Hawthorne Schools to see state aid restored under Assembly bill

TRENTON, N.J. - Districts that have had state aid cut under the school funding formula known as S2 may have some of that aid restored under a bill that passed the Assembly Monday. The legislation (A4161) appropriates $71.4 million to establish a stabilized school budget aid grant program.

The Hawthorne School District, represented by Assemblymen Al Barlas and Christopher DePhillips, had lost 18% of its state funding-nearly $900,000, the largest cut in all Passaic County schools-this round. However, the district is one of 233 eligible for the grants created by this bill. It will see $589,000 in state aid restored for its 2024-25 budget.

"Hawthorne schools were facing this unprecedented cut in funding that this bill immediately remedies for the upcoming school year," Barlas (R-Essex) said. "This isn't a full restoration and we will continue to work towards that through the budget process, but this is a decent first step. This money helps ensure that our students will receive a thorough and efficient education for their next academic year."

The school funding formula, enacted in 2018, meant to balance supposed inequities in state aid to ensure all 500-plus school districts reached their adequacy budgets, the amount of funding necessary to deliver the constitutionally mandated thorough and efficient education. While many districts have had their state aid exponentially increase or remain static, hundreds of districts like Hawthorne have faced devastating cuts.

"We all agree the school funding formula needs to be scrapped. Republicans in Trenton will continue to demand that S2 be replaced so all New Jersey students get the education they deserve," DePhillips (R-Bergen) said. "In the meantime, Hawthorne schools can provide an excellent education for its students in the next school year."