With New Jersey’s digital divide closed and nearly $2.8 billion in federal funding earmarked for education, the time is now “for all of our schools to meaningfully move forward with a return to in-person instruction, whether it be full-time or through a hybrid schedule,” New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said during his March 17 media briefing.
“Much of this funding is meant to help our schools reopen and to combat the learning loss we know has occurred,” he added.
“The consensus among educators, parents and caregivers, policymakers and researchers, is growing every day. The more time that a student spends away from in-person instructional time, the greater the risk of learning loss and of social, emotional and mental health impacts for our students,” said Dr. Angelica Allen-McMillan, the acting commissioner of education.
Murphy reported that since Aug. 1, only 800 of 565,000 confirmed COVID cases have been attributed to in-school transmission. He expects every school to open for full-time instruction for the 2021-22 academic year.