This week’s newsletter opens with a deep dive into the budget.

After a month of the District illegally withholding the full document, the line-item version was finally released to NJ21st — but only the day after the BOE meeting, effectively stripping the public of any opportunity to review it beforehand. Even so, we expose the District’s familiar shell game: budgeting low, spending high, and using those artificially low figures to present misleadingly lowered “cost per pupil” numbers on the NJ Taxpayers Guide to Education — a guide based on budgeted, not actual, spending. We spotlight the ballooning “security theater” costs as a case study.

Next, we revisit SAT scores, expanding on last week’s report about the District’s misleading presentation at the March 2025 BOE meeting. Our new 7-District Dashboard comparison highlights where the real numbers stand.

We then turn to community reactions. First, a response to our “Tale of Two Districts” report on educational equity. Second, an article raising serious questions about transparency and data privacy surrounding the District’s adoption of the Raptor security system.

Finally, we close with a look at our top three articles from March.

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Andrea Is Searching for a Living Kidney Donor Andrea is a young EMT facing a high-stakes search for a living donor. NJ21st spoke with Andrea and her family about her story, what living with kidney disease looks like and how the community can help her story reach the right person. Visit Andrea's Page NJ21st is sharing Andrea's story as a community service feature. Donor screening information, the full interview, financial support links and contact information are available on Andrea's page.