We’re incredibly grateful to our amazing partners, the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice and New Jersey Performing Arts Center, for helping make “Doubling Down on Democracy: Conversations About The Way Forward” and the gubernatorial candidate forum a resounding success! We want to extend a huge thank you to our keynote speaker, panelists, and moderators, who brought policy issues surrounding democracy, immigration, and voting rights to the forefront of our discussion. The conversation was bold, informed, and deeply moving. If you missed it, we invite you to watch the recordings of Sherrilyn Ifill’s keynote and the Immigration and Democracy panels.

Crossroads NJ 2025

Registration is now open for the second Crossroads NJ Conversation: The Future of Economic and Justice Reform in New Jersey. Join leading experts at Rutgers University Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy on Thursday, June 5, as we explore the future of New Jersey’s jobs and economy, state budget, and justice reform.

Register now: https://www.fundfornj.org/crossroadsnj

The deadline to register to vote in the 2025 Primary Election is Tuesday, May 20, 2025. The American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey (ACLU-NJ), AAPI-NJ, The League of Women Voters of New Jersey (LWVNJ), NJ Spotlight News and Salvation and Social Justice, have created resources to assist you in learning more about the candidates and where and how you can vote.

Grantee News

• Education Law Center’s Executive Director, Robert Kim, was interviewed on NJ Spotlight to discuss the staffing cuts at the US Department of Education. Kim explained how the cuts to this federal department will negatively impact NJ families. Also, ELC and national partners filed a lawsuit to stop the Trump Administration’s illegal attempt to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education.
• Wind of the Spirit, Make the Road NJ, and advocates have been instrumental in rallying support for the stalled Immigrant Trust Act, emphasizing its importance for protecting immigrant communities in New Jersey.  

Grantee Reports

• Abbott Preschool at 25: Declining Enrollment Puts a Landmark Program at Risk-Education Law Center’s recent report uncovers concerning trends in Abbott Preschool enrollment and stresses the importance of sustained state commitment to ensure quality and access. This report is the first in an ELC series on the state of preschool in New Jersey. Explore interactive district data Abbott Preschool enrollment.
• New Jersey 2025 Trends and Outlook – The NJ Center for Nonprofits released the results of their annual survey assessing how nonprofits fared in 2024. The report found that nearly two-thirds (64%) of respondents receive some federal government funding, either directly or passed through the state, accounting for more than 4,500 jobs. Overall, the report shows the increasing demand for services and reduced funding resources, and continuing workforce shortages are combining with extreme upheaval of critical supports and systems nationally. Read the executive summary, full report and watch web briefing recording.
• NJ Kids Count 2025: The State of Our Counties – Advocates for Children of NJ released its annual data publication, providing a comprehensive snapshot of how well children are faring in New Jersey. The data report provides 63 measures of child well-being across 21 counties in the following areas: demographics, family economic security, child health, child protection, childcare, education, and teens.
• The Two New Jerseys: The Deepening Divide – The New Jersey Institute for Social Justice latest report reveals that the racial wealth gap between white and Black/Latina/o families in New Jersey has doubled to approximately $640,000. This widening disparity highlights the urgent need for reparative policies to address systemic inequities in wealth, homeownership, income, and health insurance.

Grantee Resources

• Federal Revenue Loss Calculator – Education Law Center created a calculator that allows users to estimate how much federal education aid their state could lose from federal funding reductions. It answers crucial questions such as: How much funding would public schools in your state lose if Title I programs were cut by, for example, 20 percent? If IDEA funds were repurposed to fund individual student vouchers, how much would each eligible student receive? How much would your state lose if funding is eliminated for 21st Century Community Learning Centers?
• Lead-Free NJ’s Housing Committee is collecting community feedback about the successes and challenges implementing LRAP and/or the lead paint in rental housing law. Share your feedback in the LFNJ Housing Committee learning survey. The deadline to respond is June 6.
• Universal Voucher Price Tag Calculator – Education Law Center created this calculator to estimate the potential price tag of a universal voucher program in any state. Users can project the amount of taxpayer funds that would be diverted to pay for private education. 

We welcome grantee partner 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.