School District of the Chathams

School District of the Chathams
Address
259 Lafayette Avenue
Chatham Township
, Morris County, 07928
United States
Coordinates40°42′16″N 74°26′06″W / 40.704328°N 74.434922°W / 40.704328; -74.434922
District information
GradesPreK-12
SuperintendentMichael LaSusa
Business administratorPeter Daquila
Schools6
Students and staff
Enrollment3,930 (as of 2020–21)[1]
Faculty342.8 FTEs[1]
Student–teacher ratio11.5:1[1]
Other information
District Factor GroupJ
Websitewww.chatham-nj.org
Ind. Per pupil District
spending		 Rank
(*)		 K-12
average		 %± vs.
average
1ATotal Spending$16,03716$18,891−15.1%
1Budgetary Cost12,9542114,783−12.4%
2Classroom Instruction7,590118,763−13.4%
6Support Services2,004332,392−16.2%
8Administrative Cost1,512621,4851.8%
10Operations & Maintenance1,519391,783−14.8%
13Extracurricular Activities3187826818.7%
16Median Teacher Salary64,1254964,043
Data from NJDoE 2014 Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending.[2]
*Of K-12 districts with more than 3,500 students. Lowest spending=1; Highest=103
Chatham Middle School

The School District of the Chathams is a regional public school district serving students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade from Chatham Borough and Chatham Township in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.[3]

As of the 2020–21 school year, the district, comprising six schools, had an enrollment of 3,930 students and 342.8 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.5:1.[1]

The district is classified by the New Jersey Department of Education as being in District Factor Group "J", the-highest 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.[4]

Elections were held in both municipalities in November 1986 to consider joining the disparate school systems of the two communities into a combined regional district. This proposal was supported by the voters and since then, the two municipalities have shared a regionalized school district.[5]

For the 2025–26 academic year, the school district will shift its distribution of grades within the schools of the Borough and Township. Washington and Southern are set to go from K–3 to K–2, whereas Milton is set to go from pre-K-3 to pre-K-2; Lafayette will go from 4 to 5 to 3–4, and, finally, Chatham Middle School will add fifth grade to become 5–8.[6] These changes come in regard to age demographic trends and class sizes noted across both towns.

Awards, recognition and rankings

For the 2004-05 school year, Chatham High School was recognized with the Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence by the United States Department of Education,[7] the highest award an American school can receive. Milton Avenue School was one of 11 in the state to be recognized in 2014 by the United States Department of Education's National Blue Ribbon Schools Program.[8][9] In 2015, Southern Boulevard School was one of 15 schools in New Jersey, and one of nine public schools, recognized as a National Blue Ribbon School in the exemplary high performing category.[10][11]

The district's high school was the 1st-ranked public high school in New Jersey out of 339 schools statewide in New Jersey Monthly magazine's September 2014 cover story on the state's "Top Public High Schools", using a new ranking methodology.[12] The school had been ranked 20th in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 8th in 2010 out of 322 schools listed.[13]

Schools

Schools in the district (with 2020–21 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics[14]) are:[15][16]

Elementary schools
  • Milton Avenue School[17] with 284 students in grades PreK-3
    • Nicholas Andreazza, principal
  • Southern Boulevard School[18] with 414 students in grades K-3
    • Marco Freyre, principal
  • Washington Avenue School[19] with 314 students in grades K-3
    • Kristen Crawford, principal
  • Lafayette School[20] with 592 students in grades 4-5
    • Cheryl Russo, principal
Middle school
  • Chatham Middle School[21] with 984 students in grades 6-8
    • Jill Gihorski, principal
High school

Administration

Core members of the district's administration are:[23][24]

  • Michael LaSusa, superintendent[25]
  • Peter Daquila, business administrator and board secretary[26]

Board of education

The district's board of education is composed of nine members, who set policy and oversee the fiscal and educational operation of the district through its administration. As a Type II school district, the board's trustees are elected directly by voters to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with three seats up for election each year held (since 2016), as part of the November general election. 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.[27] Seats on the board are allocated to the constituent municipalities based on population, with Chatham Township assigned five seats and Chatham Borough assigned four seats.[28]

References

  1. ^ a b c d District information for School District Of The Chathams, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed February 15, 2022.
  2. ^ Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending April 2013, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed April 15, 2013.
  3. ^ School District of the Chathams District Policy 0110 - Identification, School District of the Chathams. Accessed July 15, 2022. "Purpose: The Board of Education exists for the purpose of providing a thorough and efficient system of free public education in grades Pre-Kindergarten through twelve in the Chatham School District. Composition: The School District of the Chathams is comprised of all the area within the municipal boundaries of Chatham Borough and Chatham Township in the County of Morris."
  4. ^ NJ Department of Education District Factor Groups (DFG) for School Districts, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed September 27, 2014.
  5. ^ Padawer, Ruth. "Side By Side: Thirty years ago, Chatham Township was fighting—literally—for respect from Chatham Borough. Now it finishes first among the state's 566 municipalities in our biannual ranking. The Borough's response? 'Way to go!'", New Jersey Monthly, February 19, 2008. Accessed September 27, 2014. "The high schools had to scramble to offer the Advanced Placement classes and electives that the new era required. Kids from one school would go to the other for particular classes, as if it were an extension of the same campus. By 1986, after a contentious vote in both towns, the two districts merged."
  6. ^ School District of the Chathams, Board of Education meeting.
  7. ^ Blue Ribbon Schools Program: Schools Recognized 1982 Through 2013, United States Department of Education. Accessed September 27, 2014.
  8. ^ Goldman, Jeff. "Which N.J. schools were named to national 'Blue Ribbon' list?", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, October 2, 2014. Accessed December 31, 2014. "Eleven New Jersey schools have been named to the annual National Blue Ribbon list, the U.S. Department of Education announced Tuesday."
  9. ^ 2014 National Blue Ribbon Schools All Public and Private, United States Department of Education. Accessed December 31, 2014.
  10. ^ 2015 National Blue Ribbon Schools All Public and Private, National Blue Ribbon Schools Program. Accessed November 14, 2016.
  11. ^ Mueller, Mark. "Which N.J. schools were named National Blue Ribbon schools?", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, September 29, 2015. Accessed November 14, 2016. "Fifteen New Jersey schools have been recognized by the federal government as National Blue Ribbon Schools, a designation that celebrates excellence in academics or progress in closing the achievement gap among groups of students.... Each of the 15 New Jersey schools was chosen for the 'exemplary high performing' category, which weighs state or national tests, high school graduation rates and the performance of subgroups of students, such as those who are economically disadvantaged."
  12. ^ Staff. "Top Schools Alphabetical List 2014", New Jersey Monthly, September 2, 2014. Accessed September 5, 2014.
  13. ^ Staff. html "The Top New Jersey High Schools: Alphabetical", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2012. Accessed September 23, 2012.
  14. ^ School Data for the School District of the Chathams, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed February 15, 2022.
  15. ^ School Performance Reports for the School District of the Chathams, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed April 3, 2024.
  16. ^ New Jersey School Directory for the School District of the Chathams, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed February 1, 2024.
  17. ^ Milton Avenue School, School District of the Chathams. Accessed July 15, 2022.
  18. ^ Southern Boulevard School, School District of the Chathams. Accessed July 15, 2022.
  19. ^ Washington Avenue School, School District of the Chathams. Accessed July 15, 2022.
  20. ^ Lafayette School, School District of the Chathams. Accessed July 15, 2022.
  21. ^ Chatham Middle School, School District of the Chathams. Accessed July 15, 2022.
  22. ^ Chatham High School, School District of the Chathams. Accessed July 15, 2022.
  23. ^ Central Office Administration, School District of the Chathams. Accessed July 15, 2022.
  24. ^ New Jersey School Directory for Morris County, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed February 1, 2024.
  25. ^ Superintendent, School District of the Chathams. Accessed July 15, 2022.
  26. ^ Business Office, School District of the Chathams. Accessed July 15, 2022.
  27. ^ New Jersey Boards of Education by District Election Types - 2018 School Election, New Jersey Department of Education, updated February 16, 2018. Accessed January 26, 2020.
  28. ^ Board of Education Members, School District of the Chathams. Accessed July 15, 2022.