New Jersey Education Commissioner Kevin Dehmer just announced (see press release below) that the Department of Education will take over Lakewood Public Schools. The ruling comes in an “Order to Show Cause,” which says a comprehensive audit “revealed pervasive, endemic educational and operational failures” throughout the district. The Order then itemizes reasons why the state will now appoint a new superintendent; implement an improvement plan for the district; appoint a Highly Skilled Professional (HSP) to “provide direct oversight of the District’s special education office and special education services provided by the District;” appoint an HSP to oversee transportation; and appoint another to oversee the multitude of private Jewish day schools which receive varying amounts of public funding.

In addition, the current elected school board will become “advisory” and the Commissioner will appoint three additional board members for two-year terms.

This takeover is a long time coming. Back in 2014 the state appointed a Fiscal Monitor to oversee the district because of chronic fiscal mismanagement. In 2017, advocates, including me, started calling for a state takeover for reasons described by Superintendent Laura Winters, still in her position, who wrote in a letter to the community,

It is with great sadness that I must inform you that the Lakewood School District is unable to provide its students with a “thorough and efficient” education required by the New Jersey State Constitution. The level of education that will be offered to the students of the Lakewood School District in the 2017-2018 school year, is in my professional opinion, tragically inadequate and inferior compared to the education offered to those students in wealthier towns in Ocean County and across the state.

The state DOE agrees: the Order says the cause of that “tragic” inadequacy is “a consistent pattern of neglect and misfeasance by various elected and appointed Lakewood school leaders with respect to critical governance, finance, curriculum, transportation and special education recommendations made by [the NJDOE] over the years.'”

This past October the most recent State Monitor overruled the School Board’s attempt to rehire its longtime attorney Michael Inzelbuch, whom it paid close to $1 million a year. The district is currently operating under a budget of $303.8 million, which presumes a $100 million state loan. This, according to the most recent budget available, covers 4,100 in-district students, a significant drop in enrollment from just a few years ago, plus special education and transportation costs for more than 50,000 Jewish students who attend religious schools. Tuition to private special education schools, including one that costs $170,000 a year, is $84 million, up by $10 million from the previous year. Another $27 million goes to services to non-public schools and $48 million is allocated for transportation.

According to the most recent state standardized tests, 60% of in-district Lakewood students can’t read at grade level and 75% lack proficiency in math. The graduation rate is 82%, well below the state average. Below is the press release from Gov. Phil Murphy’s office:

Following a recent court ruling and years of documented failures, the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) announced today that it has filed an Order to Show Cause regarding the Lakewood Township School District (District) as the initial step toward full State intervention in the District. This filing represents a significant and necessary action to address persistent deficiencies that have denied Lakewood students the thorough and efficient education guaranteed by the New Jersey Constitution.

On September 8, 2025, the Appellate Division of the New Jersey Superior Court, in Alcantara v. Allen-McMillan (Alcantara II), determined that Lakewood public school students “suffer from an ongoing constitutional deprivation,” and identified the causes of that deprivation as a “consistent pattern of neglect and misfeasance by various elected and appointed Lakewood school leaders with respect to critical governance, finance, curriculum, transportation and special education recommendations made by [the NJDOE] over the years.”

The Order to Show Cause calls on the District to demonstrate why the State should not initiate a full State intervention of the Lakewood Public School District, pursuant to State law (N.J.S.A. 18A:4-24 and N.J.S.A. 18A:7A-15).

“For more than a decade, the New Jersey Department of Education has been working with the Lakewood Township School District to address ongoing fiscal and operational concerns that impact students, staff, parents, and the entire Lakewood community,” said New Jersey Department of Education Commissioner Kevin Dehmer. “For all of those impacted, most especially the students of Lakewood, we are obligated to intervene in this situation and provide the district with the necessary oversight to course correct.”

Today’s filing outlines the extensive and significant steps the NJDOE has taken to support the District. These efforts have included financial assistance, logistical and administrative support, and educational resources. The NJDOE has also installed State monitors and provided tens of millions of dollars in State aid advances to help the District meet its immediate obligations; however, significant deficiencies persist, necessitating today’s filing.

For a copy of the Order to Show Cause, please click here.

For a copy of the Administrative Order for Full State Intervention, please click here.

For a copy of the State Intervention Plan for the Lakewood Township School District, please click here.