What Is Newark Superintendent Leon Doing With Our Money?

Laura Waters is the managing editor of NJ Education Report, where this report was initially published. 

Leon is indifferent to the legal costs, his lack of authority to intervene, and the growing number of court rulings against him.

This story started back in 2017 when, in order to solve a budget shortfall, the district engaged the Newark Housing Authority to sell a number of old, unused buildings. One of those buildings, the old Maple Avenue School, was bought and renovated by Friends of KIPP, which helps with facilities costs for one of the high-performing public charter networks in the city. But Leon wants it back and has already spent millions of dollars in legal fees to get there.

He won’t stop. Just two weeks ago, Essex County Superior Court Judge Lisa M. Adubato ordered the Newark Board of Education to pay $768,487 in legal costs to Friends of TEAM Charter School, five months after she dismissed Newark’s lawsuit, calling it a “shameful” waste of taxpayer dollars. 

Now Leon says he’ll appeal the ruling.

Why is this happening? What could be the reason he is pursuing this?

I have a few theories:

First, it’s not his money— it’s everyone else’s, currently $1.53 billion a year. What does he have to lose personally? Nothing.

Second, he is blinded by his ego. This is a man who counts multiple half-enrolled school buildings in his kingdom but can’t bear to lose a facility he doesn’t need that  educates 560 young Newark students who outperform district peers.

Third, it’s his incompetence: The Judge says the district was wrong from the start. Now, state and local taxpayers have to hand over almost $800K to Friends of Team to cover what they spent to keep the building. And that doesn’t count whatever Newark Housing Authority spent defending itself in court. The district gave NHA the authority to sell Maple Avenue, and now he’s suing them? Leon is stepping into matters he knows nothing about, or someone ignorant is advising him. 

Fourth, it’s his hatred of charter schools, which gets back to his ego: Student outcomes in charters make him look bad: 55% of TEAM students read on grade level, almost twice as high a proficiency percentage as the 29% of Newark district students. 

I’m both baffled and livid. If this were a private company, he’d be long gone.  We’re spending all this money, and for what? How is this benefitting the children and families of Newark? What is the school board sitting on their hands?

Time for the State Department of Education or the Newark School Board to step up before more of our money goes in the trash.