BORDENTOWN, NJ – The Bordentown Regional School District “officially received notice” on Friday that the district’s $1 million adequacy funding application was approved by the New Jersey Department of Education, Interim District Superintendent Dr. Edward Forsthoffer told a TAPinto Bordentown reporter.

Forsthoffer said he was “very much” relieved with the latest developments. 

“The truth is, we have some necessary positions to fill because class sizes have become too large in some areas,” he said. “It would've been very difficult to cope with those very large class sizes if we had not received this extra money.”

The approval appears to shift the interim superintendent’s immediate workload. Forsthoffer stated the district “will (now) start putting our plans into place regarding hiring some people back or reopening some of the positions.” He stated that more details about the district's next steps would be shared during this Wednesday's school board meeting. 

The interim superintendent also stated that it was State Senator Troy Singleton’s office that first informed him of the approval on Friday, adding that an email from the Department of Education arrived in the district’s inbox roughly two hours later. 

Singleton told TAPinto Bordentown during Saturday's Benjamin Moore I-295 naming ceremony that it was essential to monitor the situation. 

“This one was really important for us because it's also education, and for me, that's a great equalizer in our society,” Singleton said. “If we can do whatever is necessary to make sure we position our children to have the brightest future they can, that's something we are committed to doing.”

The approval comes after a nearly three-month wait that had left Forsthoffer increasingly anxious.  

“I do not believe they understand the effect that sitting on these approvals has on school districts,” Forsthoffer told the reporter on July 22. “If we are being approved, it is time to send those approval letters, and if we are not being approved, please stop dangling this false hope so that districts can move past this calamity."

During the May 14 school board meeting, Forsthoffer stated that if the adequacy funding application were approved, the funds would restore multiple teaching positions, defray some elementary education costs, initiate a state-mandated literacy program and purchase updated social studies and science textbooks.

In addition, during the May 7 board meeting, District Business Administrator Chifonda Henry stated without the adequacy funding, property taxes for the last six months of 2025 for homeowners with a home assessed at the municipal average would increase by about $75.35 for Bordentown Township residents, decrease by about $17.44 for Bordentown City residents and decrease by about $54.47 for Fieldsboro residents. Forsthoffer had previously stated Henry’s estimates may change by roughly 2.8% if the state approves the district’s adequacy application.

Original Article