District

Overall College Enrollment Increases for Newark High School Graduates But There’s Room for Improvement

By: Chanel L. Donaldson | July 30, 2018

Photo Courtesy: Montclair State University
Photo Courtesy: Montclair State University

[Newark, NJ July 30, 2018] Today, the Newark City of Learning Collaborative (NCLC) released Post-Secondary Outcomes of Newark High School Graduates, an analysis of what college-going looks like for nearly 13,500 of Newark’s recent graduates. Housed at the Joseph C. Cornwall Center for Metropolitan Studies, NCLC is working to build Newark’s college-going culture by ensuring that all Newarkers have the tools and resources needed to get to and through college. The report was produced in collaboration with the Rutgers University-Newark School of Public Affairs and Administration.

Covering approximately 85 percent of all Newark high school students who graduated between 2011 and 2016, the report examines college enrollment, persistence, and completion rates.

“The good news is that we know more Newark students are enrolling in college, but we also know that far too few are persisting to degree completion,” says NCLC Executive Director Reginald Lewis. “We hope that this report will serve as a resource to better understand the experiences of recent high school graduates.”

Post-Secondary Outcomes is truly groundbreaking because it is representative of graduates from traditional public, charter, vocational technical, and private schools. The report is the first of its kind, involving the participation of representatives from all of Newark’s school sectors.

“The cross-sector collaboration was one of the highlights of the project and enabled us to examine college-going for a wide range of Newark high school graduates. One of our goals was really to put schools in conversation – not competition – with one another to learn and share best practices throughout the community,” remarks the report’s co-author Dr. Kristi Donaldson.

Newark Public Schools currently enrolls over 60% of all Newark high school students. Newly appointed Superintendent Roger León has already demonstrated interest in collaboration and making college-going and college persistence a priority for NPS students. “I would like to thank Rutgers–Newark, the Newark City of Learning Collaborative, and SPAA for capturing this important data on Newark Public Schools high school graduates over the span of the last six years,” said Superintendent León. “While these numbers represent improvement over previous years, they remain far from where we should be. Our goal in Newark and my commitment is to propel students in an upward trajectory. Our students can soar academically and can compete nationally.”

Ryan Hill, founder and CEO of KIPP New Jersey, noted “the academic rigor of our K-12 education and the support we give our alumni and their families as they navigate their lives after high school have been critically important in helping our kids close the college opportunity gap and reach their potential.” Hill also highlighted the importance of “collectively work[ing] to expand college opportunities for Newark students.” In fact, KIPP recently supported a group of Newark Public School guidance counselors to attend their College Counseling Institute in San Antonio, TX, indicating greater interest in working together. [1]

With an increasingly large share of Newark students enrolled, Essex County Schools of Technology (formerly Essex County Vocational Technical Schools or ECVTS), made up the second largest subset of students in the study. Superintendent Dr. James M. Pedersen commented on the importance of Post-Secondary Outcomes by saying, “As we continue to improve our practices in preparing students to be successful in college and in the area of career-technical education, the findings and recommendations of this report will help us shape programs that hold students to high academic standards and spur better outcomes for them.”

As the only private school involved, St. Benedict’s Prep’s Headmaster Fr. Edwin Leahy noted his enthusiasm in taking part in the project adding, “We are eager to share what experience has taught us about not only getting young men into college, but also playing a role in supporting them through it … [and] learning from the other participating high schools as we continue our work to ensure that an even greater number of our graduates receive their college degrees within four or six years of leaving us.”

Ultimately, the findings of Post-Secondary Outcomes will help school leaders, educators, parents, and policymakers from across the city evaluate and strengthen the high school to college transition.

“This can help the city to make informed policy decisions to ensure as many young people as possible succeed at the college level,” says Lewis.

Community roundtables in each of Newark’s five wards are scheduled to take place this fall, beginning with a press launch at Newark City Hall in September.

To download the full report, visit www.nclc2025.org.

NJ Tree Foundation and Newark Public School Students Plant 24 Trees at Elliott Street School


[NEWARK, NJ – July 3, 2018] Students at Newark Public School’s Elliott Street School joined the New Jersey Tree Foundation for the planting of 24 trees around the school, located in Newark’s North Ward. The trees were donated by the NJ Tree Foundation. The students were joined by Senator Teresa Ruiz, North Ward Councilman Anibal Ramos, Superintendent Roger León and others.

Superintendent of Newark Public Schools Roger León said, “Thank you to the NJ Tree Foundation for helping to beautify Elliott Street School – a crowned jewel in our district.” I want to also thank our students, their teacher and Principal Nicole T. Johnson for developing a STEM based curriculum supporting the planting of the 24 trees.”

The Superintendent also thanked Senator Ruiz and Councilman Ramos for encouraging the students to continue to protect the environment and to contribute to beautification efforts around their school and in the community.

“One Country – Many Languages”

Newark Hosts NJ’s Only Multilingual Spelling Bee
Portuguese, Spanish and English Speaking Spelling Bee
Event Is Believed to Be the Only 1 in the Region

[NEWARK, NJ – May 31, 2018] Newark Public Schools, New Jersey’s largest school district, hosted the 39th Annual MULTILINGUAL Spelling Bee. The spelling bee, held at the Newark Museum, spans 3 days and incorporates three languages.

Day 1 featured the spelling bee in Portuguese, Day 2 featured Spanish and the final day, Day 3 featured all spelling in English. The Multilingual Spelling Bee included more than 250 students from across the city. The Spelling Bee featured Division A consisting of Grades 4-6, Division B consisting of Grades 7-8 and Division C consisting of Grades 9-12.

Interim Superintendent A. Robert Gregory commended the Bilingual Department for continuing to carry on a NPS tradition that encourages students to speak in their native language, as part of their overall learning. He added, “Communication, whether in Portuguese, Spanish, English or other languages, is key to opening a world of wonder and engagement with others.

Brenda Garcia, Executive Director of the Bilingual Department said, “I am very proud of the students and their engagement in our Multilingual Spelling Bee. The love of languages is something that we encourage for our students and families. This event helps to reinforce our mission of engaging students in the languages.

Students 2 Science Opens at NPS Central Office! Eagle Academy Student, Maurice Minott, is Named First Intern

U.S. Senator Cory Booker And Newark Mayor Ras Baraka Unveil Students 2 Science’s New State-Of-The-Art STEM Education Laboratory In The Heart Of Newark

S2S, Newark Public Schools and the City of Newark Partner to Bring 21st Century STEM Education to Newark’s 5-12 Students

[Newark, NJ | May 7, 2018 | PRNewswire] New Jersey’s and Newark’s top elected officials gathered today with representatives from Students 2 Science (S2S), Newark Public Schools and the City of Newark to celebrate the opening of the new S2S Newark Technology Center in downtown Newark at 765 Broad Street.

S2S Newark Technology Center marks the newest chapter of Newark’s revitalization and its commitment to STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education. Joining S2S co-founder and president Paul Winslowwere U.S. Senator, the Honorable Cory Booker; Mayor of Newark, the Honorable Ras Baraka; and, Newark Public Schools Interim Superintendent Robert Gregory.

During the opening ceremony, Tom Gebhardt, Chairman and CEO of Panasonic Corporation of North America, awarded a $1.5 million grant to support the S2S Newark Technology Center.

“Today, we are thrilled to announce with our partners – Newark Public Schools and the City of Newark – that with the new S2S Newark Technology Center, we are bringing comprehensive, 21st century STEM education to students in the district with our program aimed at inspiring, motivating, and educating them to pursue global careers in STEM,” said Winslow, retired Ph.D. chemist and co-founder of Students 2 Science, including its first lab in East Hanover and the Newark center.

“We are also enormously grateful to Panasonic for the generous support, as well as to our other longtime supporters that have helped us reach our goals including PSEG and Thermo Fisher Scientific.”

The S2S Newark Technology Center is a 10,000 square foot, authentic, commercial-grade laboratory which will be outfitted with $4 million of state-of-the-art instrumentation. It features six working analytical laboratories and two virtual laboratory (V-Lab) studios each equipped with a hybrid communications platform. S2S Newark seeks to close the gap in STEM education by offering experiential STEM learning to all Newark 5-12 students through its three signature programs – ISAAC, V-Labs and teacher professional development.

ISAAC, which stands for Improving Students Affinity and Aptitude for Careers in STEM, provides middle and high school students with on-site, real-world STEM instruction led by volunteer professional scientists. The S2S program is expected to reach more than 32,000 Newark students and their parents beginning as early as 2019.

At S2S Newark, students work side-by-side with volunteer professional scientists using modern instrumentation to investigate critical world issues, such as the impact of global overpopulation on food scarcity, water pollution, pandemics, and more. These real-world investigations are grounded in Newark’s curriculum and the “Next Generation Science Standards” — rigorous science standards adopted by the state — and represent some of the most vital issues facing today’s youth.

“As a longtime resident of Newark, I welcome Students 2 Science with open arms,” said Senator Booker. “Through its exemplary curriculum, instructors, and mentors, Students 2 Science is preparing all Newark students with the skills and workforce experiences they need in order to fully participate in cutting-edge STEM careers. From biotechnology and life sciences to engineering and information technology, this program is helping prepare our students for jobs of the 21st Century.”

In addition to the ISAAC program’s on-site instruction, S2S Newark also offers its V-labs, where students do hands-on, project-based learning with professional scientists right at their desks. This remote, virtual instruction broadens S2S’s reach by eliminating geographic barriers and language constraints through Connectivity, a sophisticated proprietary communications platform available in 200 spoken languages with interpreters on demand, bringing S2S’s offerings to global capacity.

“Newark is on the rise and S2S stands at the forefront of its renewal when it comes to nurturing its future STEM education success,” said Mayor Ras Baraka. “S2S Newark is an innovative, collaborative project that shows just what can be accomplished when the public and private sectors come together for the sake of our students.”

Teachers are also a focus of the S2S Newark Technology center. It will provide professional development and technical assistance for teachers in STEM. Both in-lab and in-class instruction include mentoring, teacher support, and rigorous science education compatible with the Next Generation Science Standards and career pathways for 21st century jobs.

“At Newark Public Schools, our partnership with S2S and the City of Newark on the S2S Newark Technology Center underscores the high priority we place on STEM education for our students,” said Robert Gregory, NPS Superintendent. “It is vital that we educate our students with high-quality instruction that promotes critical and complex thinking, while also providing our teachers with the innovative and meaningful professional development they need to deliver this critical STEM content.”

Corporate Sponsors on Students 2 Science
S2S success lies in its close collaboration with the corporate partners, many of whom provide volunteer scientists and mentors to S2S programming and ongoing support. Here is what some have to say:

David Daly, President and Chief Operating Officer, PSEG
“PSEG believes mentors are essential to student success as role models who inspire, motivate and educate them on their path to a 21st century STEM career. Our investment in the S2S Newark Technology Center is an investment in the future of students and the community, at large.”

Tom Gebhardt, Chairman and CEO, Panasonic Corporation of North America
“Panasonic sees today’s STEM students as our future innovators. We applaud the goals and work of the S2S Newark Technology Center teaching and inspiring the students in our community, by providing game-changing technology and all the tools they need to succeed.”

Dan Shine, Senior Vice President, Analytical Instruments, Thermo Fisher Scientific
“Our philanthropic focus is to inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers by introducing them to STEM subjects in a way that is engaging and fun. S2S Newark Technology Center and Thermo Fisher share the same commitment to STEM and our donation of laboratory instrumentation underscores that commitment by making math and science education more accessible to students.”

About Students 2 Science
As a model program with demonstrated success meeting the needs of the public and private sectors, Students 2 Science (S2S) aims to inspire, motivate, and educate our nation’s future STEM leaders by closing education, access, and opportunity gaps. S2S’s success is rooted in exemplary, hands-on science instruction at its commercial-grade laboratories that fosters workforce readiness. S2S achieve this through cross-sector collaborations between district leadership, corporate partners and institutions of higher education. The goal of S2S is to close the gap between education and New Jersey’s and the nation’s projected economic growth and global leadership. To learn more about Students 2 Science visit http://www.students2science.org/ or check them out on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Students2Science/.

About Newark Public Schools
The Newark Public Schools, serving more than 36,000 students, is the largest and one of the oldest school systems in New Jersey. The racial and ethnic diversity of the city provides a rich educational experience for pre-kindergarten to secondary school students.

Newark Public Schools Recognize Black History Month with Programming, Lessons, Arts and Culture and Events

[NEWARK, NJ – February 23, 2018] Newark Public Schools students, teachers and principals are recognizing Black History Month with a number of programs, events, and arts and culture initiatives throughout the month to recognize the many contributions of African Americans.   The month long recognition included special guest speakers and lectures at Weequahic High, Hawthorne Elementary School, First Avenue School, Chancellor Avenue, Mt. Vernon, Carver Bruce Street School and East Side High School, to name a few. In addition, a number of schools conducted Celebrity Read Program and tributes to African Americans who have contributed to the American experience in this country and the office of Family and Community Engagement hosted a health fair focusing on wellness in the community.

“Thank you to every principal, vice principal, teacher, aide, student and parent, who this month paused to remember the many contributions of African Americans,” said Robert Gregory, Interim Superintendent of Newark Public Schools. “It is our responsibility to remember African American history, not just in February, but to remember it at all times and to and teach African American history year round, in and outside the classroom.”

Below is a partial list of programs and events that recognizing African American history month.

  • First Avenue- Students Protest Parade-Hallways
  • First Avenue- Motown Theme
  • Chancellor-“Celebrity Read” (Black History Theme & a Partnership w/ United Way)
  • Chancellor- MVOL Family FUN Night
  • Chancellor- Black History Showcase Performances: Songs, Dance, Poetry, Monologues, Video Clips, etc…)
  • Newark Evening- Know the past, shape the future
  • Carver/Bruce- Carver Black History Month (A School-wide Celebration of History & Culture)
  • Early Childhood North- Celebrating in the Auditorium history through

Song, dramatization, chants and affirmations

  • North 10th Street- Celebrating Famous African American Woman
  • East Side High- Black History Month Wall (Display)
  • Abington- Brief history of Jamaica, Musical, Dance, Singing

Celebrity Read Program at Chancellor Avenue School Yields 15 Readers

[Newark, NJ – February 22, 2018] More than 15 Celebrity Readers participated in the Chancellor Avenue program this month, bringing the joy of reading to students of all ages. Readers were welcomed to Chancellor by the Chancellor Avenue Ambassadors – 8th grade students who serve as community and guest ambassadors for the school.

Interim Superintendent Gregory said, “The Celebrity Read Program allows us to share the joy of reading with our students and our community. Thank you to the United Way and to all participating NPS and to the United Way for continuing to bring this important program to our schools during the month of February. I want to send a special thank you to the Newark Police and Fire Departments for reading to our students and all others who have donated their valuable time.”

Chancellor Avenue School Principal Sakina Pitts said, “It brings me great joy to welcome guests to Chancellor. Thank you to the United Way and to all of the volunteers, particularly our student ambassadors, who represented the entire student body well.” Principal Pitts was joined by Assistant Superintendent Kathy Duke Jackson, who read to a number of classes throughout the morning.

Celebrity Read was established by the United Way of Essex and West Hudson in 1991 as a community-building initiative to diversify the United Way volunteer base while inspiring elementary school children to read, dream, and set and accomplish goals. Recruited from all walks of life, Celebrity Readers travel to local schools where they read a brief passage about the accomplishments of model people of color who have played an important role in American or world history. The Readers also share their own life experiences to instill in the students a sense of pride and hope for the future, emphasizing the importance of education and reading in particular. Originally conceived as a way to celebrate African American History Month, the program was subsequently expanded to include people of other minority descent.