TeachNJS applauds the New Jersey State Assembly for its passage today of the Secure Schools for All Children Act. We would like to especially thank Assembly Budget Chairman Gary Schaer for introducing the bill – which provides all school children in the state with equal funding to ensure their safety and security – and spearheading its passage. We’d also like to express our sincere gratitude to Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto for becoming a Second Prime Sponsor of the bill and for bringing it to the Assembly for a timely vote.

“All families in our state deserve to know that that their children are safe and secure as they go off to school each morning,” said Nathan J. Lindenbaum, Co-Chair of TeachNJS. “Schools should be a haven for children, where they can learn and grow without fear and this bill will help our state’s private schools continue to achieve that ideal.”

Assembly Bill A2689 establishes a state aid program for the provision of security services, equipment, or technology to help ensure a safe and secure school environment for students attending nonpublic schools.“We would like to extend our sincere gratitude to Assemblyman Schaer for introducing and supporting this legislation,” said Maury Litwack, Director of State Political Affairs of the Orthodox Union Advocacy Center. “All children in our state are equal regardless of race or religion or whether they attend public school or private and all deserve the same consideration when it comes to their safety and security.”

Once implemented, private schools will be able to apply for a maximum of $144 per student in aid to be used to bolster security. That amount is equal to the average aid given to public schools each year for security costs.

“This bill will ensure that all students in our state are treated equally when it comes to their security and we thank Assemblyman Schaer and his colleagues for their support,” said Sam Moed, Co-Chair of TeachNJS.

A companion bill, S754, has been introduced in the upper chamber by Sen. James Beach, Sen. Bob Gordon and Sen. Peter Barnes. We’d like to thank the senators for their efforts and we look forward to the bill’s passage in the Senate.

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