[Newark, NJ November 7, 2022]- The ALL Schools Fair kicked off on Saturday morning with families eager to connect with school representatives to learn about the great opportunities in the city’s schools. The fair was attended by over two thousand students and their families amid the launch of Newark Enrolls – the district’s universal enrollment system.
This year, the fair was held at the newly renovated Newark Vocational High School where the students’ Career and Technical Education programs in Culinary Arts and Hospitality and Tourism were on full display. Families were greeted with delectable treats of muffins, cupcakes, pasta, and pizza as they visited the various school stations.
Superintendent León welcomed guests, "We are extremely excited for the 2023-24 school year because we are bound for greatness! This is the largest turnout of all our ALL Schools Fairs!” Families expressed similar excitement, Tracey Manor said, "I've attended all of the open houses to see what the schools have to offer and my daughters are interested in Newark Vocational; Imani in Graphic Arts and Amia in the Culinary Arts program.”
Eighth-grade student Nyzir exclaimed, “We visited all the schools; Science Park, Shabazz, and Central... I am interested in the carpentry program at Barringer because I like building things with my hands. I like football at Shabazz and the dental program at Central."
"The Fair is lovely and in a school that was updated. There are a lot of opportunities in these schools and parents need to go to these schools and let their kids pick, because it's there," said parent Tiffany Bensmat.
Board President Haynes greeted and interacted with families as they entered the venue. She noted, “We are excited for the families and their children. They see the school system growing as our city is growing.” Also representing the Board in attendance were Board Vice-President Norton, and Board Members Council, Garcia, and Williams.
The excitement at the fair translated into a swift response to the district’s call to action. As soon as the application window opened at 3:00 pm, students began to apply. Since the launch of the application window, nearly two-thousand applications have been recorded.
Families have until February 3, 2023, at 11:59 pm to make their choices. We encourage families to visit the Newark Enrolls website to review each school’s profile and promotional video (www.NewarkEnrolls.org). Newark Enrolls is the only universal enrollment system in Newark that provides families with a transparent and equitable process to access the city’s schools. The system, which includes all district schools, private prekindergarten providers, and participating charter schools, is administered by the district and powered by the SchoolMint platform.
SchoolMint supports 16,000 school districts, 11 million students, and more than 70% of U.S. Charter Management Organizations. “SchoolMint is very excited to continue its partnership with Newark Public Schools. As a trusted leader in school enrollment systems since 2013, we are confident our platform, with its rich collection of features and reliable performance, will help families in the Newark Public Schools community find the best school option for their students,” said Marianna Caballero, Senior Director of Customer Success at SchoolMint.