HAS THERE BEEN NO IMPROVEMENT IN ABBOTT DISTRICTS?

Abbott detractors love to throw the “no improvement” myth around in the press and at legislative hearings. But is there any evidence to back up their claims? Turns out it's easy to bust this Abbott myth based on available information. Read More....

ARE ABBOTT DISTRICTS NOT AS POOR AND RACIALLY SEGREGATED AS THEY USED TO BE?

State education officials say that a large number of at-risk students live outside New Jersey's poor, urban centers. Find out why that increase doesn't correlate with a decrease in the concentrated poverty and minority student population in the Abbott districts as we bust another myth. Read More....

ECONOMIC IMPACT OF SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS

Planned expenditures on school construction will generate direct and indirect economic impacts for New Jersey in the form of employment, income, gross domestic product, and state and local tax revenues. Read Report....

FEDERAL DISTRICT COURT DENIES STATE'S MOTION TO DISMISS SPECIAL EDUCATION SEGREGATION CASE

ELC and co-counsel obtain far-reaching decision denying State's motion to dismiss special education segregation case. Read More....

DO ABBOTT DISTRICTS GET TOO MUCH STATE AID?

Bet you've heard this one: "Abbott districts serve less than 25% of the state’s students so they shouldn’t get 50% of all state school aid." Yet another Abbott myth we've busted. Read More....

SUBURBAN SCHOOLS TAKE ON FUNDING FORMULA

Dollar$ & Sense, a group of high achieving, suburban school districts, has filed a "friend of the court" brief in Abbott v. Burke opposing the State’s request that the School Funding Reform Act of 2008 (SFRA) be declared constitutional. The group joins urban school children and districts, and other groups, before the NJ Supreme Court. Read More....

$3.9 BILLION FOR SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION APPROVED

To comply with the Abbott v. Burke ruling, the NJ Legislature has approved $3.9 billion for a "second wave" of urgently needed new school buildings statewide. Read More....

NEW JERSEY LAWYER FEATURES ELC INITIATIVES

New Jersey's weekly newspaper for lawyers recently featured interviews with ELC staff about its Education Justice and Starting At 3 initiatives. Read the Article....

POOR CHILDREN STILL NEED COURT PROTECTION

ELC filed papers on Wednesday with the NJ Supreme Court opposing the State's request to stop providing extra help for poor children and schools, as ordered in the landmark Abbott v. Burke litigation. Read More....

STATE PAYS TO BUILD SCHOOLS IN SUBURBS, SHUTS-OUT THE POOR

The Legislature will pay out more than $58 million for school construction projects in the upcoming State budget, mostly in the suburbs, while shuting the door on funding to rebuild schools in New Jersey’s poorest communities. Read Now....

ABBOTT IS BRIGHT SPOT FOR NJ POOR CHILDREN

Over the past five years, living conditions haven’t improved much for poor children, according to the latest Kids Count report released by the Association for Children of New Jersey. But public education has been one bright spot in this otherwise troubling picture. Read Now....

DO ABBOTT DISTRICTS WASTE TAXPAYER MONEY?

This myth has been in the news lately, but it’s as old as the hills. The problem is the State has yet to provide hard evidence of widespread waste in Abbott districts. Maybe that's because there isn't any. Read Now....

ARE ABBOTT DISTRICTS TO BLAME FOR FUNDING SHORTFALLS IN OTHER DISTRICTS?

Busting another Abbott myth, this time about State aid to school districts. Find out why the Abbott remedies are not the reason why students in other districts don't receive the funding they need. Read Now....

DO ABBOTT DISTRICTS SPEND THE MOST PER PUPIL?

Find out the real answer and help us bust another myth about New Jersey's high poverty urban schools and its students. Read Now....

EDUCATION JUSTICE SPONSORS QUALITY EDUCATION CONFERENCE

On June 11-12, 2008, Education Justice – ELC's new national initiative on behalf of public school children – will co-sponsor "Exploring New Horizons for Equal Educational Opportunity," a conference bringing together plaintiff litigators, education advocates, and policy experts to engage in an exploration of education reform. Conference Details....

NJ MISSTEPS ON SECONDARY REFORM PLAN: NEW TESTS, NO NEW RESOURCES

On April 25, the New Jersey High School Redesign Steering Committee released its long-awaited recommendations for secondary reform in a report entitled NJ Steps: Re-designing Education in NJ for the 21st Century. Although the report urges six new high-stakes exams and “a fundamental change in public education in the state that will affect students in all grades,” the committee did not propose any new resources to support its recommendations. Read More....

STATE BOARD VOTES TO RETAIN ALTERNATIVE ROUTE TO GRADUATION

At its March 19 meeting, the New Jersey State Board of Education passed a resolution to retain and reform the Special Review Assessment (SRA), the alternative high school assessment used in recent years by over 10,000 students to earn a high school diploma. The Board’s action followed a year-long campaign by advocates and stakeholders, including Education Law Center, to reverse plans to eliminate the alternative route to a diploma. Read More....

APPELLATE COURT REQUIRES NEEDS ASSESSMENT IN BACON DISTRICTS

A New Jersey appellate court directed the Commissioner of Education to carry out a needs assessment of the so-called Bacon school districts. In an opinion released on March 14, the court found the assessment to be a prerequisite for determining whether the new school funding formula enacted by the State Legislature in January provides an appropriate remedy for these poor, rural districts. Read More....