NJ Education Report

from Shavar Jeffries, Newark mayoral hopeful:

“38 murders in the South Ward this year and now you want a promotion? Really?”

PolitickerNJ explains that the post was “a targeted attack on South Ward Councilman Ras Baraka,” Jeffries primary contender in the Newark mayor race. Baraka currently serves as South Ward Councilman and in his spare time is principal of Central High School. This works because the 2010 Newark principals’ contract requires only a 29 hour work week. Central High certainly isn’t Newark’s worst traditional high school but it has a ways to go: according to the NJ DOE’s Performance Report, not a single student achieved a 1550 on the SAT’s, a benchmark for college preparation and success.

 In other Newark school politics, Baraka, who controls several members of the Newark School Board, was responsible for the Board’s resolution last year to oppose all education reform.

Baraka responded on FaceBook with a lengthy explanation of his platform to cut Newark’s crime rate, also available at PolitickerNJ.