In its "Quality Counts" Report, Education Week showcases the "bold new path for financing schools in New Jersey’s neediest districts," sparked by the NJ Supreme Courts rulings in the landmark Abbott v. Burke case.

The annual report contains a state-by-state evaluation of public education, focusing on school funding, teacher quality and other benchmarks.

In a special report entitled "A Level Playing Field," Education Week describes the transformation taking place in New Jersey’s high poverty, high minority urban districts through implementation of the remedies ordered in the Abbott case, including:

• the "unique" step of funding general education in the Abbott districts at the same level as successful, suburban districts;
• high quality preschool for all 3 and 4 year olds;
• school reform to ensure effective use of resources;
• upgrading dilapidated school facilities.

According to Education Week, this unprecedented initiative is attracting the attention of "policymakers and observers on all sides of the school funding debates nationwide" who see Abbott "as a test of whether raising spending levels in poor districts….can significantly improve achievement for students from low-income families."

Education Week also points up the urgent need for the New Jersey Legislature to address the needs of middle income and other poor districts for additional education resources and relief from high property taxes.

"It's time for the Legislature to develop a new school funding formula for non-Abbott districts, based on expanding the Abbott framework statewide," said David Sciarra, ELC Executive Director and Abbott Counsel. "We’ve already taken an 'Abbott-out' approach to school construction funding. Now we need to do the same for general education funding and preschool programs."

Related Article: New Jersey Leading the Nation in School Funding Equity

Prepared: January 6, 2005