To the editor:
As a new school year begins, I would like to discuss the challenges and solutions to improving education in New Jersey.
As a father of two children who attend public school in New Jersey, I believe educating our children is the foundation of our society. That is why we have to go beyond lip service and make the investment to show that education is our top priority.
Many of our communities are facing similar challenges. We value learning, and we understand that our kids can’t receive an A-plus education in a failing environment. But sometimes school bonds fail because high property taxes don’t leave the resources to invest as much in education as we would like.
New Jersey’s recent passage of school construction funding legislation showed that strong bipartisan support for modernizing and renovating aging schools. I want the Federal government to do its fair share to help carry the load. I am a co-sponsor of the “Better America’s Classrooms Act,” which would provide $24.8 billion to pay the interest on school bonds to further leverage our investment and provide property tax relief. This would mean $660 million in bonding authority for New Jersey’s schools. We have a majority in Congress co-sponsoring this bill – now we need the House Republican leadership to share New Jersey’s bipartisan spirit and let us pass this bill.
I also support reducing class size, which is why I have fought to help school districts hire 100,000 qualified teachers over 7 years, with a goal of 18 students per class. We particularly need class size reduction for children in Kindergarten-3rd Grade, where smaller classes give teachers more time to help students with their individual needs.
I try to demonstrate my commitment to education by visiting a different school each month. My most recent visit was a 102-year-old elementary school in Lyndhurst where I met with school officials. It saddens me that as hard and dedicated as those officials are working, it is difficult to give children a 21st Century education in a 19th Century school.
We should all thank the parents and teachers who work hard to provide a quality education for our kids, and I hope that help will soon be on the way.
Sincerely,
Congressmen Steven R. Rothman (D-Fair Lawn)