Teachers From NY, PA, DE Could Work In NJ Under Bill Advancing In Legislature

NEW JERSEY — For the past 12 years, teachers and other employees of New Jersey schools have had to live in the Garden State unless they have a special waiver exempting them from the residency requirement. That may change temporarily, as lawmakers advanced a bill allowing teachers from nearby states to come in and shore up New Jersey’s “dire” teacher shortage.

The state Senate approved a bipartisan bill (S904) allowing schools including public districts, charters, and renaissance schools to hire teachers and other employees from out-of-state for a period of three years. This would allow teachers and other school employees from neighboring New York, Pennsylvania, and Delaware to enter the workforce.

Teacher and staff shortages have become a common issue in New Jersey, as school districts struggle to recover from pandemic-related staff losses and a dwindling number of new teachers entering the workforce.

The bill has been making its way through the Senate since last January, and passed the Senate by a vote of 36-1 on June 20. It’s now headed to the state Assembly.

Primary sponsors were Senate Majority Leader M. Teresa Ruiz (D-NJ-29), Republican Leader Steven Oroho (R-NJ-24), and Sen. Shirley K. Turner (D-NJ-15).

“Teacher shortages have been a growing issue in New Jersey and around the country for the past several years, an issue which has only been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Ruiz. “While we have enacted various measures to try and address it, it is clear more needs to be done to ensure our schools have adequate staff to meet the needs of our students. By temporarily removing the residency requirement we can see how it helps to mitigate shortages around the state and determine how best to move forward.”

The lack of qualified teachers will persist if the education community does not act, said the New Jersey School Boards Association and New Jersey Policy Perspective in reports last year.

“Schools can adequately replace these teachers if enough well-educated workers consider a career in public education,” said NJPP analysts. “Unfortunately, even before the increased pressures on teachers and more school staff considered leaving their positions, fewer candidates were enrolling in and completing teacher training programs. If New Jersey does not act soon, there will not be enough qualified candidates to replace teachers leaving the profession.”

Additionally under this bill, any non-New Jersey residents who are hired during this three-year period would not be required to move into the state after the time ends. The bill would require districts to make efforts in “good faith” to prioritize hiring New Jersey residents before looking out-of-state.

The Assembly version of this bill (A2229) will appear first before the State and Local Government Committee in that chamber of the legislature.