New
Jersey Department of Education Accomplishments
FOURTH QUARTER ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN
EDUCATION 2003
Commissioner William L. Librera
October 1 to December 31, 2003
Governor McGreevey and Commissioner Librera have grouped the state’s
educational initiatives into five major themes to be addressed:
-Teacher and administrator quality;
-Raising student achievement;
-Diverse and multiple paths for student success;
-Innovative and outstanding practices/programs; and
-Public engagement and communication and public accountability.
Teacher and Administrator Quality
The Department of Education has done the following:
- Adopted new standards for professional licensure
of teachers. The State Board of Education took action December 17,
2003 to revise the state’s code to strengthen the teacher licensing
process and create regulations that conform to the requirements of
the Core Curriculum Content Standards and the federal No Child
Left Behind Act.
Raising Student Achievement
The New Jersey Department of Education has done the following:
Standards:
- Supported the State Board resolution recognizing November 17-21,
2003 as International Education Week to promote awareness and respect
for citizens of other countries and international education. The
department has created an international leadership team to advance
Governor McGreevey’s call for students to read about cultures
and traditions from their own heritage, as well as other nations,
use technology, learn about world affairs, and learn one or more
world languages.
Health and Safety
- Created a new DOE Web site "Keeping our Kids Safe" at http://www.state.nj/njded/students/safety to
emphasize the importance of observing School Violence Awareness Week
in October and encouraging districts to find diverse ways to create
a safe school environment for all students at all times. It contains
in one place all of the information that relates to safe and drug-free
schools, student health, a safe physical environment, and student
behavior issues.
Diverse and Multiple Paths for Student Achievement`
The Department of Education has done the following:
- Collaborated with the Historically Black Colleges and Universities
College Fairs of New Jersey to sponsor a series of college fairs
for high school students throughout the state from November 15-21,
2003. More than 3,500 students from nearly 70 large schools attended
and spoke with representatives from 35 historically black institutions
of higher education.
Innovative and Outstanding Practices and Programs
The Department of Education has done the following:
- Awarded over $650 million in school construction funding to six
Abbott districts that submitted winning proposals for Demonstration
Projects to develop visionary school projects that boost the revitalization
of an entire neighborhood. The six winning proposals were submitted
by Vineland, East Orange, Trenton, New Brunswick, Camden, and Union
City.
- Announced the state’s fourth school renaissance zone in Union
City. The new Union City arts integrated magnet school will be built
as the anchor to a school renaissance zone in the old "Transfer
Station" area of downtown Union City. Union City joins Trenton,
Neptune, and Paterson, where there are already school renaissance
projects in progress. There are already plans to build 21st century
classrooms in over 1300 schools around the state.
- Collaborated with the Milken Foundation for the second straight
year resulting in two winners of the $25,000 Milken Family Foundation
Award – a high school teacher from Cranford and a junior-senior
high school teacher from Cresskill.
- Awarded mini-grants under the Workplace Readiness Incentive for
Demonstrating Excellence in Academic Standards (I.D.E.A.S) program
to 14 educators for their proposals to implement the Core Curriculum
Content Standards. The program is designed to encourage teachers
and counselors to develop innovative instructional, models that enhance
student achievement of the workplace readiness standards that include
career planning, use of information and technology, critical thinking,
self-management, and safety.
- Presented $25,000 prizes to 25 schools in the first annual Governor’s
Schools of Excellence award ceremony held at Drumthwacket on November
21, 2003. The winning schools were honored for demonstrating effective
practices to prepare their students for the future and for showing
significant improvement during a two-year period. Funding for the
program is provided through a collaborative effort among Pepco/Conectiv,
First Energy Corporation, the Board of Public Utilities, and the
Office of the Ratepayer Advocate.
- Created the first ceremony in December 2003 for Recognizing Educator
Achievement and Leadership (REAL) to recognize honorees from a variety
of education award programs during the year. The event featured a
morning forum and several professional workshops.
- Offered a retrospective look at social equality in New Jersey since
the Brown vs. Board of Education U.S. Supreme Court decision
in 1954 declaring the provision of separate facilities for education
inherently unequal. The program was done in collaboration with Rutgers
Graduate School of Education to help teachers and administrators
relate the landmark case to social studies curriculum and classroom
activities.
Public Communication, Engagement and Accountability
The Department of Education has done the following:
- Endorsed a new Web site called Just for the Kids – New Jersey
that offers comparative data about schools in a way that provides
educators and parents with a tool for making decisions. Schools and
parents can view the performance of students in their schools relative
to schools with similar populations. The site is funded by the Business
Coalition for Educational Excellence (BCEE) at the Chamber of Commerce
