It sets whites against blacks and minorities. It sets rich against poor. It is just a tremendously divisive thing. Many parents and community groups say they resent the state for replacing local educators with state appointees who are not always sensitive to community needs. The state comes up with a plan and you have to fit their mold one way or another.
Critics concede that some of the alienation was caused by state implementation of needed changes.
For example, Beverly Hall, the state-appointed superintendent of the Newark public schools, is given high marks for her education reforms, but she caused a political firestorm last summer when she abolished 630 school system jobs. And because each of the three takeover districts is in a poor, urban area with a high minority enrollment, critics say the state has left itself open to charges it is racist and elitist. There were parents who welcomed the takeovers. There definitely is a feeling that elitist whites were coming in and telling blacks what to do. Critics also contend that once local school districts were taken over by the state, New Jersey didn't have a comprehensive plan for improving education in the districts.