by Common Ground | Jun 14, 2022 | Snapshot
Nearly one in three parents (31%) nationwide report that their child’s emotional health is worse than before the pandemic. (School Mental Health Report Card) In 2020, the proportion of mental health-related emergency room visits for children ages 5-11 and 12-17...
by Common Ground | Mar 17, 2022 | Features
Local police handcuff and arrest a second-grader. Video footage shows the boy sobbing as an officer announces, “You’re going to jail.” Three officers are called to the scene—an elementary special education classroom—where they arrest the 8-year old with...
by Common Ground | Mar 17, 2022 | Better IEPs
When a student with disabilities faces school disciplinary action, there are important protections in IDEA that must be followed. A school may suspend a student with a disability for up to 10 consecutive school days, as long as the suspension doesn’t constitute a...
by Common Ground | Mar 17, 2022 | Professionals
By Lisa Bell, BA, RN, NBCS, and Nanette Perez, BSN, RN, CSN COVID-19 hit like a hurricane that had not been forecast. In March of 2020, when the governor of New Jersey announced that schools would close for two weeks, no one knew it would be months before most schools...
by Common Ground | Mar 17, 2022 | Capitols
A bill now on the governor’s desk would give families extra time to apply for compensatory special education services if their child with disabilities experienced learning losses during the COVID-19 pandemic. The current statute of limitations to file for full...
by Common Ground | Mar 17, 2022 | Capitols
Miguel Cardona, U.S. Secretary of Education, has called on Congress for more funding to meet the needs of students with disabilities and to support special education teachers. In a major speech, Cardona said the United Stated must do more to “ensure that children,...
by Common Ground | Mar 17, 2022 | Snapshot
The national average for students with disabilities who receive special education services included in the general education classroom is 64.8 percent, according to the 43rd annual report, up from the 47.4 percent national average reported in the 23rd annual report....
by Common Ground | Feb 13, 2022 | Capitols
Tracking Discipline and Reporting – S-1020 was signed, requiring New Jersey school districts to collect and report data on suspension and other disciplinary actions. Each district must now collect and report school-level demographic breakdown of students who...
by Common Ground | Feb 13, 2022 | Capitols
Social Emotional Learning Alliance, (SEL4NJ) is a voluntary, grass-roots organization of individual educators, schools, districts, professional organizations, parents, advocacy groups, and anyone else deeply concerned about the future of our youth, our schools, and...
by Common Ground | Feb 13, 2022 | Capitols
In mid-January, the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) unveiled a new Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Educational Resources website. The initiative was designed to support districts in implementing the requirements of P.L.2021, c.32, which was signed into law...
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