East Orange Schools Will Cut Nearly 100 Jobs, Angry Protest Ensues

EAST ORANGE, NJ — A large crowd of outraged teachers, parents and East Orange residents packed a local school board meeting on Wednesday evening, sounding off about a plan to cut 93 jobs in the East Orange Public School District.

Superintendent Christopher Irving, who took the helm of the district just a few months ago, said the cuts are needed due to a severe budget crunch that has been developing for years. State aid has remained steady – and even flat some years – but costs are on the rise, and the district’s reserve fund is empty.

The district was short $5 million coming into the 2024-2025 school year and is $24 million over the annual budget. And if cuts aren’t made, the district will run out of cash by its May payroll, Irving said.

The board of education voted to approve the reduction in force, which includes 22 building-based substitute teachers, 18 literacy coaches, 18 math coaches, 12 school social workers and nine academic interventionists, among other positions. Layoffs are set to take effect on Dec. 15.

Hopefully, the cuts will help prevent the appointment of a state monitor in the East Orange school district, administrators said – a fate that has recently happened to other nearby Essex County districts facing budget crunches. See Related: NJ Appoints State Monitor In Nutley Schools Amid Financial Woes

Pushback against the layoffs has been building in East Orange for the past week.

Prior to Wednesday’s meeting, a video began circulating on social media, claiming that “Rice notices” have been sent to some staff members in the East Orange Public School District. State law requires that Rice letters be sent to public employees if their employment is expected to be discussed at a government meeting, such as a school board meeting.

“Who lays off teachers in October?” the video asked. See Related: Worries About Layoffs Flare Ahead Of East Orange School Board Meeting

Fed-up teachers – who said they haven’t seen a pay increase for several years – joined with angry parents to voice their concerns at Wednesday’s school board meeting.

Thelma Ramsey-Bryant, president of the East Orange Administrators Association, called the layoff plan “unprecedented.”

“We're already understaffed, and now our students are facing the ordeal of now having buildings with even less teachers, which means more crowded classes,” another educator lamented.

The East Orange Education Association, which represents teachers in the district, referenced Wednesday’s board meeting in a social media post about ongoing contract talks with the district.

“We all acknowledge that we are working under an expired contract,” the post read. “However, we are bound to the rules of the expired contract until we approve and ratify a new contract. All actions that are planned that haven't been sanctioned by the EOEA Action Committee chair and the president of the EOEA must cease and desist. Association activities cease to be protected by the NJEA and state law when it interferes with an employee's job performance and responsibilities.”

“As per our contract, Article XXIX, there shall be no strikes and no lockouts,” the post continued, adding that a “mass callout” could be deemed an attempt to disable the East Orange School District.

The district was put on a half-day schedule on Thursday due to “unforeseen circumstances,” according to a message from Irving.

Other neighboring school districts have seen teachers and staff storm board of education meetings amid labor disputes.

Last month, a standoff between the South Orange-Maplewood Public School District and its teachers union spilled out into the streets, with frustrated educators marching in South Orange and showing up in full force at a board of education meeting in Maplewood. See Related: Labor Standoff Continues In South Orange-Maplewood Schools

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