TRENTON – Senator Wayne R. Bryant, D-Camden & Gloucester, Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee Chair and a member of the Senate Education Committee, released the following statement today after a news conference held by the New Jersey Council of Community Colleges discussing the role of community colleges in economic and workforce development now and during the upcoming gubernatorial administration:
“Our local community colleges play a pivotal role in helping to prepare today’s students for tomorrow’s workforce. Workforce training must be a central element of maintaining a progressive and viable economy. I believe in New Jersey’s community colleges and the positive work they are doing for the roughly 350,000 students who are enrolled Statewide. I believe that higher education trains students to be successful members of society, which is why I sponsored the “NJ STARS” law to allow students who finish in the top 20% of their high school graduating class to attend a community college for free. This year I also sponsored the “NJ STARS II” law to extend the provisions of “NJ STARS” and allow students already enrolled in the program with a GPA of 3.0 and above to continue in the program. Our community colleges work, which is why I’ve always made it a point to fight for increased budget funding for these schools. I am now calling on whoever is elected in November to work with legislators to make supporting the State’s community colleges a top priority. It is imperative that the Legislative and Executive branches continue to support the community college system and New Jersey’s exceptional students through both financial and moral support – we owe it to ourselves, our children and the future of New Jersey’s economy.”