The Newark Public Schools ( http://www.nps.k12.nj.us/)
Newark, NJ

NUA Director: Dr. Ahmes Askia
Newark Liaison / Director: Dr. Gayle Griffin

PROJECT: Striving Readers

The NUA has been an educational and social justice partner with Newark Public Schools since 1995.  From the outset the partnership has centered around the secondary schools—first in all of the high schools (the magnets and the comprehensives—12 total) and in the last five years under the Striving Readers Grant in 19 middle grades (in both K-8 schools and middle schools).

Newark Public Schools is the largest school district in the state of New Jersey .  It is an urban district of approximately 42,000 students and 2, 844 teachers.  There is a 14 to 1 student teacher ratio in the district.  NPS is the second largest employer in the city of Newark, only Newark Liberty International Airport employs more people.  Seventy-four percent of Newark’s students are on free or reduced-price lunch.  Approximately 64.4% of the students are African American; 29.4% are Latino; and 5.4% are White.  Ninety-two percent of Newark’s students are in Chapter I classes.  The Median Household Income is $27,539-54,226.  Newark’s median household income is roughly half that of New Jersey’s.  (Sources: N.J. Dept. of Education website, Census Bureau.)

Newark has a lower student-faculty ratio and higher expenditures per pupil than another other district. It has a larger minority population compared to the state, with roughly 93% of its students being in a minority category, compared to 41% for the state.

NPS’s teaching force have the following degrees:

• Bachelor’s - 70%
• Master’s - 25%
• Ph.D. - 5%

Approximately 56% of the teaching force is White; 27% African American; 13% Latino; and 4% Asian.

The mission of NPS, ”…is to develop a productive citizen who is distinguished in all aspects of academic endeavors and willing to challenge the status quo in our society. We are committed to ensuring that our policies and practices will prepare our students for a world that is increasingly diverse and knowledge driven. We expect our schools and classroom environments to be emotionally safe and intellectually challenging. We pledge to partner with parents, groups, and organizations that add support to the mission by changing hearts and minds to value education.”  This mission is complemented by its partnership with the NUA in several ways:

• a focus on what is meaningful and relevant to the students and families;
• including students in the instructional process encouraging self-directed learning sand self-actualization;
• building capacity in schools so that teachers take ownership of the High Operational Practices which leads to High Intellectual Performances for their students.

NUA has expanded on the mission of NPS by its focus on student-centered processes and student voice, most particularly with an emphasis on:

• culturally responsive teaching
• classroom climate
• student engagement and motivation
• high intellectual performances
• self-directed learning

The following are the components of the NUA/NPS partnership:

• STEM Water Project (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math);
• 8th Grade Debate Teams (students debate issues that are self-selected from a list of 13 current topics);
• Basic forensics in preparation for debate (spring);
• Teacher Conference Day (Teachers conduct professional development for each other);
• Student team teaching (students team with each other or their teachers to teach content and strategies);
• Teacher Leader Professional Development to build capacity and to encourage sustainability of High Operational Practices.

The outcomes have been dramatic:

• Increased student achievement in the middle grades (6-8);
• Three student publications;
• Common language across the district;
• Students involved in pedagogical training to teach their schoolmates both strategies and content alongside their teachers—StudentVoiceNUA™;
• Enhanced teaching practices;
• Pedagogy of Confidence™ embraced;
• Teacher-Leader Training to build capacity and to sustain High Operational Practices in each school site;
• Enhanced student engagement.