Superintendent of Schools Christopher C. Irving speaks during his presentation at a town hall meeting at East Orange Campus High School.
EAST ORANGE — Parents, school board members and the superintendent of schools met last week at East Orange Campus High School for a town hall meeting in a vastly different atmosphere than meetings held at this time last year.
“It’s a blessing to stand here this year in a different place than we were last year,” School Board President Andrea McPhatter said. “This is going to be an incredible school year.”
Last fall, the school district announced it had to lay off more than 70 people because of a need to stabilize district finances. Superintendent of Schools Christopher C. Irving, who took over the job a year ago not long before the start of that school year, said at the time that the district had a $25 million deficit and would not be able to make payroll in May if it did not take certain steps.
Board Vice President Medinah Muhammad echoed McPatter’s remarks about the status of things in the district this year.
“When we had this meeting last year, we were in a different place as a school community,” Muhammad said.
Irving also noted that the district was in better shape this year. He cited a state aid increase and the settling of contracts with both teachers and administrators and having done it with no tax increase. All of the effort last year stabilized the district and put it in a better position for the future, he said.
Earlier this year, the state released its 2026 aid numbers for school districts and the East Orange Public School District was awarded a 5.3% increase in state funding – a $9.3 million additional allocation.
“We are in a season of dreaming in East Orange, dreaming and creating,” he said. “All you have to do is drive around this town, we are a growing city. East Orange as a community will continue to transform.”
Irving gave a 20 minute presentation on current happenings in the district and talked about strategic planning that will happen this year including putting together a five year plan for the future.
Among the plans for the future are a school for gifted and talented children; the Johnnie Cochran Gifted and Talented Academy.
“In September of next year we will be cutting the ribbon at a new school,” Irving said. “It will seek to galvanize the most gifted students and move them forward.”
Irving said he hoped the school would keep East Orange’s best and brightest students within the district.
Prospective students will take an entrance exam and go through an interview process before being admitted. It will accept about 150 students, he said. The school will have academic support, extracurricular support, service learning and a parent component.
Irving also talked about developing an aspiring leaders program within the district for employees looking to advance their careers.
“We are fortunate to have staff who want to advance their careers within our district,” he said. The program will be for all district employees, not just teachers looking to move into administration, he said.
Irving talked at length about the plan to put together a committee of stakeholders to draft a five year plan for the district. People on the committee will include educators, parents, city officials, community partners, faith leaders and others, he said.
The Strategic Plan will serve as a five-year roadmap that will establish a vision, priorities, and goals and the specific actions needed to achieve these goals over the five-year period.
Three sub-committees – Collaborative Partnerships, High-Impact Learning Experiences, and Safety & Value – will be created to develop short-term and long-term achievable actions over the five years. A Transition Committee that will guide the process is planning a kick off on Sept. 30 at district offices.
If someone wants to recommend themselves or another person for the Transition Committee or a sub-committee, they can contact Dr. Kelly Williams-Blizzard at kelly.williams@eastorange.k12.nj.us
The district will host additional Superintendent’s Town Hall events on Sept. 25 at Cicely L. Tyson Community School and on Oct. 16 at Benjamin Banneker Academy. The district has more than 9,000 students and 900 teachers across 20 schools, Pre–K to 12, as well as a number of collaborating daycare centers.
“We’ve come through the worst of it and the best is before us,” Irving said.
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