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6/1/06 BACK

Longport asks Margate to reconsider new tuition policy


By SUZANNE MARINO
Staff Writer
MARGATE – It’s all about the money.
What started as a low grumble has now erupted into the sounds of thunder in Margate.
Residents and school officials from both Margate and Longport have been making noise about Margate’s planned changes in its out-of-town tuition policy.
The Longport Board of Education at its May 31 meeting passed by unanimous vote a motion asking the Margate Board of Education to postpone a planned change in its policy regarding tuition fees for out-of-district students pending a complete evaluation of the district’s requirements as recommended by the Margate Long-Term Planning Committee in November 2005.
All three members of the Longport Board of Education met with Margate School District Superintendent Dominick Potena, board President Barbara Perskie and member Kelly Blanchet to discuss their concerns about the cost of educating Longport students and bringing in additional students at a discount rate to bring the schools up to capacity.
The action of the Longport board members questions the implementation of any plan by Margate and voices their concerns about the plan’s effect on the quality of education and the impact on the students and finances of Longport residents.
Longport is a sending district that currently sends about 40 students to Margate schools, at a cost ranging from $14,500 to $17,000 per student annually depending upon which Margate school the student attends. That arrangement is dictated by a sending agreement established by the county and state.
Margate adopted a new tuition policy in April to entice more out-of-district students to fill its three schools that are currently operating well under capacity. The tuition for those students would be $4,500 per student per year.
Longport Board of Education president Herbert Stern said that Longport students have enjoyed a positive educational experience in Margate Schools, and he hopes both bodies will work toward long-term success.
Residents such as Bill Mosca and Ann Pancoast, both former educators and year-round Margate residents, are calling the new $4,500 tuition fee for out-of-town students unfair.
The next meeting of the Margate Board of Education is 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 13 at the William Ross School on Granville Avenue.
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