At the most recent monthly State Board of Education meeting, held on June 6, the board heard updates and took actions on a variety of items.
Camden City School District Annual Report The district continues to improve, although there is still much work ahead. There were 300 more students deemed proficient on PARCC; the dropout rate was cut in half and the graduation rate has improved from 49 percent to 66 percent. Suspensions in the district have dropped by nearly half and SAT participation is up by 45 percent. The state has invested over $336 million dollars for capital improvements.
Jersey City School District Annual Report The Jersey City School District recently began its transition back to local control and continues to make improvements. The district has more than 28,000 students in 40 school buildings. The district continues to increase its graduation rate, which is now over 77 percent. African-American and Hispanic males have experienced the greatest graduation rate gains over the last five years. The number of Advanced Placement exams that are taken in the district has also increased. Dropouts and suspensions have decreased.
Organizational Chart The State Board approved a new organizational chart for the department that aims to improve service to everyone in the education community.
The State Board also adopted its resolution establishing the annual calendar of 2018-2019 meeting dates for the body.
In addition, the State Board adopted its annual resolution pertaining to the annual calendar of religious holidays for the 2018-2019 school year. Each year, the commissioner of education prepares a list of religious holidays on which it is mandatory to permit a student absence from school for religious observances. Boards of education, at their discretion, may add other days to the list for the schools of their districts.