This week, we will have a special three-part newsblast stemming from NJ’s Joint Committee on Public Schools hearing on why NJ remains the best state for education student achievement and school performance. The hearing was a reaction to a recent report from the Collaborative for Student Success, detailing why so many Rutgers freshmen are unprepared for college level math. The report’s author Chad Aldeman was invited to present alongside the NJDOE Commissioner and NJ K-12 and higher education educators who seemed primed to oppose his findings. Ironically, there was no representation from Rutgers - not one professor to detail the instructional impact of catering to students who lack foundational math skills, not one struggling student who graduated with a NJ diploma but had to re-take Algebra, and not one administrative representation from the Dean’s office or admissions. Hmmm.
But let’s start with…
The Good
It's not every day we get to write a "good news" newsblast about a hearing in Trenton. But credit where due: on October 13, Senator Joe Cryan and Assemblywoman Verlina Reynolds-Jackson convened the Joint Committee on the Public Schools for a full hearing on one question: how are New Jersey students really performing, and what should we do about it?
Senator Cryan framed it plainly. New Jersey spends more than $40 billion a year on K-12 education — about $28,500 per student by his math — and "the public says, tell me how we're doing." That's the right starting point. Before Trenton rewrites the school funding formula, it should know what its current investments are buying.
An honest scorecard from the Commissioner
Commissioner Lily Laux opened with something parents have rarely heard from the Department of Education for almost a decade: the unvarnished numbers.
Yes, New Jersey still beats the national average on NAEP, and the four-year graduation rate hit a record 91.8%. But she didn't stop there. She told legislators that only 44.9% of students met the proficiency standard in English language arts, and just 38.1% in math. Only one in four students is proficient in science. Among economically disadvantaged students, math proficiency is 24.2%, compared with 55.1% for their peers.
Asked whether those numbers were acceptable, she didn't hedge: they are not. She also pointed out that the science of reading says roughly 95% of kids can learn to read on grade level with proper instruction. That's the bar. We're nowhere near it.
After years of "best schools in the nation" press releases, a Commissioner leading with data, not platitudes, is a genuine change in tone.
Faster test results: let's make it law
Nearly everyone who testified agreed on one fix: get state test results to families and teachers while they can still use them. Right now, spring scores arrive in late summer or fall, after the student has a new teacher and the opportunity for summer learning is gone.
The Commissioner said statewide results for 2025-26 are coming next month, and that beginning next year, scores will be out much sooner. Chad Aldeman, Kevin Bobetich (who oversees testing, data and staff evaluation for Hamilton Township Public Schools), and the parent advocates at SPAN all pointed to a concrete benchmark: results in parents' hands by June 30. Ohio has written that deadline into law. Virginia requires results within 45 days of the testing window closing.
A promise is good. A statute is better. Commissioners change; laws stay on the books. The NJ Legislature has a clear, bipartisan opening to put a testing results deadline in writing. We think a June 1 deadline makes the most sense, as it provides adequate time for parents and educators to plan for summer programming and time for district administrators to add the NJSLA-A scores to final report cards. Also, it would allow NJ to lead the nation in another K-12 milestone.
Algebra for every 8th grader who's ready
Two witnesses who disagree on plenty — Rowan math professor Dr. Eric Milou and report author Chad Aldeman — both recommended automatic enrollment in 8th-grade Algebra I for every student who demonstrates readiness. Today, too many capable kids never get that offer, often because nobody told their parents to ask.
North Carolina, Virginia and Texas already flip the default: if a 7th grader scores high enough, they're automatically placed in algebra unless the family opts out. Texas sets the bar at the top 40%. Algebra is the gateway to calculus, STEM majors, and higher-paying careers. Access shouldn't depend on whether your family knows how to work the system. Let’s cement this opportunity into a statute that will benefit students across the Garden State for years to come.
Stay tuned. Tomorrow we cover: The Bad.
