Page 17 - 40thAnniversaryNJPSA

• Obtained waiver language for school districts from a bill
creating a requirement that all districts offer mandatory The Big Issues
summer schools for the 2020, 2021, and 2022 school
years, ultimately working with colleagues to convince Over the years, Government Relations has also grappled with
legislators not to enact any mandate due to staffing and the “Big issues” impacting our members and public schools
funding concerns. in general. Equitable and adequate school funding within the
context of the never-ending debate on New Jersey’s highest
• Convinced the Legislature that a proposed requirement to in the nation property taxes is one recurrent battle. Others
have educators physically apply suntan lotion to students’ include legislative campaigns:
bodies did not make any sense!
• to enact private school vouchers or educational tax credit
• Promoted amendments to legislation to loosen the state’s scholarship programs,
residency requirements, permit retired teachers and school
nurses to return to work without risking their pensions • to privatize and/or regionalize educational services,
during the pandemic, and worked to provide some
flexibilities within certification restrictions for certain staffing • to provide some level of parental “choice” within the public
groups in order to assist our members in staffing their school system where local schools are not meeting student
schools during the pandemic. needs through options like charter or renaissance “public”
schools or an interdistrict public school choice plan,
• Secured critical amendments in a heightened political
environment to a legislative package endorsed by • over what should be taught in our schools (sex education,
Governor Murphy and sponsored by a beloved and retiring “abstinence only,” critical race theory),
Senate Majority Leader concerning gun safety and school
security drills. NJPSA led the legislative negotiations to • focused on the qualifications and performance of those
strike the right balance in the conduct of school security who teach our students (Pass the Trash legislation,
drills between trauma-informed practices and mandated certification issues, tenure reforms, teacher/principal
requirements that would have compromised school evaluation systems, residency laws), and
security, best practices in school security drills, and the
actual practice of conducting those drills in schools. • how New Jersey should measure school and student
success (assessment, NJQSAC, high school graduation
These examples illustrate how the issues and requirements).
recommendations our members share with the GR Team
translate into positive action on legislation that has meaningful These debates are timeless, ongoing conversations that have
results for NJPSA members statewide on issues impacting taken multiple forms over the decades. School infrastructure,
their day to day professional lives. desegregation, diversity, inclusion, and the needs and rights
of all populations of students manifest themselves in law
NJPSA has also initiated legislation and code to assist our or policy in one form or another. And of course, the rights
members and their families. Many years ago, when higher of NJPSA members as public employees (think pensions
education programs were not meeting our members’ needs, and health benefits!) who collectively bargain and who also
we initiated modifications to the NJ administrative code to pave serve as management always adds an interesting twist to our
the way for the accelerated certification program, NJEXCEL. association’s goals and perspective.
We initiated and lobbied for the enactment of legislation
establishing certification for Athletic Directors in the 1990s,
thus elevating that role in our schools. Recently, we initiated
and lobbied for accidental death benefits legislation to support
the families of members who died from serving their school
communities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Issues our members

share translate

into positive

legislative action.