Senate Advances Rice Bill to Establish School Readiness & Workforce Development Pilot Program

Trenton – Legislation sponsored by Senator Ronald L. Rice, which would establish a two-generational school readiness and workforce development pilot program for low-income households, advanced from the Senate today.

“Breaking families out of the cycle of poverty cannot be done by only addressing the needs of just one generation. This has to be done with multiple generations at the same time. We need to assist the low-income households in New Jersey in order to give them an opportunity to thrive in their communities,” said Senator Rice (D-Essex). “It has, and will always be true, education is the best way for people to lift themselves out of poverty.”

The bill, S-371, would establish a five-year two-generational school readiness and workforce development pilot program within the Department of Education (DOE). The purpose of the pilot program would be to foster family economic self-sufficiency in low-income households by delivering academic and job readiness support services across two generations within the same household. Under the bill, the DOE commissioner would be charged with designating qualifying municipalities that have a poverty rate that is at least twice the statewide average poverty rate.

The pilot program would provide services to designated municipalities in the form of early learning programs, adult education, child care, housing, job training, transportation, financial literacy and other related support services such as health and mental health services.

The program would create a workforce liaison position that would be charged to gauge the needs of employers and households in each community and help coordinate the two-generational program to meet the needs of these employers and households. It would also facilitate the creation of a long-term plan that would be adopted and replicated as a model for the delivery of these services on a statewide basis.

The bill was released from the Senate by a vote of 31-1.