Education Law Center has found that the draft Abbott regulations recently circulated by the NJ Department of Education violate many of the bedrock program, funding and accountability requirements in the Supreme Court’s Abbott v. Burke rulings. These violations are set forth in 11 pages of comments on the draft regulations submitted to Education Commissioner William Librera on July 15, 2005.

ELC is calling on Commissioner Librera not to adopt these regulations by August 1st -- the deadline set by Commissioner. Instead, ELC is urging the Commissioner to quickly establish a "cooperative" process to bring ELC, Abbott districts and other stakeholders together to rewrite and reach consensus on the regulations before they are adopted. In a June 2003 order, the Supreme Court urged the Commissioner to use this type of rulemaking process to avoid future litigation over the Abbott regulations.

ELC is also urging education groups, advocacy organizations and parents to voice their concerns with the Commissioner, and to ask for the rules to be rewritten.

The major Abbott conflicts in the draft regulations identified by ELC include:

• Failing to require continuation of parity foundation funding and funding for supplemental programs based on demonstrated need;
• Completely eliminating Abbott K-12 supplemental programs, and failing to provide any standards for providing school nurses, parent liaisons, social and health services, reading tutors and other required programs, services and positions. Under the draft, supplemental programs and staff are simply "suggestions."
• Eliminating the Abbott mandate for continued implementation of whole school reform and WSR models in elementary schools;
• Ending Abbott Advisory Councils, the Statewide Abbott Achievement Council, and gutting other provisions requiring parents and community engagement in school improvement;
• Scaling back the goal of full enrollment in preschool programs to a 90% "target";
• Undermining implementation of the critical secondary education initiative.

"The breadth and depth of these Abbott conflicts are stunning," said David Sciarra, ELC Executive Director and Abbott Counsel. "Not only do these rules violate the Abbott rulings, they fly in the face of sound and proven education policy and practice."

For more information, contact ELC Attorney Koren Bell, at 973-624-1815, ext. 27, or e-mail at kbell@edlawcenter.org.

Prepared: July 15, 2005