Gubernatorial Malpractice, Part II: Gov. Murphy Is AWOL on Learning Loss, So Sen. Ruiz Steps Up for NJ Kids

Thank goodness for Sen. Teresa Ruiz.  The Senate majority leader has introduced a bill to create an “Office of Learning Loss Czar” to help push Murphy’s Department of Education (DOE) to FINALLY address pandemic learning loss — in 2024!  Gov. Murphy has been AWOL on learning loss, and it is his DOE that needs to be pushed because he is not pushing it.  Like his biggest political supporter, the NJEA, Murphy prefers to pretend that learning loss never occurred because they were both responsible for keeping schools closed in some of NJ’s largest districts for far longer than the rest of the state or the country.  So Sen. Ruiz to the rescue.  Another case of gubernatorial malpractice.  

As reported in NorthJersey.com, Ruiz was compelled to act because the numbers show that NJ students are still suffering from substantial learning loss, particularly in the critical early elementary school grades and among minority kids.

Here’s Sen. Ruiz:

[I]t just really came to a point where I felt that legislatively we had to lead the charge.  I think what really drove me was the statistics and data we are still receiving.

Ruiz was also forced to act because Murphy has completely failed his state on this urgent issue. Per NorthJersey.com: “Lawmakers in both parties have been pushing for the Murphy administration to report on the extent of pandemic-related learning loss, but with little success.”  That’s not all.  Recall that:

• Murphy sat on student tests scores during 2022, preventing schools from assessing just how much learning loss had occurred, the first step in trying to remediate it. (The Star-Ledger rightly excoriated Murphy for this unconscionable delay.)
• In December, 2022, and after a great deal of public criticism, Murphy launched his NJ Partnership for Student Success (NJPSS), a plan to recruit and train 5,000 volunteer tutors.  NJPSS has been an utter failure.
• And no wonder.  Since NJPSS’s launch with great fanfare, Murphy has studiously ignored the issue.  No mention in his State of the State addresses, no updates on NJPSS progress, nothing. Our governor has chosen to be silent on learning loss.
• Rather than address learning loss, Murphy lowered the passing score for the state’s high school graduation test.

So now the 2022 and 2023 high school classes have graduated with unremediated learning loss, and it’s highly likely the Class of 2024 will, too.  At the same time, as the test scores show, early elementary school kids are being promoted without the necessary skills to succeed in higher grades. And Murphy is still AWOL on this urgent issue.

It has looked for a long time like Murphy wants to pretend learning loss didn’t occur.  This aligns him perfectly with his biggest political supporter, the NJEA.  The NJEA pushed to keep schools closed in a number of NJ’s largest districts, including Jersey City, Paterson and Montclair, and Murphy accommodated them.  Rather than take responsibility and do the hard work of remediation, Murphy and the NJEA want to pretend there’s no learning loss.

Thank goodness for Sen. Ruiz.  The former chair of the Senate Education Committee has always been a tireless advocate for high quality eduction for all NJ kids.  She has been forced to act because she actually cares about educating NJ kids, unlike our governor who cares about his NJEA pals.  

We say again: a governor who fails in his duty to educate all NJ children is a failure as a governor.  Another case of gubernatorial malpractice.