Top 10 Stories of 2020 Posted on the Hoboken Curriculum Project Blog

If you attend or watch the monthly Hoboken Board of Education meetings you would never know that Wallace School has chronic low scores and serious parental concerns with special services for students... nor would you know that as of November 2019 Wallace Elementary School is the lowest performing public school in Hoboken and among the lowest performing schools in Hudson County and the State of New Jersey. 

You would also probably not know that the Hoboken Middle School has fallen to the lowest 5% of all public schools in New Jersey as decided by the NJ Department of Education. Finally, the Hoboken Board of Education never would present or discuss the fact that a study by Stanford University shows that Hoboken District students completing Grades 3 to 8 are far below grade level comparison to similar school districts with similar demographics. 

The following are the ten most popular posts from the Hoboken Curriculum Project blog for 2020. I have posted the title, an active link to the post, and the day the article was first made available. This blog remains the only blog in Hoboken where information about the Hoboken Public Schools is documented, sourced, referenced, and made publicly available. Posts are also made on state, regional, and national issues. This blog is also used by some colleges and universities for course work. To date, there have been over 450,000 visits to this site. Thank you for your support.

Be safe and all the best for a healthy and prosperous 2021. -Dr. Petrosino 

First, we have two honorable mentions. These posts did not make the Top Ten but they were popular and generated much interest: 

Honorable Mention: Race and the Hoboken Board of Education: Watch Black Parents and the Public Speak About Race Issues and Violence in the Hoboken Public Schools (June 19, 2020) 

Honorable Mention: Hoboken City Council and Hoboken Board of Education Exchange Letters on PILOT Funding (December 8, 2020)

Now for the Top Ten in reverse order...

10) What Is Going on At Wallace School? Chronic Low Scores and Serious Parental Concerns with Special Services (May 12, 2020) 

The school unfortunately operates within a school system that is self referential and not student centric. That becomes evident when problems arise with a student’s performance because of a learning disability. The school is unable and unwilling to provide student-centered solutions as is evidenced by the inability to simply and seemlessly build on previous years’ successes if they occur. Competence issues are never addressed properly and accountability is non existent especially among special education case managers. This has been a bad experience that has lead us to the decision to move outside the school district.

9) Hoboken Board of Education February 2020 Meeting- Change of Principal at Hoboken Middle School (February 16, 2020) 

The district quietly changed principals at Hoboken Middle School where it was pointed out that the school is *now* among the lowest 5% of all public school in New Jersey and lowest New Jersey Department of Education rated school in Hoboken. 

8) WALLACE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL Drops - Now Among the Lowest Performing Public Schools in Hoboken, Hudson County, and New Jersey on NJDOE Educational Quality Metrics- "requiring targeted support" (October 26, 2019) 

Wallace scores were once again among the lowest scores in the State of New Jersey (last year the NJDOE ranked the school in the 37th percentile-- this year the NJDOE ranked the school below the 27th percentile). 73% of New Jersey Public Schools do better than Wallace Elementary School on the NJDOE 0-100 scale score.  

7) 2019 Hoboken Board of Education Results (November 9, 2019) 

There were five candidates competing for three seats on the Hoboken Board of Education in 2019. Each term last for three years.
With 98 percent of the districts reported, it appears that - pending official certification - Sheillah Dallara, Alex De La Torre and Joyce Simons have emerged victorious.

6) This is What 1.39 Inches of Rain Does in Hoboken, NJ (July 22, 2020)

What happens in Hoboken when an inch of rain falls? Here are a number of pictures and videos posted to social media. 

5) Frigid Classrooms, Inaccurate Body Temperature Checks, Sleepless Nights and Sick Kids Coming to School- Comments by the Hoboken Teachers Association on December 8, 2020 for Plea to Go Remote (December 18, 2020) 

The thoughtful and impassioned address that the leader of the Hoboken Teachers Association gave to the Board of Education. Video and Transcript. 

4) Hoboken Board of Education Approves a 10% Tax Increase for 2020-21 (May 31, 2020) 

In the middle of the pandemic and extensive financial problems for the City, the Hoboken Board of Education unanimously approved a tax levy of $53,114,030 for the 2020-21 school year. This represented a 9.95% increase over the 2019-20 local levy of $48,306,832. Three months later the Board would claim they were being defunded....

3) Hoboken Board of Education Letter to the HOBOKEN CITY Council - October 29, 2020 (November 4, 2020) 

 Letter from the Hoboken Board of Education to the Hoboken City Council discussing recent PILOT situation. 

2) Hoboken Middle School Falls to Lowest 5% of All Public Schools in New Jersey - Lowest NJ Department of Education Rated School in Hoboken (November 7, 2019)

Numerous administrative turnover, inept district leadership, and failed instructional strategies have led to the Hoboken Middle School not only scoring the lowest in Hoboken but scoring among the lowest NJDOE rated schools in the State of New Jersey

1) Stanford Study Indicates Hoboken District Students Completing Grades 3 to 8 Are FAR BELOW Grade Level Compared to All Hudson County Public School Districts from Similar Socio-Economic Background (November 6, 2019)

An 8th grader educated in the traditional Hoboken Pubic Schools has acquired the education of a student in roughly March of the 6th Grade, 1.27 grade levels below the 8th grade level of students from similar socioeconomic strata.