Matt Katz and Claudia Vargas, Inquirer Staff Writers
TRENTON – Gov. Christie plans to announce Monday that he is taking the extraordinary step of putting the educational and fiscal management of the Camden School District under state control, The Inquirer has learned.
As part of the takeover of what the state considers the worst-performing district in New Jersey, Christie will appoint a new superintendent and leadership team, shifting the school board to an advisory role, according to Christie administration officials briefed on the plan.
The Republican governor’s move nonetheless has support from at least a few school board members and key Democratic leaders in the South Jersey political establishment, some of whom are expected to join Christie at the takeover announcement Monday in the city, officials said.
Camden will become the fourth urban district under state control, after Paterson, Newark, and Jersey City. This is the first takeover initiated by Christie, who will add the severely challenged district to his education portfolio less than eight months before his reelection bid.
While the news will likely be greeted with relief by those who believe the district is permanently broken, critics will cite the state’s previous – and largely unsuccessful – interventions into Camden schools, government, and law enforcement.
In an odd bit of timing, the takeover comes as Camden school board members were closing in on selecting a new superintendent. As recently as Saturday, school board members were interviewing candidates, and a meet-and-greet for the public with as many as three finalists is scheduled for Tuesday night, school board member Ray Lamboy said last week.
Lamboy, who sat on the board subcommittee charged with finding a new superintendent, said he wasn’t sure what the board had spent on the search. Some of the candidates have been flown in, and a search firm has been hired.
That process will now be moot.
Officials said a “national search” would be conducted to find a leader for the district, which has a 49 percent graduation rate, second worst in New Jersey.
Three of the district’s schools are the lowest-performing in the state, and 90 percent are in the bottom 5 percent. Less than 20 percent of fourth graders are proficient in language arts literacy, while just 28 percent of 11th graders are proficient in math.
State officials planned to file paperwork Monday morning with the Office of Administration Law to “intervene” in the district for the takeover, which is expected to begin at the start of the next school year. Officials stressed that the community would be involved, with tours planned so Camden residents can visit high-performing schools elsewhere in the state.
Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D., Gloucester) released a statement supporting the takeover. “We recognize this is a dramatic change, but its time has come. I know that, elected officials of both parties know that, and more than anyone else, the parents of Camden with children in failing schools know that.”
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