The Murky Way Newark Public Schools Spent Private Money

The Newark school district has a checkered history of spending private donations that can't be tracked by the public — most notably a $100 million donation from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg in 2010.

Now, documents obtained by Chalkbeat suggest that former superintendent Christopher Cerf looked for even more private money to fund a "victory lap" promoting his tenure.

An Oct. 2017 wish list, drawn up as Newark prepared to regain local control of its schools, showed that "officials were seeking private money to help tell what they called a 'comprehensive narrative of success,'" said Chalkbeat's Patrick Wall. 

Wall spoke WNYC's Kerry Nolan.