The Springfield Public Schools is a comprehensive community public school district serving 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 ...

through

twelfth grade Twelfth Grade (also known as Grade 12, Senior Year, Standard 12, 12th Standard, 12th Class, or Class 12th or Class 12) is the twelfth and final Educational stage, year of Formal education, formal or compulsory education. It is typically the final ...

from Springfield Township, in Union County, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

. As of the 2022–23 school year, the district, comprising five schools, had an enrollment of 2,236 students and 168.3 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a

student–teacher ratio The student–teacher ratio or student–faculty ratio refers to the number of students who attend a school or university divided by the number of teachers or staff in the institution. For example, a student–teacher ratio of 10:1 indicates that ...

of 13.3:1.District information for Springfield Public School District

National Center for Education Statistics The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is the principal federal agency responsible for collecting, analyzing, and reporting data on education in the United States. Established under , it operates within the Institute of Education S ...

. Accessed February 1, 2024. 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 {{refimprove, date=February 2013 Membership in a District Factor Group (DFG) is an indicator of the socioeconomic status of citizens in school districts of New Jersey. DFGs were first developed by the New Jersey Department of Education in 1975 for ...

"GH", the third-highest of eight groupings. District Factor Groups organize districts statewide to allow comparison by common

socioeconomic Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...

characteristics of the local districts. From lowest socioeconomic status to highest, the categories are A, B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I and J.

History

Springfield Township became one of the six constituent municipalities of the Union County Regional High School District when it was established, joining Berkeley Heights, Clark, Garwood,

Kenilworth Kenilworth ( ) is a market town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Warwick (district), Warwick District of Warwickshire, England, southwest of Coventry and north of both Warwick and Leamington Spa. Situated at the centre of t ...

and Mountainside. The district opened for students in September 1937, with the district's first facility being Jonathan Dayton Regional High School in Springfield, which was named for founding father

Jonathan Dayton Jonathan Dayton (October 16, 1760October 9, 1824) was an American Founding Father and politician from New Jersey. At 26, he was the youngest person to sign the Constitution of the United States. He was elected to the United States House of Rep ...

. Amid conflict between the constituent municipalities about financing a district described as "the highest-spending regional high school in the state" and anger from residents impacted by the closure of

David Brearley High School David Brearley High School is a four-year comprehensive public middle - high school that serves students in seventh through twelfth grades from Kenilworth in Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, operating as the lone secondary schoo ...

, a referendum was held in May 1996 in which voters approved a proposal to breakup the regional district. With the district's dissolution at the end of the 1996-97 school year Jonathan Dayton High School was turned over to the Springfield Public Schools, which became a K-12 district.Paglia, Bernice
"Stakes high in vote on deregionalization"
''

Courier News The ''Courier News'' is a daily newspaper headquartered in Somerville, New Jersey, that serves Somerset County and other areas of Central Jersey. The paper has been owned by Gannett since 1927. Notable employees *John Curley, former presi ...

'', May 13, 1996. Accessed April 28, 2021, via

Newspapers.com Ancestry.com LLC is an American genealogy company based in Lehi, Utah. The largest for-profit genealogy company in the world, it operates a network of genealogical, historical records, and related genetic genealogy websites. It is owned by The ...

. "In 1992 the Union County Regional High School District 1 board voted to close one of its four high schools, a move aimed at saving $4 million. That move may come full circle on Tuesday, when voters from six municipalities will decide whether to dissolve the district itself, which state Education Commissioner Leo Klagholz has called 'the highest-spending regional high school in the state.'"

Schools

Schools in the district (with 2022–23 enrollment data from the

) are: ;Elementary schools *Edward V. Walton Early Childhood Center with 551 students in grades PreK-2 **Adriana B. Coppola, principal *James Caldwell Elementary School with 292 students in grades 3-5 **David Rennie, principal *Thelma L. Sandmeier Elementary School with 245 students in grades 3-5 **Michael C. Plias, principal ;Middle school *Florence M. Gaudineer Middle School with 518 students in grades 6-8 **Timothy P. Kielty, principal ;High school *

Jonathan Dayton High School Jonathan Dayton High School is a four-year comprehensive high school, comprehensive state school, public Secondary education in the United States, high school serving students in ninth grade, ninth through twelfth grades in Springfield Township, ...

with 659 students in grades 9-12 **Norman Francis Jr., principal

Administration

Core members of the district's administration are: *Rachel Goldberg, superintendent *Michelle Calas, school business administrator and 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 area, ...

, 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.Board of Education Members
Springfield Public Schools. Accessed February 7, 2024.

References

External links

Springfield Public Schools
*
School Data for the Springfield Public Schools

{{Union County, New Jersey School Districts Springfield Township, Union County, New Jersey New Jersey District Factor Group GH School districts in Union County, New Jersey