Washington school board adds voice to state-aid plea

Enrollment growth leaves Board of Education reiterating its plea for more funding.

By: Cynthia Koons
   WASHINGTON — Worries about limited state educational aid during a time of student enrollment growth has the Washington Township Board of Education reiterating a plea from last year for increases in district funding.
   It’s the second year the board has approved a resolution in support of full state aid — a political statement orchestrated by the New Jersey School Boards Association (NJSBA) to be presented to the state Legislature if funding is frozen or raised minimally.
   Gov. James McGreevey on Friday proposed a 1.5 percent increase in funding for school districts that now must be approved by the Legislature, NJSBA spokesman Frank Belluscio said.
   The resolution was written in fear of a second consecutive year of a freeze in state aid, but Mr. Belluscio said a 1.5 percent increase isn’t much better.
   "We understand the state has some fiscal realities. Local school districts also have fiscal realities," he said. "One point five percent will not be enough to forestall cutbacks and property tax increases."
   The budget freeze from last year already hurt districts, he said, with last year’s rising special education, transportation and utility costs not being compensated by state funding.
   Problems arise with state aid in Washington Township when the number of students increase but state aid doesn’t reflect the growth, school board Secretary Chris Mullins said.
   If the rate is kept flat, he said, the Washington School District would lose $250,000 over the course of two years.
   "(If it’s) frozen at the level from two years ago," school board President Florence Gange said, "those (districts) whose enrollments declined will be getting more money. There needs to be some equity here."
   The Washington School District is experiencing growth through both the building of a new $50 million high school, which will be opened in 2005, and by changing from a K-8 district to a pre-K through 12 over the next few years. State funding will not affect the construction project.
   Superintendent Paul Harren said the township has a history of working with politicians to solicit more educational aid.
   "Before the districts were changed, we had worked with Sen. Peter Inverso and he proposed a bill before the Legislature that would help out districts like Washington Township that were experiencing larger growth," Mr. Harren said.
   That was two and a half years ago, he said, at a time when another bill was proposed to stabilize budgets in townships that moved away from regionalization. That too would have had a direct benefit on Washington Township if passed.
   "Unfortunately both of those bills came off the table … when the new administration came in," Mr. Harren said.
   The latest resolution the school board passed will be returned to the New Jersey School Boards Association and sent to all legislators representing the 30th Legislative District, Mr. Mullins said.
   "You don’t get any response," Ms. Gange said of the Legislature’s reaction to a resolution of this type. "This is standard recourse when you’re not pleased with what you’re getting. It falls on deaf ears."
   Persistence, she said, is the school board’s only recourse.
   "You keep at it, keep at it, keep at it," she said. "You can’t sit back and take this."
   "What we don’t get in state aid has to come from the local tax base and it puts a tremendously heavy burden on the local communities to continue to support this," Mr. Harren said.
   "Last year in the raising of taxes, some programs were held off, but special education is all mandated so you can’t cut any special education," Mr. Mullins said. "If we had received that (state) aid, we would have been able to reduce taxes by almost 1 cent."
   Washington receives about $1.8 million in state funding annually. Mr. Mullins said that based on the district’s enrollment growth last year, state aid should have increased by almost $120,000.
   He said the state aid the district receives is funneled toward special education, transportation and bilingual education. Last year Mr. Mullins said the district had "five more special education students and no additional aid for those students."
   "We’re trying to look at other avenues where we can help to defray some of the cost to the local community," he added.
   Partners in Education, the new corporate sponsorship committee comprised of school board and community members, is one port in the storm the district has to help it alleviate the local tax burden.
   The group is seeking long-term business relationships for financial, material and immaterial support for the new high school and growing district.