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Schools

Christie Scheduled to Sign Historic Tenure Reform Bill

TEACH-NJ is landmark legislation, but signing brings questions -- like who will be on hand?

More than a month after the Legislature approved the tenure reform bill without a single dissenting vote, Gov. Chris Christie will sign Teacher Effectiveness and Accountability for the Children of New Jersey (TEACH NJ) into law today.

Christie's office announced the scheduled signing late yesterday, after weeks of speculation of when and even if he would sign the sweeping measure. He always indicated he would, but questions mounted as to whether he would be adding any new proposals.

The signing will take place at the Von E. Mauger Middle School in Middesex at 10:50 a.m., following by a press conference. Christie also plans to meet with students beforehand.

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But even with the fundamental uncertainty resolved, that doesn’t end all the questions. Here are three:

Who gets invited?

Who attends bill signings is usually just political protocol and not all that important, but there will be a notable presence for the event today: the leadership of the New Jersey Education Association.

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Needless to say, Christie and the teachers union have not been the best of pals, with little if any contact between the governor’s office and the leadership located just down West State Street for the better part of two years.

But Vince Giordano, the union’s executive director, said yesterday that the union got a call a couple of days ago asking him and the top officers, including president Barbara Keshishian, to attend the signing.

Giordano said the union was pleased to be included, as it has been deeply involved in the talks that led to the final bill. He said it will be the first bill signing of this governor that the NJEA has been invited to.

“We are happy to be invited, since we played a key role in its passage,” Giordano said. “And we will certainly be there.”

Others sure to be on the list and speaking to the gathered press and others will be the top sponsors, led by state Sen. Teresa Ruiz (D-Essex), who is inarguably the bill’s chief architect. State Assemblyman Albert Coutinho (D-Essex) was also a key player on the Assembly side and could get a few words, as may the eventual sponsor, state Assemblyman Patrick Diegnan (D-Middlesex).

What happens next with seniority?

Practically since he took office, Christie has made it a priority to end the current system of basing teacher layoffs on seniority. It’s known as “last in, first out“ or LIFO, and it’s a rallying cry that Christie often invokes in his education speeches and town hall meetings.

Under the law to be signed today, however, LIFO lives on.

The bill makes plenty of other changes. It now requires that teachers need to work four years to gain tenure rights and to attain consistently positive evaluations to maintain them. If they receive less than positive ratings for two years, tenure charges must be brought against them that could remove them from the classroom.

But after months of discussion and negotiation, Ruiz and other key lawmakers behind the bill decided not to include initial language that would have effectively phased out LIFO. Some say it was a key point that brought the New Jersey Education Association on board, as well as the unanimous Democratic support.

Christie has since said that he wished the bill had gone further to end LIFO, and several Republicans raised the issue in casting their votes for the measure.

Now, here’s Christie’s chance to say what will happen next, if anything. Christie today is sure to mention his concerns again in celebrating what was enacted, and he can even do something about it in at least furthering the cause through executive order or a governor’s task force or something similar. Either way, while maybe safe for now, it is surely not the end of the debate or the attempts to change it.

Read more at NJSpotlight.com

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