ASSEMBLY, No. 1676
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
221st LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2024 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman PAMELA R. LAMPITT
District 6 (Burlington and Camden)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman Quijano
SYNOPSIS
Requires DOLWD, in consultation with DOE, to establish database of novice teachers and to host job fairs.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As reported by the Assembly Education Committee on March 4, 2024, with amendments.
An Act concerning school district staffing vacancies and supplementing chapter 6 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. As used in this act:
"Novice teacher" means a teacher eligible to work under a valid certificate of eligibility or certificate of eligibility with advanced standing who has not yet been issued a provisional certificate.
"School district" means a school district, charter school, renaissance school project, county special services school district, 1[or]1 county vocational school district 1, or approved private school for students with disabilities1.
2. a. The 1Department of Labor and Workforce Development, in consultation with the1 Department of Education 1,1 shall, within 180 days of the effective date of this act, establish and maintain a database of novice teachers that shall be available to school districts and novice teachers to assist in filling staffing vacancies. The database shall not be available to the general public.
b. The 1Commissioner of Education shall provide the following information for each novice teacher to the Department of Labor and Workforce Development to be included in the1 database 1[shall include the following information for each novice teacher] established pursuant to subsection a. of this section1:
(1) the novice teacher's name, telephone number, email address, and method by which a school district may contact the novice teacher;
(2) the novice teacher's current employment status;
(3) the certificate and endorsement held by the novice teacher; and
(4) any other information the Commissioner of Education deems necessary.
c. The 1[department] Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development1 shall develop a mechanism by which a novice teacher may opt out of inclusion in the database. A novice teacher may request to be excluded from the database at any time.
d. A novice teacher may request 1[the department limit]1 the contact information included in the database pursuant to paragraph (1) of subsection b. of this section 1be limited1 to a preferred method of contact. The 1[department] Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development1 shall comply with a request made by a novice teacher pursuant to this subsection.
3. a. The 1Department of Labor and Workforce Development, in consultation with the1 Department of Education 1,1 shall hold three job fairs per year to assist school districts in filling staffing vacancies, with one job fair held in each of the northern, central, and southern regions of the State.
b. (1) The 1[department] Commissioner of Education1 shall invite school districts to participate in the job fairs.
(2) The job fair shall be open to novice teachers included in the database established pursuant to section 2 of this act, individuals enrolled in an educator preparation program, and any other individual appropriately certified to work in a public school in the State.
c. The 1[department] Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development1 shall notify each novice teacher included in the database established pursuant to section 2 of this act of the date, time, and location of each job fair.
d. The 1[department] Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development1 may charge employer participants a reasonable, nominal fee to participate in a job fair held pursuant to this section. The fee obtained pursuant to this subsection shall only be used to cover costs associated with identifying and securing a location for the job fair, hospitality services, and other administrative costs as determined by the commissioner.
4. This act shall take effect immediately.