State Aid Bump of 2% for Hackettstown Schools

With the announcement of the largest package of state aid awarded to schools in New Jersey history, the Hackettstown Public School district has received a bit of a gift with an increase in funding.

The K-12 district will receive $5,034,289 in state funding for the 2013-14 school year, a 2.2-percent increase from the 2012-13 school year when Hackettstown received $4,924,135.

This is the second consecutive year Hackettstown has received an increase, as the district jumped 6.1-percent from 2011-12 to the following year.

School District Business Administrator Teresa Barna was not immediately available for comment.

The 2013-14 aid package is the largest amount every released by the state, according to the New Jersey Department of Education, with nearly $9 billion going to public schools, an increase of $97.3 million from the previous year.

“Throughout my time in office I have continuously argued that in order to grow New Jersey’s economy we must invest in education, and my proposed budget is a reflection of my commitment to our educational system and communities across the state,” said Governor Chris Christie in a statement. “However, even as we continue to fund education at the highest levels in state history, we must remain willing to reflect on how we are spending our money and work towards solutions that make every dollar we invest count.”

It is also the third consecutive year overall aid has increased, the DOE said.

Tentative budgets are due to county superintendent offices by March 8 for districts that moved their elections to November.