less federal funds for Gloucester Schools
Thursday, November 30, 2006
Federal mandate straps S.J.'s vocational schools
Federal standards designed to improve education in public schools are hurting vocational and technical programs statewide, officials said.
In Camden County, a consequence has been less money for teacher salaries and benefits. Camden County Technical Schools is requiring for the first time that schools sending students pay tuition, $2,500 per student. The tuition costs, intended to plug a $4.8 million budget shortfall, begin in September.
The new costs have school officials furious.
"It's going to impact big time and it's going to impact big time on all schools," said Lynda Lathrop, a spokeswoman for the Gloucester City School District. "There's only so much money and, unfortunately, we're getting less and less of it."
In New Jersey, a freeze on state aid for schools over the past five years, with no increase in sight, exacerbates the pressure on vocational schools to do more with less, educators said.
The problem is particularly severe in Camden County, where the Camden County Technical Schools, with campuses in Pennsauken and Gloucester Township, has received an "in need of improvement" designation four years in a row. As a result, each year the amount of federal money at their discretion decreases.
The same concerns exist nationwide.