The Board of Education of the Town of Kearny became a Type II school district in 1976. Prior to this it had been a Type I district. The District, coterminous with the Town, is governed by a nine-member Board of Education with three members elected each year for three-year terms by the legally registered voters in the District. Annually, the voters in the District must approve the District’s budget for the ensuing fiscal year (July 1 to June 30 of the following year) and all debt authorized by the Board of Education must be approved by the voters in the District.

The school system consists of seven school buildings: two (2) Pre K-6 schools, four (4) Pre K-8 schools, and one (1) High School. Total enrollment is over 5,300 students. The district provides regular, vocational and special education programs.

The oldest school building in Kearny is Garfield School, which opened in 1901. The main buildings of Washington, Roosevelt, Schuyler and Kearny High School were all built before 1920. Lincoln School, the newest building, opened 25 years ago. The district completed an addition to the Schuyler School. The Schuyler School addition allows for the expansion of the school from a Pre K – 6 to a Pre K – 8. An additional gymnasium and classroom area in Franklin School is also scheduled to be completed shortly, and will accommodate the increased student population in the school.

These building additions have been totally funded through State Early Childhood monies and the new school construction monies from the State. The district school budget has been defeated for the past four (4) years and although there is still a shortage of classroom space, particularly in the Kearny High School, no major building projects are planned at this time.

Mr. Robert P. Mooney is the Superintendent of Schools as of July 1, 1998, and Mr. Leslie Gaulton is the School Business Administrator/Board Secretary.