These North Jersey districts get a share of $25M for public preschool programs
The state will distribute nearly $25 million to 26 school districts to expand preschool facilities for 3- and 4-year-old students in the 2023-24 school year, as part of a state initiative to expand access to universal preschool, the Murphy administration announced Wednesday.
North Jersey school districts receiving grants in Preschool Expansion Aid include Carlstadt in Bergen County, Mine Hill in Morris County, and Sparta, Sussex-Wantage, Lafayette and Hardyston in Sussex County.
The money will add 1,715 seats for free, full-day pre-K programming and can be used by schools to expand existing programs and to build facilities for their youngest students.
Districts that received the funding had to demonstrate that they could provide a "high-quality" preschool program, the governor's office said, with a certified teacher and an aide, and small classes that include children with special needs.
The award recipients were selected by a panel at the state Department of Education. The programs are expected to begin operating in January 2024.
Last year, 44 school districts won grants to expand to full-day, free preschool as part of a commitment that Gov. Phil Murphy has emphasized as a priority since he took office in 2018.
Preschool funding up by $110 million
The administration has increased its funding for preschool expansion by nearly $110 million compared with the prior school year, for a total of $1.1 billion, the state said. About $40 million of that goes directly toward full-day preschool in districts that did not previously have the programs.
"Providing children with access to preschool programs not only sets our students up for success, but also yields both short- and long-term economic benefits for their families and communities,” acting Gov. Tahesha Way said, speaking at the Estelle V. Malberg Early Childhood Center in Cherry Hill. Angelica Allen-McMillan, acting education commissioner, also attended the event.
Applications for preschool funding were opened to all of the state's school districts regardless of income level in the current school year, which the Murphy administration said showed an "important shift" in how preschool money is allocated in New Jersey.
Last year's state-allocated funds for preschool were made available only to districts with 10% or more of student enrollment from low-income families.
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Criticized for taking business from private programs
New Jersey is among a handful of states moving to universal, free preschool, but the program has been criticized for taking business away from private programs for children under 3, because parents pull toddlers out of private programs and enroll them in the free state-run program.
New Jersey's problem is that it does not require schools to use private providers, Meghan Tavormina, president of the New Jersey Association for the Education of Young Children, said in a 2022 interview. This results in 3- and 4-year-olds being pulled out of child care centers and into public programs. It leaves child care centers without their main income source and reduces programs available to children from birth to 2 years old, which cost more.
New Jersey runs three preschool programs, all of which have catered primarily to low-income households, according to the National Institute for Early Education Research at Rutgers University's Graduate School of Education.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NJ preschool expansion includes these North Jersey districts
