Freehold Schools See Increase in State Aid

Gov. Chris Christie’s office announced an additional $600 million in state aid would be distributed to school districts across the state, with a $450 million for Abbott districts and $150 million for non-Abbott districts.

Under the proposed funding, Freehold Regional High School District will receive a $1,717,860 increase in aid over the amount Christie approved in February for the 2012 budget, bringing the district’s total aid to $48,069,354. Freehold Township School District’s $8,529,128 in aid rises to $8,703,074. Freehold Borough School District will see its aid increase from $2,961,889 to $3,618,453.

The additional aid effectively doubles the increase in aid for the 2011-2012 school year over the 2010-2011 school year. For example, under the state aid numbers released in February, Freehold Regional was slated to receive a $1.7-million increase over 2010-2011 when aid was slashed in districts across the state. Under the newly released numbers, Freehold Regional’s increase over 2010-2011 is $3,435,720. However, with the increase in aid, Freehold Regional’s 2011-2012 proposed state aid amount is $5,143,273 less than the $53.2 million the district received in 2009-2010.