South Orange-Maplewood School District

The South Orange-Maplewood School District is a regional public school district, serving students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade from the suburban communities of South Orange and Maplewood, two municipalities in Essex County, New Jersey, United States.

South Orange-Maplewood School District
525 Academy Street Maplewood, NJ 07040
District information
Grades	PreK–12
Superintendent	Dr. Ronald G. Taylor
Business administrator	Paul Roth
Schools	11
Students and staff
Enrollment	7,234 (as of 2017-18)[1]
Faculty	565.3 FTEs
Student–teacher ratio	12.8:1
Other information
District Factor Group	I
Website	http://www.somsd.k12.nj.us
Ind. Per pupil District spending Rank (*) K–12 average %± vs. average 1A Total Spending $18,655 56 $18,891 −1.2% 1 Budgetary Cost 14,565 53 14,783 −1.5% 2 Classroom Instruction 8,589 49 8,763 −2.0% 6 Support Services 2,356 54 2,392 −1.5% 8 Administrative Cost 1,513 63 1,485 1.9% 10 Operations & Maintenance 1,859 72 1,783 4.3% 13 Extracurricular Activities 200 32 268 −25.4% 16 Median Teacher Salary 74,760 88 64,043 Data from NJDoE 2014 Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending.[2] *Of K–12 districts with more than 3,500 students. Lowest spending=1; Highest=103

As of the 2017-18 school year, the district's nine schools had an enrollment of 7,234 students and 565.3 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 12.8:1.[1]

The district is classified by the New Jersey Department of Education as being in District Factor Group "I", the second-highest of eight groupings. District Factor Groups organize districts statewide to allow comparison by common socioeconomic characteristics of the local districts. From lowest socioeconomic status to highest, the categories are A, B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I and J.[3]

History

The school district has operated as a unified organization for the area since 1867 and under the current name since 1894. James Ricalton, a teacher, photographer and world traveker born in New York of Scottish parents who became the school district's first permanent teacher, helped set the high standard of education that persists in the school district to this day.[4]

In October 2014, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a complaint against the South Orange-Maplewood School District in relation to its academic leveling and disciplinary systems, stating that the overuse of discipline and "zero-tolerance" policy, and implicit racial bias within the level selection system violate Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.[5]

Awards and recognition

For the 1992–93 school year, Columbia High School received the National Blue Ribbon Award of Excellence from the United States Department of Education, the highest honor that an American school can achieve.[6]

NAMM named the district in its 2009 survey of the "Best Communities for Music Education", which included 124 school districts nationwide.[7]

Schools

A South Orange Middle School student protest

Schools in the district (with 2017-18 school enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics[8]) are:[9][10]

Preschool

• Montrose Early Childhood Center[11] (127 students, in PreK; located in Maplewood)
  • Bonita Samuels, Principal

Elementary schools

• Seth Boyden Elementary Demonstration School[12] (545 students, in grades K–5 located in Maplewood)
  • Shannon Glander, Principal
  • Sheila Murphy, Assistant Principal
• Clinton Elementary School[13] (578, K–5; Maplewood)
  • Jennifer Connors, Principal
  • Sandra Smith, Assistant Principal
• Jefferson Elementary School[14] (530, 3–5; Maplewood)
  • Kimberly Hutchinson, Principal
  • Angel Rivera, Assistant Principal
• Marshall Elementary School[15] (487, K–2; South Orange)
  • Raquel Horn, Principal
  • Laura Swyberius, Assistant Principal
• South Mountain Elementary School[16] (591, K–5; South Orange)
  • Kevin Mason, Principal
  • Shane Zeigler, Assistant Principal
• South Mountain Elementary School Annex[17] (NA, K–1; South Orange)
  • Kevin Mason, Principal
  • Shane Zeigler, Assistant Principal
• Tuscan Elementary School[18] (K–5, 616; Maplewood)
  • Malikah Majeed, Principal
  • Brad Bertani, Assistant Principal

Maplewood Middle School

Middle schools

• Maplewood Middle School[19] (753, 6–8; Maplewood)
  • Dara Gronau, Principal
  • Louis Brown, Assistant Principal
  • Michael Chiles, Assistant Principal
• South Orange Middle School[20] (811, 6–8; South Orange)
  • Lynn Irby, Principal
  • James Jennings, Assistant Principal
  • James Waldron, Assistant Principal

High school

• Columbia High School[21] (2,007, 9–12; Maplewood)
  • Kalisha Morgan, Interim Principal
  • Melissa Butler, Assistant Principal
  • Cheryline Hewitt, Assistant Principal
  • Dion Patterson, Assistant Principal
  • Terry Woolard, Assistant Principal

Administration

Members of the district administration are:[22][23]

• Dr. Ronald G. Taylor, Superintendent
• Paul Roth, Business Administrator / Board Secretary

References

1. District information for South Orange-Maplewood School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed November 5, 2019.
2. Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending April 2013, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed April 15, 2013.
3. NJ Department of Education District Factor Groups (DFG) for School Districts, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed October 25, 2014.
4. James Ricalton Lantern Slide Collection, St. Lawrence University Library. Accessed November 5, 2019. "After briefly attending St. Lawrence University (class of 1871) Ricalton left before taking a degree and moved to Maplewood, New Jersey in 1871 where he worked as a school teacher. By all accounts, he was an extraordinary teacher, and his legacy is celebrated in the South Orange-Maplewood School District."
5. "Complaint against the South Orange Maplewood School District under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973", American Civil Liberties Union, October 9, 2014. Accessed October 31, 2015.
6. Blue Ribbon Schools Program: Schools Recognized 1982-1983 through 1999-2002 (PDF), United States Department of Education. Accessed April 11, 2011.
7. "Nationwide Survey Finds the 'Best Communities for Music Education' in U.S.", NAMM, April 16, 2009. Accessed November 13, 2009.
8. School Data for the South Orange-Maplewood School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed November 5, 2019.
9. Our Schools, South Orange-Maplewood School District. Accessed November 5, 2019.
10. New Jersey School Directory for the South Orange-Maplewood School District, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed December 29, 2016.
11. Montrose Early Childhood Center, South Orange-Maplewood School District. Accessed November 5, 2019.
12. Seth Boyden Elementary Demonstration School, South Orange-Maplewood School District. Accessed November 5, 2019.
13. Clinton Elementary School, South Orange-Maplewood School District. Accessed November 5, 2019.
14. Jefferson Elementary School, South Orange-Maplewood School District. Accessed November 5, 2019.
15. Marshall Elementary School, South Orange-Maplewood School District. Accessed November 5, 2019.
16. South Mountain Elementary School, South Orange-Maplewood School District. Accessed November 5, 2019.
17. South Mountain Elementary School Annex, South Orange-Maplewood School District. Accessed November 5, 2019.
18. Tuscan Elementary School, South Orange-Maplewood School District. Accessed November 5, 2019.
19. Maplewood Middle School, South Orange-Maplewood School District. Accessed November 5, 2019.
20. South Orange Middle School, South Orange-Maplewood School District. Accessed September 2, 2015.
21. Columbia High School, South Orange-Maplewood School District. Accessed September 3, 2015.
22. District Departments, South Orange-Maplewood School District. Accessed November 5, 2019.
23. New Jersey School Directory for Essex County, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed December 29, 2016.

External links

• South Orange-Maplewood School District
• South Orange-Maplewood School District's 2015–16 School Report Card from the New Jersey Department of Education
• South Orange-Maplewood School District, National Center for Education Statistics