All In for Upgraded Facilities

The All In For Collingswood bond referendum is a comprehensive plan to upgrade our schools and provide students with the modernized facilities they deserve.

Currently, our elementary school families are facing overcrowded classrooms, segregation by race, ability, and language, and limited options for students with special needs. We have been facing these challenges for many years, as acknowledged by former school leadership. At this link, find a 2020 article from NJ Pen in which the former superintendent describes the inefficiency of our micro-neighborhood schools and the structural inequity of that system.

Voting YES on the referendum will position Collingswood to accommodate our growing and diverse student body well into the future.

Collingswood Public Schools Student Enrollment 

Total District Capacity: 2,056

2023 Total Enrollment: 2,260

2026 Enrollment (Projected): 2,314

Projected 2026 Deficit: 258

Here’s a quick look at the elementary school buildings in the district, including the former Good Shepherd school, which the referendum funding will allow Collingswood to acquire.

*Enrollment numbers include pre-K students

What does this information tell us?

The characteristics of each of our school buildings are central to the referendum plan, so taking a clear look at each can help us understand how to best move forward.

• Although neighborhood schools are convenient, they are no longer the norm.  Compared to similar sized towns in the county, Collingswood has a higher number of elementary schools that each serve a smaller number of students. Our current structure drives up overhead, prevents resources from being evenly distributed, and puts ceilings on equity and academic achievement. 

• Collingswood schools are over capacity. Voting yes on the referendum will give our district the ability to accommodate more students in more modern school buildings.

• Our oldest elementary school buildings, Sharp and Garfield, cannot be efficiently updated to accommodate our students. The renovations required to make these buildings ADA accessible are too extensive, too expensive, and students could not be in the building while the projects are completed, due to the amount of time required and the hazardous substances that will be exposed during construction.  

  • In this plan, Sharp and Garfield will be decommissioned  — with Sharp converted for recreational use, and Garfield being sold to fund additional school improvements.  The renovations proposed for Zane North will not interrupt student learning.

• Our neighborhood elementary schools are currently segregated by race, ability, and language. The newer the building, the fewer students of color or English language learners it serves. This is not acceptable.