TOMS RIVER – In the wake of a large reduction in state aid, a foundation is being created to help make sure that extra-curricular activities are still funded.
Councilman Terrance Turnbach said he is creating a non-profit that will likely be called the Toms River Education Foundation. He’s also been asking people to join as directors. The hope is that this foundation will be in place within a month or two.
“The purpose of the foundation is essentially to secure resources through fundraising and grant applications that could be utilized to ensure that all students have the ability to participate in extra-curricular school activities,” he said, stating that the foundation will “raise money privately to bridge the gap.”
The recent state funding formula, called S-2, redirected aid away from districts that lost student enrollment, like Toms River, because they were considered by the state to be paying too little for their own education. Naturally, districts like Toms River disagreed and joined with other districts in a movement to regain state aid.
“The State’s flawed funding formula for our schools, which re-allocates millions in state aid away from Toms River, is about to have a real and damaging effect on the lives and well-being of our students,” Turnbach said. “The inherent problem with requiring payments for after-school activities is the disparity it will create between students who can afford to participate versus students who cannot.”
In Toms River schools (which include South Toms River, Beachwood and Pine Beach), S-2 will cut more than $110 million in state aid over the course of several years, including $2.8 million in the current 2019-2020 budget and $5.3 million in next year’s 2020-2021 budget.
Law enforcement personnel, such as Toms River Police Chief Mitch Little and Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer, have gone to bat for the district, explaining how extra-curricular activities keep kids out of trouble during a time when there is an opioid epidemic.
“I have spent my career working with individuals who have found themselves in trouble at a young age, primarily because of a lack of family structure and inadequate financial support,” said Turnbach, an attorney. “For many of these young men and women, participating on a school team or club offered them a feeling of family and security. It often meant the difference between sleeping at home at night and sleeping in a juvenile detention center.”
Anyone who wants to help this foundation is welcome to contact Turnbach at his law office: 732-701-3500 or tturnbach@starkeykelly.com.
