At today’s Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee meeting, Acting Commissioner Angelica Allen-McMillan was in the hot seat, particularly when Senate Majority Leader Teresa Ruiz was asking questions. 

The subject that raised the Senator’s ire?

The Education Department’s failure to act with urgency in the wake of “staggering” pandemic learning loss.

Allen-McMillan’s was unruffled, claiming the latest data showed New Jersey students were back to “pre-pandemic levels.” 

Probably not a good move, given that Ruiz’s home turf is Newark, where 73% of district students are not at grade-level in reading. At Avon Elementary School, for example, a mere 3% of third graders are ready for fourth-grade.

When Ruiz asked for the exact percentage of students throughout the state who weren’t proficient in reading, Allen-McMillan said she didn’t have that data “in front of me.” Staffers helped her: 57.6% 

Ruiz, clearly speaking of Newark which she represents, continued, “these numbers are deplorable. I’m going to ask you, what do you think is your biggest responsibility? I know these conversations make people uncomfortable but I have to be the disciplinarian here. We’re talking 58% of students not reading, and these numbers will grow in perpetuity, with huge outcomes if we don’t address this issue right now. If you could do anything, what would you do?”

The Commissioner responded, “We just amended Chapter 9 (of DOE regulations), adding a license for early literacy. Our students have better outcomes if they are proficient readers…The onus is on educators to meet students where they are.” She added the DOE was  providing professional development from experts and “we’ve also seen an approach to phonics, which is integral to foundational skills. We need to ensure our students are receiving the core.”

“The pandemic started in 2020,” challenged Ruiz. “I was meeting with stakeholders about generating an electric charge to the DOE. But [a particular program called “Rapid”] is a joke. I have to go back to the sense of urgency. Do you need an Executive Order to get troops on the ground? Why are we promoting students who can’t read? Why aren’t we mandating summer school? You may think everything sound great but nothing’s up and running.”

“I hope what you’re doing comes to fruition,” Ruiz said in closing. “But we cannot promote a child who is not ready to go to the next grade.”

In non-learning loss news, Committee members asked numerous questions about the 2023-2024 state aid allocations to school districts, which are guided by the (broken) School Funding Reform Act (SFRA).  Sen. Michael Testa asked why Gov. Murphy didn’t fully fund the formula, given he “has an extra $10 billion lying around [in surplus].” Wildwood, he said, “was cut this year by $53 million. Does that seem fair to you?”  Sen. Nilsa Perez-Cruz asked about transportation aid.  On the ever-popular topic of sexual education and parents’ rights, Sen. Steve Oroho told the Commissioner, “after remote instruction, parents had an intimate look at their child’s classroom. I talk to parents who say their rights are being taken away by the unelected State Board of Education.” The three-and-a-half hour hearing concluded with a run of questions about school facilities and the Schools Development Authority.