NJ Schools Spend $18K Per Student On Average: How Much Your Kid Gets

NJ school districts — even those with similar enrollment — budgeted significantly different amounts per pupil last year. Here's the list.

Josh Bakan, Patch Staff

Posted Thu, Jul 21, 2022 at 2:14 pm ET|Updated Wed, Jul 27, 2022 at 2:30 pm ET

New Jersey school districts — even those with similar enrollment — budgeted significantly different amounts per pupil last year. (Shutterstock)

NEW JERSEY — School districts in New Jersey budgeted an average of about $18,000 per student last school year. But spending by district significantly varied — even among those who teach the same grades and have similar numbers of students enrolled, according to new data from the New Jersey Department of Education.

The figures come from the state's 2022 Taxpayers' Guide to Education, which shows the amounts that districts and schools have spent and budgeted per student. The guide also features information on what districts have spent or budgeted in specific categories, such as supplies, salaries and benefits, lunch programs, and support services.

The state education department also shows comparative-spending data in New Jersey schools going back to 1999.

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Patch organized the data by type of district/school and ranked them by how much they budgeted per pupil in the 2021-22 school year. The New Jersey Department of Education separates them into 11 different enrollment categories:

Kindergarten through sixth grade
K-8, fewer than 400 students
K-8, 401-750 students
K-8, more than 750 students
K-12, fewer than 1,800 students
K-12, 1,801-3,500 students
K-12, more than 3,500 students
Grades 7-9 or 9-12
County Special Service Districts
County vocational districts
All charter/renaissance schools

The average budgetary cost per New Jersey student totaled $18,208 — an increase of $1,385 (8.2 percent) increase from the 2020-21 school year. The state median for per-student budgeting in the 2021-22 school year was $18,326, which was $1,559 (9.3 percent) more than the prior school year.

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In each enrollment category, schools and districts substantially varied in terms of how much they budgeted per student last year. But be careful about jumping to conclusions based on a district's ranking in that categoryalone. Per-student spending in U.S. public schools depends on a range of factors, including property values, tax revenues, financial constraints and political conditions.

So a higher dollar figure doesn't necessarily indicate that a school district spends too much, and a low amount doesn't automatically mean a district spends too little. The figures primarily serve as a way to help the public understand educational spending in their community and the state.

"This guide can be a helpful first step in discussions that residents have with their local school officials about school-spending needs," said Dr. Angelica Allen-McMillan, the state's acting education commissioner.

K-6 districts

state average cost per pupil in K-6 districts: $17,770
state median cost per pupil in K-6 districts: $18,985

District, county, and district's amount budgeted per pupil last school year :

Milford Boro, Hunterdon, $32,409
Saddle River Boro, Bergen, $30,600
Long Beach Island, Ocean, $28,967
Roosevelt Boro, Monmouth, $27,435
Highlands Boro, Monmouth, $26,664
Beach Haven Boro, Ocean, $25,755
Cape May City, Cape May, $24,583
Knowlton Twp, Warren, $23,755
Edgewater Boro, Bergen, $22,907
Seaside Heights Boro, Ocean, $22,376
Stillwater Twp, Sussex, $22,206
West Cape May Boro, Cape May, $22,149
Ocean Gate Boro, Ocean, $21,676
Hampton Twp, Sussex, $21,425
Franklin Twp, Warren, $20,979
Eagleswood Twp, Ocean, $20,966
Sandyston-Walpack Twp, Sussex, $20,876
Atlantic Highlands Boro, Monmouth, $20,572
Mansfield Twp, Burlington, $20,508
Fredon Twp, Sussex, $20,507
Essex Fells Boro, Essex, $20,369
Lebanon Boro, Hunterdon, $20,353
North Hanover Twp, Burlington, $20,247
Island Heights Boro, Ocean, $20,148
Waterford Twp, Camden, $20,048
Washington Twp, Warren, $20,013
Frelinghuysen Twp, Warren, $19,718
Blairstown Twp, Warren, $19,159
North Caldwell Boro, Essex, $18,985
Roseland Boro, Essex, $18,782
Laurel Springs Boro, Camden, $18,536
Oaklyn Boro, Camden, $18,337
Washington Boro, Warren, $18,312
Chesterfield Twp, Burlington, $18,075
Elk Twp, Gloucester, $17,998
Little Egg Harbor Twp, Ocean, $17,728
Lower Twp, Cape May, $17,527
Springfield Twp, Burlington, $17,386
Woodbury Heights Boro, Gloucester, $17,368
Mine Hill Twp, Morris, $17,303
Wenonah Boro, Gloucester, $17,245
Tuckerton Boro, Ocean, $17,117
Westville Boro, Gloucester, $17,059
Oradell Boro, Bergen, $16,857
Mansfield Twp, Warren, $16,851
Stafford Twp, Ocean, $16,623
Swedesboro-Woolwich, Gloucester, $16,480
National Park Boro, Gloucester, $16,447
Fairfield Twp, Essex, $16,286
River Edge Boro, Bergen, $16,088
Mantua Twp, Gloucester, $16,070
Ocean Twp, Ocean, $15,804
Berkeley Twp, Ocean, $15,800
South Harrison Twp, Gloucester, $15,062
Franklin Twp, Gloucester, $14,724
Harrison Twp, Gloucester, $14,422
East Greenwich Twp, Gloucester, $14,416

The data did not include a figure from the Bass River Township School District (Burlington County) in this category.

K-8 districts, 400 or fewer students

state average cost per pupil in all K-8 districts: $19,060
state median cost per pupil in all K-8 districts: $19,603