SDA DISTRICTS LACK FACILITIES CAPACITY TO MEET STUDENT NEEDS
A school facilities needs assessment completed by the NJ Department of Education (DOE), found that two-thirds of SDA or “former Abbott” districts do not have adequate space to meet student needs. Although the report was completed in May 2016, it was not released until October 2017, despite repeated requests from Education Law Center (ELC).
The report, “Educational Facilities Needs Assessment and Prioritization of School Facilities Projects for SDA Districts,” (EFNA) analyzes critical space deficiencies in terms of capacity and compliance with Facilities Efficiency Standards (FES), which represent the instructional and administrative spaces that are educationally necessary to support student achievement of NJ curriculum standards. Compliance with the FES standards indicates whether a building has appropriate specialized classrooms, such as art and music rooms. When enrollments grow, districts often sacrifice specialized classrooms to meet capacity needs, which can result in educational adequacy deficiencies.
For each SDA district, enrollment trends, building capacity and square feet per student were assessed by FES grade group (Pre-K, K-5, 6-8, 9-12).
Some of the specific findings in the report include:
- 22 of the 31 SDA districts have deficient capacity and/or provide less square feet per student than prescribed in the FES for one or more grade groups;
- 19 districts were found to have inadequate capacity based on existing enrollments in a total of 33 grade groups;
- Elizabeth and Passaic have among the worst capacity and square footage deficiencies in all grade groups;
- Paterson and Union City have among the worst capacity and square footage deficiencies in two grade groups.
The DOE is required to conduct this analysis every five years under the Educational Facilities Construction and Financing Act, which established New Jersey’s current school construction program. The purpose is to assess major construction projects across all 31 SDA districts based on educational need.
Now that the needs assessment has been completed after years of delay, the law requires the SDA and the DOE, working in conjunction with the SDA districts, to develop a statewide strategic plan establishing the sequencing of school facilities projects based on both the priority rankings in the needs assessment and construction considerations identified by the SDA. This plan then serves as the basis for determining the order in which projects move forward in the construction process.
However, the construction program – launched in 2000 to comply with a 1998 NJ Supreme Court order to address unsafe and overcrowded conditions in the 31 Abbott school districts – is out of funding to pay for new projects. According to budget documents issued by the SDA, nearly all of the bonding authority allocated by the Legislature in 2008 has been spent or committed. Without additional funding, no projects will advance.
According to Jerell Blakeley, campaign organizer with the NJ Work Environment Council, and coordinator of the Healthy Schools Now campaign, “The report makes clear the enormous unmet needs in the SDA districts, and the continued failure of the current administration to address overcrowding and educational adequacy. We call on the new Governor and Legislature to make additional funding for school facilities a priority when they take office in January.”
“The current administration has dragged its feet on school facilities, forcing unnecessary litigation about basic elements of the school construction program and delaying the preparation and release of the EFNA,” said Theresa Luhm, ELC attorney. “But we expect that the new administration will see this program as a sound investment for both our children’s futures and for our workforce.”
Related Stories:
FUNDS NEEDED TO REPLENISH SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION PROGRAM
NJDOE ORDERED TO UPDATE DISTRICTS’ SCHOOL FACILITIES PLANS
Press Contact:
Sharon Krengel
Policy and Outreach Director
skrengel@edlawcenter.org
973-624-1815, x 24
Press Contact:
Sharon Krengel
Director of Policy, Strategic Partnerships and Communications
skrengel@edlawcenter.org
973-624-1815, x240