We also left years ago. Look at the size of the waitlist. It used to be quite long. Not anymore. The school really has gone downhill.

Sorry you didn't have a good experience with the school. It's not for everyone ? the school has a low-homework policy, which I happen to like but not everyone does; the district doesn't pay for busing, so it's not easy for every family to get to; if anyone out there is aware of a school that's completely issue-free and 100% of the parents are happy with, I'd love to hear about it.

But to say they've been shedding kids since you left is just a flat-out lie. The school was at full enrollment last year. There are a fair number of students leaving and new students joining between 5th and 6th, but that's the case with most K-8 schools, given that we're lucky enough to live someplace where there are a lot of options.

The "going downhill" and "people pulling their kids" people are making sidelong references to was an issue this summer.

- NO, we did it years ago, as did many other families we know. We have heard about families doing it because of the issues surrounding the principal/board of trustees, but we were simply not happy with the education they were providing.

"Social norms are not observed"? What does that even mean?

My older son graduated from TECCS and my younger one is there now. We've had a wonderful experience with the school. Warm environment, lots of individual attention, I always felt like the teachers understood where my kids needed help and where they didn't. The school's also handled remote learning really well ? we get an automated email every day listing upcoming assignments and anything our kid might have missed or fallen behind on (which insures he doesn't fall behind for long).

And it's a good school academically, without being hyper-focused on test-taking. Lots of good extra-curriculars, but they turn out high-achieving kids. My son's in private school on a full ride; he has classmates at McNair, High Tech, and County Prep, plus a few more scholarship kids.

The "going downhill" and "people pulling their kids" people are making sidelong references to was an issue this summer. A few members of the board of trustees that runs the school fired the longtime principal in secret. There was widespread outcry from the parents, the board members were removed, a new principal was hired who has a good reputation and seems very professional (I don't have too strong an impression, given it's mostly been email and the occasional Zoom town hall, but so far so good).

There were many rumors about this school, friends also took their child from there. According to others, social norms are not observed, education is not provided fully, many people leave because of poor attitude to students.

This school has really gone downhill over the last few years. I cant see how they will stay open for long. My advice: stay far away.

We were very disappointed with this school and took our child out. We felt that they simply lacked the resources to provide a good education. They used to have trouble retaining students at the middle school level due to other choices but are now having trouble retaining lower grade students as well. We know MANY other families who also pulled their kids out. Be sure to do your research before choosing this school!

Are you interested in a FREE PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL in Jersey City?????

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The Ethical Community Charter School (@teccsjc) is a free public charter school that opened in the Marion section of Jersey City in 2009. They currently serve 380+ students from all over the city, enrolled in K-8th grade. The school is a safe, caring community where ethics, service, and social justice are the principles that inform school life.

Applications for the 2021-2022 school year are due February 10, 2021, to be included in the enrollment lottery. The lottery will be held on February 13, 2021.

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They currently have immediate openings in 6-8th grade.

Please email enrollment@teccsjc.org for more information.