The Fund for New Jersey wrapped up Crossroads NJ Conversations, a four-part discussion series created to elevate and examine the key issues shaping New Jersey’s future. The series convened community leaders, policy experts, and residents to foster informed dialogue and inspire active engagement in building the New Jersey we all deserve. Whether you joined us in person or registered but couldn’t make it, we appreciated your interest in dialogue. Throughout each conversation, we heard ideas and concerns about a multitude of issues that the state is facing. As Brandon McKoy, President, remarked in his recent op-ed,

“In our forums and public meetings, people were very specific about the crisis of housing costs, transit failures, and stagnant wages. No matter where you live, rural or urban, North Jersey, South Jersey or along the Shore, we learned that residents share far more in common than the partisan or regional lines that too often divide us.” 

These conversations were designed not just to inspire, but also to ignite action. 

Crossroads NJ 2025 Policy Report

We are tremendously excited to share that the Crossroads NJ 2025: Reviewing Needs and Reimaging Opportunities policy report is forthcoming.

This report will measure New Jersey’s progress in implementing the recommendations from our 2017 Crossroads NJ reports.

While we prepare the report for release, we invite you to visit the Crossroads NJ Conversations page to rewatch previous conversations and share with someone in your network.

What are the Staff at FFNJ Reading and Watching?

• Healthcare Costs Set to Increase Post-Shutdown: These families’ health care costs will balloon if Congress doesn’t act on the ACA : NPR
• The Road Ahead: Why the Struggle for a Third Reconstruction Remains the Struggle for Our Times: NPQ
• Small Towns, Big Losses: What happens to college towns after peak 18-year-old?: The Argument
• Sports Marketing and Social Justice: Narrative Change Through Sports : RWJF
• Exploration and Purpose, Then and Now: This Travel Show Accidentally Filmed the Last Real Adventure: LSOO

Grantee News

Policy Updates

• American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey (ACLU-NJ): A coalition of 30 New Jersey advocacy organizations, including ACLU-NJ, launched the “People’s Agenda” a collective effort to advance legislative proposals during New Jersey’s lame duck session. Several events are being hosted to promote the agenda’s objectives. Read more here… 
• League of Women Voters New Jersey (LWV-NJ): In August 2025, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) implemented a new rule that restricts nongovernmental entities from providing voter registration services at USCIS facilities during naturalization ceremonies. In response, the LWV-NJ, along with other state leagues and the national organization, filed a lawsuit against USCIS, the US Department of Homeland Security and other federal officials. The lawsuit alleges the rule was enacted without adherence to the New Jersey Administrative Procedure Act, which requires agencies to follow specific steps, such as providing public notice and opportunities for comment before enacting new rules. Read more here…
• NY/NJ Baykeeper: The Eastern Environmental Law Center filed a petition against the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection on behalf of the NY/NJ Baykeeper and a coalition of five New Jersey-based environmental groups. This comes after the state’s approval of the 37-mile Northeast Supply Enhancement project, an underwater natural gas pipeline between New Jersey and New York that the state had previously denied in 2017. Read more here…
• New Jersey Alliance for Immigrant Justice (NJAIJ): Immigration partner organizations in New Jersey including NJAIJ and Make the Road New Jersey, along with over 250 New Jersey families, gathered for a rally in Jersey City in November. The group called for state divestment from Palantir Technologies, a software company that was awarded a $30 million contract by ICE to build ImmigrationOS, an AI-driven software designed to assist ICE agents in monitoring self-deportations and visa overstays. Read more here…
• Lazos America Unida (Lazos): Lazos and a coalition of 26 community, labor, and advocacy organizations sent a written request to Governor Phil Murphy and members of his administration to restore the $30 million in funding for the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP) and reopen the program to new applicants. The groups also reflected on the struggles families have experienced since the administration increased parent co-pays and closed CCAP to new applicants in August. Read more here…

Leadership and Organizational Announcements

• Ironbound Community Corporation (ICC): The city of Newark and ICC secured victory in their August 2025 motion to stay lawsuit against the Passaic Valley Sewerage Commission’s (PVSC) that had planned to construct a gas-fired power plant adjacent to ICC’s headquarters in the East Ward. This comes after a July 14 lawsuit filed by the City and ICC against PVSC and contractor Skanska/Railroad SPGF JV for approving the construction of a fourth gas power plant in Newark. Read more here…

• Adhikaar: Adhikaar partnered with the Center for American Progress and the U.S. Immigration Policy Center at the University of California, San Diego to conduct the first systematic survey examining the contributions of Nepali Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders to the U.S. economy. This survey was conducted amid ongoing litigation over the 2018 decision to end Nepal’s TPS designation. TPS has provided approximately 14,800 Nepali individuals with work authorization and deportation protection since 2015. Read more here…

Grantee Reports

• New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP): NJPP released a report examining hidden costs residents face when applying for a municipal public defender and their potential effects on low-income residents, including debt accumulation and pressure to give up their right to counsel. The nonprofit recommended eliminating fees associated with municipal public defender applications and funding public defense through public investments. Read more here… 

• New Jersey Policy Perspective (NJPP): NJPP released a report analyzing how the state government has eliminated nearly 20,000 positions – even as population has grown – leaving residents with worse service and higher costs. Read more here… 

We welcome your policy updates, job announcements, and staff news. Please send submissions to Naeema Campbell, ncampbell@fundfornj.org or Beauty Okunbor, bokunbor@fundfornj.org for inclusion in our newsletter.