NJ Education Report

From the new report, “Measuring Up to the Model: A Tool for Comparing State Charter School Laws”:

In the category “Adequate Access to Capital Funding and Facilities,”

New Jersey law allows for substantial funding disparities by some charter schools relative to regular district schools caused by the exclusion of charter schools from state adjustment aid payments. Under New Jersey law, local districts must pass along funding to charter schools in 12 equal installments starting on July 15th and thereafter on the 15th of each month and must make certain additional aid payments in 20 equal installments. The law requires local school boards to provide transportation or aid in lieu of transportation for K-12 students attending charter schools. In a recent national study of charter school funding (Charter School Funding: Inequity Persists, 2010), New Jersey charter schools were receiving on average $12,908 per pupil, while traditional public schools would have received $19,782 for those students. As a result, the state’s charter schools were receiving $6,874 per pupil – or 34.7% – less than what the traditional public schools would have received for those students. This figure includes all sources of funding, and analysis reveals significant inequities for both operational and capital funding (see component #19 for information on capital issues). (1 point out of 9)

But for the category “Clear Student Recruitment, Enrollment, and Lottery Procedures,“

New Jersey law provides that charter schools must provide open enrollment to any student in the state.New Jersey law requires that a lottery be held if applications exceed available seats. The law provides a mandatory preference for students from the local district and returning students enrolled in the previous school year. The law provides an optional preference for siblings of enrolled students. Under New Jersey law, admissions policies of New Jersey charter schools must, to the maximum extent practicable, seek enrollment of a cross section of the community’s school age population, including racial and academic factors. (2 points out of 4)