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Obama seeking $23 billion in emergency aid for educators nationwide
With state and local budget shortfalls threatening the jobs of hundreds of thousands of educators in New Jersey and nationwide, the Obama administration is pressing Congress to approve $23 billion in emergency funding to keep them on the job.
According to provisional estimates by the White House Council of Economic Advisers, the funding would support the jobs of approximately 300,000 educators, including approximately 7,370 in New Jersey.
Gov. Chris Christie's proposed $29.3 billion 2010-11 state budget would eliminate $819 million in local school aid, an action that could lead to the layoff of as many as 6,000 teachers and aides.
"It is crucial that we keep our teachers in the classroom," U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said Wednesday. "Our teachers are vital to our students' success, our economy's success, and our nation's success. We must act now to prevent teachers from being laid off and ensure that America's students have the knowledge and skills to succeed in the 21st century."
The economic downturn has placed a great strain on state and local budgets. As education makes up one of the largest single items in state budgets, schools, classrooms, and teacher jobs have been targeted for significant cuts. The Obama administration believes the job losses will impact students through reductions in core class time, overcrowded classrooms, shortened school calendars, cuts to afterschool programming, fewer early childhood opportunities, and reduced access to college counselors and school nurses.In response, the administration is asking Congress to approve the $23 billion in emergency aid. Obama also is urging Congress to approve $1 billion to preserve early childhood education jobs to ensure that young children do not lose services critical to their learning and well being.
"As state lawmakers and school districts across the country are finalizing their budgets for the coming year, we must act quickly and responsibly to offer the assistance they need - to keep our teachers teaching, keep our students learning, and keep our economy growing. Investing in education now will help tens of millions of students become more productive citizens and positively affect America's long-term fiscal health," Duncan said.
– TOM HESTER SR., NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM
