Collingswood Public Schools Explained

Collingswood Public Schools
Superintendent:	Fredrick McDowell
Businessadmin:	Beth Ann Coleman
Address:	200 Lees Avenue
City:	Collingswood
County:	Camden County
State:	New Jersey
Zipcode:	08108
Country:	United States
Coordinates:	39.9129°N -75.067°W
Grades:	PreK to 12
Schools:	9
Enrollment:	2,264 (as of 2021–22)
Faculty:	200.4 FTEs
Ratio:	11.3:1
Free Label:	District Factor Group
Free Text:	FG

The Collingswood Public Schools is a comprehensive community public school district that serves students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade from Collingswood, in Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.^[1]

As of the 2021–22 school year, the district, comprised of nine schools, had an enrollment of 2,264 students and 200.4 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.3:1.^[2]

The district is classified by the New Jersey Department of Education as being in District Factor Group "FG", the fourth-highest 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.^[3]

Students in ninth through twelfth grades from Woodlynne attend Collingswood High School as part of a sending/receiving relationship with the Woodlynne School District. Students in grades 6-12 from Oaklyn attend Collingswood's schools as part of a sending/receiving relationship with the Oaklyn Public School District.^{[4] [5]}

Schools

Schools in the district (with 2021–22 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics^[6]) are:^{[7] [8]}

Preschool

• Collingswood Preschool^[9] with 57 students at Penguin and 43 at Oaklyn in PreK

Elementary schools

• James A. Garfield Elementary School^[10] with 131 students in grades K-5
  • Mark Wiltsey, principal
• Mark Newbie Elementary School^[11] with 138 students in grades K-5
  • Steven Smith, principal
• Thomas Sharp Elementary School^[12] with 189 students in grades PreK-5
  • Karen Principato, principal
• William P. Tatem Elementary School^[13] with 244 students in grades K-5
  • Brian Kulak, principal
• Zane North Elementary School^[14] with 149 students in grades K-5
  • Thomas Santo, principal

Middle school

• Collingswood Middle School^[15] with 526 students in grades 6-8
  • John McMullin, principal

High school

• Collingswood High School^[16] with 777 students in grades 9-12
  • Doug Newman, principal^[17]

Administration

Core members of the district's administration are:^[18]

• Fredrick McDowell, superintendent^[19]
• Beth Ann Coleman, business administrator and board secretary
• Regan Kaiden, president of the Collingswood Board of Education

Board of education

The district's board of education, comprised of nine elected 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.^[20] Oaklyn and Woodlynne each have a representative appointed to serve on the Collingswood district board to represent the interests of their respective district.^{[21] [22]}

Programs

On November 15, 1994, the International Educational Systems (IES) Language Foundation was scheduled to begin an afterschool language program for students of the Collingswood district in the 2nd through 6th grades. For a $36 ($ adjusted for inflation) monthly fee students could take Spanish or French classes. They were to be held for one hour once per week.^[23]

Controversy

The school district gained national and international media attention for calling the police on a 3rd grader, who allegedly made inappropriate remarks about brownies served at an end-of-year school party. The incident has brought attention to a school district policy of involving armed law enforcement officers to deal with all school discipline matters including name calling, resulting in up to five police visits a day according to Superintendent Scott Oswald. According to media reports, students are denied access to their parents and legal counsel during law enforcement interrogations, which take place within the school.^[24]

External links

• Collingswood Public Schools
  • School Data for the Collingswood Public Schools, National Center for Education Statistics
• Championship Collingswood Panther Marching Band

Notes and References

1. https://core-docs.s3.amazonaws.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/792039/0110_IDENTIFICATION.pdf.pdf Collingswood Board of Education District Bylaws 0110 - Identification
2. https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/districtsearch/district_detail.asp?Search=2&details=1&ID2=3403420&DistrictID=3403420 District information for Collingswood Public School District
3. http://www.state.nj.us/education/finance/rda/dfg.shtml NJ Department of Education District Factor Groups (DFG) for School Districts
4. http://www.southjersey.com/articles/?articleID=17043 Collingswood High School
5. Giordano, Rita. "N.J. puts pressure on schools to share Collingswood, Oaklyn, and Woodlynne are just three districts being pushed to combine services - or more.", The Philadelphia Inquirer, October 11, 2009. Accessed December 13, 2014. "Collingswood, Oaklyn, and Woodlynne, she said, are reasonable candidates for administrative sharing. Oaklyn Superintendent Tommy Stringer is due to retire in December, and Woodlynne has an interim superintendent, Walter Rudder. Collingswood Superintendent Scott Oswald is established and well-regarded. Oaklyn and Woodlynne students attend Collingswood High School."
6. https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/school_list.asp?Search=1&DistrictID=3403420 School Data for the Collingswood Public Schools
7. https://rc.doe.state.nj.us/selectreport/2022-2023/07/0940 School Performance Reports for the Collingswood Public School District
8. https://homeroom6.doe.state.nj.us/directory/school/districtid/0940 New Jersey School Directory for the Collingswood Public Schools
9. https://www.collingswood.k12.nj.us/o/cp Collingswood Preschool
10. https://www.collingswood.k12.nj.us/o/jage James A. Garfield Elementary School
11. https://www.collingswood.k12.nj.us/o/mne Mark Newbie Elementary School
12. https://www.collingswood.k12.nj.us/o/tse Thomas Sharp Elementary School
13. https://www.collingswood.k12.nj.us/o/wpte William P. Tatem Elementary School
14. https://www.collingswood.k12.nj.us/o/ze Zane North Elementary School
15. https://www.collingswood.k12.nj.us/o/cm Collingswood Middle School
16. https://www.collingswood.k12.nj.us/o/ch Collingswood High School
17. https://www.collingswood.k12.nj.us/o/ch/page/collingswood-high-school Welcome
18. https://homeroom6.doe.state.nj.us/directory/district/county/camden New Jersey School Directory for Camden County
19. https://www.collingswood.k12.nj.us/page/superintendents-office Superintendent's Office
20. https://www.nj.gov/education/finance/fp/dwb/DistrictByTypeList2018.pdf New Jersey Boards of Education by District Election Types - 2018 School Election
21. https://www.collingswood.k12.nj.us/page/board-of-education Board of Education
22. https://www.nj.gov/education/finance/fp/acfr/search/22/0940.pdf#page=38 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report of the Collingswood School District
23. Hefler, Jan. "Collingswood Children Can Learn French And Spanish Through Fun Sharp School Is Offering It. It's $36 A Month For An Hour A Week. Songs, Games And Activities Will Be Used." The Philadelphia Inquirer. October 23, 1994. Accessed May 16, 2014.
24. Platoff, Emma. "Why police were called to a South Jersey third-grade class party", The Philadelphia Inquirer, June 28, 2016. Accessed July 26, 2020.