Posted on June 23, 2025
Winifred Smith-Jenkins
Director of Early Learning Policy and Advocacy
To: Senate Education Committee
From: Advocates for Children of New Jersey (ACNJ)
Date: May 12, 2025
RE: ACNJ’s Testimony on S4476
Dear Chairman Gopal and Members of the Senate Education Committee:
My name is Winifred Smith-Jenkins, and I serve as the Director of Early Childhood Policy and Advocacy at Advocates for Children of New Jersey. Thank you for the opportunity to testify in strong support of Senate Bill 4476.
This bill is a critical next step. It removes a significant bureaucratic barrier that hinders the expansion of high-quality preschool in New Jersey. ACNJ has long supported a mixed delivery system—one that includes community-based providers as essential partners in delivering early childhood education. S4476 helps advance that goal by simplifying the contracting process and extending contract terms to three years.
Importantly, multi-year contracts give providers something they’ve long needed—stability. When a provider has a contract that goes beyond a single year, it becomes a tool they can take to the bank to secure a loan, make much-needed infrastructure upgrades, purchase furnishings, and invest in high-quality classroom materials. It helps them manage the shortfalls that often come in June, when only a partial payment might arrive, but all their bills—staff salaries, rent, utilities—are still due.
This bill provides assurances that were once missing. It brings peace of mind, helping providers plan and grow confidently, knowing the partnership with their local school district isn’t just a one-year experiment, but a long-term commitment to our youngest learners.
We urge your support for S4476. Let’s give providers the foundation they need to deliver strong, stable preschool programs for New Jersey’s children.
Thank you.
