From the NJEA News Service - May 27, 2010

NJEA signs on to Race to the Top

Encourages local affiliates to follow suit

Based on significant improvements that NJEA was able to obtain through extensive discussions with the New Jersey Department of Education (DOE), NJEA has agreed to support the state’s Phase II Race to the Top grant application, and is recommending local associations across the state do the same.

If successful, the grant could bring up to $400 million in federal funding to the state’s cash-strapped public schools over the next four years.

“We are pleased that the process worked like it is supposed to,” said NJEA President Barbara Keshishian. “The US Department of Education asked for sign-on from local education groups for a reason. It wanted to ensure that educators' voices were heard and their ideas incorporated into the states’ applications. That happened here, which enabled us to offer our support for the state’s application.”

NJEA first approached the Department several weeks ago with a number of suggestions for strengthening the state’s application. Following a series of meetings and discussions, the parties came to agreement on what the application should contain.

“This was the result of genuine collaboration and sharing of ideas,” said Keshishian. “The application is much stronger than it was just a few days ago. It is certainly far more educationally sound, which has been our primary concern from the beginning. We understand the financial pressure our schools face, and we understand how important it is for New Jersey to access all the resources available to us.

“We hope this signals the beginning of an ongoing cooperative relationship with the Department,” Keshishian said. “Our public schools are among the best in the nation. We want to make sure we keep moving in the right direction to maintain our competitive edge and to live up to the promise of a great public school for every child.”