Career academies causing concern

BY SHERRY CONOHAN

Staff Writer

An emotional Leonard G. Schnappauf, superintendent/principal of Shore Regional High School, lambasted the Monmouth County Vocational School District for draining off badly needed money from Shore Regional to the detriment of its students.

Schnappauf also faulted the vocational district for taking some of the best students from Shore Regional, along with their tuition and state aid, and for imposing a new $1,000 per-student charge for students who attend traditional vocational education classes part time.

"It’s not just us. The other districts are up in arms too," he told the Shore Regional High School Board of Education at its meeting Dec. 16.

Schnappauf said 17 district superintendents in the county attended a meeting, which they had requested, the week before last with Brian D. McAndrew, the vocational school district superintendent, and Eugenia E. Lawson, the Monmouth County superintendent of schools, to air their complaints about how the county affects their schools and budgets.

He said they were upset that the vocational district is opening a fifth career academy next September that will take away more students, and the money that goes with them, and that the $1,000 charge is being instituted.

Schnappauf said the "comprehensive" high schools like Shore Regional paid $6,100 in tuition for each of their students attending a career academy. He said the vocational district also gets the approximately $7,000 in state aid Shore Regional receives for each of those students, for a total of $13,000.

In addition, he said, Shore Regional has to provide their transportation.

Yet, when the Shore Regional budget must be cut, as happened last year after Sea Bright and West Long Branch defeated the spending plan, the line item for the cost of the career academies can’t be touched, he said.

Schnappauf said the vocational school district is reducing the tuition for career academy students by $300 to $5,800 next year, but that doesn’t offset the $1,000 per-student fee for the traditional vo-ed students who now attend free.

The vocational district also gets half the state aid behind each vo-ed student, he noted.

According to Schnappauf, 53 students in the Shore Regional High School District currently attend the four career academies, at a cost of $323,300 in tuition. He said another 33 students attend traditional vo-ed classes part time.

The new biotechnology career academy opening next fall will begin with a freshman class of about 60, with each elementary school district guaranteed at least one slot. Four elementary districts feed into Shore Regional.

"They are going to take the cream of the crop before we ever see them," complained Alexis Tucci, the Shore Regional board attorney.

"They are taking the brightest youngsters from us all," Schnappauf agreed.

He pointed out that eight students from Shore Regional just got Bloustein awards given by Rutgers University to high academic achievers, and angrily said, "Don’t tell me I can’t educate the best youngsters."

Schnappauf said he’s going to be paying out $300,000 to $400,000 next year to the vocational district and he’s going to have to cut his budget for Shore Regional to do it. He said a meeting is scheduled after the holidays.

"The public has to know they are being attacked and they have no votes," he said emotionally, anger in his voice.

Schnappauf said the issue is that he doesn’t have the money.

"They open a new school. They take all the money," he said. "They just go and buy a new academy with all the latest equipment."

Schnappauf said the new school for biotechnology is costing $18 million.

"It is possible the freeholders don’t know the impact on our schools," he allowed.

"We have to notify the freeholders," board member Paul Rolleri said. "You can’t put our Shore Regional High School students at risk.

"The schools they are setting up are great," Rolleri added. "But if they want to build these schools, they’re going to have to pay for it."

Rolleri also suggested that parents be made to shoulder some of the cost.

Schnappauf said the vocational school program has just become too costly. He said he told the county superintendent of schools that the most major issue facing his high school was the vocational district’s actions.

Schnappauf said the students who attend the career academies would do well in a comprehensive high school with a diverse student population of all abilities and benefit from that. In much the same way, he said, students attending Shore Regional miss out for not having the opportunity to meet and interact with the extremely bright students who attend the career academies.

The career academies are the Marine Academy of Science and Technology (MAST) at Sandy Hook, High Technology High School on the campus of Brookdale Community College in Lincroft, the Academy of Allied Health and Science in Neptune, and Communications High School in Wall.

Schnappauf said because the students who go to the career academies are so high powered, their SAT scores would raise the mean at Shore Regional.

But, he quickly added, that shouldn’t be the way to judge the program.

Schnappauf said the superintendents of the comprehensive high schools will be meeting with the superintendent of the vocational district again after the holidays.

Asked if he expected the vocational district to roll back the $1,000 charge for traditional vo-ed students or further reduce the tuition for the career academies, he replied, "I’m hoping they do. But I have my doubts. At this moment, I’m not optimistic there will be a significant rollback.

"But I never lose hope," he closed with a smile. "Hope springs eternal."