Jersey City's P.S. 16 Annex Is Officially Open, Alleviating Overcrowding In The School

JERSEY CITY, NJ — Government and school officials in Jersey City came together on Friday to cut the ribbon on the annex for the Cornelia F. Bradford School, or P.S. 16. The annex is the first "school" that the city has built on its own, without funding from the state.

The P.S. 16 Annex is located at 275 Washington Street and aims to alleviate the longstanding overcrowding issue at the downtown school. The annex will have 13 new classrooms for kindergarten and first grade. The existing building has 14 classrooms that will be dedicated to 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade.

P.S. 16 is a highly rated public school according to Niche and has roughly 812 students.

"We have a lot of things to be proud of here. We have a school that's gone through many transitions," Jersey City Public Schools Superintendent Franklin Walker said, "From being a Pre-K to 8 school, to Pre-K to 5, trailers in, trailers out."

Walker highlighted that the annex is a representation of what can be achieved when the school district, board and city government work together. Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop echoed a similar sentiment.

"This is a testament of working together and solving problems. I think it’s no secret that there are struggles with regards to funding new schools in Trenton. Jersey City tried to figure this out by ourselves," Fulop said. "Today is a great day for Jersey City. It is the first time we’ve built a public school by ourselves, and it is a model for what is possible when we all work together."

Jersey City Board of Education President Mussab Ali highlighted the work that the parent community at P.S. 16 did to push the project to the finish line.

"It's a testament to the belief of the parents in our public school system," Ali said.