Posted on May 23, 2017
2017 NJ KIDS COUNT draws attention to federal investments in children
#NJVotes4Kids campaign urges NJ gubernatorial candidates to put kids’ issues center stage
For the nearly 2 million childre
n that call New Jersey home, the latest child well-being data from the 2017 New Jersey KIDS COUNT show progress in the areas of health and economic well-being, thanks in part to the vital supports of federal safety-net programs.
Posted on May 5, 2017
Posted on April 25, 2017
NJ’s Child Care Quality Rating System Shortchanges Providers Caring for Low-Income Children
Despite New Jersey’s implementation of a child care rating system that helps working parents find the best care for their young children, a new study by Advocates for Children of New Jersey (ACNJ) shows that many child care centers in low-income communities would face enormous challenges meeting and sustaining these higher state standards that define quality – unless the state is able to provide the necessary resources.
“This report provides crucial recommendations for changing how New Jersey pays child care providers in order to support high-quality care for our youngest children – particularly those from low income families,” said Arturo Brito, Executive Director of The Nicholson Foundation, which funded this study.
Read NJ 101.5’s story on the dilemma facing child care centers
Read the executive summary with ACNJ’s recommendations
Out of Reach: Sustaining a High Quality Child Care System in New Jersey
Read the report Quality Costs How Much? Estimating the Cost of Quality Child Care in New Jersey
This report is one of several reports to be released in the upcoming months to look at child care issues in New Jersey.
Posted on April 6, 2017
The Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) issued its latest report as part of the federal class-action lawsuit Charlie and Nadine H. v. Christie.
In November 2015, CSSP helped to mediate a revision to the court ordered Agreement that recognizes the progress made to date to reform New Jersey’s child welfare system and permits a more intensive focus on the outcomes that remain to be accomplished. The Sustainability and Exit Plan requires that the state continue to maintain foundational requirements, demonstrate continued performance on outcomes that have been previously met and move toward achievement of those performance outcomes not yet met. Reports are released to the Honorable Stanley Chesler and the public approximately every six months and the current report covers January to June 2016.
At the start of the monitoring period, 14 of the 36 performance measures originally designated as “To Be Achieved” had been met under the Sustainability and Exit Plan. Between January and June 2016, six of the remaining 22 performance measures were achieved and one was partially achieved.
Today, Judith Meltzer, Deputy Director of CSSP and Court Monitor in the case reported that “progress has been made.” The achievements have “come about because of DCF’s leadership, and the commitment of its workers and partners to the children in care and their families. But more work needs to be done.”
CSSP reports that the “state has yet to reach targets related to fully embedding its case practice model, particularly in areas around engaging parents and the quality of case planning. Improving the frequency of caseworker visits with parents where family reunification is the goal is also a priority as well as ensuring that more visits occur among siblings who have been placed apart from one another.”
ACNJ is currently reviewing the monitor’s report in detail.
Posted on April 6, 2017
Every day, I receive phone calls from worried parents trying to navigate the special education system for their children. Parents often struggle to be heard by their school districts to get the supports and services their children are entitled to, in order to make meaningful academic progress.
But on March 22, 2017, the United States Supreme Court made a unanimous decision that will help children with disabilities across the country. For the first time in 35 years, it addressed how much educational benefit is required for a special education program to be considered “appropriate.” In Endrew F. v. Douglas County School District, the Court ruled that a school district must provide an education to a student with disabilities that is “reasonably calculated to enable a child to make progress appropriate in light of the child’s circumstances.”
What does this mean? The Court concluded that the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which governs education for children with disabilities, requires schools to offer an Individualized Education Program (IEP) that is student-centered and substantially beneficial, with their unique needs and abilities in mind. Most important, an IEP must clearly enable the student to make meaningful academic progress.
Prior to this opinion, a number of courts had allowed school districts to meet its responsibility as long as the educational program provided “merely more than a de minimis” or minimal level of progress. This low standard is no longer sufficient.
This Court decision is a clear endorsement of the rights that already exist for New Jersey’s students with disabilities. Our state courts have long required that school districts meet a higher standard of education than many other states by requiring that an IEP provide significant learning and meaningful benefit to a student with a disability (Ridgewood Board of Education vs. N.E. for M.E. 172 F.3d 238 (1999)).
What does this legal decision mean for students with disabilities and their parents? The U.S. Supreme Court clarified and emphasized these important education rights:
The recent Court decision brings clarity to rights of students with disabilities and the role parents have in helping develop their child’s education program in school.
To read the full text of the opinion in this case, please visit https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/16pdf/15-827_0pm1.pdf.
Nina Peckman, Esq. at ACNJ’s KidLaw Resource Center provides pro bono legal assistance to low income parents, caretakers, and also to professionals working with children. Legal services are offered in English and Spanish and include phone consultations, assistance at school meetings, participation at State Mediation, direct negotiations with school districts to resolve disputes, workshops, and the development of print materials regarding education law, advocacy strategies and practical tips. ACNJ does not litigate. Guides and facts are available on ACNJ’s website at www.kidlaw.org.
