New Jersey public education in 2017 will be defined by the influence politicians play on policy during a likely turbulent year ahead. 

The election of Donald Trump as president and his selection of Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education has created concern among public educators as the Secretary Designee has campaigned personally and contributed money to promote charter schools and vouchers. Once confirmed, Ms. DeVos will be in a position to influence what happens on the state level as regulations implementing the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) are finalized within the federal Department of Education. By nature of her position, she will hold the education “bully pulpit” in the new administration, exerting her influence on state policy. It will be interesting to watch her actions as president-elect Trump was elected in part on cutting back on federal power and regulation. 

In the state politics arena early analysis has the year ahead billed as a free-for-all wrestling match featuring Governor Christie, the leadership of the Democratic Party, and the candidates seeking to become the next Governor of the State. Governor Christie is pushing his “Fairness Formula” for funding public education while the Democrats have their versions embodied in Assembly and Senate proposals. Meanwhile, the state economy is plagued by pension deficits, a tenth credit downgrade during the Christie administration, shrinking revenues created by tax cuts agreed upon in the Gas Tax legislation, and the increased cost of goods and services including the rising cost for retiree health benefits. With K-12 education nearly one third of the annual state spending, flat funding of school district operations may very well continue, forcing cuts in programs and services for students under a two percent municipal tax levy cap. Speculation by State House insiders suggests that Governor Christie might include school district aid figures in his State budget proposal which reflect his “Fairness Formula,” surely creating turmoil for districts as the anticipated legal challenges to the formula’s constitutionality are mounted.

Governor Christie recently vowed to “politically create mischief” as a ‘lame duck’ Governor, citing his concerns about Last In First Out (LIFO) teacher layoffs, the agrarian school calendar, and the inequity of property taxes supporting education in differing municipalities. Phil Murphy, the leading Democratic candidate for Governor and one of Governor Christie’s harshest critics, laid out many of his thoughts about New Jersey public education in an address at the November NJEA Convention following his acceptance of the NJEA endorsement. Mr. Murphy spoke in support of:

• organized labor and the collective bargaining process;
• a constitutional amendment guaranteeing required pension payments;
• quarterly pension payments;
• the School Funding Reform Act with adjustments;
• the return of state takeover districts to local control; and
• the selection of an educator as NJ Education Commissioner.

He spoke in opposition to:

• vouchers and Chapter 78 pension reforms; and
• PARCC as a high school graduation requirement and component of teacher evaluation.

We must wait to identify the views of other candidates for Governor as they emerge during the months ahead and explore what they might hold for public education through 2021.

Let’s not overlook the importance of the State Board of Education which holds the responsibility and authority to determine the rules governing New Jersey public education. The current board has been viewed by many observers as giving a “rubber stamp” to the Governor’s initiatives. As of this writing however, Governor Christie has placed in nomination the appointment or reappointment of the thirteen state board members. Importantly, the current leadership of the board, President Mark Biedron and Vice President Joseph Fisicaro, have not received the Governor’s nomination, signaling what some see as a result of his dissatisfaction that his agenda, particularly on Charter School regulations and teacher preparation, have not moved quickly to adoption. Inasmuch as the term for a State Board Member is six years, Governor Christie appointees, if ratified by the Senate, will impact New Jersey public education long after the Governor leaves office.

PARCC assessments, educator evaluation, state funding for schools, student graduation requirements, the new federal ESSA legislation, and the rights of transgender students have all been part of the 2016 New Jersey Education news story. These issues will be gaining even greater attention throughout 2017 as the state transitions to the leadership of the new U.S. President and the next New Jersey Governor. 

NJASA will advocate for public schools according to our Vision 2020 positions in support of NJASA members, their communities, and students. 

“One Vision, Our Voice”

When my peers and I were in high school, we wrote our term papers on typewriters. We learned geography from a globe, and we looked up facts in an encyclopedia. What a difference a few decades make.

Students at the Brandeis School in Louisville, Ky., have probably never heard of a typewriter. Even kindergartners and ESL students do their book reports in the form of podcasts. Other students consult these recordings when choosing their own books.

In Detroit, Mich., eighth graders use software and handheld computers to map out their neighborhoods. They identify hazards and use that information to lobby the city for repairs. For them, not only is the globe coming to life, but it’s also a relevant part of their own lives. Most important, technology allows them to make a real difference.

At the Clara E. Coleman Elementary School in Glen Rock, N.J., fifth graders don’t need encyclopedias to look up facts; they can access the internet. Recently, these students taught senior citizens how to send email and navigate the internet in computer workshops. The intergenerational experience was a lesson for both students and seniors.

Welcome to the new era of 21st-century learning. Technology is changing how teachers teach and students learn. It’s empowering students to explore real-world learning opportunities like the ones described above. Education doesn’t get more powerful than that.

Technology Trends in Schools

Each year, it seems that technology becomes “smarter” and more interactive. While laptops, Chromebooks and iPads still have their place in the classroom, there are emerging technologies with the potential to transform the educational process. The following are some of the future trends to watch.

Electronic Portfolios: Traditionally, portfolios included samples of student work stored in a binder, folder, or box. The digital version allows for a greater breadth and depth of work, which can be used to measure learning goals. Students can further personalize their portfolio with a reflection on their achievements and development of their academic voice.

From Coding to Computational Thinking: Even elementary students can learn to develop computer code. It’s an empowering skill that allows them to program the behind-the-scenes portion of computer software. Computational thinking takes this to the next level. It includes analyzing data and creating steps toward a solution, allowing students to deal with complex and even open-ended problems.

Virtual Reality: Schools are starting to use virtual reality applications made possible by such low-cost tools as Google Cardboard and Google Expeditions. Classes can enjoy immersive experiences such as virtual field trips.

3D Printing: This technology has the potential to allow students to bring engineering designs to life. Its downside is its price, which is still outside the budget for most K-12 districts.

In the nearer future, you’ll continue to see the technology that has been evolving over the past few years. This includes personalized learning, one-to-one computing, blended learning (technology paired with traditional instruction), computer assessment, and online testing. Utilizing these methods in innovative ways—such as the podcasting, mapping, and researching mentioned in the introduction—will help drive education in the 21st century.

Digital Challenges and Opportunities

Yet technology is not without its challenges. Talk to any administrator who had to fund a district’s worth of iPads or a teacher whose computers froze during an assessment, and you’ll understand why not everyone is an enthusiastic proponent. In addition, it can be time-consuming to learn new technologies in order to be able to use them effectively in the classroom. In Technology in Education: An Overview, Education Week reports that “a significant body of research has also made clear that most teachers have been slow to transform the ways they teach, despite the influx of new technology into their classrooms.” In other words, there’s a great potential here for some of us to do more with technology.

We’re all wrestling with the same issues, from getting up to speed on new software and hardware, to the changing role of teachers as educational facilitators, to 1:1 computing and personalized learning. Our task is to teach 21^st-century skills to students who will be working in jobs that we can’t even imagine right now. Minimizing technology in their instruction does them a disservice. As John Dewey once said, “If we teach today as we taught yesterday, we rob our children of tomorrow.”

I, too, have been challenged by technology, and I often look for inspiration in other districts. Reading their success stories in Education Week is a start. But hearing teachers present their programs, asking them the pivotal questions that relate to your district, and being able to email them for follow-up are the invaluable takeaways from a technology conference like NJASA’s TECHSPO.

Be Inspired by Educational Innovators

You’re invited to attend NJASA’s TECHSPO ‘17 on January 26–27, 2017, at Harrah’s Resort in Atlantic City. TECHSPO is New Jersey’s Premier Educational Technology Training and Exhibition Conference for School Leaders. At TECHSPO ‘17, you’ll experience two days filled with formal sessions and impromptu networking opportunities to share experiences, find solutions, and discover the latest tools and resources in education today. You’ll hear from two inspiring keynote speakers with unique perspectives on technology. You’ll network with 1,000+ K-12 educators, participate in any of 70+ workshops, and visit a wide array of exhibitors.

Don’t miss your chance to take your district’s technology program to the next level! Click on the following links for the registration page, information on hotel reservations, and a waiver for overnight lodging. Together, we can conquer the challenges of technology and embrace opportunities so that students will be ready to take on their future.

When I fly, I always look forward to the pilot’s announcement, “Please return to your seats and secure your seat belts as we begin to descend.” What I do not enjoy hearing is, “The control tower informs us that we are in a holding position and unable to land.” Unfortunately on my most recent flight, the plane’s landing was delayed because of a holding situation.

I know you are wondering what a plane’s holding position has to do with my Executive View article. Well it’s pretty simple.

This whole concept of a plane’s holding position is exactly the same as the holding position the State of New Jersey is experiencing. 

Let’s look at the major issues on hold in New Jersey.

Funding

The Fiscal 2016-2017 budget signed into law provided minimal additional funding for public school systems.  The School Funding Reform Act provisions were underfunded by more than $1 Billion.

School district financial support required by the School Funding Reform Act passed in 2008 has never been fully provided and has been woefully underfunded in the ensuing years’ state budgets since its enactment.

Instead of listening to the "Battle of the Bands" at the local high school, we are experiencing the battle of school funding plans between the Governor and the Senate President. NJASA supports the analysis of the impact of state funding for school systems and their communities with expectations that a more equitable system can be devised and that full financial support required by the school funding law can ultimately be achieved for New Jersey communities and their students.

The Transportation Trust Fund, established to finance the cost of “planning, acquisition, engineering, construction, reconstruction, repair, resurfacing, and rehabilitation of the State’s transportation system” is on hold with no closure in sight.

This lack of action is causing several ripple effects from restrictions on the state budget, to no movement for advancing payments to the pension system, and to the redesign of health care costs.

Public pension funds are in a precarious state due to underfunding by many Governors over the decades. It has been easy for both political parties to continually kick the pension payment down the road. However, our elected leaders simply cannot apply the same approach to health benefits.

We have all witnessed New Jersey’s lagging economy, the disappearance of surplus monies from districts, the continual reliance on having parents/guardians pay more for extra services within the districts, and the growth of education foundations.  

Student Performance Standards/Assessments/High School Graduation Requirements

For the good of the cause, we can all agree that assessment is an integral component of the teaching and learning process.  It takes many forms beginning with astute teachers monitoring the daily performance of their students in class and raising to “high stakes” assessment by the states. The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation has been replaced by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) and states and districts await implementing regulations from the federal Department of Education.  While well-intended, NCLB’s "one-size-fits-all" approach was unrealistic at best and punitive at worst. It took years of significant work in the educational community and within Congress, but in the last weeks of 2015, President Obama signed into law ESSA and shifted greater authority back to the states for determining accountability for student performance and teacher effectiveness.

NJASA endorses high standards and assessments that measure how students are achieving them and supports the effort to use 21^st Century learning techniques in assessing student understanding. We, as education practitioners, advocate that every New Jersey student is truly ready for a career or post-secondary education following graduation.

The New Jersey State Board of Education has authorized the requirement that high school students demonstrate proficiency on PARCC assessments in Algebra I and 10th grade English language arts beginning with the class of 2021. The Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) provides valuable data that has been unavailable through prior state student assessment programs and student score reports are now more informative for both parents and educators.  Much discussion and debate lies ahead to determine if these are the most appropriate requirements or if the state will take a different path in determining what “college and career” ready truly means for New Jersey students.  We look forward to the conversation about defining graduation requirements that are more meaningful to students as they determine their personal paths forward after high school.

The next 15 months will prove to be pivotal times for all New Jersey residents. There is no crystal ball to predict what policy is coming next from our elected officials and how their decisions will affect New Jersey public education and local school districts. The tenets and goals of the NJASA Vision 2020 plan will guide our discussion and the efforts of our organization and members as we carefully examine proposals to shape public education for New Jersey students.

State policies and political preferences will be navigating some of the fallout from the 2016 Presidential election, as well as, the 2017 New Jersey Gubernatorial election.  Again, we are on hold!

Collectively, all these issues have the potential to enhance, change, and/or erode the course and funding of education in New Jersey. Again, we are on hold with no closure in sight until maybe January 2018.

There is one thing that is not on hold - school bells. They are ringing again!

Together, NJASA, school leaders, parents and involved stakeholders will continue to move forward in spite of these challenges and others - always with the goal of having the best interest of our students.

There may be such a thing as a born leader. But fortunately for the rest of us, leadership is a learned skill. It’s a combination of on-the-job training, inspiring mentor relationships, and learning opportunities. One of the best is the 34^th annual NJASA/NJAPSA Spring Leadership Conference, which brings together New Jersey’s most progressive chief education officers, national speakers and workshop presenters to Caesars Atlantic City, May 11-13, 2016. Here’s what school leaders should know about this conference, and why you should plan to attend.

Learn Best Practices from 33 Districts

This year’s theme, “Maximizing Leadership Effectiveness with One Vision—One Voice,” underscores Vision 2020, our plan to ensure that New Jersey’s public schools consistently rank among the best public education systems in the country. Working toward best practices in the year 2020 in New Jersey’s public schools, we’re excited to hear from 33 school districts representing the entire state from Teaneck to Ocean City, and everywhere in between.   

Topics range from technology to school law to teacher supervision to data-driven success. Here are just some examples of the sessions that will be offered.

• An Insider’s Guide on Strategies Used by Attorneys and Advocates Against Schools
• Road Map for Creating a Multi-Tiered After-School Program for Struggling Learners
• Public Relations for Districts in the Digital Age
• Using Technology to Implement Automated Lockdowns
• Going Google in a 1:1 Environment
• Data Breaches and the Pitfalls of Improperly Handling Personal Information
• Analyzing PARCC Results to Inform Instruction – English Language Arts
• HIB Challenges and Solutions

For the full list, click here.

Be Inspired by Educational Pioneers

In addition to the sessions, we’ll hear from three inspiring keynote speakers:

Ari Ne’eman is the president and co-founder of the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, an advocacy organization run by and for autistic adults seeking to increase the representation of autistic people across society. He was just 18 when he co-founded the organization, and just 22 when he was appointed by President Obama to the National Council on Disability, a federal agency charged with advising Congress and the President on disability policy issues. As a student in New Jersey’s schools, Ne’eman struggled with how special needs students were rarely challenged and is working to pave the way for increased opportunities for people with disabilities.

Dr. Pedro Noguera is the Distinguished Professor of Education at the Graduate School of Education and Information Sciences at UCLA. He is a sociologist whose research focuses on ways in which schools are influenced by social and economic conditions. A regular commentator on CNN, MSNBC, National Public Radio, Dr. Noguera brings a wealth of experience as a researcher, a former classroom teacher, a former school board member and a parent of five children.

Dr. Ernest Morrell is the Macy Professor of English Education and Director of the Institute for Urban and Minority Education (IUME) at Teachers College, Columbia University. Dr. Morell was an award-winning English teacher and coach in Northern California. He now works with teachers and schools across the country to infuse social and emotional learning, digital technologies, project-based learning, and multicultural literature into standards-based literacy curricula and after-school programs.

Celebrate the Success of Leading Educators

Finally, we’ll be celebrating the successes of our peers, with award presentations honoring Regional Superintendents of the Year, the Superintendent of the Year, Distinguished Service, NJASA President and the Anti-Defamation League.                                                                     

Don’t miss your chance to connect with your peers and resources all under one roof. Challenge your assumptions about education, find new solutions, and bring them back to help your team make a difference for New Jersey public school students. An extensive exhibit hall will showcase equipment, supplies and services.

Caesars Atlantic City is the official host hotel and overnight lodging will be covered by your district if you travel more than 50 miles to the conference. Register no later than Monday, May 2, to avoid a late charge or walk-in fee. We look forward to seeing you there!

Stay tuned to the New Jersey Association of School Administrators website at www.njasa.net, this blog and our Facebook page for continuing up-to-date information on these critical issues and our professional programs. Our goal is to help New Jersey students get the best possible education and keep administrative costs down.  https://www.njasa.net//site/Default.aspx?PageID=1489

There’s a learning curve whenever you begin a new job. But the stakes are considerably higher in jobs that have a great impact on others. That’s why the state mandates that new district-level administrators serving under the provisional School Administrator Certificate complete the School Administrator Residency Program (SARP) as the final step of qualifying for those positions. Recently, the New Jersey Association of School Administrators (NJASA) was given the responsibility of administering this program.

If you’re an aspiring administrator, it will be important to understand this requirement. Students, families and taxpayers also should know the extensive process that this residency entails, to understand the high level of qualification demanded by the state. Here’s why SARP is so effective in preparing participants for leadership roles.

SARP Takes a 3-Pronged Approach

Grounded in leadership standards and adult learning best practices, SARP allows candidates to apply that theory to the work that they’re doing. It is a highly individualized and personalized program that takes a three-pronged approach that includes one-to-one support, group support and instruction in best practices.

• Mentor Support: Mentors and participants work together to create an individualized residency plan. Mentors guide participants through the program, helping with the typical challenges confronting a first-year administrator.

• New Superintendents’ Academy: This series of professional development courses covers topics of interest to first-year administrators, from financial resources and business operations to personnel management, contract administration and Board of Education operations and relations. Participants are required to attend at least six of the sessions.

• Professional Support Networks: These include cohort relationships and educational groups throughout the state.

The SARP Process Overview

The New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) requires the following steps for SARP candidates:

• The applicant completes a Master’s degree or higher in a field of management and leadership.
• The applicant passes a written examination of knowledge.
• The applicant obtains a Certificate of Eligibility from DOE authorizing him/her to seek employment as a superintendent, assistant superintendent or director.
• Upon acceptance of an offer of employment, the candidate applies to DOE for a provisional certificate, which authorizes him/her to fulfill the duties of the position during the residency period.
• NJASA offers a short list of no fewer than three mentors for consideration by the resident. Please note that recruitment of mentors by residents or vice versa is strongly discouraged.
• The resident and the mentor collaboratively complete the Individualized Residency Plan.
• Upon successful completion of the residency and submission of all required forms and fees, the resident receives the Standard School Administrator Certificate.

SARP is generally a one-year program. There are exceptions, such as when a mentor determines that a second year of residency is necessary, or if the Certificate of Eligibility includes a two-year stipulation. There is a registration fee of $1,750 for the program, which includes attendance at the New Superintendents’ Academy and a legal publication subscription. The SARP fee is sometimes covered by the district’s Board of Education.

A Thoughtful Match of Mentors

The SARP program takes into account the challenges faced by unsuccessful mentor programs, which fail due to superficial mentor training and haphazard mentor selection often based merely on seniority (Daresh, 2004). In addition, mentors also have cited a lack of available time to meet as a frequent challenge (Alsbury & Donaldson, 2006; NJASA survey results). Therefore, the NJASA SARP does thoughtful mentor screening and matching, taking into account geographic location and time considerations. The program’s requirements stress relevant interactions rather than busy work.

Candidates contact NJASA when they have an offer of employment. At that time, we review the pool of mentors to identify logical matches based on geography, district type, district size, district factor group, background, training, and areas of strength. Every attempt is made to ensure a pool of racial and gender diversity. We provide a minimum of three names with relevant information and contact information to participants, along with guidelines to consider when interviewing and selecting a mentor. The candidate selects his or her mentor.

At a minimum, mentors are required to meet with participants face-to-face on a monthly basis. They also must evaluate them at least three times. At the conclusion of the program, the mentor provides the final rating: Approved, Insufficient, or Disapproved.

Inside a SARP Plan

Because school administration is a multifaceted job, the SARP plan addresses a variety of areas, including:

• District planning and policy formation
• Board of Education operations and regulations
• Supervision of district wide programs of curriculum, instruction and student services
• Collegial management, participatory decision making and professional governance
• The roles, supervision and evaluation of central office staff and school principals
• District financial and business operations
• School facilities
• Labor relations and collective bargaining
• Government and Community Relations
• School law
• Management of District Operations

The value of completing the SARP program goes beyond a state requirement. Candidates who successfully complete this process are highly qualified, and well prepared to take the helm of the local district.

NJASA is the only professional organization that oversees the SARP program for New Jersey school district administrators. Click here for more information on SARP, and other programs offered to New Jersey chief education officers at www.njasa.net.

2016 will be a pivotal year for New Jersey’s public schools. We will be navigating some of the fallout from Governor Christie’s bid for presidential attention, tackling unresolved issues from 2015 and making way for new legislation to replace No Child Left Behind. Here’s a look at what lies ahead of us, and what it means to administrators, educators, parents and students.

From ‘No Child Left Behind’ to ‘Every Student Succeeds’

We’re finally able to bid goodbye to the antiquated ‘No Child Left Behind’ (NCLB) legislation. While well-intended, this act’s ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach was unrealistic at best and punitive at worst. It took years of significant work in the educational community and within Congress, but in the last weeks of 2015, President Obama signed into law the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), shifting authority back to the states for student achievement.

ESSA will roll out in 2016 with less stringent guidelines than NCLB and two important distinctions. It will separate teacher evaluations from student performance. It will put student achievement in the hands of the state rather than the federal government.

• What ESSA Means for Schools and Educators: The state will be accountable for student achievement. That means districts will need to determine how students will be assessed under New Jersey mandates, not just federal requirements. Also, New Jersey will have more latitude with regard to rules for educator evaluation. Given state laws and policymaker preferences, not much is likely to change in the near future.

• What ESSA Means for Parents and Students: Realistically, parents and students may not notice much of a change in 2016. State policies and political preferences have aligned closely with the federal agenda in the past, and parents won’t see much difference for their children’s school routine.

A Change in the Common Core

Governor Chris Christie has called an end to the national Common Core standards in New Jersey. Whether part of his presidential bid or sound educational policy, time will tell, but the governor is following a number of states that also have pulled out of Common Core. They’re claiming it ineffective and rewriting and rebranding new standards under their state banners.

In New Jersey, Governor Christie has assembled a task force of parents and teachers to review the Common Core standards and make suggestions for improvement. Their report and recommendations were released on January 11 to the Commissioner and State Board of Education. The State Board will review these recommendations and propose any changes to the existing standards for public input. In the meantime, schools will continue to test students with the PARCC assessments based on the Common Core. New Jersey is one of just six states currently administering the PARCC, and there’s a separate task force looking at student performance and achievement. It’s report was also released this week with recommendations for graduation requirements introduced at the latest meeting of the State Board of Education.

• What the Change in the Common Core Means for Schools and Educators: Realistically, it’s ‘business as usual’ in New Jersey until we have new state standards to replace the Common Core and the recommendations proferred do not substantially alter the Common Core already adopted.

• What the Change in the Common Core Means for Parents and Students: Recommended changes won’t affect students until the graduation class of 2021, providing them with adequate notice that they must attain passing scores on the Algebra 1 and Grade 10 English/Language Arts PARCC assessments.

A Constitutional Amendment to Prevent Pension Shortfalls

The underfunded public employee pension fund will again be in the spotlight in 2016, as legislators consider an amendment to New Jersey’s constitution that would require the state to fully fund employee retirements. The resolution introduced by Senate President Stephen Sweeney would not need Governor Christie’s approval to be placed on the ballot. Voters will weigh in on the question at the same time that they choose the nation’s next president.

If this proposed amendment is passed, New Jersey will have a hard time skipping out on bigger pension payments. But it’s unclear where the money may be coming from. Governor Christie has advocated his own plan, freezing the current pension system and moving employees to a 401(k) style plan that’s more affordable for the state but one that also includes less generous health benefits for retirees.

• What a Constitutional Amendment Means for Schools and Educators: Retiring educators could look forward to a full pension, or they could face substantial changes that will impact their retirement lifestyle.

• What a Constitutional Amendment Means for Parents and Students: If the amendment is passed, funding may need to be moved from other programs to cover the pension shortfall if state revenues fall short of the needed amount. This could dramatically impact school district budgets and programs.

What’s the value of a good education? Ask the valedictorian who just received her acceptance letter from Princeton, the special needs student with the skills to score his first real job, or the potential high school dropout who was motivated to return to school. They all can share perspectives on why New Jersey public school districts succeed.

Each year NJASA celebrates these successes by finding Chief Education Officers who can be named the statewide Superintendent of the Year and regional Superintendents of the Year. They are selected based on their leadership qualities and their ability to inspire others.

Judith Ann Rattner, superintendent of the Berkeley Heights School District, is our 2016 NJASA New Jersey Superintendent of the Year. Her district has earned top honors both regionally and nationally. The Early Childhood Center and one of the elementary schools have been designated Star Schools by the New Jersey Department of Education. Governor Livingston High School was designated as a Reward School. New Jersey Monthly ranked it among the best high schools in the state. Newsweek and the Washington Post named it among the best high schools in the country. Over 95 percent of last year’s high school graduates are continuing their education at colleges and universities.

Berkeley Heights’ success is due in part to innovative programs that address the needs of a range of learners from students with special needs to those taking honors classes and beyond.  

Project Read, a Language Arts Literacy Program, engages students with learning differences.This research-based, multi-sensory approach to reading helps these students make meaningful progress. Another intensive, highly individualized program supports learning in the context of vocational and paid employment settings. This gives students with significant disabilities access to independent living skills.

Project Connect is another of Superintendent Rattner’s legacies. Using a project-based team approach to learning, this program has encouraged high school students to build their skill sets to the point where they are enrolling in more honors courses.

The one-to-one iPad program brings technology into the high school curriculum for every student. Berkeley Heights was able to do that with less than a two percent increase in budget.

As a past president of NJASA and the 2015-2016 Interim President-Elect, Superintendent Rattner’s influence extends well past her school district. Here is just a sampling of her involvement over the years.

AASA

• National Governing Board Member
• Leadership Conference and Facilitator, 2012

NJASA

• NJASA Interim President-Elect, 2015-16
• NJASA Vision 2020 Co-Facilitator
• NJASA Distinguished Service Award Winner, 2013
• Past President, President, President-Elect, Secretary and Treasurer, NJASA 2012-2007
• NJASA Representative to the Evaluation Pilot Advisory Committee
• NJASA Representative to PARCC
• NJASA Representative to NJ LEE Group
• NJASA Committees:
  • Curriculum & Instruction Committee
  • Ad Hoc Assessment Committee
  • Legislative Committee
  • Task Force
  • Chair, 2007 Spring Conference Committee
  • Technology Committee
  • Great Schools of New Jersey Committee
  • Women’s Caucus
  • NJASA Presenter
  • New Superintendents Academy

New Jersey Council of Education

• Past President, President, Vice President, Treasurer, 2012-2008, New Jersey Council of Education
• Executive Committee, New Jersey Council of Education
• Executive Committee, New Jersey School Development Council

With leaders like Superintendent Rattner, who care deeply about the future of education, we will continue to make a difference in the lives of our students—our future leaders. For my video presentation on this award, click here. For more information on the role that Chief Education Officers are playing in the success of New Jersey schools, visit www.njasa.net. We invite you to follow us on Facebook and/or Twitter and become part of the conversation on educational excellence.

The tech giant Google knows a little something about innovation. To help inspire creativity, the company encourages employees to work 20 percent of their time on a project of their choosing. As a result, Google has inspired divergent critical thinking and exciting new projects from Gmail to AdSense. But Google’s 20% Time Program isn’t relegated to tech companies. It’s a great opportunity for schools to foster meaningful learning, too.

If this idea sounds intriguing, you won’t want to miss NJASA’s TECHSPO 2016, January 28-29 at Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City, N.J. Now in its 21^st year, TECHSPO is New Jersey’s premier educational technology training and exhibition conference for school leaders. It’s the place to be if you’re searching for proven ways that students are learning and teachers are educating with emerging technology.

We’ve expanded the expo to bring you more tech solutions. We’ll be hosting 1,000+ K-12 educators and administrators plus nearly 100 workshop and exhibition showcase leaders. We’re putting them all under one roof to create the largest education technology conference in New Jersey. Here’s what you can expect.

Two Inspiring Keynotes

Meet Kevin Brookhouser, high school teacher and Google Apps Certified trainer. Kevin is author of The 20time Project: How Educators Can Launch Google's Formula for Future-Ready Innovation. His keynote speech on Fueling Future-Ready Students will inspire you to organize a Google-style 20% program in your district. It also might just launch the next generation of Google engineers.

John Shammas is not your average APP developer. For one thing, he’s just graduated high school. Exploring Photoshop at age three, he began his freelance web design career at age 11. He currently serves as technology liaison and developer for Old Bridge Township’s public schools, and consults for international retailers.

100+ Workshops

• Incorporate the Google 20% Time Program in the form of Genius Hour in your classrooms, and watch the creativity and learning unfold.

• From Google Classroom to Gmail to Google documents and more, Google has created the free resources and affordable devices that many schools are using. Learn the what, why and how behind a district going “Google.”

• Bolster interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) through the use of Humanoid Robotics!

• The future of tech is creating software and apps, so it only makes sense to teach kids to code. Learn how to incorporate computer coding via a CoderDojo or in special needs classrooms to take it to the next level!

• Find the one tech tool you can’t live without—by attending a presentation of the Dirty 30, 30 more apps and extensions for school districts.

• Learn how to overcome obstacles in BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) programs.

In two short days at TECHSPO, you will have new ideas and tools for the year and beyond. You’ll also have a chance to connect with educational leaders from around the state so you can problem solve and brainstorm when you get back to your districts.

Don’t miss your chance to take your district to the next level!

Register today at www.njasa.net.

Follow us on Facebook and/or Twitter and be part of the conversation on educational excellence.