As of the 2018–19 school year, the district, comprised of 17 schools, had an enrollment of 14,504 students and 839.8 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 17.3:1.[1]
The district is classified by the New Jersey Department of Education as being in District Factor Group "A", the lowest of eight groupings. District Factor Groups organize districts statewide to allow comparison by common socioeconomic characteristics of the local districts. From lowest socioeconomic status to highest, the categories are A, B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I and J.[7]
R. Aaron Bowman, business administrator and board secretary[32]
Board of education
The district's board of education, comprised of nine members, sets policy and oversees the fiscal and educational operation of the district through its administration. As a Type II school district, the board's trustees are elected directly by voters to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with three seats up for election each year held as part of the April school election. The board appoints a superintendent to oversee the district's day-to-day operations and a business administrator to supervise the business functions of the district.[33] Of the nearly 600 school districts statewide, Passaic is one of 12 districts with school elections in April, in which voters also decide on passage of the annual school budget.[34][35][36]
^District Policy 9001 - Identification, Passaic City School District. Accessed March 26, 2022. "Purpose: The Board of Education exists for the purpose of providing a thorough and efficient system of free public education in grades Pre-K through 12 in the City of Passaic Public Schools. Composition: The Passaic Public Schools is comprised of all the area within the municipal boundaries of the City of Passaic."
^What We Do: History, New Jersey Schools Development Authority. Accessed March 1, 2022. "In 1998, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled in the Abbott v. Burke case that the State must provide 100 percent funding for all school renovation and construction projects in special-needs school districts. According to the Court, aging, unsafe and overcrowded buildings prevented children from receiving the "thorough and efficient" education required under the New Jersey Constitution.... Full funding for approved projects was authorized for the 31 special-needs districts, known as 'Abbott Districts'."
^Sportelli, Albina. "Your guide to North Jersey spring school board elections", The Record, April 14, 2023. Accessed March 15, 2024. "Of New Jersey's almost 600 school districts, only 12 have elections in April, the rest have opted to hold theirs in November.... Schools that have kept elections in the spring, or switched back after moving them to November, are: Cliffside Park, Fairview, Passaic, Totowa, Fredon, Montague, Irvington, Newark, North Bergen, Weehawken, West New York and New Brunswick."
^Annual Comprehensive Financial Report of the Passaic City School District, New Jersey Department of Education, for year ending June 30, 2023. Accessed May 6, 2024. "The Passaic Board of Education is a Type II school district whose boundaries are coterminous with the City of Passaic in Passaic County, New Jersey. The district's Board has nine (9) members that are elected for three (3) year overlapping terms. The members of the Board are residents of the City of Passaic. The Passaic Board of Education is annually organized on any day of the first or second week following the April school election." See "Roster of Officials" on page 42.
