JERSEY CITY
For 2009-10, the Jersey City Public School District continued to make steady strides toward success, focused on its mission of ensuring educational programs and services of the highest quality be offered equitably in all schools for all students. This could only occur with the entire community working together for all our children. Since its founding, the Jersey City Public School District has invited and welcomed the partnership of our administrators, instructional and non-instructional staff members, parents and our community in providing an excellent education that is both rich in tradition and poised for the future.

The district has established and upholds high academic expectations for all students at all grades (Pre-kindergarten through Grade 12) aligned with the NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards (2009 NJDOE adoption) and NJDOE high school graduation requirements. All PreK-12 programs for students are developed and implemented in accordance with the required federal and state mandates (i.e. general education, special education, bilingual/ESL, alternative education, and gifted and talented). Specific program initiatives include:


High School Transformation
The Jersey City Public Schools was selected by the NJ Department of Education to pilot the "Jersey City Model" of the Secondary Education Initiative. The Jersey City Public Schools' model since September 2009 focuses on restructuring our seven high schools, five stand-alone middle schools and elementary schools with middle grades (6-8) into small learning communities centered on various career themes. These communities are expected to house between 300 and 400 high school students each, beginning at the 9th Grade level. In our middle schools, students have begun to identify areas of interest, which may include the health field, technology, food service, etc., through vocational/career interest inventories, and will pursue career electives in their High School programs.


Early Childhood Program
The district provides a high quality preschool program to eligible students. The Prek Program is comprehensive and focuses on the social, emotional, physical, and academic development of the child by providing developmentally appropriate educational experiences. The program is aligned with the New Jersey Department of Education’s "2009 Preschool Teaching and Learning Standards" and services eligible three-year olds and four-year olds at locations, which include both in-district sites and contracted childcare provider sites. The Early Childhood program follows the High/Scope research-based curriculum.


Curriculum and Instruction
The Jersey City Public School District prepares students for the challenges of a competitive, global, and highly sophisticated technological society by developing, implementing, and evaluating board-approved standards-based, integrated curricula for all content areas at all grade levels aligned with the New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards (NJCCCS) adopted in Spring 2009. The NJCCCS delineate the knowledge, skills and dispositions every student in New Jersey should acquire and the understandings they should develop as they progress through the grades, along with the skills and dispositions required to be a successful and productive 21st century citizen.

For grades K-12, the district’s standards-based curricula provide comprehensive indicators and course competencies for student achievement at each designated grade level. All grade levels are aligned with the NJCCCS in the content areas. Language Arts Literacy (Reading and Writing), Mathematics, Social Studies, Science, Visual and Performing Arts, Comprehensive Health and Physical Education, World Languages, Technological Literacy and Career Education and Consumer, Family and Life Skills are the nine foundational areas of all student instruction. STEM (Science/Technology/Engineering and Mathematics) and 21st century, digital and technological career orientation skills are infused across the curricula.

Teaching and learning is rooted and supported at all grade levels through problem-based, inquiry-oriented trans-disciplinary instruction. The district's intensive literacy, mathematics and science initiatives provide students with comprehensive instruction designed around evidence-based best practices, a plethora of high quality materials and resources, connections across content areas, and relevant relationships to real-life experiences. The initiation of the “Progressive Science Initiative: Physics Cohort” and “Radical Algebra: Teaching and Learning” pilot programs for eight and ninth grade students highlights the district’s focus on excellence and success in STEM content for more students. The enhanced use of interactive white boards, laptop computers, netbooks, and other technology resources continue to improve and extend learning experiences in many classrooms.

Ongoing, job-embedded professional development continues to be provided so that teachers and administrators can work individually and collaboratively to address strategies for improving student performance. The development of collaborative “professional learning communities” builds collegiality and expertise of our instructional staff members.

The Department of Curriculum and Instruction services grades K-12 and consists of departments, programs and initiatives that promote academic achievement for all students in all grade levels in all content areas and provides rich educational supports and services for all professional staff members. District Supervisors are the force and strength of the Curriculum and Instruction Department. This group of professionals carries out the vision, program design, implementation plans, and assessment/evaluation requirements for each content area across the district's schools. They are the "connective tissue" that brings vitality, cohesion and success to the educational goals of the district. Additionally, district supervisors provide powerful support for instructional staff members on a daily basis in the schools so that administrators and teachers efficiently carry out their assigned instructional responsibilities by effectively implementing the district's standards-based expectations for student performance and achievement. District Coaches provide additional in-class assistance in content development and effective strategies on a regularly scheduled basis in language arts, math, social studies and science. They assist staff in the areas of planning and preparation, instruction and assessment by modeling lessons and strategies, co-teaching and providing direct feedback.


Special Education
Jersey City prides itself on being an Inclusive School District. Each school in the district is focused on educating every child. The Jersey City Department of Special Education is dedicated to creating all inclusive schools which provide programs and services that promote the success of all students. The department motto is "Each child matters."

All schools and students within the district are supported by the Department of Special Education through a comprehensive academic and behavioral support system. Most of our classified students have access to the same services and curriculum provided to the general education population.

As a support staff and staff developers, the L.I.N.K.S. (Leaders Integrating and Networking Knowledge for Supports) team will provide both individual and school wide supports. Support is given to individual teachers through a request form and is provided using information packets, peer coaching sessions and model lessons. Workshop participants include district staff including: school-based Collaborative Consultation Teachers, Paraeducators, new teachers and substitute teachers. School site workshops include participants working with both general and special education students. We endeavor to work for the benefit of all students in Jersey City, with the focus on professional development and best practices for inclusion. Our commitment is to support children with disabilities and those professionals working with them.

In addition, the Department of Special Education has created the L.I.N.K.S. Resource Center and Model
Classroom. The L.I.N.K.S. Team facilitates training and Professional Development seminars of best inclusionary practices to help the classroom teacher create a successful educational environment for students and their varied needs. It is the district’s mission to foster collaboration among school staff, families and students in order to provide support for students at-risk and with disabilities, their parents, and general and special education teachers in all settings. The demonstration classroom will provide a modeling, coaching and interactive teaching laboratory for all teachers. It will also serve to provide one-to-one or small group tutorials on research based exemplary classroom practices, learning centers and student friendly layouts. The Resource Center will provide teachers access to a collection of professional books, videos/DVDs, curriculum, magazines and journals. Also, teachers will be trained to use the Promethean Board Interactive model lessons while visiting the center. Additional services and teacher centered activities will be available based on support requests or district identified needs.


Programs and Services
The Department of Programs and Services provides support to students, parents and teachers to ensure the academic success of every child. The district recognizes that the school community reflects a rich tapestry of diversity including multiple cultures and languages, newly immigrated, and various economic situations in a city undergoing dramatic growth in housing and business. Activities and services within the Department of Programs and Services are designed to address and enhance the academic, social and emotional learning of the child.

This department provides a wide array of support including No Child Left Behind services, guidance services, 504 accommodations, student attendance monitoring, drop-out prevention programs, home instruction, drug and alcohol prevention, gang awareness education, character education development, social emotional development, career development, parental involvement, zero tolerance programs, and outreach and referral to local agencies to support students and their families.

Services are also provided to children in the nonpublic schools. The aforementioned system of support programs have not only contributed to improved student attendance, a decrease in the dropout rate, attainment of high school diploma but has also fostered a lifelong love of learning and better citizenship.


Educational Technology
The Educational Technology Department provides access to technology, including high-speed internet access in every classroom through direct cable connections and wireless solutions and access to data collected, synthesized, organized, and managed through the district’s Data Warehouse. The Data Warehouse transforms the district’s various data systems to load data into the state’s NJ Smart system, a state-wide longitudinal data base system.

The Educational Technology Department is involved with implementing National Standards to improve Data Quality, Data Reporting, and Data Ethics. It has implemented an Online Data Ethics Certification project to assure that all data handlers treat access to student and staff data appropriately.

District-wide administrative, teaching, and support-employee staff development in Technology Education, Educational Technology, Integrating Technology throughout the Curriculum, and Project-Based Learning is provided by the Hudson County Educational Technology Training Center (ETTC), located in the Jersey City Public School's Educational Technology Department.

The Educational Technology Department works with various departments to implement and integrate their system’s technology solutions. It is committed to improving documentation, dissemination of information, and access to multiple media formats to improve the tools of the district’s knowledge workers. It designs, implements, and maintains infrastructure and systems to support the district’s 8,000 + users at 42 remote sites.


Business Technology
The Business Technology Department supports Human Resources, Payroll, Food Services, Budget, and Medical Departments to resolve issues and concerns via analysis and programming solutions. This is implemented using a collaborative approach to identify, design, document, install, and monitor systems that integrate knowledge with intranets, extranets, portals, Web sites, document repositories, and content management systems. This department provides the infrastructure for district Information systems that connects to all schools to establish a centralized database. The database is constantly updated and utilized to create timely reports. This department is also the primary point of contact with the New Jersey Department of Education and Hudson County Education department regarding mandatory annual reporting requirements for the district as well as critical district assessments.


Human Resources
The Human Resources Department continues to recruit the best qualified candidates for all administrative, instructional and non-instructional positions. Ninety-nine percent of the teachers have achieved the NJ Department of Education's "100 Hours of Continuing Professional Development" and 98% of the district’s teachers have achieved "Highly Qualified Status" under the No Child Left Behind mandate.

Business Office
The Business Office is responsible for the administration and oversight of the district's budget. The sound business practices and strong internal controls put in place continue to win accolades. The Business Office has received "Certificates for Excellence in Financial Reporting" from the Association of School Business Officials for ten consecutive years.