Wayne Board of Ed Moves to Bring Full-Day Kindergarten, Return Budget Vote and Election to April

The Wayne Township Board of Education has decided to move forward with a plan to bring full-day kindergarten into the school district for the 2016-2017 school year and to return the budget vote and election of school board members to April, according to a letter from Wayne Superintendent Mark Toback.

This comes after Governor Christie signed a law in 2012 that gave school districts the right to bypass school budget votes if districts move the school board elections to November for a minimum of four years. Although moving the April election to November saves tax payer’s money, the law eliminates a vote on the budget if the school budget remains under the “two percent tax levy cap,” Superintendent Toback said.

Since the Wayne Township School District will not complete the minimum four years required until the end of the 2015-2016 school year, the public will have an opportunity to vote on whether or not to bring full-day kindergarten at no cost to parents during the 2015-2016 school year.

According to Superintendent Toback, the school district cannot begin full-day kindergarten in September of 2015 because “a variety of financial limitations” prevents them from staying within the two percent budget cap.