South Hunterdon Regional School District

South Hunterdon Regional School District is a regional public school district serving students in pre-kindergarten though twelfth grades from three communities in southern Hunterdon County, New Jersey, United States. The district was established for the 2014–15 school year by consolidating the K-6 districts for Lambertville, Stockton and West Amwell Township together with South Hunterdon Regional High School to create a K-12 district.[3][4]

South Hunterdon Regional School District
Address
301 Mt. Airy-Harbourton Road
Lambertville
, Hunterdon County, New Jersey, 08530
United States
Coordinates40.38868°N 74.891029°W / 40.38868; -74.891029
District information
GradesPre-K to 12
SuperintendentDr. Louis Muenker
Business administratorKerry Sevilis
Schools3
Students and staff
Enrollment925 (as of 2018–19)[1]
Faculty108.0 FTEs[1]
Student–teacher ratio8.6:1[1]
Other information
District Factor GroupFG
Websitewww.shrsd.org
Ind.Per pupilDistrict
spending		Rank
(*)		K-12
average		 %± vs.
average
Data from NJDoE 2014 Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending.[2]
*Of K-12 districts with students. Lowest spending=1; Highest=

As of the 2018–19 school year, the district, comprising three schools, had an enrollment of 925 students and 108.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 8.6:1.[1]

History

In a special election held in September 2013, voters from Lambertville, Stockton and West Amwell Township passed referendums to dissolve the South Hunterdon Regional High School District and to combine the three existing school districts from each municipality (Lambertville City School District, Stockton Borough School District and West Amwell Township School District), with majorities in each community passing both ballot items.[5] A single combined regional district was created, serving students in PreK-12, with property taxes levied under a formula in which 57% is based on property values and 43% on the number of students. The executive county superintendent appointed an interim board of education for the new regional district, which was responsible for implementing the merger.[6]

A study commissioned by the district prepared by McKissick Associates looked at options for using, modifying and expanding school facilities in the district, in light of long-term trends indicating a decline in the number of school-aged children in the three municipalities. In a February 2016, a presentation prepared for the board of education outlined various scenarios, which could involve options ranging from retaining all existing facilities to consolidating all schools at a single site. After reviewing a matrix of all 10 options and weighing each on several factors identified as relevant, committee members ranked the choices; based on committee votes, the three preferred choices were (1) to keep K-5 students in Lambertville and West Amwell, while moving 6th grade to the high school complex, (2) keeping all facilities at their present locations with equity additions as needed and (3) a consolidated K-12 at a single site.[7]

Stockton Borough Elementary School, which had seen a dramatic decline in enrollment, was closed at the end of the 2017–18 school year.[8]

A November 2021 referendum allocating $33 million for construction projects passed by a two-vote margin. Voters in Lambertville and Stockton voted strongly in favor of the project, overcoming strong opposition from West Amwell Township voters. Renovations and expansion to Lambertville Public School will run $12.7 million and a new middle school for grades 5-8 will be constructed on the high school campus at a cost of $20.7 million.[9]

Schools

Schools in the district (with 2018–19 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics[10]) are:[11][12]

Elementary schools
  • Lambertville Public School[13] with 225 students in grades PreK-6
  • West Amwell School[14] with 224 students in grades K-6
High school

Administration

Core members of the district's administration are:[16]

  • Dr. Louis Muenker, superintendent
  • Kerry Sevilis, business administrator and board secretary[17]

Board of education

The district's board of education, with 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 2014) as part of the November general election. The board appoints a superintendent to oversee the day-to-day operation of the district.[18][19][20]

References
  1. District information for South Hunterdon Regional School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed April 1, 2020.
  2. Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending April 2013, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed April 15, 2013.
  3. South Hunterdon Regional Board of Education District Policy 0110 - Identification, South Hunterdon Regional School District. Accessed June 29, 2020. "Purpose: The Board of Education exists for the purpose of providing a thorough and efficient system of free public education in grades Pre-Kindergarten through twelve in the South Hunterdon Regional School District. Composition: The South Hunterdon Regional School District is comprised of all the area within the municipal boundaries of the City of Lambertville, Stockton Borough, and West Amwell Township."
  4. South Hunterdon Regional School District 2015 Report Card Narrative, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed June 29, 2020. "Bordering the Delaware River and located in the culturally rich and rural region of Southern Hunterdon County, South Hunterdon Regional School District serves the communities of Lambertville, Stockton, and West Amwell."
  5. Lambertville Public School District 2013 Report Card Narrative, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed November 24, 2014. "In September, 2013, the communities of West Amwell, Lambertville and Stockton voted to approve the dissolution of the South Hunterdon Regional High School District and the formation of a new pre K-12 school district."
  6. Tredrea, John. "Lambertville: Schools turn how to make merger work; After historic vote, decisions on buildings, contracts need to be made", The Beacon, October 2, 2013. Accessed October 15, 2013. "Now that the two referendum questions on merging the Stockton, West Amwell, Lambertville and South Hunterdon Regional High School districts into one pre-k to grade 12 district have been overwhelmingly approved, the process of implementing the regionalization can begin."
  7. District Wide Master Planning Study: Phase II - Board Summary, South Hunterdon Regional School District, February 29, 2016. Accessed January 30, 2017.
  8. Rizzo, Olivia. "Small schools in this rural part of N.J. are under threat", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, May 28, 2018, updated January 30, 2019. Accessed June 29, 2020. "And next month Stockton Borough Elementary School, part of the South Hunterdon Regional School District, will be closing its doors for good at the end of this school year after nearly 200 years. It has a single, combined fifth and sixth grade class this year, and enrollment has fallen to about 50 students in recent years."
  9. Deak, Mike. "South Hunterdon's $33 million school referendum passes by two votes", MyCentralJersey.com, November 16, 2021. Accessed November 17, 2021. "A South Hunterdon Regional School District referendum on the Nov. 2 ballot to fund a $33 million project to renovate Lambertville Public School into a pre-k-4 school and to build a new grades 5-8 school on the high school campus has passed by only two votes, 1,773 to 1,771.... The cost of renovating Lambertville Public School is $11.35 million with the addition costing $1.362 million. The cost of building the grades 5-8 school is $20.7 million."
  10. School Data for the South Hunterdon Regional School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed April 1, 2020.
  11. 2019-2020 Public School Directory, Hunterdon County, New Jersey. Accessed January 29, 2020.
  12. New Jersey School Directory for the South Hunterdon Regional School District, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed December 29, 2016.
  13. Lambertville Public School, South Hunterdon Regional School District. Accessed June 29, 2020.
  14. West Amwell School, South Hunterdon Regional School District. Accessed June 29, 2020.
  15. South Hunterdon Regional High School, South Hunterdon Regional School District. Accessed June 29, 2020.
  16. New Jersey School Directory for Hunterdon County, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed December 29, 2016.
  17. Business Office, South Hunterdon Regional School District. Accessed June 29, 2020.
  18. New Jersey Boards of Education by District Election Types - 2018 School Election, New Jersey Department of Education, updated February 16, 2018. Accessed January 26, 2020.
  19. Comprehensive Annual Financial Report of the South Hunterdon Regional School District, New Jersey Department of Education, for year ending June 30, 2019. Accessed June 29, 2020. "The District is a Type II District located in the County of Hunterdon, State of New Jersey. As a Type II District, the school district functions independently through a Board of Education. The Board is comprised of nine members elected to three-year-terms. The purpose of the District is to educate students in Grades PreK-12. The District serves the communities of the Borough of Stockton, City of Lambertville and Township of West Amwell."
  20. Board Members and Committees, South Hunterdon Regional School District. Accessed June 29, 2020.
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