Sunday Leftovers

Trenton Superintendent Francisco Duran confronts years of stagnation in student achievement in this Abbott district:

For students from third to eighth grades,, achievement has remained stagnant over the last five years. Last school year, the district had 26.9 percent of third graders ranked as proficient or above in language arts. That proficiency stayed in the low 20 percent range for grades four through seven. In eighth grade, 42.2 percent were ranked as proficient or higher in language arts and literacy.
Math scores hovered between 44 and 32 percent proficient in the 2013-2014 school year for grades three through six. For grades seven and eight, scores sank to 20 and 25 percent, respectively.” (Star-Ledger)

This year, according to Frank Belluscio, Executive Director of N.J. School Boards Association, 514 communities are holding their school board elections in November, up from 501 last year and 468 in 2012, when districts were first given the option to move to the fall.

Press of Atlantic City: “Acting state Education Commissioner David Hespe told school board members from across the state Tuesday [at the NJSBA annual convention] that 90 percent of New Jersey districts are ready for the new computer-based state tests in 2015.'And I believe we will get the last 10 percent,' he told attendees at the annual New Jersey School Boards Conference at the Atlantic City Convention Center, asking them to have the courage to see the process through."

N.J. School Boards Association released a report, “What Makes Schools Safe,”during this week’s school boards convention in Atlantic City. Short answer: more money. N.J. Spotlight has all the deets, as well as a link to the report itself.

The Star-Ledger looks at the impact of PARCC tests on guidance counselors.

The Record: “Parents [in Paramus] who have struggled for years to get adequate educational programs and services for their special-needs children poured out their concerns and hopes at a public meeting Monday night.”

The Asbury Press Editorial Board’s comment on Assemblywoman Donna Simon’s proposal to look at consolidating districts: been there, done that. So let’s do it already.

Quotes of the Week: Julia Sass Rubin, founder of Save Our Schools-NJ, on why families relegated to low-achieving school districts "are less able to focus on the best place to educate their children":

“People in abject poverty don’t have the bandwidth to even evaluate charter schools,” she said. “It’s just not going to be high on their list.”

And, now, the response from Chrystal Williams, a mother of five in Newark:

"Who is Julia Sass Rubin and what does she have against my kids?"