SOUTH ORANGE / MAPLEWOOD, NJ — To provide updates regarding the South Orange–Maplewood School District’s Intentional Integration Initiative, which will begin in September with the incoming kindergarten class, Superintendent of Schools Ronald Taylor sent an informational letter to the community on April 14.
“For background, in the 2018-2019 school year, the Board of Education voted for the design of each elementary school to eventually take on a K-5 grade span,” Taylor wrote. “This was very important as it gave direction to our architects as they began the work of bringing our Long Range Facilities Plan to fruition. While our integration plan is linked to our construction, in our February 2020 town hall event, we shared that it is not fully dependent on our construction; therefore, due to the innate spontaneity of construction, a decision was made in April 2020 to untether our Intentional Integration Initiative from our construction efforts. The district’s intentional integration plan was board-approved in June 2020 and addressed the usage of an algorithm to be applied to the kindergarteners who will be joining our district in September 2021, with a plan to monitor this pilot and adjust if necessary, as future classes enter our district.”
According to Taylor, Marshall Elementary School, which educates students in kindergarten through second grade, and Jefferson Elementary School, which educates Marshall graduates from third grade through fifth grade, cannot become independent K-5 spaces until the LRFP construction at those schools is completed. Therefore, the schools will continue to function as K-2 and 3-5 schools. Taylor also explained that district classrooms that currently house kindergartners will remain the same for next year — unless there is a significant change in the expected enrollment.
Taylor added that, as was shared in June, the district will be utilizing a modified Berkeley Approach for its integration methodology, which includes the development of an algorithm that creates micro-neighborhoods and utilizes key variables, such as parental education level, parental income, race, sibling preference and proximity. The district is working with Alves Group to develop the algorithm and families of incoming kindergarteners will receive their child’s school placement letters by the end of June.
Taylor’s letter also provided LRFP updates, explaining that six elementary school construction plans were submitted to the state for approval and that the district has received approvals for four locations so far: Clinton, Jefferson, Seth Boyden and Tuscan elementary schools.
“Construction plans for Marshall, South Mountain Elementary and Annex are still awaiting approval from the state,” Taylor wrote. “Awaiting approval for construction plans for the remaining schools does not affect our Intentional Integration Initiative plan. We are still moving forward with the integration of our incoming kindergarten class for fall 2021.
“We are proud to bring this integration initiative, which has been years in the making, to fruition,” he continued. “We thank the many stakeholders who have been a part of this process and thank our community for their patience and support as the district seeks to create a more equitable, diverse and balanced educational environment for our students that will impact generations to come.”
For more information on these topics, including timelines, watch the April 19 Board of Education meeting.
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