CSUCL’s Charter School Symposium features NJ Commissioner Schundler
The Center for Strategic Urban Community Leadership hosted Rutgers–Camden’s first ever Regional Symposium on Charter Schools on April 14th in Camden, NJ, when charter school leaders and advocates gathered to highlight the successes and obstacles of the charter school movement.
New Jersey Education Commissioner Bret Schundler was the featured speaker at the event, where he lauded the efforts of charters like LEAP Academy University Charter School for addressing the comprehensive social service needs of children and families in Camden City. “LEAP recognized that not all students come to school with the same capacity as those in more affluent suburbs,” Schundler said.
He also praised the smaller school community that is inherent in charters, which help students learn. “Students are more likely to learn from someone who cares about them,” Schundler said. “They’re not machines that you can [download] information onto.”
Among his remarks, the commissioner discussed charters as an effective way to reach some children that have fallen through the cracks of the public education system, and proposed the idea to house multiple schools—like a charter and a public school—under the same roof in order to create smaller school communities.
The commissioner also proposed continuous professional development for teachers through the course of their careers, and said that he anticipated the state would work closely with charter and public school leaders in Camden to improve the educational outcomes for students, which he called a “life and death” issue.
Preceding Schundler’s remarks, a discussion panel featured three school leaders from South Jersey charter schools: Dr. Deanna Burney (LEAP Academy, Camden), Dr. Joseph Conway (Camden Academy Charter High School, Camden), and Janice Strigh (Charter Tech High School for the Performing Arts, Somers Point).
Each panel member offered an in-depth look at how their schools have been able to succeed in reaching children, but also ways to strengthen instruction and engage the parents and community partners of the school.
The event concluded with special remarks from New Jersey Charter School Association President Carlos Lejnieks, who was emphatic in his conviction that charters can help reverse many of the existing problems with public education.
“The time is now for charter schools,” said Lejnieks, who added that the demand for access to charters in New Jersey is growing, with over 800 students on waiting lists for LEAP Academy, over 8000 in Newark, and over 20,000 statewide.
The event, which is the first in a series of symposia on charter schools by the CSUCL, was co-sponsored by the NJCSA, the Rutgers–Camden Chancellor’s Office, the Rutgers–Camden Department of Public Policy & Administration, and LEAP Academy University Charter School.