NJ Education Report

Wally Edge over at PolitickerNJ wonders whether the state law requiring every school board in N.J. to pay dues to NJSBA represents one of those unfunded mandates that Chris Christie has promised to put on the chopping block. Those dues total $7.3 million; Edge points out that NJSBA has about $11 million “in unrestricted cash and in certificates of deposits.”

His suggestion prompted a sharp defense in the comments section from Frank Belluscio, NJSBA Director of Communications, who reels off the benefits of NJSBA membership, including energy-buying cooperatives and board member training. That $11 million? Just capital reserve to renovate NJSBA’s Trenton headquarters.

Still, it’s a fair question. With Nutley School District in the news today because it’s contemplating charging parents for costs associated with holding kids after school for detention, local districts are desperate for every penny. Annual NJSBA dues vary depending on the size of the district, but it’s a fair chunk of change. And NJSBA reaps the rewards of our fractured and multitudinous infrastructure. Think about it: with a state population of about 8.6 million and over 4,000 school board members, we have a school board member for every 2,150 people. That’s good for NJSBA’s coffers, and not so good for good governance and fiscal efficiencies of scale.