New in Newark New in Newark

Building Newark’s college-going culture

Published November 7, 2017 | Reginald Lewis

“We have smart children in Newark. We just need a few more resources and the belief that we can all succeed.”

With those words, Kim Boerrigter, 2017 graduate of Malcom X. Shabazz High School, Harvard University Class of 2021, summed up both Newark’s potential and the challenges the city must overcome so that her success becomes the rule, not the exception.

Recent progress provides hope. In just a few years, the Newark Public Schools’ high school graduation rate rose to 73% from 53%. And more graduates are being accepted to college: 75% of the class of 2017 gained admission to a two- or four-year institution, including Kim and six of her classmates who entered Ivy League institutions this fall.

Still, more work is needed for Newark to approach New Jersey’s statewide graduation rate of 90%. This is the mission of the Newark City of Learning Collaborative (NCLC), which works with the school system, businesses, community organizations, and other partners to build the citywide college-going culture that is crucial to more students enjoying success.

A college-going culture means an environment where every child, regardless of neighborhood, zip code, or high school, is expected to come to school, do well in school, and adequately prepare to succeed at the college level.

The Newark Public Schools and NCLC work together in a range of activities aimed at reaching this goal:

College Talk – daily conversations in schools to help students understand what’s required to stay on track to graduate and on a path that leads to college

Expectations – all students are expected to achieve at a high level, with explicit goals for preparation clearly laid out for students and parents

Key Resources – up-to-date information about colleges and other post-high school options, like high-quality certification programs, are easily available to all students

A newly created NCLC/NPS position, the Higher Education Liaison, is solely focused on providing students, parents, guidance counselors, teachers, and administrators information and resources related to college that many promising students never obtained before. The partnership with NPS has led to the sponsorship of an annual district-wide college fair, where students and families meet representatives from colleges from around the country. The fair also helps raise awareness and encourage aspirations toward college. The second annual fair, which took place last month, enabled hundreds of students from around the city, including district, charter, county vocational, and parochial, to explore their options beyond high school.