New Jersey to funnel high school students to community colleges, not research institutions

In his third year in office, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy hopes to create impactful change statewide. Murphy, a Democrat, proposed a number of policies in his most recent State of the State address, in which he called for “Ethics-reform” in New Jersey. The legislation he wishes to see passed this year includes a millionaire’s tax, as well as increased funding and training for high-tech jobs.

The motivation for these reforms, according to Murphy, can be traced back to the 2007 recession, from which New Jersey had a particularly tough time recovering. While the nation as a whole regained the number of jobs lost at the time by 2014, New Jersey did not return to the same employment numbers until 2017, according to the U.S. Labor Department. By helping send kids to community college and learn new skills, specifically focused on manufacturing, the state hopes that when another recession hits, New Jersey will be a safe haven full of high-tech jobs.

Over the next five years, Murphy aims to boost the number of college graduates employed in high-demand industries like technology by 10%. To do this, New Jersey will begin offering an increased number of college-level classes to high school students through AP and dual-enrollment courses. Murphy believes offering these courses will make New Jersey’s high schoolers more competitive and let them learn more in-demand skills, such as computer science and programming. Additionally, Murphy hopes to expand apprenticeship programs and industry-focused training at community colleges.

This policy idea, at first glance, seems like it could be harmful to Stevens by resulting in an even more extreme difference between research institutions and cheaper, alternative options, such as community colleges. The national debate surrounding the cost of higher education has led to similar answers in other states. But while most four-year schools are not going to be free soon, community colleges are making this transition.

Beth McGrath, who is the Vice President of Government and Community Relations and President Farvardin’s Chief of Staff, said that the Stevens administration will continue to follow Governor Murphy’s and the legislature’s plans and that they will assess possible impacts on Stevens and students.  She added that New Jersey’s research universities, including Stevens, are important components of the Governor’s plans to revitalize the state’s technology-based innovation economy. By virtue of producing a highly-skilled technology workforce and due to research conducted in STEM fields that leads to innovation and drives economic growth, Stevens will continue to be a significant resource for New Jersey, McGrath said.