Sponsored by:
Assemblyman ALEX SAUICKIE
District 12 (Burlington, Middlesex, Monmouth and Ocean)
SYNOPSIS
Requires school districts to report information on changes in employment and programs; requires Commissioner of Education to compile reported information.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the reporting of annual employment and program changes by school districts and supplementing chapter 6 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. Each school district shall annually report to the Commissioner of Education, in a form and manner prescribed by the commissioner, information on employment and programmatic changes for each school in the district. The information shall include, but not be limited to, the following information for the prior school year:
(1) the number of positions eliminated by the district;
(2) the number of job postings advertised by the district;
(3) any programmatic changes by the district including curricula or programs that have been added, eliminated, or restructured; and
(4) the number of extracurricular activities that have been added or eliminated by the district.
b. The Commissioner of Education shall compile the information submitted by school districts pursuant to subsection a. of this section and publish and maintain the information on the Department of Education’s Internet website in a user-friendly format.
2. This act shall take effect immediately and shall first apply to the first full school year next following the date of enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill requires school districts to report annually to the Commissioner of Education information on employment and programmatic changes for each school in the district.
Specifically, school districts would be required to report, in a form and manner prescribed by the commissioner, information for the prior fiscal year on: (1) the number of positions eliminated by the district; (2) the number of job postings advertised by the district; (3) any programmatic changes by the district including curricula or programs that have been added, eliminated, or restructured; and (4) the number of extracurricular activities that have been added or eliminated by the district.
The bill requires the commissioner to compile the information submitted by school districts and publish and maintain the information on the Department of Education’s Internet website in a user-friendly format.
The sponsor has read many news accounts of schools making agonizing decisions on closing schools, and cutting teachers, school employees, programs, busing, and extracurricular activities; all to the detriment of students. The sponsor notes that this is happening at a time of record State spending on education. The sponsor believes that this bill is needed to provide transparency to the disasters that are occurring in school districts.