NJ Delivers Big Boost For Preschool In South Orange, Maplewood

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — The South Orange-Maplewood Public School District (SOMA) will be among the state’s largest beneficiaries of the first round of new Preschool Education Expansion Aid (PEEA), Governor Phil Murphy announced Tuesday.

According to a statement from Murphy’s office, the SOMA school district will get an additional $1,422,081 of PEEA funding, part of an overall package of $20.6 million to 31 eligible districts throughout New Jersey.

The PEEA funding is intended to enhance and expand preschool education programs for more than 2,000 three and four-year-old children across the state. The funds will support existing preschool programs to provide high-quality programming by extending the hours, decreasing class size and adding additional children.

The increase was part of Murphy's Fiscal Year 2019 budget, which included $50 million for PEEA and an additional $33 million in Preschool Education Aid.

Murphy said that the money represents “the largest increase in pre-K funding in over a decade.”

PEEA funding is distributed based on the numbers of low-income students in the district. The distribution of preschool expansion aid will be divided into two rounds, with New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) expected to award the second round of PEEA in early October.

According to Murphy’s office:

“For the first round of PEEA, NJDOE targeted districts that have previously received partial State aid and could implement expansion plans by October 2018. The second round of funding will target districts with a Free and Reduced Lunch percentage above 20 percent that have not previously received any state preschool aid. NJDOE received 31 applications from 117 eligible school districts and is currently reviewing those applications.”

Murphy said that investment in early childhood education is a “long-term investment” in the next generation.

“Every child deserves the opportunity to have access to quality pre-K programs and this funding will provide our children with the tools and support they need to reach their greatest potential.”

“We know that for every dollar we invest in early childhood education, we save $7 in tax payer money down the line,” said Senator Teresa Ruiz, the chair of the Senate Education Committee. “This announcement made by Governor Murphy secures the funding promised by the governor and the Legislature to expand early childhood education, an investment in our children and our state.”

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