The Necessity for a Referendum: My conversation with Jocelyn Schwarz, President of the Tenafly Board of Education

Nearly five months ago, Tenafly voters were placed at a critical juncture: to approve or reject the $76.1 million dollar referendum proposed by the Board of Education. Despite the referendum being approved, the results were incredibly close, with just twelve votes making all the difference. In a January interview, I spoke with Jocelyn Schwarz, President of the TPS Board of Education to get both the Board’s perspective on the referendum and additional information surrounding the referendum. An eight-year veteran of the Board, Ms. Schwarz has gone through the Tenafly schools system, and enrolled her children in Tenafly schools as well. Her takes and information on the referendum provide insights bolstered by her experience in shaping it. 

The goal of this interview and article aren’t to push the Board’s agenda; they’re to make sure you have the information to make an educated opinion. Even though the referendum has already been approved, it’s the duty of Tenafly residents to keep an eye on its progress and effects on students and the community.  

Here’s what I learned. 

The Necessity for a Referendum

Tenafly recognized the need to have a referendum five to six years ago and got serious about the idea four years ago. The main reason was to renovate and repair aging school buildings with effective projects, which would normally be too expensive for the annual operating budget to cover. Moreover, the tax levy cap implemented by former-Governor Christie prevents the district from raising taxes by more than 2%. Every year, the cost of living increases faster than the 2%, which leaves the district little money to work on real, capital improvements, and forces the use of band-aid repairs. The referendum will address a wide range of necessary issues with meaningful projects, while clearing up the annual operating budget for better purposes than ineffective patchwork repairs. 

Planning the Referendum

A team of business administrators, architects, building grounds supervisors, and district administrators worked to create the proposal and select projects to undertake, after evaluating first-hand the issues brought forth by the Board’s facilities committee. 

Community engagement was another priority for the district. HSA input was invited, and a community referendum committee with a diverse cross-section of Tenafly residents was created. The goal was to reach out to as many Tenafly residents as possible and educate them on what the referendum aimed to accomplish. Information was also shared during Board meetings, through Mayor Zinna’s weekly newsletters, and through school administrations, to students. In addition to hosting two community forums, the district presented the referendum at places all across Tenafly. 

The current timeline for the referendum is still fluid, as contracts for different projects will be awarded over time, not all at once. However, Ms. Schwarz puts an estimate on three to five years, if everything goes right. And they’ve already started, with contracts for gym repairs in both the middle school and the high school having been awarded a few weeks ago. In addition to gym repairs, which include work on bleachers, floors, dividers, and pads, the district aims to complete most of the security measures, including vestibules and person-traps, during this summer. 

A majority of visible additions should be completed by the fall of 2026. However, the district, at the time of the referendum’s vote, only had 20-25% of the total project planned out, due to the expensive cost of full architectural/engineering drawings, and uncertainty whether funding would be secured. Thus, district plans are still slightly fluid, and it’ll take time for the plans to become more fleshed out. 

After Ms. Schwarz mentioned other towns having referendums of their own, I asked her whether they had influenced Tenafly’s own referendum. However, due to the different needs of Tenafly buildings and the varying stages of repairs already done, Tenafly’s basic needs are different from any town. However, the main problem causing this rise in referendums continued to be aging buildings and outdated infrastructure. 

Monetary Concerns

According to Ms. Schwarz, the $76.1 million budget for the referendum represents all line items for every referendum project, which includes built-in contingencies to account for potential cost increases. Soft costs were also built into the funding, which included legal, engineering, and architectural fees. Together all of these costs, in tandem with state aid, totals at $76.1 million, which represents the district’s most urgent and pressing needs. 

However, the exact costs are still fluid, and therefore unable to be released. In addition, releasing information on line-items to the public would cause contractors to reflect those numbers in their proposals, which would take away funding from the built-in contingencies. 

State aid itself is supposed to support 85% of 40% of eligible referendum projects, but for the past few years, that 40% has been reduced to 34%. Nevertheless, the state is funding a significant 21.7% of the referendum, a combined $16.5 million. That $16.5 million was determined after district architects sent appropriate documents to the state for project approval. 

One major concern for Tenafly residents was the inevitable hike in taxes should the referendum have passed. Ms. Schwarz estimates the tax impact to be 881$ per year for an average assessed home, with $839,000 being the average assessed home in Tenafly. This excludes the state aid, addressing just the portion that Tenafly needs to chip in. 

With the district going out to bid, and selecting eligible contractors with the lowest bid, Ms. Schwarz is hopeful that contracts for security and ventilator improvements can be awarded in the coming months. It’s a slow process, as the full scope of each project needs to be fleshed out before contractors can get involved, but the district remains confident in the referendum’s efficient completion. 

Impact on Students and the Community

During our interview, Ms. Schwarz reassured me that despite the extensive construction and renovation projects planned for the future, there will be little negative impact on students. In most cases, work (such as security systems and gym renovations) will be completed in the summer. Worst case scenario, some students might be relocated to other classrooms for a short period of time, before work in their original classroom is completed.

However, there are a bunch of projects which directly and positively impact student communities. 

At the elementary school level, small learning groups, such as Basic Skills, Gifted and Talented, and Reading Recovery are currently using hallways, converted closets, and stages for their classes, allowing for distractions and less effective learning. The referendum seeks to add proper rooms for these groups, since at the time of the schools’ founding, none of these programs existed. Middle school locker rooms will be renovated, allowing students to change for gym for the first time since the pandemic began. High school athletes will see improved athletic facilities, benefiting the large number of students participating in THS sports. Finally, for both the middle school and the high school, additions in audio, lighting, and sound systems will be made to auditoriums. 

There’s still communication from the Board on Referendum updates. Not only are they discussed at monthly Board meetings, but information will soon be released online and through the mayor’s weekly newsletter, so stay posted if you’re interested. 

Moving Forward

As the referendum projects move forward, it’s essential for residents to stay informed and engaged. This is especially true due to its significant role in ensuring that Tenafly schools retain their excellence. While challenges still exist, the improvements will ultimately enhance the educational experience for students and benefit the wider Tenafly community. With careful planning and oversight, these investments will shape a stronger, more modern school system for years to come.