Welcome
Welcome to the B-REA web site. The Bridgewater-Raritan Education Association is a member of the Somerset County Education Association (SCEA), New Jersey Education Association (NJEA), and National Education Association (NEA).
Click to read the Welcome Back Message from the NJEA (Word Document)
Notice:
Christie Under Fire for Shortchanging Students
August 30, 2010
This has been a week unlike any other in the last eight months. It began Tuesday with the announcement that Governor Christie’s Race to the Top application had been rejected by the US Department of Education, and ended with the firing of Commissioner of Education Bret Schundler. Throughout this week, NJEA has been at the center of these issues, making sure that the public finds out the truth about what really happened with the Race to the Top.
On Tuesday, following the announcement that New Jersey had failed to win an RTTT grant, NJEA released a statement pointing out that it was the governor’s decision to throw out a solid, winning application – created collaboratively among NJEA, the NJ Department of Education and other education stakeholders – in favor of his own flawed application, that caused New Jersey to lose.
On Wednesday came news that Governor Christie’s application contained a critical error that may have cost the state enough points to put it out of the running for RTTT funds. Soon after, NJEA was able to share with the press evidence that the original application we had worked on contained the correct information. It was only wrong in Governor Christie’s version.
Also on Wednesday, Governor Christie angrily blamed (scroll to 1:45) US Department of Education officials for acting like “mindless drones” for not fixing his mistake, but the next day, video emerged which shed a very different light on what happened.
The video, which records the in-person meeting among Commissioner Schundler, other NJDOE officials, and Race to the Top scorers to discuss New Jersey’s application, clearly shows that the representatives from New Jersey were given the opportunity to explain and clarify the mistake in the the state's application.
Rather than simply provide the correct information – which was included in the original RTTT application that Christie discarded – New Jersey’s representatives failed to provide the requested information.
Despite Gov. Christie’s claim (scroll to 2:20) that Commissioner Schundler gave the correct info in the face to face interview, video of that interview tells a different story.
Embarrassed by the negative media attention his blunder was receiving, Gov. Christie on Friday fired Commissioner Schundler. NJEA also released a statement on the firing.
Throughout the entire RTTT fiasco, NJEA has also been keeping pressure on Gov. Christie for his failure to quickly apply for $268 million in federal education jobs aid intended to put 3,900 school employees back to work. NJEA blanketed the state with a statement which has already begun to generate press coverage and pressure on the Governor.
This week began to expose Gov. Christie’s educational policies for the travesty they are. NJEA intends to keep up the pressure to make sure that the public is aware of the damage he is doing to our schools and the efforts we are making to protect our members, our students, and public education.
As you begin the school year, please watch for further communication from NJEA. We are going to rely on our leaders to share information about the real-world impact of Gov. Christie’s devastating cuts and misguided educational policies.
Legislative Action
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