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A SPICE 2003 Program
RCAN Elizabethport Project
Elizabethport Catholic School, Inc.,
Elizabeth, New Jersey
Elizabethport Catholic School, Inc., a K–8 school operated by the Archdiocese of Newark, N.J., is located in Elizabethport, the poorest section of Elizabeth, a city which has been classified by the state as an urban enterprise zone. This school is a merger of three struggling inner-city parish schools that were combined in order to keep a Catholic education available to the students living in and around the area. The majority of students live in single parent families whose income falls below poverty level. When the administrative team of Elizabethport Catholic assumed proprietorship of the three campuses, the buildings were in extremely poor repair and the schools were devoid of a comprehensive, up-to-date educational plan.
What was even more glaring than the condition of the facilities was the total absence of an educational plan that included the integration of technology. For the students, the lack of computer access was the same at home. A poll taken in September 1996, when the school opened its doors for the first time, indicated that three percent of students had hands-on experience on a computer. Clearly the development and implementation of an aggressive technology plan was sorely needed. The age-old problem of insufficient finances was the reason given for the lack of everything needed in the schools.
The school is:
- a regionalization of three financially struggling schools,
- located in the inner city,
- three campuses in need of extensive repair, and
- completely void of technology.
The administrative team envisioned the development and implementation of an aggressive educational plan that included a thorough integration of technology that would be driven by the curriculum needs of the students. This vision presented a three-fold challenge: assessing the needs of the student body, creating the plan, and funding the plan.
The solution was to create a separate corporation under the Archdiocese of Newark that would merge the three schools and operate them as one regional school. The corporation found a way to efficiently fund and operate the three schools with the grade levels divided among the three buildings. This newly created, separately incorporated inner-city school converted challenges into opportunities for growth and development. At the end of seven years, we are pleased to share our successes and ongoing challenges!
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