Paterson Public Schools

Last updated

Paterson Public Schools
Address
90 Delaware Avenue
Paterson
, Passaic County , New Jersey , 07501
United States
Coordinates 40°55′03″N74°10′13″W / 40.917545°N 74.170203°W / 40.917545; -74.170203
District information
MottoPaterson - A Promising Tomorrow
Grades PreK to 12
SuperintendentLaurie W. Newell
Business administratorJune Gray
School board
  • Eddie Gonzalez
  • Joel D. Ramirez Valerie Freeman
  • Della McCall
  • Hector L. Nieves, Jr.
  • Mohammed H. Rasid
  • Kenneth Rosado
  • Kenneth L. Simmons
  • Corey Teague
Chair of the boardEddie Gonzalez
Schools43
NCES District ID 3412690 [1]
Affiliation(s)Former Abbott district
Students and staff
Enrollment24,692 (as of 2023–24) [2]
Faculty1,762.0 FTEs [2]
Student–teacher ratio14.0:1 [2]
Other information
District Factor Group A
Website www.paterson.k12.nj.us
Ind.Per pupilDistrict
spending		Rank
(*)		K-12
average		%± vs.
average
1ATotal Spending$20,45478$18,8918.3%
1Budgetary Cost16,3238314,78310.4%
2Classroom Instruction8,993648,7632.6%
6Support Services3,565982,39249.0%
8Administrative Cost1,576711,4856.1%
10Operations & Maintenance2,070871,78316.1%
13Extracurricular Activities541268−79.9%
16Median Teacher Salary54,182664,043
Data from NJDoE 2014 Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending. [3]
*Of K-12 districts with more than 3,500 students. Lowest spending=1; Highest=103

The Paterson Public Schools (PPS) is a comprehensive community public school district that serves students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade from Paterson, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. [4] The district is one of 31 former Abbott districts statewide that were established pursuant to the decision by the New Jersey Supreme Court in Abbott v. Burke [5] which are now referred to as "SDA Districts" based on the requirement for the state to cover all costs for school building and renovation projects in these districts under the supervision of the New Jersey Schools Development Authority. [6] [7]

Contents

As of the 2023–24 school year, the district, comprised of 43 schools, had an enrollment of 24,692 students and 1,762.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 14.0:1. [2]

Among the 594 students who took the SAT in 2013, the mean combined score was 1120 and there were 19 students (3.2% of those taking the exam) who achieved the combined score of 1550 that the College Board considers an indicator of college readiness, a decline from the 26 students (4.3%) who achieved the standard the previous year. [8] [9]

District enrollment in Paterson surged at the start of the 2015–16 school year, creating a public school enrollment of 700 students higher than expected and putting the school district in a situation of needing to hire teachers rapidly not long after the district had laid off 300 positions. [10]

History

The district had been one of two districts in New Jersey (along with Newark Public Schools) under "state intervention", which authorizes the commissioner of education to intervene in governance of a local public school district (and to intervene in the areas of instruction and program, operations, personnel, and fiscal management) if the commissioner has determined that a school district failed or was unable to take corrective actions necessary to establish a thorough and efficient system of education. [11] Initiated in 1991 as part of an effort to improve academic performance in the district and lasting for three decades, state control of the district ended in January 2021. [12]

Governor of New Jersey Jon Corzine announced in March 2009 that he was recommending the appointment of Donnie W. Evans as the district's superintendent, with the State Board of Education ratifying the nomination of Evans by Lucille Davy, Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Education. [13]

The district had been 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. [14]

Schools

Schools in the district (with 2023–24 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics [15] ) are: [16] [17] [18] [19]

Early Learning Centers
Elementary Schools [20]
Middle Schools [21]
High schools [22]

Administration

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

Board of education

The district's board of education, comprised of nine members, sets policy and oversees 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 2014) 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. [25] [26] [27]

The district voted in September 2013 voted by a 5-4 margin to move school elections from April to November. [28] An attempt by members of the Paterson City Council in January 2022 to shift elections back to April failed after the vote ended in a 4-4 tie. [29]

References

  1. ↑ "Search for Public School Districts – District Detail for Paterson Public School District". National Center for Education Statistics . Institute of Education Sciences . Retrieved September 11, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 District information for Paterson Public School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed December 15, 2024.
  3. ↑ Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending April 2013, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed April 15, 2013.
  4. ↑ Paterson Board of Education District Policy 0110 - Identification Archived March 2, 2022, at the Wayback Machine , Paterson Public Schools. Accessed March 28, 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 Paterson School District. Composition: The Paterson School District is comprised of all the area within the municipal boundaries of the City of Paterson."
  5. ↑ What We Do: History, New Jersey Schools Development Authority. Accessed March 1, 2022. "In 1998, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled in the Abbott v. Burke case that the State must provide 100 percent funding for all school renovation and construction projects in special-needs school districts. According to the Court, aging, unsafe and overcrowded buildings prevented children from receiving the "thorough and efficient" education required under the New Jersey Constitution.... Full funding for approved projects was authorized for the 31 special-needs districts, known as 'Abbott Districts'."
  6. ↑ What We Do, New Jersey Schools Development Authority. Accessed March 1, 2022.
  7. ↑ SDA Districts, New Jersey Schools Development Authority. Accessed March 1, 2022.
  8. ↑ Malinconico, Joe. "Latest SAT results: Number of Paterson 'college-ready' students drops to 19", Paterson Press, October 14, 2014. Accessed December 11, 2014. "A report released by the school district last week showed 19 of the 594 Paterson students who took the SATs this year had scores that met the 'college-ready' criteria established by the College Board, which conducts the standardized tests."
  9. ↑ Laine, Tamara. "Chasing College Ready", WWOR-TV, December 1, 2014. Accessed December 1, 2014. "In Paterson, New Jersey only 19 kids who took the SAT's are considered college ready. This means that they scored at least a 1500 out of 2400 on the standardized test, and this number is truly shocking considering how large the school district is."
  10. ↑ Malinconico, Joe. "Months after layoffs, unexpected enrollment puts Paterson school district in hiring scramble", The Record , September 17, 2015. Accessed September 17, 2015. "Just months after imposing more than 300 layoffs, the city school district is scrambling to hire dozens of extra teachers to handle an unexpected enrollment increase of about 700 students.... But far more immigrants have moved into Paterson than were expected, the superintendent said."
  11. ↑ Governance and Urban School Improvement: Lessons for New Jersey From Nine Cities Archived 2014-05-14 at the Wayback Machine , pp. 65–68, Institute on Education Law and Policy, Rutgers–Newark, October 2010. Accessed September 10, 2014.
  12. ↑ Clark, Adam. "N.J. gives school district local control after 30 years", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, January 6, 2021. Accessed September 12, 2025. "New Jersey’s takeover of Paterson Public Schools is officially over, three decades after the state seized control of the troubled district. The state Board of Education voted Wednesday to fully return local control to the city school board. The vote, mostly a formality, concludes a two-year transition to local control that began in 2018.... The state took over the struggling district in 1991, seeking to turn around student performance and low graduation rates."
  13. ↑ "Governor Corzine Announces New Paterson Superintendent", Governor of New Jersey Jon Corzine, press release dated March 31, 2009. Accessed January 27, 2015. "During a visit to PANTHER Academy, Governor Jon S. Corzine today announced the recommendation of Dr. Donnie W. Evans as Paterson's new Superintendent of Schools.... Education Commissioner Lucille Davy will formally propose Dr. Evan's appointment to the State Board of Education. At that time, the State Board of Education will cast a vote to make the Evans appointment official."
  14. ↑ District Factor Groups (DFG) for School Districts, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed December 1, 2024.
  15. ↑ School Data for the Paterson Public Schools, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed December 15, 2024.
  16. ↑ School, Paterson Public Schools. Accessed September 12, 2025.
  17. ↑ 2024–25 Public School Directory, Passaic County, New Jersey. Accessed March 1, 2024.
  18. ↑ School Performance Reports for the Paterson Public School District, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed July 1, 2025.
  19. ↑ New Jersey School Directory for the Paterson Public Schools, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed February 1, 2024.
  20. ↑ "Search for Public Schools - Search Results". nces.ed.gov. Retrieved September 12, 2025.
  21. ↑ "Search for Public Schools - Search Results". nces.ed.gov. Retrieved September 12, 2025.
  22. ↑ "Search for Public Schools - Search Results". nces.ed.gov. Retrieved September 12, 2025.
  23. ↑ District Administration, Paterson Public Schools. Accessed September 12, 2025.
  24. ↑ New Jersey School Directory for Passaic County, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed February 1, 2024.
  25. ↑ 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.
  26. ↑ Annual Comprehensive Financial Report for the Paterson Public Schools, New Jersey Department of Education, for year ending June 30, 2024. Accessed September 12, 2025. "The Paterson Public Schools (the 'Board' or the 'District”') is an instrumentality of the State of New Jersey, established to function as an educational institution. The City of Paterson School District is a Type II district located in the County of Passaic, State of New Jersey. As a Type II district, the School District functions independently through a Board of Education. The board is comprised of nine members elected to three-year terms. The purpose of the District is to educate students in grades Pre-K through grade 12. A superintendent is appointed by the Board and is responsible for the administrative control of the District." See "Roster of Officials" on page 27.
  27. ↑ Board of Education, Paterson Public Schools. Accessed September 12, 2025. "The Paterson Board of Education is the governing body of Paterson Public Schools. As of January 6, 2021, The N.J. Board of Education restored control of the Paterson Public Schools solely to the Paterson Board of Education after nearly 30 years of state control."
  28. ↑ "Board of Education election moved to November", Paterson Times, September 5, 2013. Accessed March 29, 2022. "The Paterson Board of Education election has been moved from April to November after a close vote on Tuesday: five school board members — Chrystal Cleaves, Christopher Irving, Manny Martinez, Kenneth Simmons, and Corey Teague — voted for the move; while four others — Wendy Guzman, Jonathan Hodges, Errol Kerr and Alex Mendez — voted against the measure."
  29. ↑ Malconico, Joe. "Paterson City Council's attempt to move school elections fails", Paterson Press, January 19, 2022. Accessed March 29, 2022. "In a 4-4 vote, the City Council on Tuesday night rejected a proposal to move Paterson’s school elections from November to April, an outcome decided only after Councilman Alex Mendez changed his mind at the last minute."
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