The Garfield Public Schools is a comprehensive community public school district that serves students in pre-Kindergarten through twelfth grade from Garfield, in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.About Us, Garfield Public Schools. Accessed February 5, 2025. "The Garfield school district is comprised of approximately five thousand students housed in seven elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school. In addition, the district also offers PreK education to three and four-year-old children in various locations in the city."Garfield Board of Education District Policy 0110 - Identification, Garfield Public Schools, adopted May 23, 2006. Accessed February 5, 2025. "Purpose: The Board of Education exists for the purpose of providing a thorough and efficient system of free public education in grades Pre-Kindergarten through twelve in the Garfield School District. Composition: The Garfield School District is comprised of all the area within the municipal boundaries of Garfield." The district is one of 31 former Abbott districts statewide that were established pursuant to the decision by the New Jersey Supreme Court in Abbott v. BurkeWhat We Do: History, New Jersey Schools Development Authority. Accessed March 1, 2022. "In 1998, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled in the Abbott v. Burke case that the State must provide 100 percent funding for all school renovation and construction projects in special-needs school districts. According to the Court, aging, unsafe and overcrowded buildings prevented children from receiving the "thorough and efficient" education required under the New Jersey Constitution.... Full funding for approved projects was authorized for the 31 special-needs districts, known as 'Abbott Districts'." which are now referred to as "SDA Districts" based on the requirement for the state to cover all costs for school building and renovation projects in these districts under the supervision of the New Jersey Schools Development Authority.What We Do, New Jersey Schools Development Authority. Accessed March 1, 2022.SDA Districts, New Jersey Schools Development Authority. Accessed March 1, 2022.
As of the 2020–21 school year, the district, comprised of 12 schools, had an enrollment of 4,713 students and 438.1 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 10.8:1.District information for Garfield Public School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed February 15, 2022.
The district had been classified by the New Jersey Department of Education as being in District Factor Group "B", the second-lowest 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.District Factor Groups (DFG) for School Districts, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed December 1, 2024.
Awards and recognition In 2023, Washington Irving School #4 was one of nine schools in New Jersey that was recognized as a National Blue Ribbon School by the United States Department of Education."These 9 NJ schools were named 2023 National Blue Ribbon Schools", Courier News, September 19, 2023. Accessed March 6, 2024. "The U.S. Department of Education on Tuesday recognized 353 schools as National Blue Ribbon Schools for 2023, including nine schools in New Jersey."2023 National Blue Ribbon Schools: All Public and Non-Public Schools, National Blue Ribbon Schools Program. Accessed March 6, 2024.
Schools Schools in the district (with 2020–21 enrollment data from the National Center for Education StatisticsSchool Data for the Garfield Public Schools, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed February 15, 2022.) are:School Performance Reports for the Garfield Public School District, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed April 3, 2024.New Jersey School Directory for the Garfield Public Schools, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed February 1, 2024.
Preschool Garfield Early Childhood Learning CenterGarfield Early Childhood Center, Garfield Public Schools. Accessed June 25, 2022. (178 students; in PreK) Garfield Public Preschool AnnexGarfield Public Preschool Annex, Garfield Public Schools. Accessed June 25, 2022. (95; PreK) Garfield Public Preschool Annex 3Garfield Public Preschool Annex3, Garfield Public Schools. Accessed June 25, 2022. (159; PreK) Elementary schools Washington Irving School #4Washington Irving School #4, Garfield Public Schools. Accessed June 25, 2022. (382; K-5) Woodrow Wilson School #5Woodrow Wilson School #5, Garfield Public Schools. Accessed June 25, 2022. (280; K-5) Abraham Lincoln Elementary School #6Abraham Lincoln Elementary School #6, Garfield Public Schools. Accessed June 25, 2022. (365; PreK-5) Theodore Roosevelt School #7Theodore Roosevelt School #7, Garfield Public Schools. Accessed June 25, 2022. (273; K-5) Christopher Columbus School #8Christopher Columbus School #8, Garfield Public Schools. Accessed June 25, 2022. (306; K-5) Thomas Jefferson School #9Thomas Jefferson School #9, Garfield Public Schools. Accessed June 25, 2022. (295; K-5) James Madison School #10James Madison School #10, Garfield Public Schools. Accessed June 25, 2022. (245; K-5) Middle school Garfield Middle SchoolGarfield Middle School, Garfield Public Schools. Accessed June 25, 2022. (989; 6-8) High school Garfield High SchoolGarfield High School, Garfield Public Schools. Accessed June 25, 2022. (1,159; 9-12)
Administration Core members of the district's administration are:Administration, Garfield Public Schools. Accessed February 5, 2025.New Jersey School Directory for Bergen County, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed February 1, 2024. Dr. Richard Tomko, superintendent of schools, was hired in March 2024Kiefer, Eric. "Garfield School District Hires Belleville Superintendent: Board Prez", Belleville-Nutley, NJ Patch, March 15, 2024. Accessed May 9, 2024. "Belleville School Superintendent Richard Tomko will soon be taking over the reins in Garfield, according to a letter from that district’s board of education." Gioacchino LoBue, business administrator and board secretary
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. 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.New Jersey Boards of Education by District Election Types - 2018 School Election, New Jersey Department of Education, updated February 16, 2018. Accessed January 26, 2020.Annual Comprehensive Financial Report of the Garfield Board of Education, New Jersey Department of Education, for year ending June 30, 2024. Accessed February 5, 2025. "The Garfield Board of Education (the 'Board' or the 'District') is an instrumentality of the State of New Jersey, established to function as an education institution. The Board consists of nine elected officials and is responsible for the fiscal control of the District. A Superintendent of Schools is appointed by the Board and is responsible for the administrative control of the District. A School Business Administrator/Board Secretary is also appointed by the Board and oversees the business functions of the District." See "Roster of Officials" on page 14.Board of Education, Garfield Public Schools. Accessed February 5, 2025.
Until 2020, Garfield had been one of about a dozen districts statewide (five of which are in Bergen County) which held school elections in April and in which voters also decided on passage of the annual school budget.Mazzola, Jessica. "13 N.J school districts held elections Tuesday and - surprise! - hardly anyone voted. See how bad it was", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, April 18, 2018, updated May 14, 2019. Accessed February 17, 2020. "The rest of their 530 counterparts across the state have switched to November elections – most made the change immediately after a 2012 law allowing school district votes to move from April to the fall, held in tandem with the general election. But voters in 13 New Jersey towns went to the polls Tuesday to cast votes for their local boards of education, and in most cases, on whether or not to pass the district budgets."Board of Education Members, Garfield Public Schools. Accessed May 9, 2024. In June 2020, the city council voted to shift school elections from April to November, with the first election under the new calendar to take place in 2021; this change will also mean that voters no longer vote on the school budget, as long as spending increases are within the state-mandated threshold.Sobko, Katie. "Garfield to move school district elections to November", The Record, June 14, 2020. Accessed March 5, 2021. "Garfield officials have decided to move the school district election to November. The city was one of only a handful of districts that still held spring elections.... While Mayor Richard Rigoglioso was not involved in the discussion or the vote because he is employed by the district, the council voted unanimously in favor of the move. City Attorney Robert Ferraro told them that he had already sent notice to district officials and confirmed that this would take effect in 2021."
In January 2025, the city council voted to shift school elections back to April and was granted an injunction to prevent the school board from moving the date back to November. The city council argued that the return to April would allow the public to vote on adoption of the district's budget, but a 2024 law restricts voting on the budget to situations where a 2% cap is exceeded.Cattafi, Kristie. "Garfield City Council, school board can't agree on election date. They now head to court.", The Record, February 4, 2025. Accessed February 5, 2025. "The city's school board election is set to take place in April, a move made by the City Council that was not supported by the board and now is in court. The mayor and council approved a resolution last month to change the election back to April from November. Two weeks later, the Board of Education tried to move it back to November. The council sued the Board of Education to block it from taking a vote to switch the election to November at the Jan. 27 meeting. A judge granted the injunction, and no vote took place.... The resolution said the change would present the budget as a voter referendum in April, but last year Gov. Phil Murphy signed a law that took the public vote away for an April election, unless the school district was raising taxes above the 2% cap."
References
External links Garfield Public Schools
School Data for the Garfield Public Schools, National Center for Education Statistics