Latest development only adds to the tensions between charters and the districts that host them
By John Mooney, November 30 in Education
A group of Jersey City charter schools have sued the Christie administration to correct what they say has been a stark underfunding of their schools, throwing a twist into the ongoing debate over how New Jersey’s charters are paid for.
The four charter schools — Learning Community, Golden Door, Soaring Heights, and Ethical Community charter — have petitioned acting education commissioner Chris Cerf to address what has been a longstanding disparity in the how Jersey City and several other districts’ charter schools are funded.
In the petition, the schools contend that they are put at a unique disadvantage because of Jersey City’s massive property tax abatements, which draw the school district additional state aid – called adjustment aid — that is not shared with the charters.
As a result, the charters receive less than the 90 percent of the district’s per-pupil costs, as mandated under the state’s charter school law. Other charter schools similarly affected are in Asbury Park, Hoboken, and Red Bank.
The case also points up the continuing and unresolved disputes in how New Jersey charter schools are funded in general, one that not only irks charter schools but also the districts that foot most of the bill.
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