TRENTON –– A new educational funding formula proposed by the governor puts Cape May County districts and poor urban schools on the short end of the $7.8 billion funding stick.

According to a release from Gov. Jon S. Corzine, the new funding plan, which would increase state education spending by $530 million over last year, calls for increases of between 2 and 20 percent in all 615 school districts.

Through the new formula, aid would be distributed based on a per-pupil adequacy budget, which represents what a district should spend to allow students to attain state educational standards.

The formula would benefit districts that spend less than their adequacy budget and those that cover more than their local fair share, according to the state Department of Education (DOE).

Every district in this county except for the county Technical School already spends more than their proposed adequacy budgets.

The formula takes into consideration the number of at-risk students (those eligible for lunch programs) as well as limited English proficiency and special education students in a district. The plan also recognizes demographics such as wealthy areas and enrollment trends.

With rising property values and declining school enrollments, districts in this county were described as getting “the worst of both worlds,” according to DOE Commissioner Lucille Davy.

Enrollments in county schools have dropped 1,700 from 15,082 in 2000 to 13,382 in 2007 with Lower Township and Ocean City leading the way with almost 700 lost students between them. The Technical School was the only operating district to see an increase, 80 students, since 2000.

All 18 county districts would receive the minimum increase (2 percent) in state funding under the new formula.

The Herald spoke with several local superintendents who did not want to comment on the new formula before understanding it more clearly.

There was a consensus, however, that after several years of flat funding, any increases in aid would be appreciated. The proposal gives them a chance to work on their budgets with some idea of what to expect from the state.

Officials also noted that many details of the formula are still unclear and the Legislature and the courts still must approve the plan.

DOE Spokesman Richard Vespucci told the Herald that the formula is based on a K-12 district model with 3,000 to 5,000 students.

“Smaller districts (like those in this county) don’t fair as well under this formula,” he said. “We’re not ordering districts to consolidate, but districts that are closer to the model prove to be more efficient.”

In addition to county schools, also getting small percentages would be the state’s 31 Abbott districts – including Pleasantville, Bridgeton, Millville and Vineland – which traditionally receive a larger share of state funding.

Vespucci said the Abbotts have been getting increased funding based on a lawsuit that goes back to 1981. Under the new formula, funding would follow disadvantaged students not specific districts, Vespucci said.

The formula, on the other hand, would reward some suburban districts that have seen increased enrollments over the past seven years.

Atlantic County districts Egg Harbor Township and Greater Egg Harbor Regional, for instance, have seen a large influx of students – 2,009 and 923 respectively – and would receive the 20-percent maximum increase in state aid.

Similarly, Cumberland County Regional School District, in which the enrollment increased by nearly 200 students, would also get 20 percent.

The Governor’s Office said the new plan is attempting to level out an outdated funding model that has been favoring poor schools over many other districts when actually 49 percent of students eligible for free and reduced lunch live in non-Abbott districts.

“Today we unveil a new school funding formula that gives all of our children in all of our communities the opportunity to succeed,” said in a Dec. 12 press release. “It is balanced, unified and equitable and it provides significant relief to local property taxpayers, who for decades have shouldered the important yet growing cost of education.”

No district in the state would see a decrease in state aid for the first three years of the plan, but might lose funding if significant decreases in enrollment occur.

The formula also increases funding for special education, full-day kindergarten and preschool programs.

Contact Hart at (609) 886-8600 Ext 35 or at: jhart@cmcherald.com