Court Strikes Down Graduation Testing Rules for NJ High Schoolers

In a unanimous opinion (PDF), a three-judge panel of the Appellate Division of the Superior Court of New Jersey struck down the New Jersey Department of Education's (DOE) regulations designating the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) end-of-course exams as the requirement for obtaining a high school diploma.

The Court held that the current rules violated provisions of the Proficiency Standards and Assessments Act (Act). This statute, enacted by the Legislature in 1979 and amended in 1988, authorizes the DOE to administer a single, eleventh-grade test in English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics to determine proficiency under state curriculum standards for graduation.

"Even before the regulations were enacted in 2016, we urged the Department of Education to withdraw these rules because they clearly violate state law. Today's ruling vindicates our position," said ELC Senior Attorney Jessica Levin. "We are ready to work with the Commissioner, the State Board of Education and the Legislature to respond to this ruling in a manner that complies with governing law and reflects sound education policy."

Key elements of the Court's ruling include:

• The current rules violate the Act because they require PARCC ELA 10, administered in tenth grade, and Algebra I, which may be taken in any high school grade or earlier, instead of an eleventh-grade graduation test. The Court held that "to the extent the regulations required testing of non-eleventh-grade students, they are contrary to the Act and are invalid."
• Administering multiple end-of-course exams for graduation contravenes the Legislature's intent that a single graduation test be administered to eleventh-grade students.
• The regulations do not fulfill the Act's mandate that students be provided retesting opportunities on the designated graduation test.
• The Act requires the DOE to give students access to a non-standardized test as a graduation alternative. The Court ruled the Act "compels DOE to provide for alternative methods of assessing proficiency other than through PARCC testing or any other standardized testing process."

"The court struck down a graduation testing regime that was unfair to students and their families," said Jeanne LoCicero, ACLU-NJ Legal Director." We look forward to working with the State on new regulations that will comply with the law and remove barriers that disproportionately burdened poor students and English language learners."

The court made clear that while the DOE may decide what test to use, "the regulations violate the Act to the extent they specifically authorize multiple tests administered in grades other than the eleventh grade." The Court stayed its judgment for 30 days to permit the DOE to seek further review by the New Jersey Supreme Court.

The lawsuit challenging the regulations was brought by the Latino Action Network, the Latino Coalition of New Jersey, the Paterson Education Fund, the NAACP New Jersey State Conference, and Education Law Center (ELC). The groups are represented by ELC and the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey (ACLU-NJ).

Related Content:

• Appellate Division Opinion: Rejection of PARCC Requirements (PDF)