“My company for the first year ever did not give out any raises this year.  We did not lay anyone off but we did freeze salaries and reduced benefits” the assemblyman said.  He continued “In state government we are trying to freeze salaries and give furloughs but that is really a small portion of the state budget.  Most of the budget goes to school districts and municipalities and the teachers, police officers, and other employees are still getting their 4 percent to 5 percent  increases plus great benefits.  In this economic climate I don’t think that we are all sharing the burden equally!”  This remark obviously was not made before the NJEA, but neither was it made before a group of school board members. It was made before a group of policy wonks (with the notable exception of one unwonk – me). Of those assembled, only one other person and I were in the education field.  I will tell you, however, that all present nodded their heads in agreement.  I will also tell you that this remark was not made by a conservative Republican but by a Democrat. 

This reaction to teachers and other public employees getting raises during an economic downturn is understandable.  It got me to thinking.  I once had a boss who ran a retail store and always made a big deal out of his Employee of the Month Award, praising the employee almost to the point that it was embarrassing.  I once asked why he did that and he said that the more he praised the one salesman, the more angry the other employees got. They would then try to out-sell the Employee of the Month out of spite.  The owner wanted to fuel competition, and, it did do that.  But what he couldn’t see what how the over-the-top treatment of the Employee of the Month also destroyed teamwork. The sales staff would not only not help each other, but they’d consciously undermine each other, particularly the top employee.

Jealousy is a universal emotion. (more…)

During a conference call with educational leaders before the Stimulus Package was approved, new Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan cited, a University of Washington report that indicated if nothing was done at the federal level the United States would be facing an “educational disaster” in which we would face the loss of almost 600,000 education jobs nationwide.  As we all know President Obama has just signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) but the question remains did we head off the “educational disaster”? 

While the intent of the package is to jumpstart the economy what is lost on many people is that the ARRA or “stimulus package” is what I would call a “state government bailout” plan. With all the talk of there being no bi-partisan support for the stimulus package everyone ignores the fact that the majority of Republican Governors supported the bill.  Because, like Democrat Jon Corzine in New Jersey, Republicans like Charlie Crist in Florida and Arnold Schwarzenegger in California are facing budget deficits themselves.   (more…)

On Monday morning, I had my plan mapped out.  On Friday, I would blog about the stimulus package and its impact on New Jersey.  I was organized and focused, which happens about twice a year.  Well, I might have been organized and focused, but the players in Washington, DC certainly were not.  The stimulus package became a moving target and what I knew 5 minutes ago was not only old, but it was changed.

The stimulus package has been grabbing the major headlines.  At the same time, however, another major issue has been unfolding: the legal battle between the Abbott School Districts and the Governor over his school funding formula.  I am not going to get into the merits of the case here, but obviously its outcome will have a dramatic effect on education in New Jersey for years to come.

No matter what you think of them, the Abbott litigation has driven the discussion of education funding for more than a generation.  It has also drive a wedge (an unintended consequence) between suburban and urban districts over the issue of education funding.  That is why I was struck by a comment I heard at a meeting last Saturday, (more…)

The annual New Jersey Schools Report Card will be coming out Wednesday. I haven’t seen it yet, but I already know what grade I will award our public education system: An “F.”

In fact, I would award that grade to just about every public education system in America. As a Catholic school kid, I’ve never been a fan of public schools. The public-school kids who shared our bus always seemed to be about two years behind us in every subject.

Paul Mulshine Star-Ledger Columnist

Excuse me if I seem a bit cranky but I am!  The above quote was the beginning of Paul Mulshine’s column entitled  Schools Report Card: No stamp of approval for Jersey’s public schools  in which after that opening salvo it went downhill for public education, which put me in a bad mood.

The opening, however says a lot about the critics of public education.  First they don’t really want to hear any facts that might contradict their views; they know public education is a failure.  It doesn’t matter that a recent report from Education week Report: New Jersey Kids Well Prepared for Success provides ample evidence that the opposite is true.  Mr. Mulshine will pick and choose what studies to use to bolster his existing position.  This is nothing new and is practiced by people on both sides of an issue.

I also feel obligated to defend public education against this public attack, especially since it was not restricted to a few districts,  but managed to slam pretty much all districts.  Now according to Mr. Mulshine, I am at a decided disadvantage since I attended public schools and am “two years” behind him in my learning.  Which is a bit disconcerting to me, since I will have to outlive him by at least two years just to catch up.

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A long-lost relative comes to your house one weekend and says he has $50,000 for you, but you can only use it on a home repair or energy upgrade…and you have to be ready to spend it within 90 days. What would you do? While most of us have a wish list of home repairs and upgrades, we’ve never figured out the costs simply because we don’t have the funds needed for the projects. Therefore, to take advantage of the relative’s offer, we would have to scramble for estimates from contractors.

School districts in New Jersey may find themselves in a similar predicament with the Stimulus Package that President Barack Obama is proposing. This package could be passed by both houses of Congress and be signed into law as early as March. Within the legislation is a provision that provides $14 billion in grants to school districts across the nation for modernization, upgrades and repairs. New Jersey’s share of this is estimated to be about $300 million. The catch is this: the money needs to be spent quickly. (more…)

By

Ray Pinney 

Before you read this blog, I have to ask you a big favor. Do not let my daughter see this posting. I mention her in this blog and she would become quite agitated by that. If any of you have had to deal with an agitated teenage girl, you know what I mean. When I was a teenager myself, I could never understand teenage girls and now that I am the father of one, I understand them even less. Now back to education.

On Jan.18, I was sitting in a high school auditorium listening to northern New Jersey’s best high school and middle school musicians. The occasion was the North Jersey Area Band festival. Students from 35 high schools and 25 middle schools, who are considered the best in their respective schools, gather to perform music together. The talent of these students was awe-inspiring. If you closed your eyes, you would never guess that the music was being performed by 7th and 8th graders or even high school students. At one point, a guest conductor thanked the parents for supporting their districts’ music programs and encouraging them to continue to support music education in their districts. As I listened to him, I thought to myself “with the state budget crisis, this will be harder than they think.”

Two days later, I found out how right I was when I read the letter from Commissioner Lucille Davy urging districts to “freeze all non-essential and discretionary district spending and carefully review the necessity of all expenditures for the remainder of the school year.” This was a recommendation, not a mandate, and while there is not an emergency for this year’s budget right now, it does not bode well for next year. It also got me to thinking about what is essential and non-essential in education. Basically the N.J. Department of Education and school districts themselves define “essential” as something that is mandated by law and “non-essential” as something that is not mandated. While that definition makes decision-making simpler, it does not make it easier. That is because these definitions conflict with what students and parents may think is essential and non-essential. _^(more…)

It’s customary when writing a commentary after a major speech such as Governor Corzine’s State of the State to discuss the content of the speech and the implications for possible government action down the road. Frankly Governor Corzine’s Jan. 13 speech did not provide any more information than I had before he spoke on the state budget crisis. There are questions such as: Is pre-school still viable? Will school aid be cut? Will the school election calendar change? All remain unanswered. So I have chosen to discuss a topic that you will not find anywhere else. That is the connection between cell phones and academic achievement.

If you listened to the governor’s State of the State, you heard a great deal of praise for public education in New Jersey. He mentioned that school boards did a better job than their municipal counterparts of staying within their budget caps. He further mentioned pre-school initiatives, high school graduation rates and a host of other areas in which New Jersey education excels. This is something that we are not always used to hearing. But he saved the most dramatic and personal touch for the story of a Union City High School student. (more…)