Hoboken School District Receives Lighthouse Award From NJDOE

TRENTON, NJ — The Hoboken Public School District was recognized this week by the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE), receiving a 2021 Lighthouse Award for substantial improvement in advancing educational equity.

Seven award winners - five school districts and two charter schools -were announced Tuesday at NJDOE's virtual Statewide Equity Conference. The Hoboken Public School District was honored in the area of "increasing equity in disciplinary outcomes," according to the NJDOE.

"Equity in education can take many forms, and the Lighthouse Award recipients have improved equity in their academic offerings, the teaching workforce and school climate," Dr. Angelica Allen-McMillan, NJDOE's acting commissioner of education said according to RLSMedia.com. "They are true exemplars of Gov. Murphy's vision for a stronger, fairer New Jersey."

Launched by the NJDOE in 2017, the Lighthouse Award initiative recognizes the hard work of all stakeholders in each educational community, including district and school leaders, teachers, students, parents and school community members, the NJDOE said.

The winners were chosen by the NJDOE based on data analysis and a review of each candidate's equity story. Each candidate was asked to explain how it increased equity by: engaging diverse stakeholder groups, encouraging collaboration between faculty and staff, providing teachers with professional learning and mentoring and integrating quantitative data.

The Hoboken Public School District's equity story is available on the NJDOE website.

According to the NJDOE, representatives from 2021 Lighthouse Award winners will a chance to work together in professional learning and networking settings during the award term -August 2021 to August 2023. Officials from the winning districts and charter schools also will lead professional learning events for educators throughout the state.

"I commend these school districts and charter schools for their commitment to student achievement and equitable outcomes," said Kathy Goldenberg, president of the NJDOE. "This recognition will allow educators from across New Jersey to learn and benefit from the practices of these seven school districts and charter schools during their 2021-2023 award term."