Dive Brief:

• The Newark School Advisory Board voted Wednesday 6-2 in favor of a bill that would slow charter school expansion in New Jersey.
• The bill is intended to stop the growth of charter schools and give the state time to assess how they are run and their impact on traditional public schools.
• About 40% of Newark public school students attend a charter school.

Dive Insight:

The Wednesday vote is a signal of the ongoing controversy in Newark over Governor Chris Christie's "One Newark" initiative, which encouraged the expansion of charter schools in the struggling district. Former Newark superintendent Cami Anderson, who led the reorganization announced her resignation on Monday. Newark's charter schools drew criticism for cherry-picking students and for pushing out traditional public schools and, in particular, the teaching jobs they offer.

"When charter schools take money out of our budget, it affects Newark public schools," Marquis Aquil-Lewis, the vice chair of the Newark school board, said Wednesday. The schools, he reasons, also provide jobs for parents. "How can we educate a child if their parents are facing layoffs every single day?"