In short the case was originally brought before the NJ Courts in 1981 in response to lack of equal funding distribution between poor school districts and wealthy school districts. In response to the court case (which has had 18 additional proceedings/arguments in front of the state Supreme Court) the NJBOE was found "guilty" of not addressing this issue which goes against the states constitution entitling all children to a thorough and equal education.
This new decision is not good in the least. The Governor of NJ claims to have been working with the NJBOE (New Jersey Board of Education) and consultants since 2006 to develop a more effective and financially responsible school funding budget formula. This case has caused great movements in the education world for almost 30 years and provided a stepping stone for other states and school districts to fight for the right of their students who have been and are currently still in similar circumstances with their own school districts. This case was used as precedent for other states to make the same arguments in their own cases against boards of education. Basically the funding fomrula has changed dramtically. I have been reading the Formula for Success: All Children All Communities (the title if this new formula budget formula. Apparently new research shows that 49% of all students come from low income families do not live in these designated Abbott districts. So, in response to the ever growing needs of students and updating schools and unpredictable budget objectives for each district, the state decided to find a more equitable way to distribute the funds evenly among all districts. However, this is still harmful to those 51% living in the Abbott districts. Funding is being cut dramatically and the revenue from city and town property taxes will not cover the gaps. I haven't read the entire document and maybe things will be worked out. The state is required to provide continuing information to the Courts in order to justify this drastic change in this policy for the next 3 years. But will the damage be so great from the next 3 years that all the progress made with these school districts in the last 10 years could be lost? Maybe that statement is too dramatic, maybe it will work. I hope!
Please visit the links below regarding this new development in Abbott District funding:
Above is the link to editorial response of one of the founders of the Education Law Center, which was one of the pioneers in the case brought against the New Jersey board of Education
The above link direct you to the NYTimes response to the states revisit to the Abbott court case.
This link is from last weeks paper after the decision in the new court ruling was made.
