AFT President Randi Weingarten blasted Newark and state school officials at a recent rally for failing to support the district’s schools while cutting budgets and aggressively expanding charters in what has become a high-profile battle in New Jersey’s largest school system.

“Every child deserves a great neighborhood school,” Weingarten told the roughly 200 demonstrators who marched to the district’s offices and then to City Hall at the Dec. 9 event. “Schools should be fixed, not closed.”

The Newark district, under state control for 20 years, has announced plans to allow charter schools to take over district-owned school buildings, shutter at least three schools and designate another nine as “renew” schools, which will allow principals to dismiss faculty and staff en masse and rehire only those of their choosing.

Some other schools will be broken into smaller academies and others will be relocated or converted to early childhood centers.

All told, the restructuring will affect a third of city schools.

“You promised to act differently and you have instead acted exactly the same,” Weingarten said of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, referring to promises made in a landmark 2012 teachers contract in the district.

“The cuts in state aid, the school closures, it has been the parents, teachers and students who have been left frustrated at the lack of responsiveness that the district has taken here,” Weingarten said.

Star-Ledger, Dec. 10, Dec. 18
NJ Spotlight, Dec. 10, Dec. 11