Pinelands Regional School District

Last updated

Pinelands Regional School District
Address
520 Nugentown Road
Little Egg Harbor
, Ocean County , New Jersey , 08087
Coordinates 39°36′45″N74°21′30″W / 39.612389°N 74.358295°W / 39.612389; -74.358295
District information
Grades 7-12
SuperintendentMelissa McCooley
Business administratorAmanda Miller
Schools2
Students and staff
Enrollment1,592 (as of 2023–24) [1]
Faculty143.6 FTEs [1]
Student–teacher ratio11.1:1 [1]
Other information
District Factor Group B
Website www.pinelandsregional.org
Ind.Per pupilDistrict
spending		Rank
(*)		7-12
average		 %± vs.
average
1ATotal Spending$22,51033$18,89119.2%
1Budgetary Cost16,9543514,58616.2%
2Classroom Instruction9,327268,33911.8%
6Support Services2,936382,11438.9%
8Administrative Cost1,695271,5618.6%
10Operations & Maintenance2,192351,79821.9%
13Extracurricular Activities65812673−2.2%
16Median Teacher Salary58,422465,769
Data from NJDoE 2014 Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending. [2]
*Of 7-12 districts with any number of students. Lowest spending=1; Highest=47

Pinelands Regional School District is a regional school district in Ocean County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, serving students from Eagleswood Township, Little Egg Harbor Township and Tuckerton Borough along with the Burlington County municipality of Bass River Township. [3] [4] [5]

Contents

As of the 2023–24 school year, the district, comprised of two schools, had an enrollment of 1,592 students and 143.6 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.1:1. [1]

The district participates in the Interdistrict Public School Choice Program, which allows non-resident students to attend school in the district at no cost to their parents, with tuition covered by the resident district. [6] Available slots are announced annually by grade. [7]

History

Pinelands Regional High School officially opened on September 5, 1979, as a Junior-Senior High School, originally housing students in seventh through twelfth grades from Tuckerton, Little Egg Harbor, Bass River, and Eagleswood. Prior to the opening of the school, students from those communities had attended Southern Regional School District in the Manahawkin section of Stafford Township, which had been dealing for years with overcrowding. [8]

The building originally held grades 7–8 on the third floor, 9–10 on the second, and 11–12 on the first. The building featured an experimental open classroom design, where a large group of students of varying skill levels would be in a single, large classroom with several teachers overseeing them; and contained no interior walls. With students complaining that they were distracted by the noise from other classes, the rooms were walled off and separated by floor-to-ceiling folding partitions. [9]

In 1991, Pinelands Middle School opened across the street for students in grades 7–8. Also in the 1990s, a new building was completed next to the high school, which houses a daycare center called "Rainbow Express". Students taking childcare classes attend class in this building to help with the daycare kids. In 2002, the Middle School was expanded and the 9th grade was moved there, at which time it was renamed "Pinelands Regional Junior High School". [10]

In 2017, voters approved a bond referendum for renovations to both schools, including new roofing, bathrooms, new masonry in the High School building, and other cosmetic and safety upgrades. Renovation work on the High School was halted after workers discovered asbestos and roofing nails dislodged in the commons area. The high school building was closed for the entirety of the 2018–19 school year while renovations were completed; portable classrooms were installed at the junior high school to accommodate five grades of students, while 7th graders attended the nearby Frog Pond Elementary School. [11]

In 2018, Melissa McCooley, already superintendent of Little Egg Harbor schools, also became superintendent of Pinelands Regional schools, having two positions at one time. [12]

In September 2019, the high school re-opened, housing grades 9-12 for the first time since 2002. [13]

The district had been classified by the New Jersey Department of Education as being in District Factor Group "B", the second-lowest of eight groupings. District Factor Groups organize districts statewide to allow comparison by common socioeconomic characteristics of the local districts. From the lowest socioeconomic status to highest, the categories are A, B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I and J. [14]

Schools

Pinelands Regional Junior High School Pinelandsjh.jpg
Pinelands Regional Junior High School
Pinelands Regional High School Prhs.jpg
Pinelands Regional High School

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

Both schools are located directly across the street from each other on Nugentown Road, near the border of Little Egg Harbor and Tuckerton.

WCAT

WCAT is a Television station on local channel 21 for the area that the district serves. Most of the cast and crew is made up of students who take the class as an elective. The channel shows live morning announcements at 7:32am daily, followed by a commercial or short skit made by members of the WCAT class. Throughout the day, especially during lunch periods, other school programs or past school events are shown on the channel, usually shown on TVs in the cafeteria. Throughout the rest of the day, however, the channel is composed of school or community announcements typical of public-access television cable TV networks.

Notable faculty

Administration

Core members of the district's administration are: [25] [26]

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 2012) 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. [29] [30] Representatives are elected on the basis of the constituent population, with six seats allocated to Little Egg Harbor Township, and one each allocated to Bass River Township, Eagleswood Township and Tuckerton. [31]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 District information for Pinelands Regional School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed December 15, 2024.
  2. ↑ Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending April 2013, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed April 15, 2013.
  3. ↑ Pinelands Regional Board of Education District Policy 0110 - Identification, Pinelands Regional School District, adopted July 17, 2008. Accessed January 7, 2025. "Purpose The Board of Education exists for the purpose of providing a thorough and efficient system of free public education in grades 7 through 12 in the Pinelands Regional School District. Composition The Pinelands Regional School District is comprised of all the area within the municipal boundaries of Bass River, Eagleswood, Little Egg Harbor and Tuckerton Borough."
  4. ↑ Staff. "Regional School Districts", Burlington County Times , April 26, 2015. Accessed January 1, 2025. "Pinelands Regional - Serves: Bass River in Burlington County; Eagleswood, Little Egg Harbor and Tuckerton in Ocean County"
  5. ↑ Greenfield, Bruce. "Ocean County Report On Consolidation and Regionalization" [ permanent dead link ], Report of the Executive County Superintendent, March 15, 2010. Accessed April 21, 2011. "Pinelands Regional - Eagleswood, Tuckerton, Bass River, Little Egg Harbor"
  6. ↑ List of Choice Districts: Choice Program Profiles for 2025-2026 School Year, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed January 1, 2025.
  7. ↑ Pinelands Regional School District Choice Profile for 2025-26 School Year, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed January 1, 2025.
  8. 1 2 The History of SRHS, Southern Regional School District. Accessed January 22, 2020. "But eventually the high school had to go into split sessions due to over-crowding again. That problem was finally solved in 1979 with the opening of Pinelands Regional High School in Tuckerton. All mainland students south of Manahawkin would no longer be attending Southern Regional."
  9. ↑ Roberts, Neal. "PRHS Awards Bids To Close Off Open Classrooms", The Press of Atlantic City , June 5, 1986. Accessed January 7, 2025, via Newspapers.com. "On first and second floors of one wing, four open classrooms exist at each corner of a common center area on each floor. Only thin partitions separate the 10 class areas that are used regularly, and students have found it difficult to concentrate with distractions from the neighboring classes. The board decided last February it should correct the problem."
  10. 1 2 Harper, Derek. "Great weather for building; Pinelands Regional project running ahead of schedule", The Press of Atlantic City , March 2, 2002. Accessed January 7, 2025, via Newspapers.com. "The $10 million construction project at Pinelands Regional Middle School on Nugentown Road adds 20 classrooms, including science, special-education and graphic-arts rooms, said Lawrence Mesarick, the middle school's principal since 1989. With the addition, the school will move from being a middle school to a junior high school.... A general renovation of the main school, built in 1991, starts June 21."
  11. ↑ Lowe, Claire. "Construction to close Pinelands Regional High School for 2018-19 school year", The Press of Atlantic City , March 21, 2018. Accessed January 22, 2019. "Pinelands Regional High School may not open in the fall, pending state approval, as a $53 million rehabilitation project continues in the district. The seventh- to 12th-grade district hopes to keep the high school building closed for the 2018-19 school year as it begins another phase of the project that, this year, already closed the building for three months, acting Superintendent Cheryl Stevenson said Monday. The district’s plans include having 10th-, 11th- and 12th-grade students attend classes at the junior high school across the street."
  12. ↑ Lowe, Claire (June 1, 2018). "Little Egg school chief tapped to head Pinelands Regional". The Press of Atlantic City . Retrieved June 13, 2021.
  13. ↑ Lowe, Claire. "Wildcats come home as Pinelands reopens high school for 2019", The Press of Atlantic City , September 1, 2019. Accessed January 22, 2020. "Unlike previous years, the high school will house ninth graders, as well. They previously attended the junior high school with seventh- and eighth-grade students."
  14. ↑ District Factor Groups (DFG) for School Districts, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed December 1, 2024.
  15. ↑ School Data for the Pinelands Regional School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed December 15, 2024.
  16. ↑ Public Schools Directory 2024-2025; Living & Learning in Ocean County, Ocean County, New Jersey. Accessed January 1, 2025.
  17. ↑ School Performance Reports for the Pinelands Regional School District, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed April 3, 2024.
  18. ↑ New Jersey School Directory for the Pinelands Regional School District, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed February 1, 2024.
  19. ↑ Pinelands Junior High School, Pinelands Regional School District. Accessed January 7, 2025.
  20. ↑ Welcome Message, Pinelands Junior High School. Accessed January 7, 2025.
  21. ↑ Pinelands High School, Pinelands Regional School District. Accessed January 7, 2025.
  22. ↑ Message from the Principal, Pinelands High School. Accessed January 7, 2025.
  23. ↑ Anastatsia, George. "Ex-mistress Says Marshall Wanted To 'Get Rid Of' Wife", The Philadelphia Inquirer , February 14, 1986. Accessed October 6, 2013. "Kraushaar said that she and her husband have moved from Toms River and that in May she resigned as vice principal of Pineland Regional High School."
  24. ↑ via Associated Press. "Frustrated N.J. Transgender Teacher to Retire", Fox News, July 22, 2009. Accessed October 6, 2013. "Before her transition from male to female in 2005, McBeth said she averaged between 15 to 18 assignments a year as a substitute teacher for elementary students in the Eagleswood school district, and an additional 16 to 20 a year in the Pinelands Regional School District, teaching high school students."
  25. ↑ District Administration Staff, Pinelands Regional School District. Accessed January 7, 2025.
  26. ↑ New Jersey School Directory for Ocean County, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed February 1, 2024.
  27. ↑ Superintendent's Office, Pinelands Regional School District. Accessed January 7, 2025.
  28. ↑ Business Office, Pinelands Regional School District. Accessed January 7, 2025.
  29. ↑ 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.
  30. ↑ Annual Comprehensive Financial Report for the Pinelands Regional School District, New Jersey Department of Education, for year ending June 30, 2023. Accessed January 7, 2025. "The Pinelands Regional School District is a Type II School District located in the County of Ocean, State of New Jersey. As a Type II School District, the School District functions independently through a Board of Education. The Board is comprised of nine members elected to three-year terms. These terms are staggered so that three members’ terms expire each year. The purpose of the School District is to educate students in grades seven through twelfth. The operation of the District includes one regional junior high and one senior high school, located Little Egg Harbor." See "Roster of Officials" on page 19.
  31. ↑ Board of Education, Pinelands Regional School District. Accessed January 7, 2025. "The Board of Education is composed of nine citizens elected to serve terms of three years each. Representatives are elected on the basis of constituent population - one from Bass River Township, one from Eagleswood Township, six from Little Egg Harbor Township, and one from the Borough of Tuckerton."
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