Schools
Feds order state to restore funding cuts to poorest school districts
The federal Department of Education has ordered New Jersey to restore millions of dollars in funding cuts the state made to 80 of its poorest school districts after lawmakers in 2018 changed how the state provides aid to local schools. The cuts violate a provision in the American Rescue Plan’s relief fund for elementary and secondary […]
Report: New Jersey schools fall short in serving students who are learning English
The pandemic worsened long-existing deficiencies in how New Jersey public school districts educate students who are learning to speak English, according to a recent report by three groups that advocate on education and immigration issues. English learners are disproportionately students of color and poor, so schools’ failure to meet their needs during the pandemic — and […]
Murphy announces $75M funding for schools, with most helping poorest districts
Each of New Jersey’s 686 school districts will receive some funding for building maintenance and construction projects, Gov. Phil Murphy announced Friday. The state Schools Development Authority (SDA) will distribute $75 million to school districts across the state, with $50 million going to the 31 SDA districts, known as Abbott districts, that are home to […]
New Jersey to spend $400M to improve college and university buildings
New Jersey will borrow $400 million to build and improve facilities at colleges and universities around the state, the first new state funding for higher education infrastructure since 2015, Gov. Phil Murphy announced Tuesday. Public officials hope the funding will help persuade more students to attend college in New Jersey — and stay here after […]
Bill that would require N.J. schools to teach Asian American history advances
For Christina Huang, racism isn’t an abstract concept. She still remembers her classmates erupting in laughter as their school bus approached Huang’s grandmother, practicing her zaocao, or morning exercises, as she waited for her granddaughter at the bus stop. “I will never forget walking off the bus past my classmates as they stretched their eyes […]
Congress has a plan for universal pre-K. Will states opt in?
WASHINGTON — Nearly a fifth of President Joe Biden’s $3.5 trillion sweeping social spending package is dedicated to providing low-cost care for children from birth to kindergarten—investments that would benefit single parents and low-income families. But how the states implement their programs for pre-K for 3-and 4-year-olds—or whether they even decide to accept the cash, […]
‘What am I going to do?’: When a signing bonus can’t help the jobless
Nicole Squitieri needs the $500 signing bonus New Jersey is using to lure the unemployed back to work. She said she has no choice but to turn it down. Squitieri is a mom with three kids — two of them have already had to stay home from school after coming into close contact with a […]
New Jersey City University faculty signals ‘no confidence’ vote in school’s president
Faculty members at New Jersey City University signaled they want to oust the state school’s president after a tense, two-hour Zoom meeting Monday. University senators — the school’s faculty leaders — voted 30 to 23 to cast a vote of “no confidence” in NJCU President Sue Henderson, who has been at the helm of the Jersey […]
New law aims to cut teacher shortages
In an effort to reduce longstanding teacher shortages, Gov. Phil Murphy on Friday signed a law that will create new pathways to the classroom for would-be teachers who lack the proper credentials. Under the law, the state Department of Education will create a five-year pilot program in which officials will issue “limited certificates of eligibility” […]
Vaccine requirement and mask mandate issued for N.J. child care centers
New Jersey’s child care workers must be fully vaccinated by Nov. 1 or face regular testing, and all employees, visitors, and children older than 2 must wear face masks in day care centers at all times, Gov. Phil Murphy announced during a press briefing Monday. The mandates come as the Delta variant fuels a rise […]
Long-standing teacher shortages could hamper learning gains
New Jersey has for years faced a dearth of teachers in certain subjects, shortages that could represent a pressing threat as the state moves to combat learning loss incurred during the pandemic. Some shortages are long-standing. The U.S. Department of Education has reported a scarcity of English as a second language, special education, and foreign […]
Universal pre-K, free community college included in sweeping reconciliation bill
WASHINGTON—The U.S. House Education & Labor Committee on Friday finished a marathon markup of legislation that would provide universal pre-K education, expand federal Pell Grants for college students and institute two years of free community college. The $761 billion measure, approved on a party-line 28-22 vote, will be combined with other pieces of Democrats’ giant […]