After Decades as the State's 'Petri Dish,' Newark Regains Control of Its Schools

For the first time in over 20 years, Newark is in control of its schools -- something it lost back in 1995, after the state produced a 1,700-page report detailing mismanagement, corruption, and low student performance in the district.

When the state took over Newark's public schools, test scores went up. So did graduation rates. And yet, teachers and parents weren't happy.

"You had a revolving door of superintendents, many of whom weren't from Newark," NJ.com's Karen Yi told WNYC.  "A lot of parents and teachers felt they had this occupation force in their schools that was dictating to them how to run their schools and how to teach their kids. It felt almost like Newark was a Petri dish for reform." 

Now, the move to return school control to Newark—Jersey City won back control last year, and Paterson should be getting it soon—is coming at a bright moment for the city. 

"Newark is getting positive press for being a finalist for the Amazon HQ2 bid," Yi said, "and Newarkers feel like they finally have control, and they know who to hold accountable when the schools fail their kids. They'll have a locally elected board with full power to hire and fire their superintendent, and finally they're going to feel like they have more say in what's going on in the day-to-day of their schools." 

Yi spoke with WNYC's Richard Hake.