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School Leader

March 13, 2025 Vol. 56 No. 4
Cover Story

Enhancing School Cybersecurity and Technology Infrastructure: Lessons and Best Practices

This case study highlights the importance of rapid response, robust insurance and proactive investments in security infrastructure.

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Feature

Promoting Student Wellness with Zen, Youth Mental Health First Aid and More

School Leader recently caught up with leaders from two districts to find out how they are promoting mental health and giving students the tools they need to navigate the daily twists and turns of life, so they can be more successful in the classroom and wherever they go.

Group of diverse students sitting in a zen den
Feature

New Dimensions in Career and Technical Education 

Challenges remain with program capacity and access, funding, staffing, and awareness of post-secondary pathways, among other areas.

man in a suit stacking blocks with different skills with blue arrows pointing up overlaying the image
Feature

AI in the Classroom: Separating Opportunity from Opportunism 

So far, many school districts are less concerned about cheating than setting guidelines for students and teachers on how to become familiar with and effectively use AI.

Keyboard with two keys AI and repeat. Artifical inteeligence in daily life concept.
Feature

Leadership Evolution: A 27-Year Comparison of Female School Principals in New Jersey

According to the 2012 U.S. Department of Education Schools and Staff Survey Report, women made up 52% of public school principals at that time. Nearly ten years later, the National Center for Educational Statistics reported that 56% of all public school principals in the 2020–2021 school year were female.

Colorful building blocks stacked with a woman shaped block at the top
Feature

A Decade of Progress: Schools Enact Over 9,800 Sustainability Actions

Launching Sustainable Jersey for Schools was a major step toward the future of sustainability in New Jersey. NJSBA’s leadership and vision helped make Sustainable Jersey for Schools possible.

Cape May City Elementary School’s pollinator garden. The school has maintained silver-level Sustainable Jersey for Schools certification continuously since 2016.
President's Message

An Association Poised to Build on its Success

With my term as president soon ending, our Association is poised to take on new challenges with continued competence, efficiency, grace and character.

Executive Word

Nourished and Secure: Two of the Keys to Student Success

Feeding and protecting our students go hand in hand with student achievement — we must nourish and safeguard them to help them learn, grow and thrive.

ELFNJ Spotlight

ELFNJ Is Now Accepting Donations Via its Website

The Educational Leadership Foundation of New Jersey is now accepting online donations.

ELFNJ Spotlight

NJSBA’s New Board Member Orientation Weekend

New board members enjoyed two weekends of networking and training at the New Board Member Orientation Weekend conducted by the New Jersey School Boards Association with support from the Educational Leadership Foundation of New Jersey.

Reader's Forum

Saddle River Valley Lions, Bergen County Districts Team Up to Expand Service-Learning Opportunities 

The Lions and its Bergen County school district partners have reimagined the program to provide local students with a 10-year, continuous service-learning opportunity that begins in elementary school, runs through middle school and continues in high school.

Field Perspective

Chronic Student Absenteeism: Its Impact and Possible Solutions

Whether an absence is considered excused or not is irrelevant. The student is not in school where they would benefit from educational opportunities.

Policy Update

Cell Phone Use Restrictions are Coming: What You Need to Know as a Board Member

The growing use of cell phones among children, coupled with the impact of social media, has sparked widespread discussion about the harmful effects of excessive cell phone usage.

Legally Speaking

Immigration & Customs Enforcement and Warrants: What Should You Know as a New Jersey School Leader?

Broadly speaking, there are two types of warrants that ICE agents may present upon their arrival: judicial warrants and administrative warrants. These warrants differ in appearance and have vastly different implications.

NJSBA At Your Service

Capitol Watch Newsletter Shares Insights to Inform and Empower NJSBA Members

The New Jersey School Boards Association recently launched Capitol Watch, a new quarterly online newsletter designed to support one of its three organizational pillars: advocacy.

NJSBA At Your Service

NJSBA’s Cooperative Pricing System Offers Numerous Benefits to School Districts and Municipalities

The New Jersey School Boards Association’s Cooperative Pricing System is an excellent resource for school districts and municipalities throughout New Jersey to save time and money on necessary goods and services.

Head of the Class

The Journey to Becoming a River-Friendly School

One of the exemplary programs, The Journey to Becoming a River-Friendly School had an inspiring transformation from a modest grant request into an extraordinary educational project that has made a lasting impact on the Alexander Elementary School community.