New Jersey’s review of how it funds its schools is gathering public input – and while the focus is the formula that pays for public school districts, Lakewood’s private-school parents have plenty at stake, from busing to special-education services.

The effort is not new. The Sherrill administration launched it on August 5, regional public forums began in late September, and in its latest outreach bulletin on October 15, the Department of Education said the review will run about 15 months before recommendations go to the Legislature. Feedback gathered now will also shape a white paper on what the state hears.

The stated scope is the public school funding system: how aid is calculated from enrollment, student need and local wealth, along with cost control, transparency and predictability. The state’s materials do not say whether state programs that serve nonpublic-school students will be part of the review.

Either way, those families live inside the current system. Districts must bus eligible nonpublic-school students or pay parents aid in lieu of transportation, set at $1,177 per student for the 2026-2027 school year. The state also funds auxiliary and remedial services for nonpublic students through the local district – compensatory education, English-language instruction and home instruction, plus special-education evaluations, supplemental instruction and speech services under Chapters 192 and 193 – with a new reimbursement-based funding method that took effect this school year.

In Lakewood, where the district’s long-running funding debate already turns heavily on the cost of transporting and serving children in private schools, any change in how Trenton divides education dollars matters to yeshiva parents and taxpayers alike.

The review itself does not change Lakewood’s aid or guarantee additional funding.

Parents who want to weigh in can speak at a virtual statewide forum this Thursday, October 22, from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Public comments are limited to three minutes, with speaking slots first come, first served. Additional virtual forums are set for November 5 and November 12, an in-person forum for October 27 in Newark, and a community roundtable for October 26 in Pitman.

The current forum schedule and registration information are available through the New Jersey Department of Education. Written feedback can be sent to [email protected]. No deadline for comments has been announced.