Today Paula White, Executive Director of JerseyCAN, will testify before New Jersey’s Joint Committee on Public Schools regarding the urgent need for the New Jersey Department of Education to release all student assessment data. The hearing will take place over Zoom on Tuesday, December 6th, at Noon.

In the midst of independent analysis showing unprecedented learning loss throughout the state, Ms. White has been at the forefront in demanding the State of New Jersey’s Department of Education fully release the 2021-2022 assessment scores from last Spring. New Jersey currently stands as one of only two states in the county that has not yet publicly released test scores.

Last week, JerseyCAN co-hosted with the Urban League of Essex County the statewide digital town hall “Where Are Our Kids’ Test Scores: The Importance of Tracking and Addressing Learning Loss in New Jersey,” which showcased the importance of New Jersey’s Statewide Assessment and how it can specifically serve as a needed instrument to track the significant learning loss that has severely affected every classroom in New Jersey since the first outbreak of COVID. The event was moderated by Ms. White and joined together New Jersey Senate Majority Leader Teresa Ruiz; New Jersey State Senator Vin Gopal; CEO and President of the Urban League of Essex County Vivian Cox Fraser; Vice President of Government Affairs at New Jersey Business & Industry Association (NJBIA) Chris Emigholz; and Chief Executive Officer of Phillip’s Academy Charter School of Paterson Dr. Dowayne Davis.

“I am completely perplexed by the fact that we don’t yet have the full data set of students’ assessment results publicly available in New Jersey,” stated JerseyCAN Executive Director Paula White. “As the state, school districts, and families grapple with an unprecedented need for learning recovery throughout the state, we need to make sure information precedes interventions, not the other way around. For state and District resources to yield results, it is incumbent upon the New Jersey Department of Education to provide data transparency about statewide outcomes. Actual facts and data regarding children and students is needed – and we are not getting it from Governor Murphy’s New Jersey Department of Education. JerseyCAN has been leading the fight for transparency and I am grateful for the opportunity for our voice to be heard on Tuesday.”

This is a press release.