A
sending/receiving relationship is one in which a public
school districtSchool districts are a form of special-purpose district which serves to operate the local public primary and secondary schools.-United States:...
sends some or all of its students to attend the schools of another district. This is often done to achieve costs savings in smaller districts or continues after districts have grown as part of a historical relationship. The term is used in
primaryA primary school is an institution in which children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as primary or elementary education. Primary school is the preferred term in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth Nations, and in most publications of the United Nations Educational,...
and
secondary educationSecondary education is the stage of education following primary education. Secondary education includes the final stage of compulsory education and in many countries it is entirely compulsory. The next stage of education is usually college or university...
in the states of
New JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
and
PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, although the concept exists in other states.
At times, the sending district may be granted representation on the receiving district's
board of educationA board of education or a school board or school committee is the title of the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or higher administrative level....
. On the receiving district's board of education, the sending representative usually votes
only on issues pertaining to the students received and district-wide issues.
DemographicDemographics are the most recent statistical characteristics of a population. These types of data are used widely in sociology , public policy, and marketing. Commonly examined demographics include gender, race, age, disabilities, mobility, home ownership, employment status, and even location...
changes in either of the districts may cause the sending district to seek to end the relationship. Some districts have sought to gain
local controlHome rule is the power of a constituent part of a state to exercise such of the state's powers of governance within its own administrative area that have been devolved to it by the central government....
of education methods and facilities by pulling out of existing sending relationships.
For example, the wealthy
Englewood Cliffs Public SchoolsThe Englewood Cliffs Public Schools is a community public school district that serves children in Kindergarten through eighth grade from Englewood Cliffs, in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States....
has sought to end its agreement with the heavily-
minorityA minority is a sociological group within a demographic. The demographic could be based on many factors from ethnicity, gender, wealth, power, etc. The term extends to numerous situations, and civilizations within history, despite the misnomer of minorities associated with a numerical statistic...
Englewood Public School DistrictThe Englewood Public School District is a comprehensive community public school district that serves students in Kindergarten through twelfth grade from Englewood, in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. Its headquarters is in the District Administration Building at the Russell C...
, to have its students pulled out of
Dwight Morrow High SchoolDwight Morrow High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school located in Englewood, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Englewood Public School District. The school also serves students from Englewood Cliffs, who attend as part of a sending/receiving relationship...
. This plan was vigorously opposed by the Englewood district and the
New Jersey Department of EducationThe New Jersey Department of Education administers state and federal aid programs affecting more than 1.4 million public and non-public elementary and secondary school children in the state of New Jersey. The department is headquartered in Trenton.The Department is responsible for ensuring that...
. A
magnetIn education in the United States, magnet schools are public schools with specialized courses or curricula. "Magnet" refers to how the schools draw students from across the normal boundaries defined by authorities as school zones that feed into certain schools.There are magnet schools at the...
program has been attempted as a compromise to attract Cliffs parents to send their children to the Dwight Morrow school instead of opting for private education.