Momentum and Inspiration Mark District’s Convocation Under the Theme “Keep On Moving”

NEWARK, N.J. – When Superintendent León took the stage at the district’s annual convocation on Thursday, he promised the thousands of district employees an “emotional coaster ride.”

“There will be some high highs and some lows that you weren’t going to expect,” he said.

By the time the nearly four-hour event ended, it was hard to identify where the lows were.

At this year’s Convocation – held at the Prudential Center for the first time since 2018 – the district’s success stories were many. They were delivered with impressive statistics reflecting the 2025 gains in restoring student achievement to pre-pandemic levels, as well as showcases of students’ talent, celebrations of student-athletes’ excellence, and honors to employees who have given decades of service to the Newark Public Schools – including one teacher who reached the half-century mark.

Each story emphasized the Superintendent’s point that Newark Public Schools, as it is entering its sixth year of a historic 10-year strategic plan, is a district that is doing well. While there is still more work to be done, he noted, the district’s successes are a result of the transformative work of everyone who was in that arena on Thursday.  And if there was one thing Superintendent León wanted everyone to keep in mind when they reported to work every day, it was the convocation’s theme: Keep On Moving.

A High-Performing District

“You did that!” the Superintendent told employees as arena screens displayed the district’s high-performing rating from the New Jersey Department of Education. The New Jersey Quality Single Accountability Continuum (NJQSAC) rating reflects significant gains in 2024-2025:

• Graduation rate projected at 89.6% (up from 86.3% last year).
• Districtwide attendance is 95.1% (up from 94.8%).
• Chronic absenteeism is down for the third straight year to 10.4% (well below the state average).
• The district’s increase in enrollment since the pandemic remains the highest among America’s urban school districts, according to the Council of Great City Schools.

The Class of 2025 earned:

• $218 million in scholarships.
• $15.6 million in college tuition savings through dual enrollment.
• 184 associate’s degrees.
• 457 Seals of Biliteracy.

Also, there were 631 high school graduates with a GPA of 3.5 or higher. The district also celebrated post-secondary outcomes that 50.2% of the Class of 2024 are now in their second year of college.

On state tests, the top schools in each grade were recognized, along with the most improved — including an eight-way tie by eighth grade students from elementary schools for Algebra’s top spot (Franklin, Hawkins, Ivy Hill, Lincoln, Mount Vernon, Park, Ridge, and Speedway Elementary Schools).

Districtwide, English Language Arts scores are nearly back to pre-pandemic levels. Grade 6 students are up 0.6%, and Grade 9 is up 2.8%, scoring above pre-pandemic levels for the second year in a row.

“By being above pre-pandemic levels two years in a row in grade nine, we claim grade nine has recovered,” Superintendent León said.

In math, scores grew across all grades, and the district is now just three points shy of pre-pandemic levels. León noted that integrating science instruction will continue to drive recovery in mathematics.

On the New Jersey Graduation Proficiency Assessment, six high schools outpaced the state in English Language Arts (Arts High School, Bard High School Early College, and Data Science & Information Technology, Science Park, Technology, and University High Schools), while four exceeded the state in math (Bard, Data Science & Information Technology, Science Park, Technology).

Students Enliven The Program

While numbers can tell part of the story of the district’s performance, it is the students who are the reasons why thousands of district staff members go to work every day. It was fitting that students from throughout the district played a central role in convocation.

Justin Martinez, a rising freshman at Technology High School, brought the audience to attention with “Circle of Life” from “The Lion King, Jr.”, which he performed last spring as a McKinley School eighth grader.

To celebrate test score gains, the John F. Kennedy School Band performed James Brown’s “I Feel Good” under the direction of teacher Miyuki Takahashi-Rivera, with Andrea Simon on vocals.

Houria Outtara, who is entering the fifth grade at Speedway Avenue Elementary School, spoke about how the Newark Reads initiative has helped students open the world of reading to her and her classmates.

Jamal Kirton, a Central High School senior and national champion in dramatic interpretation, delivered Langston Hughes’ “A Dream Deferred” and an excerpt from his portrayal of Emmett Till.

The Science Park High School “Legion of Boom” Marching Band, led by 2025 Teacher of the Year Mario Banks, electrified the arena with “Get Ready” by The Temptations.

Two Arts High School graduates returned to perform: Carlos Crespo with a dance choreographed by his dance teacher Ronnie Carney and Keliana Xavier singing Andra Day’s “Rise Up.” The Arts High School Latin Band opened with “Keep On Movin’,” and closed with “La Murga” featuring baritone saxophonist Miguel Rodriguez Bermudez, who made headlines in June when Superintendent León offered him a teaching job at graduation.

The Superintendent also honored the Malcolm X Shabazz High School Boys Indoor Track Team — David Edokpolor, Khalid Raheem, Michael Odins, Justin Parris, and Head Coach Hassan N. Wilson — after showing a video of their dramatic national championship victory at the Millrose Games 4x400 relay.

Omari Gaines, the former Malcolm X Shabazz High School Football safety, was also honored as he is now playing his first season at Stanford University. His father, Malcolm X Shabazz Head Football Coach Nasir Gaines, proudly took photos of his son’s image projected on the arena’s screen.

A Few Words From Honored Guests

Citing the district’s achievements, Board of Education President Hasani K. Council said the district has been setting the bar higher every year since Superintendent León’s administration began in 2018.

“This is what local control looks like,” Council said from the podium. “A school district with a phenomenal transformational leader, dedicated educators, and staff who are deeply committed to creating a supportive and enriching environment where every student can thrive.”

In her remarks, Majority Leader Senator M. Teresa Ruiz gave the people in the audience their due credit for the district’s successes.

“Whether you greet a child in the morning crossing the street, whether you’re serving breakfast, whether you’re the key teacher or a paraprofessional in the classroom,” Ruiz said. “You raise the next generation of champions.”

Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka – a former Central High School principal who had also worked in the district as a substitute teacher, teacher, and vice-principal – said the upcoming school year would be a critical year and he called upon the district’s staff members to draw upon their instincts and abilities as they meet the challenges ahead.

“It’s up to us to build the young people we want to see, to build the tomorrow we want to see,” Baraka said. “Most of us aren’t here because we know the Pythagorean Theorem. Most of us are here because we know how to navigate problems. We know how to lean on our confidence and not sink into darkness. We know how to be creative. We know not to give up. We know how to believe in things that are greater and bigger than ourselves and make the darkest moments beautiful. This is what we need to teach our children.”

Keep On Moving

When Patricia Pavlo Triano, a teacher coach at Fourteenth Street School, was honored for her 50 years of dedicated service to Newark Public Schools, it was more than a perfunctory rite of passage for the Superintendent. It was personal.

Triano’s older sister, Carol Pavlo, was the Superintendent’s kindergarten teacher at Hawkins Street School. Carol was his mentor when he became a teacher, and there was even a third sister, Barbara, who had worked for Newark Public Schools.

“Roger León is like family to me and my sisters too,” Triano said. “Everybody asks me how could I do it for 50 years. And I say because I work for the best and I work with the best.

In closing the program, the Superintendent wasn’t going to allow anyone to rest on the laurels of the past years’ accomplishments. But he wasn’t going to let anyone forget them either.