Ras Baraka

Historic 10-Year Strategic Plan to Build a New Educational Ecosystem in Newark

Newark, New Jersey [September 8, 2020].

Superintendent Roger León and the Newark Board of Education released an unprecedented 10-year strategic plan titled, The Next Decade: 2020-30.  The unveiling of The Next Decade: 2020-30 strategic plan sets the district’s sights on a bold future and the creation of a new educational ecosystem that delivers a world-class education to every child in the City of Newark.  This plan is a comprehensive roadmap that guides the priorities and strategies that will best help us fulfill our mission and vision over the next ten years.  Developed collaboratively by partners, community leaders, elected officials, board members, parents, students, district leadership, and educators, The Next Decade: 2020-30 marks the beginning of full local control which was returned to the district on July 1, 2020.

Superintendent León said, “This strategic plan reflects the best thinking of our community’s leaders regarding the structure and function of our city’s public education institutions at this time, upon their return to local control after years of state operation, and for years to come.  Our vision is that in ten years our schools will be equal in quality to the best anywhere and all our students will achieve to their fullest potential. This strategic plan will help guide us there.”

“This strategic plan weaves together the resources, organizations, and stakeholders in our city to ensure that we all play our part and hold each other accountable for creating the schools our students deserve,” said Mayor Ras Baraka.  “As the Mayor, and an educator myself, I commit to mobilizing the City’s resources in partnership with NPS in order to bring this plan to life. I look forward to working with the district to make Newark the nation’s exemplar for culturally responsive and equitable education that empowers our students to live and lead in the 21st Century.”

The Next Decade: 2020-30 strategic planning process spanned over two years and included the implementation of the Strategic Planning Advisory Committee, 9 Stakeholder Roundtables, and three working groups that focused on mission, vision, core values, a theory of action, and equity.  We hosted 75 meetings involving 100 partner organizations and over 1000 participants to assess data, identify root causes and gaps, and develop strategies.  The strategic planning process set higher expectations, addressed cultural responsiveness, increased transparency, focused on equity, and fostered collaboration as these themes echoed from session to session and stakeholder to stakeholder.  These, and other themes, are integrated into the priorities and strategies included in the strategic plan.  The Next Decade: 2020-30 builds on the district’s one-year strategic plan, NPS Clarity 2020, which was implement during the 2019-2020 school year. The development of NPS Clarity 2020, and now The Next Decade:2020-30, is an example of how one strategic plan should build from the other one.

View or Download the Strategic Plan

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First Ever Virtual District Staff Convocation for Newark Schools

On September 1, 2020, Superintendent León and the Newark Board of Education hosted District Staff Convocation 2020.  The convocation is the annual celebration to the start of the school year where the Superintendent convenes all employees in one venue to share the state of the district, review multiple measures of data, celebrate accomplishments, set the tone for the new school year, and charge the staff.  As last school year ended in a historic way, so started this school year.  The District Staff Convocation 2020 was held virtually for all 6,300 employees.

Superintendent León charged the district “to continue to be flexible, exercise patience, build confidence, and demonstrate resilience” as we open this school year remotely.  He shared that last school year, prior to the emergence of the pandemic, attendance was the highest ever, student achievement was soaring, and record numbers of seniors were on track to graduate.  In spite of historic obstacles at the height of the pandemic, schools and homes joined forces unlike ever before.  Higher demands on students enrolled in advanced placement courses resulted in record participation numbers on AP exams, seniors in dual enrollment courses graduated with high school diplomas and associates degrees, and the Class of 2020 earned over $40 million in college scholarships resulting in the graduation rate reaching its highest level in Newark’s history.

Mayor Ras J. Baraka welcomed the teachers and staff to the start of this virtual school year and noted, “We are at a different moment, a different point in time in history.  We need you now, in this pandemic, to help encourage, inspire, to educate them, to advance them, to take care of their mental state of mind.”

“This is my 3rd Convocation, and it is a convocation like no other,” said Josephine C. Garcia, President of the Newark Board of Education.  She continued, “We know that out of adversity, comes opportunity.  We have the opportunity to improve on the great instruction that we have been providing over the past couple of years, we have the opportunity to strengthen relationships with our community partners, and we have the opportunity to be second to none!  Staff, you are seizing the moment, and together, we will continue to show everyone how it’s done, because we are NEWARK STRONG.”

During the last few months, the district created the NBOE Task Force for the Reopening of Schools who prepared an executive summary, established ingress and egress procedures, outlined intensive cleaning and sanitizing protocols, piloted in-person summer school at two locations, identified Pandemic Response Teams at each school, curated curriculum featuring social emotional learning, reviewed metrics for virtual learning to ensure rigorous instruction, continued to train staff to ensure efficient implementation, and began the return to in-person operations.

The first day of remote instruction for students is Tuesday, September 8, 2020.

For more information, please contact:

Newark Board of Education
Nancy Deering, Interim Executive Director
Communications
973-733-6265

 

Mayor Baraka, NJIT, and Newark Public Schools Partner to Double Number of Newark Students Attending NJIT and Award Three Full Scholarships as Well

Written by: City of Newark | View on the City of Newark Website


Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka, NJIT President Joel S. Bloom, and Newark Public Schools Superintendent Roger León launched a partnership with the university to create two initiatives: NJIT/Newark Math Success and The Mayor’s Honors Scholars Program, in a press conference today in City Hall.

‍The NJIT/Newark Math Success Initiative (MSI) will seek to dramatically increase by doubling the number of Newark residents who enroll at NJIT for undergraduate education. Currently, only about 200 Newark students are attending NJIT.

‍“As a 22-year-educator in Newark Public Schools, I know just how dedicated, talented, and motivated our students are to succeed in the classroom and in life. I also know that numbers of them must overcome considerable challenges to gain the high grades they need to in turn achieve their goals in life. This partnership between NJIT, Newark Public Schools, and the City will enable many deserving Newark students to gain a pipeline to classes, scholarships, and networking that will in turn enable them to attend college and excel. These two initiatives are more than an academic opportunity for our youth – they are an investment in our city’s future,” Mayor Baraka said.

‍The Mayor’s Honors Scholars program at NJIT will create opportunities for talented students from the Newark Public Schools to enroll in NJIT’s Albert Dorman Honors College. Each year, NJIT will work with the Newark Public Schools to select three Mayor’s Honors Scholars for admission to ADHC. These students will receive full scholarships as well as paid internships with the City of Newark during the summer months.

‍Established in 1995 through the generosity of NJIT alumnus Albert Dorman, who founded AECOM Technology Corporation (the largest architecture and engineering firm in the world), the ADHC has been ranked as a top public honors college by Inside Honors. Students in the ADHC have exclusive access to the James Kennedy Honors Center and may apply to live within the Honors Residence Hall. Their curriculum includes special classes, seminars, colloquia (lectures, trips, networking with distinguished speakers and alumni) as well as opportunities to engage in research and practical learning experiences, such as co-ops, internships and apprenticeships.

‍“These two STEM-focused programs will change the lives of thousands of Newark students,” said Superintendent León. “The initiatives will allow us to move our agenda for education and student scholarship forward. We are redefining our high schools and Dr. Bloom and NJIT and Mayor Baraka are providing a pathway to progress and success for our students and for that I am grateful.”

‍The goal of the NJIT/Newark Math Success Initiative is to increase the total enrollment of Newark residents at NJIT to a minimum of 600 through a partnership between NJIT, the Office of the Mayor and the Newark Public Schools. The MSI will provide direct mathematics instruction and support to rising 12th graders and mathematics-certified teachers at the following high schools: Central, Science Park, Technology, and Malcolm X Shabazz, where NJIT alumnus Naseed Gifted is principal. This will begin in the summer of 2019 and continue throughout the academic year. The program is designed to strengthen Newark high school students’ mathematics knowledge, skills and preparation for college work, so they are able to succeed as first-semester, first-year college freshmen taking MATH 111 Calculus at NJIT.

‍The first cohort of MIS students, as well as eight teachers, will complete a seven-week program from June 24 – August 9, 2019, on NJIT’s campus. Hands-on, applied mathematics instruction will be enhanced by counseling, tutoring, and other college preparatory support services interspersed with recreational activities in campus facilities. The participating high school teachers will engage in professional development activities and will be mentored by NJIT mathematics faculty while supporting students working in small groups during class instruction and recitation. They also may conduct research with NJIT faculty in mathematics pedagogy and applications. The Newark Public Schools will identify the students and faculty participating in the program.

‍During the academic year, selected high school teachers will meet monthly with NJIT mathematics faculty members through a combination of on-line and face-to-face interactions to further explore mathematics pedagogy. They also will build a peer network that will be extended to mathematics teachers assigned to other Newark high schools. The academic year experience for the student cohort will feature instruction in credit-bearing mathematics courses during the week and on Saturdays at NJIT. Students also will receive assistance with submitting the Common Application accepted by the NJIT Office of Admissions and completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form.

‍“Math is the foundation for success in the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) disciplines, and STEM is where the greatest career opportunities exist. We will continue to partner with Mayor Baraka and Superintendent Leon to make math proficiency less of a barrier for Newark students, so they can take advantage of having one of the nation’s leading polytechnic universities right in their own hometown,” President Bloom explained. “In addition to the programmatic aspects of this effort, NJIT will work to assure that none of these students leave our university because of financial need by investing more than $1 million per year to support their success.”
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About New Jersey Institute of Technology
One of only 32 polytechnic universities in the United States, New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) prepares students to become leaders in the technology-dependent economy of the 21st century. NJIT’s multidisciplinary curriculum and computing-intensive approach to education provide technological proficiency, business acumen and leadership skills. NJIT has a $2 billion annual economic impact on the State of New Jersey, conducts approximately $160 million in research activity each year (R1 Carnegie Classification), and is a global leader in such fields as solar research, nanotechnology, resilient design, tissue engineering, and cybersecurity, in addition to others. NJIT is ranked #1 nationally by Forbes for the upward economic mobility of its lowest-income students and is among the top 2 percent of public colleges and universities in return on educational investment, according to PayScale.com. NJIT also is ranked by U.S. News and World Report as one of the top 50 public national universities.