The Rutherford School District is a comprehensive community publicschool district that serves students in
pre-kindergarten
Pre-kindergarten (also called Pre-K or PK) is a voluntary classroom-based preschool program for children below the age of five in the United States, Canada, Turkey and Greece (when kindergarten starts). It may be delivered through a preschool ...
Bergen County
Bergen County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.New Jersey, United States.
As of the 2018–19 school year, the district, comprising five schools, had an enrollment of 2,652 students and 208.7 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a
student–teacher ratio
Student–teacher ratio or student–faculty ratio is the number of students who attend a school or university divided by the number of teachers in the institution. For example, a student–teacher ratio of 10:1 indicates that there are 10 students ...
National Center for Education Statistics
The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is the part of the United States Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences (IES) that collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics on education and public school district finance ...
. Accessed April 1, 2020.
The district is classified by the
New Jersey Department of Education
The New Jersey Department of Education (NJ DOE) administers state and federal aid programs affecting more than 1.4 million public and non-public elementary and secondary school children in the state of New Jersey. The department is headquartered ...
as being in District Factor Group "GH", the third-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.
History
Public education
State schools (in England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand) or public schools (Scottish English and North American English) are generally primary or secondary schools that educate all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in pa ...
began in Rutherford prior to 1900, but the oldest permanent school structure was the Park School, built in 1902. It is currently the home of the Rutherford borough hall, on Park Avenue.
Rutherford formerly had three "neighborhood" schools for grades K-5 (Washington, Lincoln, and Sylvan) which fed into two "magnet" schools for 6-8 (Union and Pierrepont). The magnet schools also served as elementary schools for their neighborhoods. Since the 2005–2006 school year, the Rutherford Schools have changed this format.
Sylvan School has since been closed by the Rutherford Board of Education; it houses YMCA Programs, the District Special Services Department, as well as a Handicapped Pre-School Program run by the
South Bergen Jointure Commission
The South Bergen Jointure Commission is a special education public school district based in Hasbrouck Heights on New Jersey Route 17 South in Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey near Teterboro Airport, serving the educational needs of classified ...
.
Rutherford now has two elementary schools, Washington and Lincoln, for grades K-3. In grades 4-8 the students attend Union and Pierrepont Schools. For years before the realignment, the Rutherford School System underwent a multimillion-dollar renovation, which effected all of its buildings, with the most substantial amount of work taking place at Washington, Lincoln and Union Schools.
Schools
Schools in the district (with 2018–19 enrollment data from the
National Center for Education Statistics
The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is the part of the United States Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences (IES) that collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics on education and public school district finance ...
) are:
;Elementary schools
*Kindergarten Center (opened in 2014)
*Lincoln School (490 students; in grades PreK-3)
**Jeanna Velechko, Principal
*Washington School (326; 1-3)
**William Mulcahy, Principal
*Pierrepont School (595; 4-6)
**Joan Carrion, Principal
*Union School (424; 7-8)
**Kurt Schweitzer, Principal
;High school
* Rutherford High School (762; 9-12), built in 1922 and expanded in 1959 and 2005
**Frank Morano, Principal
Administration
Core members of the district's administration are:
*Jack Hurley, Superintendent
*Joseph Kelly, Business Administrator / Board Secretary
Board of education
The district's
board of education
A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution.
The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional are ...
, comprised of nine members, sets policy and oversees the fiscal and educational operation of the district through its administration. As a Type II school district, the board's trustees are elected directly by voters to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with three seats up for election each year held (since 2013) as part of the November general election. The board appoints a superintendent to oversee the district's day-to-day operations and a business administrator to supervise the business functions of the district.Board of Education Rutherford School District. Accessed May 4, 2020.
National Center for Education Statistics
The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is the part of the United States Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences (IES) that collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics on education and public school district finance ...