- tify areas needing improvement and work gram Planning and Accountability, 2004. Average scores. The weighted mean scores on with parents, teachers, and outside experts to the Grade 4, 8, and 11 assessment in language develop a plan. In the third year, tutoring and arts literacy and math. School-level results Figure 3.36 Grade 4 Language Arts Literacy other supplemental services must be made are weighted by the number of students taking Average Score available. the test prior to averaging across schools in a district grouping. Corrective action. The fourth and fifth Figure 3.39 Grade 4 Math Average Score
consecutive year missing AYP threshold. In SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment & Evaluation, 1997–98 to 2002–03; New Jersey Department of Educa- the fourth year, school choice and supple- tion, School Report Card, 1999–00 to 2002–03.
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Figure 3.37 Grade 4 Language Arts Literacy on the Grade 4, 8, and 11 language arts literacy Figure 3.38 Grade 4 Language Arts Literacy Proficiency and math exams: partially proficient, profi- Proficiency by Subgroup cient, and advanced proficient. School-level Figure 3.40 Grade 4 Math Proficiency results are weighted by the number of stu- Figure 3.41 Grade 4 Math Proficiency by dents taking the test prior to averaging across Subgroup Figure 3.45 Grade 8 Language Arts Literacy schools in a district grouping. The HSPT had Proficiency a passing threshold of 300 with a range of Figure 3.45 Grade 8 Language Arts Literacy scores from 100 to 500. The following are the Proficiency by Subgroup Figure 3.47 Grade 8 Math Proficiency proficiency cut points for the ESPA/NJASK, GEPA, and HSPA. Figure 3.48 Grade 8 Math Proficiency by Figure 3.51 Grade 11 (HSPT) Reading Partially Advanced Subgroup Proficiency Proficient Proficient Proficient Beginning 100 200 250 Figure 3.54 Grade 11 (HSPA) Language Arts Cut Point Figure 3.53 Grade 11 (HSPA) Language Arts Literacy Proficiency by Subgroup Literacy Proficiency Ending 199 249 300 Cut Point Figure 3.59 Grade 11 (HSPA) Math Proficien-
Figure 3.56 Grade 11 (HSPT) Math SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment cy by Subgroup Proficiency & Evaluation, 1997–98 to 2002–03; New Jersey Department of Educa- tion, School Report Card, 1998–99 to 2002–03. Proficiency by subgroup is the percent of white, Black, Hispanic, economically disad- Figure 3.58 Grade 11 (HSPA) Math vantaged, special education, or limited Eng- Proficiency lish proficiency students that pass the Grade Proficiency. The percent of students falling 4, 8 and 11 language arts literacy and math within the following proficiency thresholds
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exams. Reported are those subgroups with at ties, students with limited English profi- proficient score on the math exam in order to least 20 students taking the exam, except for ciency, migrant students, students eligible meet the 2003–04 AYP standard. students with disabilities, where at least 35 for free/reduced lunch, and white, Black, SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education: Office of Title I Pro- students had to take the test to be included in Hispanic, Asian/Pacific Islander, and Native gram Planning and Accountability, 2004. the analysis. School-level results are weighted American students. By 2013–14, all students by the number of students taking the test in all subgroups must reach the proficiency Figure 3.61 Percent Scoring Above National in each subgroup prior to averaging across level set by the state. Median on TerraNova schools in a district grouping. Grade 4. In 2003–04, 68 percent of Grade 4 SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education: Office of Assessment students had to pass the language arts literacy TerraNova. A standardized test used to as- & Evaluation, 2002–03; New Jersey Department of Education, Fall Survey, 2002–03. exam in order to meet the AYP standard; 53% sess performance in Kindergarten through of Grade 4 students had to make a proficient Grade 2. score on the math exam in order to meet the Figure 3.42 Schools Not Making Adequate 2003–04 AYP standard. SOURCE: Union City Public Schools, 2003. Yearly Progress: Grade 4 Grade 8. In 2003–04, 58 percent of Grade 8 Figure 3.62 Cumulative Promotion Index Figure 3.49 Schools Not Making Adequate students had to pass the language arts literacy Yearly Progress: Grade 8 exam in order to meet the AYP standard; 39% Cumulative promotion index. An estimate of Grade 4 students had to make a proficient that a ninth grader will graduate within four Figure 3.60 Schools Not Making Adequate score on the math exam in order to meet the years. The estimate is calculated by multiply- Yearly Progress: Grade 11 2003–04 AYP standard. ing the grade-to-grade promotion rate over a two-year period by the percent of 12th graders Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP). The mea- Grade 11. In 2003–04, 73 percent of Grade 11 who graduated in the current year. The CPI sure set by each state to assess performance of students had to pass the language arts literacy is calculated through 2001–02 because the all students including students with disabili- exam in order to meet the AYP standard; 55 New Jersey Report Card changed the way it percent of Grade 11 students had to make a
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measured graduation in 2002–03. Figure 3.65 SAT Participation 4. School Facilities Construction
SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, School Report Card, 1994–95 to 2002–03. Figure 3.66 SAT Verbal Average Score Figure 4.1 Union City’s First-Round Facilities Figure 3.67 SAT Math Average Score Figure 3.63 Graduation by Traditional (HSPA/ Plan Overview HSPT) Grade 11 Exam SAT participation. The percent of twelfth The first-round facilities plan was the initial graders taking the Scholastic Aptitude Test plan for a district’s school construction. Figure 3.64 Graduation by Alternative (SRA) (SAT). Grade 11 Exam SOURCE: Education Law Center communications with the New Jersey Schools Construction Corporation, New Jersey Department of Educa- tion and individual districts. Graduation by Traditional (HSPA/HSPT) Average scores are the weighted mean scores Grade 11 Exam. The percent of students on the verbal and math sections of the Scho- graduating from high school by passing the lastic Aptitude Test. School-level results are Figure 4.2 Overview of Union City’s Current Grade 11 exam. weighted by the number of students taking Projects the test prior to averaging across schools in a Graduation by Alternative (SRA) Grade 11 SOURCE: Education Law Center communications with the New Jersey district grouping. Schools Construction Corporation, New Jersey Department of Educa- Exam. The percent of students graduating tion, and individual districts. from high school by taking the Special Review SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, School Report Card, Assessment (SRA). The SRA is the alternative 1994–95 to 2002–03. Figure 4.3 Status of Facilities Projects: Union assessment to the HSPA. City and All Other Abbott Districts
SOURCE: New Jersey Department of Education, School Report Card, 1994–95 to 2002–03. SOURCE: Education Law Center communications with the New Jersey Schools Construction Corporation, New Jersey Department of Educa- tion, and individual districts.
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Abbott Advisory Council. A steering com- this report, Salem City is not included among if the need is demonstrated to the New Jersey mittee composed of district and community the Abbott districts. The Abbott districts are Department of Education (now known as representatives that are responsible for the listed in another Appendix to this report. Discretionary Educational Opportunity Aid). review of district policies and procedures as they relate to Abbott program implementation. Abbott Parity Aid. The per student founda- Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP). The mea- tional funding level for the 31 Abbott districts sure set by each state to assess performance Abbott district. One of New Jersey’s 31 poor that is equal to, or at parity with, the wealthi- of all students including students with dis- urban school districts. Abbott districts: 1) est suburban districts in New Jersey, also abilities, students with limited English pro- receive state aid that ensures that they have known as the I & J districts. Abbott parity aid ficiency, migrant students, students eligible the same per student funding as the wealthi- is now known as Education Opportunity Aid. for free/reduced lunch, and white, Black, est suburbs in the state; 2) offer full-day, Hispanic, Asian/Pacific Islander, and Native Accelerated Schools. A Whole School full-year preschool on-demand to all eli- American students. By 2013–14, all students Reform model that improves learning for gible three-and four-year-olds; 3) imple- in all subgroups must reach the proficiency at-risk K-8 students through acceleration of ment school reforms to ensure that students level set by the state. learn the knowledge and skills required to instruction rather than remediation; by im- master the state’s Core Curriculum Content proving school climate; and through school Alternate Proficiency Assessment (APA). Standards; 4) offer programs and services organizational changes based on a participa- The Individuals with Disabilities Education designed to help low-income children come tory process of decision-making. Act mandates the participation of all students with disabilities in statewide assessments. to school ready to learn; and 5) have 100% Additional Abbott Aid. The per student sup- States must develop and conduct alternate state-financed school facilities construction. plemental funding intended to address the assessments for students who cannot partici- The students of 28 districts were plaintiffs in unique needs of urban students. Programs pate in the general statewide testing pro- the original Abbott v. Burke case decided by such as full-day kindergarten and health gram. As a result, the Alternate Proficiency the New Jersey Supreme Court. The students and social services referral and coordination Assessments are used as the statewide test for of Neptune and Plainfield were added in are required in all Abbott schools, how- students with severe disabilities. 1999; students in Salem City were added in ever schools can receive funding for other 2004. In the analyses that appear throughout programs intended to assist students’ needs
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Alternate route. An alternate certification Brigance Screen. An assessment published seek and accept employment in a preschool process adopted in 1985 that permits quali- by Curriculum Associates, Inc., that screens program while they complete the additional fied individuals lacking education credentials key developmental and early academic skills. requirements for the P-3 certificate. to earn them in the public schools under a Category A offenses. The total number of Child study team (CST). Consists of a school mentoring program and become licensed the following types of offenses: (1) firearm psychologist, a learning disabilities teacher/ teachers. It allows people to enter teaching offenses; (2) aggravated assaults on an- consultant, and school social worker who are after they have worked in other careers. other student; (3) assaults with a weapon on employees of the school district responsible Application for State School Aid (ASSA). another student; and (4) assaults on a school for conducting evaluations to determine The data collection document submitted by district staff member. eligibility for special education and related districts for the purpose of calculating most services for students with disabilities. Certification of Eligibility (CE).A provi- state school aid. sional credential with lifetime validity issued Coalition of Essential Schools. A Whole Assessment of Skills and Knowledge to individuals who have the completed the School Reform model that focuses on rede- (ASK4). The state assessment administered required degree, academic study, and ap- signing instruction in an entire high school in Grade 4 to determine achievement of the plicable test requirements for certification. so that the students acquire thinking skills Core Curriculum Content Standards. Prior to A CE permits individuals to seek and accept that enable them to question and reason. The 2002–03, the test was known as the Elemen- employment in a preschool program while model uses personalized instruction and is tary School Proficiency Assessment (ESPA). they complete the additional requirements based on nine common principles on which for the P-3 certificate. teachers must reach consensus and then Attendance/dropout prevention officer. decide how to apply them to instruction. Required staff member in schools serving Certification of Eligibility with Advanced students in Grades 6 through 12 to assist Standing (CEAS). A provisional credential Comer School Development Program. A students at risk of dropout. with lifetime validity issued to individuals Whole School Reform model that focuses on who have completed the CE requirements bridging the gap between home and school Benchmark. A standard against which per- plus traditional professional preparation by identifying and addressing the underlying formance may be judged. programs. A CEAS permits individuals to problems that students and their families may
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have that interfere with the child’s progress tutional guarantee to a thorough and effi- Core Curriculum Standards Aid (CCSA). in school. It is designed to involve all school cient system of public education through the The amount of state aid that is distributed to staff, community agencies, and parents in establishment of Core Curriculum Content all school districts for general fund expenses solving the problems that have been identi- Standards and efficiency standards. CEIFA to ensure that each district can provide a fied. Comer has three components: a School guarantees a level of funding known as the T & thorough and efficient system of education Planning and Management Team, a Student E (thorough and efficient) amount. The state’s consistent with the CCCS. definition of the T & E amount was found and Staff Support Team, and a Parent In- Corrective action. The fourth and fifth unconstitutional under Abbott. volvement Team. consecutive year missing AYP threshold. In Community for Learning/Adaptive Learn- Core Curriculum Content Standards the fourth year, school choice and supple- ing Environments Model (CFL/ALEM). (CCCS). Standards adopted by the State Board mental services are still available. In addi- A Whole School Reform model that focuses of Education in 1996 to establish expecta- tion, schools must undertake at least one of on high academic achievement and positive tions for students to meet in seven academic a series of corrective actions, including: staff student self-perception. Each school must and five workplace readiness areas. They replacement; curriculum adoption; decreased create its own planning and implementation outline the common expectations for student school authority; external consultant to advise framework that incorporates a school-wide achievement throughout the 13 years of public the school; extended school day or year; organizational structure and a coordinated education in the following subject areas: and/or reorganize school governance. In the system of instruction and related services visual and performing arts, comprehensive fifth year, the school must develop a plan for delivery. This model is designed to break health/physical education, language arts alternate school governance. Choice, supple- down artificial barriers within the school literacy, mathematics, science, social studies, mental services, and other corrective actions and among the many agencies that provide and world languages. The five cross-content still required. areas for workplace readiness encompass ca- services. Creative Curriculum. An early childhood reer planning; use of technology information education curriculum developed by Teaching Comprehensive Educational Improvement and other tools; critical thinking/decision- Strategies that applies child development and and Financing Act (CEIFA). A law passed in making/problem-solving; self-management; learning theories to an education environ- 1996 to establish a definition of the consti- and safety principles.
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ment that focuses planning around indoor Department of Human Services (DHS). A educational attainment of the adults in the and outdoor interest areas. partner with the New Jersey Department of community, employment rates, occupations, Education in implementing the Abbott early population density, and income/poverty. Cumulative promotion index. An estimate childhood education program. DHS is re- There are eight DFGs starting with A which that a ninth grader will graduate within four sponsible for licensing community childcare designates the lowest socio-economic level years used in the absence of reliable gradua- providers and funding wrap-around services and also include B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I, and J. tion rates. in those providers. The DFGs were recalculated in 2004 based Curiosity Corner. An early childhood educa- on 2000 Census information. 1990 DFGs are Discretionary Education Opportunity Aid tion curriculum developed by the Success For used throughout this report. (DEOA). The per student supplemental fund- All Foundation that fosters cognitive, linguis- ing intended to address the unique needs of Early Childhood Education Advisory tic, social, physical, and emotional develop- urban students. Programs such as full-day Council (ECEAC). Community stakeholders ment of three-and four-year-olds. kindergarten and health and social services who are responsible for the review the school Demonstrably Effective Program Aid referral and coordination are required in all district’s progress towards full implementa- (DEPA). State aid that is allocated to schools Abbott schools, however schools can receive tion of high-quality preschool programs in with low-income pupils to provide effective funding for other programs intended to assist addition to participating in program plan- programs that have been shown to enhance students’ needs if the need is demonstrated ning, budget development, and early child- the teaching/learning process, improve to the New Jersey Department of Education hood facilities planning. school governance, and provide students with (formerly known as Additional Abbott v. Early Childhood Education Program Expec- collaborative learning environments and Burke Aid). tations: Standards of Quality. A document health and social service programs. District factor grouping (DFG). A system containing guidelines for creating devel- Demonstration Project. A school facilities used by the New Jersey Department of Educa- opmentally appropriate preschool learning project selected by the State Treasurer for tion to rank local school districts according environments that promote early literacy and construction by a redevelopment agency. to socio-economic status. DFGs are based other important goals. The guidelines sup- on information available from the Census: port and prepare young children to meet New
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Jersey’s Core Curriculum Content Standards districts should identify areas that need to be students enrolled in the previous year in Kin- (CCCS) when they enter Kindergarten. improved. dergarten and Grade 1 in a school district’s public, charter, and nonpublic schools. Early Childhood Environment Rating Education Opportunity Aid (EOA). The per Scale-Revised (ECERS-R). A program student foundational funding level for the 31 English as a Second Language (ESL). Pro- quality assessment used in early childhood Abbott districts that is equal to, or at par- grams in K-12 education that require a daily settings. ity with, the wealthiest suburban districts in developmental second language program New Jersey, also known as the I & J districts. of up to two periods of instruction based on Early Childhood Program Aid (ECPA). A Abbott parity aid is now known as Education student needs. The programs offer listening state aid program for preschool and support Opportunity Aid. comprehension, speaking, reading and writ- services in districts with high concentrations ing in English using second-language teach- of low-income students including the Abbott Educational Facilities Construction and ing techniques. The teachers also incorporate districts and 102 other districts. Previously, Financing Act (EFCFA). Passed in July 2000 the cultural aspects of the students’ experi- ECPA funds used to support the “second half- to initiate the state’s school construction ences into their ESL instruction. day” of Kindergarten, required under Abbott. program. Now, it is funded through Discretionary English language learner (ELL). Students Elementary School Proficiency Assessment Educational Opportunity Aid. whose native language is other than English (ESPA). The former state assessment admin- and who have difficulty speaking, reading, Early Language Assessment System (ELAS). istered in Grade 4 to determine achievement writing or understanding the English lan- Assessment of preschool students intended to of the Core Curriculum Content Standards. guage as measured by an English language help preschool teachers tailor instruction to Updated in 2002–03 and now known as the proficiency test. ELL students, also known as meet children’s needs. ASK4. Limited English Proficient students (LEP), Early warning. The first year of missing Eligible preschool population. The number require bilingual or English as a Second Lan- one or more AYP threshold(s). No actions of eligible three-and four-year olds for pre- guage (ESL) programs to learn successfully in are required under NCLB, but schools and school estimated by the New Jersey Depart- classrooms where the language of instruction ment of Education by doubling the number of is English.
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Enhanced Head Start. The program under These standards determine the extent to Family liaison (parent-community coordi- which existing Head Start seats are upgraded which a district’s construction project nator). Required staff member in all schools to meet Abbott standards funded with both qualifies for state aid. They were intended to coordinate family education and encourage state and federal money. to represent the standard of instructional the involvement of parents in the daily school and administrative spaces to be consid- activities and decision-making. The family Equalized. An adjustment made to property ered educationally adequate to support the liaison is also a member of the Family Support values by the New Jersey Department of Trea- achievement of the Core Curriculum Content team. sury to enable comparisons across municipal- Standards. ities regardless of the year in which the most Family worker. A position required in every current property assessment was made. Facilities Management Plan (FMP). The Abbott early childhood education program in original term used to describe the Long- a community provider setting. There must be Expanded Head Start. The program serving Range Facilities Plan (LRFP). The FMP is one family worker for every 40 children and children in Abbott districts that were not pre- a plan developed by a district for repairing their families being served by the center. The viously enrolled in Federal Head Start, funded physical infrastructure deficiencies, educa- family worker works with the center and the entirely with state money. tional adequacy deficiencies, and capacity parents to ensure that the parents and their Facilities Advisory Board (FAB). An advisory deficits of the district’s school buildings. All children obtain necessary health and social board composed of parents, teachers, princi- Abbott districts were required to develop services. pals, community representatives, an archi- comprehensive five-year facilities manage- Feasibility study. A pre-construction evalu- tect, an engineer, and a staff person from the ment plans. ation undertaken by a district to determine New Jersey Department of Education. The Fall Survey. A report prepared by each dis- if—because of health and safety or efficien- board was designed to guide the development trict on a form provided by the Commissioner cy—it would be more feasible to replace or of the Long Range Facilities Plan. providing enrollment counts and selected renovate a school facility. Facilities Efficiency Standards (FES). demographic characteristics of the student Full-day/full-year. Under Abbott, preschool Developed by the Commissioner of Education enrollment. programs must be made available for ten hours for elementary, middle, and high schools. a day, 245 days a year. For a minimum of 180
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school calendar days, a program must include Guidance counselor. Staff member required High/Scope. An early childhood education at least a six-hour educational component in all schools as a member of the Family Sup- curriculum developed by the High/Scope meeting Department of Education require- port Team. Educational Research Foundation that ments and a four-hour wrap-around services encourages children to make choices about Health-social service coordinator. Required component meeting Department of Human materials and activities throughout the day. staff member responsible for the coordina- Services (DHS) licensing requirements. The As they pursue their choices and plans, tion of and referral of students for health and remaining 65 days must meet DHS require- children explore, ask and answer questions, social services in schools serving students in ments for the ten hours of service. solve problems, and interact with classmates Grades 6 through 12. and adults, engaging in activities that foster General education funding. Local and state High School Proficiency Assessment developmentally important skills and revenues intended for the support of general (HSPA). The Grade 11 test that replaced the abilities. education. The following revenue sources HSPT in 2001–02 used to determine student were used to determine the general education Highest educational attainment. The per- achievement of the knowledge and skills revenue totals: local tax levy, Core Curriculum cent of adults ages 25 and over by the highest specified by all areas of the Core Curriculum Standards Aid (CCSA), Supplemental CCSA, level of school completed. Content Standards and Workplace Readiness Stabilization Aid, and Abbott Parity Aid. Standards. Passing all sections of the HSPA Highly qualified teachers (HQT).The (Abbott Parity Aid is known as Educational or the Special Review Assessment (SRA) is percent of teachers that have obtained full Opportunity Aid, or EOA as of 2004–05.) a requirement for receiving a high school State certification or passed the State teacher Grade Eight Proficiency Assessment diploma. licensing examination, and hold a license (GEPA). The Grade 8 test that replaced the to teach. New teachers must hold at least a High School Proficiency Test (HSPT). The Early Warning Test in 1999. The GEPA is in- bachelor’s degree and have demonstrated, Grade 11 test formerly administered in the tended to provide information about student by passing a State test, subject knowledge fall of the junior year, consisting of three progress toward mastery of the skills specified and teaching skills in the core content areas: sections: reading, mathematics, and writ- by the Core Curriculum Content Standards. English, reading or language arts, mathemat- ing. The HSPT was replaced by the HSPA in ics, science, world languages, civics and 2001–02.
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government, economics, arts (music, theatre, Kindergarten through Grade 6 to assist in the Local tax levy. The amount of funding that a and art), history, and geography. implementation of Whole School Reform. local school district can raise based on prop- erty wealth and income levels. The local tax In-district preschool. A preschool program Intervention and referral services (I&RS). share of educational costs is used to deter- housed in school district buildings. A team case management strategy for identi- mine the amount of Core Curriculum Stan- fying and helping students at risk for behav- Individualized Education Program (IEP). dards Aid that a district will receive, if any. ioral problems. A written plan developed at a meeting that Long Range Facilities Plan (LRFP). The includes appropriate school staff and parents Least restrictive environment. The standard name now used to describe the Facilities or guardians. It determines the special educa- that, to the maximum extent appropriate, Management Plans (FMP). It is a plan devel- tion program for a student with disabilities children with disabilities should be educated oped by a district to outline repairs to physical through individually designed instructional with children who do not have disabilities. It infrastructure deficiencies, educational ade- activities constructed to meet goals and means that special classes, separate school- quacy deficiencies, and capacity deficits of the objectives established for the student. It es- ing, or other removal of children with disabil- district’s school buildings. All Abbott districts tablishes the rationale for the students’ place- ities from the regular educational environ- were required to develop comprehensive five- ment, which should be in the “least restrictive ment should occur only when the severity of year facilities management plans. environment.” the disability is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and Master teacher. A position required in every Individuals with Disabilities Education services cannot be adequately provided in a Abbott early childhood education program. Act (IDEA). The federal statute that man- general education environment. There must be one master teacher for every 20 dates a free, appropriate public education for early childhood education classrooms to co- students with disabilities. In New Jersey, that Librarian/media specialist. Required staff ordinate early childhood education programs includes students ages three to twenty one. member in all schools to ensure that class- and assist in the provision of early childhood rooms and libraries have appropriate materi- Instructional facilitator. Staff member education professional development. The als to assist students in mastering the required in schools serving students in official position title for master preschool curriculum. teachers in districts with collective bargaining
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agreements with a local affiliate of the New of programs for children from birth through Nurse/health specialist. Staff member Jersey Education Association is “education Grade 3. required in all schools as a member of the program specialist.” Family Support Team. NCLB index. The rate of Category B offenses Modern Red Schoolhouse. A Whole School adjusted for enrollment: (1) simple assaults; Nursery or elementary certification (N-8). Reform Model that strives to help all students (2) weapons possession or sales (other than Teachers who have a nursery school or K-8 master subject matter through the construc- a firearm); (3) gang fights; (4) robbery or certificate and two years teaching experience tion of a standards-driven curriculum, flex- extortion incidents; (5) sex offenses; (6) in an early childhood setting are certified to ibility in organizing instruction and deploying terroristic threats; (7) arsons; (8) sales or teach in a preschool setting. resources, and the use of advanced technology distribution of drugs; and (9) harassment and Other private providers. Preschool programs in learning and management. bullying incidents. run by private organizations (other than Head National Assessment of Educational New Jersey School Report Card. Prepared Start) under contract to the school district. Progress. An effort by the U.S. Department and disseminated annually to parents and Parents as Teachers (PAT). Program run by of Education National Center for Education other interested taxpayers within each local the Department of Human Services aimed Statistics to measure educational achievement school district. It also is accessible on the at supporting the development of preschool of American students in reading, math, and NJDOE Web site. The report card for each students by giving parents information on science and the changes in that achievement school building in the state contains informa- topics such as child development and growth, over time. The program also provides scores tion about student enrollment, test scores, literacy, and positive discipline. for subpopulations defined by demographic attendance, and graduation rates, as well as characteristics and by specific background information about teaching and administra- Persistently dangerous schools. The No characteristics and experiences. tive staff. Child Left Behind Act specifies a standard of safety beyond which schools are defined as National Association for the Education of No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). The “persistently dangerous.” Under the “Un- Young Children (NAEYC). A professional 2001 reauthorization of the federal program, safe School Choice Option,” the law provides organization for early childhood educators Elementary and Secondary Education Act that families of children who are victims of and others dedicated to improving the quality (ESEA).
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violence or who go to a persistently dangerous Preschool Mathematics Inventory (PCMI). ment alternate school governance developed school may choose to send their child to an- Assessment of the materials and teach- in year five. other public school in the district or a charter ing strategies used to support and enhance School-Based Youth Services Program. A school in the same city. A school is called children’s math skills. program of student prevention, intervention, persistently dangerous if it meets either one Preschool through Grade 3 certification and treatment services funded by the New of the two following conditions for three con- (P-3). A teaching credential required for any Jersey Department of Human Services. secutive years: 1) Seven or more of the follow- new preschool teacher in an Abbott district in ing types of serious incidents, known as Cat- School improvement. The second and third either a district program or a community pro- egory A offenses: firearm offenses; aggravated consecutive year missing AYP threshold. In vider setting. With some exceptions, existing assaults on another student; assaults with a the second year, parents are notified and teachers must make progress toward attaining weapon on another student; and assaults on given the option to transfer their children to the P-3 endorsement by 2004. a school district staff member. 2) An index a school that made AYP. Schools must iden- rating of 1 or more (calculated by a ratio of the Proficiency. The percent of students passing tify areas needing improvement and work sum of the following incidents over the square a state administered exam aimed at measur- with parents, teachers, and outside experts to root of the enrollment): simple assault; weap- ing a student’s mastery of the Core Curricu- develop a plan. In the third year, tutoring and ons possession or sales (other than a firearm; lum Content Standards. other supplemental services must be made gang fight; robbery or extortion; sex offense; available. Resident enrollment. The number of stu- terroristic threat; arson; sales or distribution dents other than preschoolers, postgraduate School Leadership Councils (SLC). A of drugs; and harassment and bullying. pupils, or postsecondary vocational pupils, volunteer group composed of the principal, Preschool Expansion Aid (PSEA). A state aid who, on the last school day prior to October teachers, non-instructional staff, parents, program for preschool programs in Abbott 16 of the current year, are residents of the community representatives, and the Whole districts to help cover costs associated with district. School Reform facilitator that represents increased enrollment. school staff and the neighborhood; their pri- Restructuring. The sixth consecutive year of mary purpose is to help improve teaching and missing AYP threshold. Schools must imple- learning by participating in program planning
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Glossary
and decision-making and encouraging broad that are familiar and related to their experi- Students with disabilities. The percent of participation by school staff and neighbor- ences. The SRA content is linked to the HSPT/ students with an individualized education hood stakeholders. HSPA test specifications. This is necessary in program (IEP), regardless of placement and order to ensure that students who are certified program involvement. An IEP contains spe- Schools Construction Corporation (SCC). through the SRA have demonstrated the same cial instructional activities to meet the goals State agency created under former Governor skills and competencies at comparable levels and objectives of the student. McGreevey to oversee the completion of the as students who pass the written test. Long Range Facilities Plan. Success for All/Roots and Wings. Under Standardized test. An assessment that is ad- Abbott, the presumptive Whole School Re- Security officer. Required staff member in all ministered and scored in exactly the same way form Model for elementary schools. Success schools as needed to provide school security for all students. Traditional standardized tests for All is a reading program that helps stu- and address student disruptions and violence. are typically mass-produced and machine- dents read on grade level by third grade. The Self-Assessment Validation System (SAVS). scored; they are designed to measure skills model focuses on reading and language arts Self-evaluation created by the Office of and knowledge that are thought to be taught and includes a family support team. Roots & Early Childhood Education at the New Jersey to all students in a fairly standardized way. Wings expands Success for All in other major Department of Education; the evaluation is Performance assessments also can be stan- subject areas, such as math, social studies, intended for use in planning the district’s dardized if they are administered and scored and science. programs. in the same way for all students. Supplemental Core Curriculum Standards Social worker. Required staff member of Student mobility. The percent of students Aid (SCCS). The state aid for low-income the Family Support Team in schools serving who entered or left school during the school districts that supplements CCSA to lessen the students in Kindergarten through Grade 6. year. Districts may or may not report a single impact on the local tax rate. child who leaves and enters school multiple Special Review Assessment (SRA). An alter- Supplemental program aid. The state and times throughout the school year as multiple native assessment that provides students with federal revenue intended to support health, incidents. the opportunity to exhibit their understand- nutrition, and social services in schools. “Ti- ing and mastery of the HSPA skills in contexts tle I,” is federal funding under the No Child
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Left Behind Act used to support high-poverty Technology coordinator. Required staff Wrap-around services. Services required in districts and schools. Demonstrably Effective member in all schools to assist in the imple- Abbott early childhood education programs. Program Aid (DEPA) is state aid provided to mentation of educational technology through- They consist of activities held during the four schools with low-income students. Additional out schools. hours before and/or after the required six- Abbott Aid is state aid for required programs hour educational component during the ten- TerraNova. A standardized test used to as- in Abbott districts in addition to other ap- hour full-day program. They also are provided sess performance in Kindergarten through proved programs, such as on-site clinics, that through the summer program. Grade 2. the Abbott district must prove are necessary. Zero-based budgeting. A type of budgeting (As of 2004, Additional Abbott Aid is known Thorough and Efficient (T&E).Refers to procedure that analyzes and justifies costs as Discretionary Education Opportunity Aid New Jersey’s constitutional provision that all from a base of zero, rather than the previ- or DEOA). children have a right to a “thorough and ef- ous year’s balance, in order to improve fiscal ficient system of free public schools.” Supports for Early Literacy Assessment efficiency. (SELA). Assessment of the classroom prac- Whole School Reform (WSR). A complete tices used to support children’s early language restructuring of an entire school, putting in and literacy skills. place a series of programs and strategies that have been proven by research to be effective. Teacher tutor. Staff member required in To succeed, this restructuring requires the schools serving students in Grades 1 through support and participation of those who must 6 to provide one-to-one or small-group tu- carry it out, including principals, teachers, toring to students reading below grade level. support staff, parents, and community mem- bers. The WSR initiative is systemic in nature, unlike previous generations of reforms that were incremental and piecemeal.
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Acknowledgements
The Abbott Indicators Reports were created Foundation Support Irene Sterling, Paterson Education Fund through the efforts of a great many contribu- The Abbott Indicators Project is funded by Marla Ucelli, Annenberg Institute for School tors. We list those contributors below, with The Rockefeller Foundation, The Geraldine Reform Kathy Weaver, Newark Alliance apologies to the inevitable few whom we R. Dodge Foundation, The Prudential Foun- Junius Williams, Abbott Leadership Institute inadvertently left out. dation, The William Penn Foundation, The This report was written by Erain Apple- Victoria Foundation, and The Fund for New white-Coney, Psy.D, and Lesley Hirsch, Co- Jersey. School District Information, Interviews, Directors of the Abbott Indicators Project at and Access the Education Law Center. Letitia Logan of the Statewide Project Steering Committee We wish to extend special thanks to the many Education Law Center also made significant W. Steven Barnett, Ph.D., National Institute for individuals at the Union City Board of Educa- contributions to the writing. Early Education Research tion without whose assistance and support Jose Delgado Erain Applewhite-Coney, Psy.D. conduct- this report would not have come together. Bari A. Erlichson, Ph.D. ed the Union City interviews. Lesley Hirsch Individuals who provided access to critical Margaret Goertz, Ph.D., Consortium for Policy and Letitia Logan collected and analyzed the Research in Education information were: data with guidance and assistance from Judith Rosie Grant, Paterson Education Fund Adriana Birne, Principal, Early Childhood Program Pollack and Michael Weiss, of Educational Edward Greene, Ph.D., E. M. Greene Associates Frank DeRiso, Supervisor, Data Testing Services, Inc. Herbert Green, Director, Public Education Institute Martha O’Connell, Elementary Supervisor, Office of Academic Programs Daniel Gutmore, Ph.D., Seton Hall College of Edu- cation and Human Services Gary Ramella, Director, Information Services Design Jerome Harris, CAMConnect Stanley Sanger, Superintendent The Abbott Indicator Reports were Cynthia Esposito Lamy, Ed.D., National Institute Dina Scacchetti, Supervisor, Data (retired) designed and produced by Kinetik, Inc. of for Early Education Research Washington, DC. Prakash Nair, REFP, Fielding-Nair International, Our appreciation also goes to the following Great Schools New Jersey individuals who were generous with their Michael Nettles, Ph.D., Educational Testing Service time and information in granting interviews Cynthia Savo, Cynergy Associates LLC to project staff: Willa Spicer, New Jersey Performance Assessment Frank Acinapura, Director, Facilities Planning Alliance
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Acknowledgements
Adriana Birne, Principal, Early Childhood Program State Data Sources Title I Program Planning and Accountability: Gerald Caputo, Assistant Superintendent, We must express our appreciation for the John R. Ingersoll, Ph.D. Human Resources patient support and cooperation of the many Program Support Services: Thomas Collins, Ph.D. Anthony Dragona, Business Administrator Deputy Commissioner individuals who supplied a lion’s share of the Martha O’Connell, Abbott Advisory Council Chair Public Information: Barbara Molnar, Faith Sarafin, information presented in this report. Thanks Stanley Sanger, Superintendent and Quansheng Shen go to Dennis Smeltzer of the Commission on Catalina Tamargo, Early Childhood Supervisor Business Efficiency in the Public Schools; Report Reviewers We also wish to thank the principals, vice- Nancy Parello and Cecilia Traini of the As- Finally, several individuals have reviewed sociation for Children of New Jersey. principals, and SLC members of the following and given input to this Indicators Report. The Special appreciation goes to the following schools who provided access to their schools report were reviewed internally by Education individuals at the New Jersey Department of and spoke with us about their ongoing school Law Center’s subject-matter experts, Ellen Education: reform efforts: Boylan, Ruth Lowenkron, and Joan Ponessa; Columbus Middle School: Geraldine Perez Division of Abbott Implementation project advisory committee members Cynthia Emerson High School: Robert Fazio and Lisette Program Planning and Design: Annette Lamy, Ed.D., Bari Erlichson, Ph.D., Margaret Gonzalez-Perez Castiglione, Marlene Lebak, Peter Noehrenberg Robert Waters School: Bruce Naszimento, Early Childhood Education: Karin Garver Goertz, Ph.D., Cynthia Savo; and our col- John Bennetti and Frances Mina Fiscal Review and Improvement: Glenn league at the Rockefeller Foundation, Fred Union Hill High School: David Wilcomes and Forney and Pete Genovese Frelow. These reviewers all gave us insightful Carol Maniscalco Division of Finance and valuable advice. Education Law Center Veterans’ Memorial School: Lois Corrigan and School Funding: Alan Dupree and Garry Everson Carol Lacey Executive Director, David Sciarra, and As- Division of Educational Programs and sistant Managing Director, Theresa Luhm Assessment tirelessly reviewed all of the reports and gave Evaluation and Assessment: Timothy Peters their support throughout their development. Division of Student Services Special Education: Stacey Pellegrino and Andrew Samson
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Acknowledgements
At each pilot site, we provided district The comprehensiveness and usefulness of staff with the draft report for review and as- this report are testaments to the many contri- sembled an all-volunteer community review butions listed here. Any errors or omissions team. All reviewers were invited to recom- are, of course, the full responsibility of the mend changes. We incorporated some of their primary authors. changes, and invited reviewers to include a list of other changes as an Appendix to the report. In Union City, the community-based review team members were as follows: Frank Cocuzza, New Jersey Education Association Robert Dorsett, New Jersey Education Association Roxanne Dworak, Miftaahul Uloom Learning Center Jo Ann Juncker, Ed.D., New Jersey City University Marciano Rodriguez, Parent Michael Shababb, North Hudson Community Action Corporation
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About the Education Law Center
The Education Law Center (ELC) was estab- The remedies ordered by the Court include ELC also operates the Student Rights lished in 1973 to advocate on behalf of New standards-based education and reform sup- Project (SRP) to protect the educational Jersey’s public school children for access to ported by foundational funding equal to New rights of all students, focusing on students an equal and adequate education under state Jersey’s most affluent suburbs; supplemental with disabilities. SRP is the only non-profit, and federal laws. ELC works to improve edu- funding for programs that address the social legal assistance program in New Jersey that cational opportunities for low-income stu- and health needs of students, whole school specializes in education law and provides dents and students with disabilities through reform; school based management; high free legal representation to income-eligible public education, policy initiatives, research, quality preschool for all three and four year parents, guardians and caregivers of students communications and, when necessary, olds; and safe and educationally adequate in disputes involving K-12 public education. legal action. school facilities. ELC’s successes in Abbott Because demand for SRP’s services far ex- ELC serves as counsel to the plaintiffs have resulted in an additional $800 million ceeds attorney resources, SRP gives priority in the Abbott v. Burke case—more than in foundational state aid each year for the to low-income students who attend school in 300,000 preschool and school-age children Abbott districts and schools, $300 million poor urban or rural districts. in 31 urban school districts throughout New in preschool aid, and $6 billion in school Jersey. Through the Abbott decisions, the construction funds. The New York Times New Jersey Supreme Court has established an editorialized that Abbott represents “the unprecedented legal framework of remedial most important equal education ruling since measures to assure the rights of urban public Brown v. Board of Education” (April 30, school children to an adequate education. 2002).
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About the Authors
Erain Applewhite-Coney is co-director of She also served on the local evaluation team for tion. From 1989 to 1998, at the Academy for the Abbott Indicators Project at the Education Bridgeport Safe Start, a citywide initiative with Educational Development and Metis Associ- Law Center (ELC) in Newark, New Jersey. As a the goal of reducing the incidence and impact of ates, Ms. Hirsch served as analyst and associate licensed psychologist and certified school psy- exposure to violence in the home for children director on numerous research and evaluation chologist, Dr. Applewhite-Coney has worked birth to six. Dr. Applewhite-Coney received her projects, and helped schools and community- in various capacities within schools, including B.A. in Psychology and Spanish from New York based organizations to use findings to improve counseling, teacher and parent consultation, University, and a Psy.D. in School Psychology programs and policies. Ms. Hirsch taught assessment, and work in the implementation from Rutgers University. theories of the policy process and New York City of prevention programs. In addition, she has Lesley Hirsch, co-director of the Abbott politics at the City College of New York, where provided consultation to school faculty and ad- Indicators Project, has 15 years experience she was also the campus coordinator of the ministration to assist them with the process of working in technical, advisory, and manage- Rogowsky Internship Program in Government accreditation and strategic action planning. Dr. ment capacities on research, evaluation, and and Public Affairs. She has completed pre-dis- Applewhite-Coney also has experience con- technical assistance projects related to edu- sertation doctoral requirements in political ducting therapy with children and adolescents cation and other human services, and urban science at the CUNY Graduate Center. in hospital and community-based settings. development. Before joining ELC, she con- Please direct any questions about this report Prior to coming to ELC, Dr. Applewhite- ducted “communities of interest” analyses for or the Abbott Indicators Project to: Coney was a postdoctoral fellow at The Con- the New York City Districting Commission and sultation Center of Yale University School of research on the political participation of subsi- Lesley Hirsch or Medicine. There, she worked as part of the local dized housing residents at the CUNY Center for Erain Applewhite-Coney, Psy.D. evaluation team conducting an assessment of Urban Research. She was the project director Education Law Center school needs for the Partnership for Kids Proj- of the New Jersey Safe and Drug-Free Schools 60 Park Place, Suite 300 ect, an initiative funded by the Substance Abuse Data Project at the Violence Institute of New Newark, NJ 07102 and Mental Health Services Administration to Jersey, helping school districts and community 973–624–1815 introduce a behavioral system of care for stu- partners to assess their needs and establish an email: [email protected] or dents and families in Bridgeport, CT schools. effective program of drug and violence preven- [email protected]
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Education Law Center
6 0 park place suite 30 0 newark , ne w jerse y 07102