NJ School Aid 2025-26: See How Manchester Schools Fared

MANCHESTER, NJ — For many of the last seven years, the Manchester Township Schools have grappled with reductions to the state funding provided to the school district.

The cuts, mandated under a state law that purported to balance out imbalances in funding from the School Funding Reform Act of 2008, have had multiple impacts, including reductions in teaching staff and increased classroom sizes.

While the impacts in Manchester have not been as extreme as in some of its neighboring districts, the elimination of equalization aid has squeezed the district.

Manchester was one of the few districts in Ocean County to receive an increase in funding in 2024-25, and for the 2025-26 school year, the district will again receive more funding: The total aid package from the state under Gov. Phil Murphy's proposed budget is $6,345,886, an increase of $359,201 over the 2024-25 funding, according to figures released by the state Department of Education on Thursday.

That change is not because the state has become more generous; it reflects changes in how the state is funding one of the most challenging categories for districts: special education aid.

The Manchester Township Schools are slated to receive $3,704,705 in assistance for its special education students, a 40 percent increase over the $2,640,657 received last year.

The change is the result of a move from funding special education based on an estimate of the number of special education students in an area to funding the actual number of students being served.

The increase in special education aid, while a significant help, was offset by the elimination of adjustment aid — Manchester received $783,197 in that category in 2024-25.

The district also is receiving slight increases in security aid and transportation aid.