Cranford Township Public Schools Explained

Cranford Township Public Schools
Superintendent:	Scott Rubin
Businessadmin:	Robert J. Carfagno
Address:	132 Thomas Street
City:	Cranford
County:	Union County
State:	New Jersey
Zipcode:	07016
Country:	United States
Coordinates:	40.6535°N -74.2971°W
Grades:	PreK-12
Schools:	7
Enrollment:	3,745 (as of 2022–23)
Faculty:	334.1 FTEs
Ratio:	11.2:1
Free Label:	District Factor Group
Free Text:	I

The Cranford Township Public Schools is a comprehensive public school district serving students in pre-Kindergarten through twelfth grade in Cranford in Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The district is governed by a nine-member elected board of education.^[1]

As of the 2022–23 school year, the district, comprised of seven schools, had an enrollment of 3,745 students and 334.1 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.2:1.^[2]

The district is classified by the New Jersey Department of Education as being in District Factor Group "I", the second-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]

Schools

Schools in the district (with 2022–23 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics^[4]) are:^{[5] [6] [7]}

Elementary / middle schools

• Bloomingdale Avenue School^[8] with 233 students in grades K-2
  • Kristen D'Anna, principal
• Brookside Place School^[9] with 355 students in grades K-5
  • Michael Klimko, principal
• Hillside Avenue School^[10] with 734 students in grades K-8
  • Kevin Deacon, principal
• Livingston Avenue School^[11] with 253 students in grades 3-5
  • Cari Lopez, principal
• Orange Avenue School^[12] with 765 students in grades 3-8
  • Lourdes Murphy, principal
• Walnut Avenue School^[13] with 294 students in grades PreK-2
  • Celine McNally, principal
• Cranford High School^[14] with 1,095 students in grades 9-12
  • Mark Cantagallo, principal

The system's high school was the 49th-ranked public high school in New Jersey out of 339 schools statewide in New Jersey Monthly magazine's September 2014 cover story on the state's "Top Public High Schools", using a new ranking methodology, after having been ranked 51st in the state out of 328 schools in 2012.^[15] Cranford High School has a curriculum which has a strong push for technology in the schools, along with stressing service learning. The high school is recognized for its work in service learning and for being a national school of character. Cranford High School students are regularly admitted to some of the nation's top public and private universities, with over 90% of each graduating class going onto college.

Cranford has two public middle schools, Orange Avenue School and Hillside Avenue School, which are located on each end of the township and serve their local neighborhood. Both also are elementary schools as well. On the north side of Cranford, along with Orange Avenue, are two other elementary schools, Bloomingdale Avenue School and Brookside Place School. On the south side of the township, along with Hillside Avenue, are two other elementary schools, Walnut Avenue School and Livingston Avenue School.

Lincoln School, which is the home of the district's administrative offices, also houses the district's two alternative education programs, CAP and CAMP.^[16]

• Dennis McCaffery, principal

Awards and recognition

The district was selected as one of the top "100 Best Communities for Music Education in America 2005" by the American Music Conference.^[17]

Administration

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

• Scott Rubin, superintendent^[19]
• Robert J. Carfagno, business administrator and board secretary^[20]

Board of education

The district's board of education, 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.^{[21] [22] [23]}

Notable alumni

• William Sperry Beinecke (born 1914), founder of the Central Park Conservancy and former chairman of S&H Green Stamps.^[24]
• Carol Blazejowski (born 1956), member of Basketball Hall of Fame and 1974 Cranford High School graduate.^[25]
• Robert Ferro (1941–1988), Cranford High School alumnus and author whose work included a gay coming-of-age novel describing a fictionalized version of Cranford centered around the Rahway River.^[26]

External links

• Cranford Township Public Schools
  • School Data for the Cranford Township Public Schools, National Center for Education Statistics

Notes and References

1. https://www.straussesmay.com/seportal/Public/DistrictPolicy.aspx?policyid=0110&id=323bca8587e042868a477cbcee6f9af7 Cranford Board of Education District Policy 0110 - Identification
2. https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/districtsearch/district_detail.asp?Search=2&details=1&ID2=3403570&DistrictID=3403570 District information for Cranford 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. https://nces.ed.gov/ccd/schoolsearch/school_list.asp?Search=1&DistrictID=3403570 School Data for the Cranford Township Public Schools
5. https://www.cranfordschools.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=1777669&type=d&pREC_ID=1955425 Schools
6. https://rc.doe.state.nj.us/selectreport/2022-2023/39/0980 School Performance Reports for the Cranford Township Schools
7. https://homeroom6.doe.state.nj.us/directory/school/districtid/0980 New Jersey School Directory for the Cranford Township Schools
8. http://bas.cranfordschools.org/ Bloomingdale Avenue School
9. http://bps.cranfordschools.org/ Brookside Place School
10. http://has.cranfordschools.org/ Hillside Avenue School
11. http://las.cranfordschools.org/ Livingston Avenue School
12. http://oas.cranfordschools.org/ Orange Avenue School
13. http://was.cranfordschools.org/ Walnut Avenue School
14. http://chs.cranfordschools.org/ Cranford High School
15. Staff. "Top Schools Alphabetical List 2014", New Jersey Monthly, September 2, 2014. Accessed September 5, 2014.
16. https://lin.cranfordschools.org/ Lincoln School
17. http://usa.yamaha.com/news_events/music_education/best-100-communities-for-music-education-in-america-2006/ Best 100 (101!) Communities for Music Education in America, 2005
18. https://homeroom6.doe.state.nj.us/directory/district/county/union New Jersey School Directory for Union County
19. https://www.cranfordschools.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=1774800&type=d&pREC_ID=1953754 Superintendent
20. https://www.cranfordschools.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=1774897&type=d&pREC_ID=1953835 Business Office
21. https://www.nj.gov/education/finance/fp/dwb/DistrictByTypeList2018.pdf New Jersey Boards of Education by District Election Types - 2018 School Election
22. https://www.nj.gov/education/finance/fp/acfr/search/23/0980.pdf#page=49 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report of the Cranford School District
23. https://www.cranfordschools.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=1774029&type=d&pREC_ID=1952879 Board of Education Information
24. http://www.oldnewyorkstories.com/post/11666701577/william-beinecke-96 William Beinecke - 96
25. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/siforwomen/news/1999/05/27/spotlight/ "Spotlight: Carol Blazejowski"
26. Staff. "Robert Ferro, 46, Dies; Wrote Books on Family", The New York Times, July 12, 1988. Accessed December 17, 2016. "Born in Cranford, N.J., Mr. Ferro graduated from Rutgers University and earned a master's degree from the University of Iowa."