As of the 2021–22 school year, the district, comprising two schools, had an enrollment of 220 students and 18.8 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.7:1.[1]
The district is classified by the New Jersey Department of Education as being in District Factor Group "A", the lowest of eight groupings. District Factor Groups organize districts statewide to allow comparison by common socioeconomic characteristics of the local districts. From lowest socioeconomic status to highest, the categories are A, B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I and J.[3]
For ninth through twelfth grades, public school students attend Harrison High School in Harrison, as part of a sending/receiving relationship with the Harrison Public Schools.[4] Citing rising tuition costs, the district announced in 2013 that it was seeking to sever its relationship with Harrison and send its students to Kearny High School, where tuition costs for students would be substantially lower than the $14,674 per student paid to Harrison for the 2012-13 school year.[5] In 2015, the district agreed to a new six-year sending agreement with the Harrison school district under which East Newark would pay $13,000 per student, rising by 2% annually, a drop from the $16,100 cost per student paid as of the 2014-15 school year.[6] As of the 2021–22 school year, the high school had an enrollment of 698 students and 52.5 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 13.3:1.[7]
Emidio D'Andrea, business administrator and board secretary
Board of education
The district's board of education is composed of seven members who set policy and oversee the fiscal and educational operation of the district through its administration. As a Type I school district, the board's trustees are appointed by the mayor to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with either one or two members up for reappointment each year. Of the more than 600 school districts statewide, East Newark is one of 15 districts with appointed school boards. The board appoints a superintendent to oversee the district's day-to-day operations and a business administrator to supervise the business functions of the district.[11][13][14][15]
The board of education had voted in 2020 to authorize a ballot question that would ask voters if they supported a switch to a Type II / elected school board, but in January 2021 the borough council voted to add two members to the appointed board of education, overriding the board's efforts to shift to an elected school board.[16][17]
^Duger, Rose. "East Newark Harrison merging dispatch service"Archived October 15, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, The Jersey Journal, December 30, 2010. Accessed September 3, 2014. "Kearny handles all health-related functions through its Board of Health, while East Newark high school children attend Harrison High School and the borough contracts with Harrison to provide street cleaning, snow removal, ambulance and library services."
^Leir, Ron. "Where will E. Newark kids end up?", The Observer, June 19, 2013. Accessed September 3, 2014. "For much of its entire 118-year history, since it broke away from Kearny's First Ward, the borough of East Newark (population 2,400) has maintained a single public school for kindergarten to grade 8 and has consistently sent its graduates to high school in neighboring Harrison.... For that reason, Smith said, the borough is exploring the possibility of sending its kids to Kearny High School. The tuition rate would be lower than Harrison's and there's room at KHS for East Newark's kids, according to Smith."
^Duger, Rose. "East Newark to continue sending high school students to Harrison", The Jersey Journal, April 23, 2015. Accessed November 3, 2016. "East Newark will continue to send its high school students to Harrison High under a pact approved by the school boards in the two towns. The agreement calls for East Newark to pay tuition of $13,000 per student next year, with tuition hikes of 2 percent in each of the next six years. That's significantly less than the $16,100 per student tuition East Newark currently pays."
^Annual Comprehensive Financial Report of the East Newark School District, New Jersey Department of Education, for year ending June 30, 2023. Accessed May April 10, 2024. "The East Newark Board of Education (the 'District') is a Type I District located in the County of Hudson, State of New Jersey. As a Type I District, the members are appointed by the Mayor. A Board of School Estimate approves the school district levy after the final budget is determined by the Board of Education (the 'Board'). The members of the Board of School Estimate include the Mayor, two members of the local school board and two members of the governing body. The purpose of the District is to educate students in grades K-8. A superintendent is appointed by the Board and is responsible for the administrative control of the District."
^Roll, Erin. "Montclair Parents Debate Appointed Vs. Elected School Board", Montclair Local, April 4, 2019. Accessed May 9, 2020. "Montclair is one of 11 school districts in New Jersey in which the board of education is appointed by the mayor, rather than elected. And a debate is ensuing among some Montclair residents over whether Montclair should stick with an appointed board, or switch to an elected board.... As of 2018, Montclair was one of only 11 Type I school districts in New Jersey. The other 10 are Ventnor, Port Republic, Rockleigh, Pine Valley, East Orange, East Newark, Union City, Harrison, Trenton and Summit."
^D'Auria, Peter. "In one-school East Newark, an unprecedented power struggle over the Board of Education", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, January 28, 2021. Accessed December 5, 2023. "Last fall, the East Newark school board approved a recommendation that would change the board from Type 1 to Type 2 — meaning that voters would directly elect trustees instead of having them appointed by the mayor. East Newark voters will likely consider the question in the Nov. 2021 election, the borough clerk said. But last week, the borough council voted to expand the BOE from five to seven members — with both new trustees set to be named by the mayor."
^Board Of Education Of East Newark In The County Of Hudson v. Kevin D. Harris, Justia, April 22, 2021. Accessed December 5, 2023. "By way of brief background, East Newark has a Type I school district, meaning the members of its board of education are appointed annually by the mayor to rotating terms. See N.J.S.A. 18A:12-5 to -9. On September 3, 2020, plaintiff Board of Education passed a resolution, by a 3-2 vote, authorizing the Superintendent of Schools and Board Secretary to draft a ballot question, interpretative statement and resolution to reclassify the East Newark School District from a Type I to a Type II district, in which Board members are elected by the voters."