6-01-2022 11:28am

Murphy Administrations Pushes to Expand Career & Technical Education for NJ Students

The Securing Our Children’s Future Bond Act (SOCFBA) – approved by voters in 2018 – recently issued a total of $500 million in state bonds to expand county college and vocational school career and technical education (CTE) programs, enhance k-12 school security, and support water infrastructure improvements in NJ schools.

Of the $500 million, $325 million was dedicated to county college and college vocational school district (CVSD-related) grants.

The proposed funding now moves to the Legislature for final approval.

“This second round of funding builds on my Administration’s efforts to provide New Jersey students with access to high-quality education,” said Governor Murphy. “Career and technical education programs are key to providing young people with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in their chosen career. Investing in our county colleges and vocational schools is how we invest in our state.”

"We made a bipartisan commitment to invest in our long-neglected county colleges and vocational schools to ensure they have the necessary resources to modernize and expand their programs to meet the demand of students," said Senate Republican Leader Steven Oroho. "Voters agreed this should be done, and the latest round of grant awards to fund projects improving career and technical education programs across New Jersey is one of the tangible results."

The Murphy Administration is transmitting the following to the Legislature for final approval:

County College CTE Projects – approximately $20 million

Funds would be used to construct or expand classrooms, laboratories, libraries, computer facilities, and other academic buildings/structures to increase CTE program capacity.

The full list of round-two projects in this category includes:

Camden County College – awarded $4,000,000
Essex County College – awarded $4,000,000
Passaic County College – awarded $3,381,337
Raritan Valley Community College – awarded $4,000,000
Rowan College of South Jersey – awarded $3,750,000
Sussex County Community College – awarded $862,500

County Vocational School District (CVSD) CTE Projects – approximately $37 million

Funds may be used for renovation and construction projects that support the expansion of CTE programs at county vocational schools, in accordance with labor market demands and economic development goals.

This includes renovations and new construction to increase the student capacity in select county vocational CTE programs through: