As of the 2023–24 school year, the district, comprised of six schools, had an enrollment of 2,672 students and 246.7 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 10.8:1.[1]
History
District enrollment, which had peaked at 3,648 in the 2006–07 school year, had dropped to 3,406 by 2012–13 and had reached 2,529 in the 2022–23 school year. Enrollment at the high school reached its highest in 2007–08 with 1,125 students, declining to 1,034 in 2012–13 and 839 in 2023–24.[4]
In the face of declining enrollment and a state school-funding formula that favors districts with rising student populations, the district said that the changes to the calculation of aid numbers resulted in a loss $45 million in state funding from 2018 to 2024, leading to the closure in 2021 of Milton Elementary School and plans to close Cozy Lake Elementary School after the 2024–25 school year.[5]
The district had been classified by the New Jersey Department of Education 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.[6]
Core members of the district's administration include:[23][24]
Jeanne Howe, superintendent of schools
Rita Oroho-Giacchi, business administrator and board secretary[25]
Board of education
The district's board of education, 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 2012) 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.[26][27][28]
^Jefferson Township Board of Education District Policy 0110 - Identification, Jefferson Township Public Schools, adopted October 15, 2001. Accessed January 22, 2025. "Purpose: The Board of Education exists for the purpose of providing a thorough and efficient system of free public education in grades K through 12 in the Jefferson Township School District. Composition: The Jefferson Township School District is comprised of all the area within the municipal boundaries of Jefferson Township."
^Westhoven, William. "Morris County district will close school, sell offices after 'debilitating' state cuts", Daily Record. September 24, 2024. "Blaming years of 'debilitating' state funding cuts, Jefferson Township School District officials said they will close Cozy Lake Elementary School at the end of the academic year. District offices also will be sold to help make up for a cumulative $45 million in state aid that officials say has been lost since New Jersey recalibrated its school funding formula, known as S2, in 2018.... With numbers down over the longer term, the district was forced to shut Milton Elementary School in 2021. The property has since been leased to a school for student with disabilities."
^Annual Comprehensive Financial Report for the Jefferson Township School District, New Jersey Department of Education, for year ending June 30, 2024. Accessed January 22, 2025. "The Board is an instrumentality of the State of New Jersey, established to function as an educational institution. The Board consists of elected officials and is responsible for the fiscal control of the District. A superintendent is appointed by the Board and is responsible for the administrative control of the District." See "Roster of Officials" on page 12.
^About the Board, Jefferson Township Public Schools. Accessed January 22, 2025.
