Hoboken Free Universal Preschool – Here To Stay?

The free universal Hoboken Abbott preschool program has been making headlines this year after receiving a record number of applications from three year olds, causing the board of education and state of New Jersey to open an additional four classrooms to accommodate soaring demand. As of today, two weeks and two days after school began, there are still nine families waiting to be placed – with ten "no show" students, all applicants should have seats by the end of this week.

Every year, I get a flurry of emails from parents worried about whether Abbott preschool will continue to exist in Hoboken, NJ. The 31 New Jersey Abbott districts were formed in 1981 in order to reduce "significant expenditure disparities between poor urban and wealthy suburban school districts." The Abbott districts include historically low-income areas such as Elizabeth and Newark alongside more affluent locales including Hoboken and Phillipsburg.

Since its inception, the Abbott program has been embroiled in constant legal battles with the state of New Jersey. In 2008, the Supreme Court issued a ruling removing Abbott designation from all 31 districts. The School Funding Reform Act of 2008 was created so "one funding formula will be used to determine state aid to each of New Jersey’s 618 school districts."

With the Abbott label gone, nobody knew what to expect. Many Hoboken parents feared the preschool program would evaporate – with annual funding announced in March, each year parents breathe a sigh of relief when the budget is funded for the following school year.

So what has the outcome been of the dissolution of Abbott districting? Increasing amounts of funding for Hoboken. In 2011, the Supreme Court reinstated $500 million in funding for former Abbott districts. As of 2013, PolitickerNJ reports that "all of the state’s 31 Abbott Districts would receive either flat or increased funding over last year’s levels." The largest increase in aid? Went to Hoboken, to the tune of an additional $810,000.

With a median Hoboken household income of $105,710, the existence of the Abbott program in Hoboken has long been controversial. Many parents move to Hoboken in large part because of the program, leading to explosive growth in the preschool-aged population despite a national drop in that age group. The Star-Ledger reports that Abbott districts receive 60% of New Jersey's record-high $9 billion education budget – many suburban school systems are almost entirely funded by local property taxes.

More – Preschool Population Explosion – Washington DC and Hoboken NJ

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Kathy Zucker, CEO of Metro Moms Network, mother of three young children and winner of the New York Life Keep Good Going Shorty Award, writes about juggling career and family in an urban setting. Read her MomCondoLiving blog, follow her on Twitter (@KathyZucker), friend her on Facebook and watch her on Youtube.