A popular after-school program for children of poor, on the verge of ending because of budget cuts, has been spared through a partnership between private donors and the state Department of Education
Gov. Chris Christie announced today that New Jersey After 3, on the verge of ending because of budget cuts, has been spared through a partnership between private donors and the state Department of Education. TRENTON — A popular after-school program for children of poor, working families known as New Jersey After 3, on the verge of ending because of budget cuts, has been spared through a partnership between private donors and the state Department of Education, Gov. Chris Christie said today.
The partnership, forged in the program’s eleventh hour, includes David Tepper, a wealthy hedge fund manager and Christie ally, who formed a nonprofit organization, Better Education for New Jersey Kids.
Christie said Tepper would contribute an undisclosed sum until the federal government provides more money to the state.
"There are lots of willing funders out there who want to support good programs for people in New Jersey," Christie said at a Statehouse news conference. "This is the model for what we should be doing for these types of programs across the state during difficult fiscal times."
New Jersey After 3 has always operated through a combination of state and private money. But four months ago Christie erased $3 million in state funds for the program for the fiscal year 2012 using a line-item veto. Democrats decried the cut and tried but failed to restore the funds in June.
Democrats expressed relief at Christie’s announcement today but questioned the partnership with Tepper. His nonprofit organization bought $1 million worth of advertising this summer to counter the teachers union’s ads against Christie during a battle over pension and health benefits.
"After-school programming isn’t a political issue and I’m sorry to see the governor playing politics with it like this," Assemblywoman Valerie Vainieri Huttle (D-Bergen) said in a statement.
Christie said the money would be donated to New Jersey After 3, and that it would be up to the program’s administrators to decide if the amount of the contributions and the identities of the donors should be made public. But he added that people willing to give substantial sums of money to a worthwhile program should be able to remain anonymous.
Mark Valli, the president and chief executive of NJ After 3, did not return a call seeking comment. He said in a statement last week that the group had explored "virtually every option" before announcing it’s shutdown.
In a statement released today, Douglas Kennedy, the group’s board chairman, called the partnership "an innovative and educational approach."
Christie said that continuing the after-school program would help the state qualify for a waiver from the requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind law.
The law mandates that students nationwide be able to demonstrate proficiency in math and reading by 2014. States seeking to waive that requirement must apply by deadlines in November or January to prove that they are making progress toward meeting that goal.
"We will tap our own public-private expertise and partner with the Department of Education to design and develop an extended learning program that fits with and complements the state’s federal No Child Left Behind waiver application," Kennedy said.
Since its inception in 2004, NJ After 3 has extended the school day by 40 percent for about 75,000 students in 29 school districts statewide, offering tutoring, fitness activities, arts programs and other services for the families it serves.
Although NJ After 3 already offers academic enrichment for students enrolled in its after-school programs, the quality and quantity of school work may need to improve to meet the requirements of the waiver application.
By Jessica Calefati and Christopher Baxter/The Star-Ledger
Staff writers Chris Megerian, Kelly Heyboer and The Associated Press contributed to this report.