Dolan, Walker Dismayed Over Race to the Top Result

Westfield education leaders are dismayed over the U.S. Department of Education's decision to not award Race to the Top education funding to New Jersey.

Schools Superintendent Margaret Dolan and Board of Education President Julia Walker both said the Obama administration's decision to award the funds to nine other states and the District of Columbia was a disappointment. Both had endorsed the plan submitted by Gov. Chris Christie for the funds.

"All the districts in New Jersey were looking forward to it," Dolan said at Tuesday night's Board of Education meeting.

Walker said she had been looking to obtain the funds to help make up the $4.22 million in state education aid that Christie cut from Westfield's allotment during state budget cuts in the spring. The amount equaled 90.2-percent of Westfield's total state education aid from the prior year.

"It is such a disappointment," Walker said. "It is one of the two opportunities to recoup some of the losses from last March. It is a shame."

Walker, in an interview with Patch, was citing the recently passed federal legislation providing money for teacher hiring. When questioned during the BOE meeting about the teacher hiring funds, Dolan said has been following the discussions over how the funds are alloted but is waiting for official word from the Christie administration. She said Christie had chosen to administer the funds himself instead of allowing the federal government to grant the funds directly to local school districts. The text of the law requires funds to be distributed in accordance with state education formulas.

Walker said she lobbied Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno during the lieutenant governor's series of closed door meetings in Westfield last week about distributing the teacher training funds to suburban districts impacted by the governor's budget cuts. She said this included any Race to the Top funding New Jersey could have received.

In addition to the District of Columbia, funds were awarded to Florida. Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Ohio and Rhode Island.