A Democratic activist who is pleased that New Jersey will finally make good on its long-underfunded education aid formula says that state leaders need to be schooled on fiscal responsibility, accountability, and justice.
As Governor Phil Murphy continues to champion legislation supporting charter schools in New Jersey, Lisa McCormick, an advocate for public education, voiced strong criticism of funneling taxpayer money to private entities that operate corporate-controlled classrooms that do not have the same rules and responsibilities as public schools.
“At a time when traditional public schools desperately need more resources and concerted action to combat racial segregation, Governor Murphy’s support for charter schools that selectively enroll students and separate them based on race raises serious concerns,” said McCormick.
On January 17, 2024, Murphy signed legislation, A4496/S3247, establishing the Public Charter and Renaissance School Facilities Loan Program, which drew applause from the New Jersey Public Charter Schools Association (NJPCSA). McCormick argued that the legislation diverts crucial funding away from traditional public schools, leaving them struggling to meet the needs of all students, especially in under-resourced communities.
Charter schools were intended to be centers of education experimentation and innovation, but they generally neither invented new teaching methods nor developed new education practices. They’re businesses first, and schools second.
“While public schools diligently serve their communities by accepting all residents, charter schools cherry-pick their students, often exacerbating racial segregation and neglecting students with special needs,” stated Lisa McCormick. “The lack of oversight and accountability in charter schools, coupled with their ability to cherry-pick students, disrupts the educational ecosystem and harms the public education system as a whole.”
McCormick highlights the issue of transparency and accountability, pointing out that charter schools often operate with less scrutiny than traditional public schools, despite receiving public funding.
Many charter schools are structured and operate in ways that allow individuals and corporations to skim money without returning any benefit to students and taxpayers. Even charters labeled “nonprofit” are often run to create profit from public tax dollars via real estate deals, related party transactions, and for-profit management.
This lack of oversight, combined with the drain of resources from traditional public schools, poses significant challenges to the overall quality of education in New Jersey.
Two Newark charter schools were denied expansion requests to increase their enrollment and three others in Plainfield, Egg Harbor Township, and Perth Amboy were placed on probation.
An Atlantic County charter school business administrator was indicted a year ago for a scheme that steered a $115,000 contract to a board member’s furniture company, which the state Attorney General’s Office claimed failed to do what it was paid to do.
The 2022 state closure of University Heights Charter School, a network of three Newark schools shut down over poor academic performance, loan defaults, and under-enrollment, created turbulence for the families of about 600 enrolled students.
Two years ago, hundreds of students at the North Star Academy, New Jersey’s largest charter school operator with more than 6,000 students in Newark and Camden, complained about abuse of Black students and faculty.
The proliferation of charter schools in Camden shifted the teacher workforce from majority Black to majority white, according to a report by New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP).
“There are 85 charter schools across the state with more than 60,000 students enrolled, compared with 1.3 million children who are in more than 2,500 public schools,” said McCormick. “We should put resources into making sure every child gets a high-quality education that prepares every one of them for life instead of wasting time, money and attention on racist and profit-motivated corporate swindlers.”
McCormick also expressed concerns about Murphy’s selection of Kevin Dehmer as Commissioner of the Department of Education. Dehmer is registered to vote in Hunterdon County but he has no political party affiliation.
During the administration of former Republican Gov. Chris Christie, Dehmer was chief financial officer and executive director of the Office of School Facilities and Finance, director of the Office of Research, Special Schools, and Transportation, and manager of the Office of Fiscal Research and Analysis.
With Dehmer’s previous roles in the Christie administration, which oversaw significant budget cuts and policies detrimental to public education, McCormick questions his suitability for leading the state’s education department.
“It’s troubling to see Governor Murphy appointing someone to lead our schools with ties to a Republican administration that was hostile to public education,” said McCormick. “We need leadership that prioritizes equitable funding and policies that support all students, not just a select few.”
McCormick challenged Murphy about how he plans to pay for the $11.6 billion in state aid he is promising for New Jersey’s public schools in his fiscal year 2025 budget, which would be the first time in the 15 years since the school aid formula was established that K-12 schools are fully funded.
She said that state spending has gone from $35.7 billion the year Murphy was elected to $53.4 billion in the current year, but the Wall Street millionaire has not properly adjusted revenues to support that level of expenditures because the federal government provided billions in excess money during the pandemic.