NJ Education Report

Last week the Star-Ledger Editorial Board interviewed Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, whom some consider a likely gubernatorial candidate in 2025. (Alan Steinberg, for instance, says Baraka has “by far the most potential as a candidate and as a governor,” in part because of his “success on an issue that proved to be a quagmire for other Newark mayors: public education.”)

Baraka leads New Jersey’s largest city where, unlike most other municipalities, mask mandates will remain in effect after Gov. Phil Murphy’s Executive Order expires on March 7th. That’s a hard stance to take, given pandemic exhaustion and the politicization of Covid-19. Yet Newark’s vaccination rate lags behind the rest of the state and is especially low for children ages 5-17, who are now eligible.  At West Side High School just 18% of children have received at least one shot. Meanwhile, Essex County’s Covid risk rate remains “high.”

The Star-Ledger Editorial Board probed Baraka on this issue and what he wishes Murphy had done differently. Here is a drill-down of that part of the interview:

On How Newark is Different From the Rest of New Jersey:

“I have to care about the people of Newark, so things we do are a little different…If we decide to do something different, we won’t be too far behind what’s happening on the state level.”

On Whether Murphy Should Eliminate Covid Testing Options:

“The way he did it was right. We’ve been asking for him to allow municipalities to have some flexibility to do what we think is right, based on what our health department sees here. I know it’s difficult for the governor to make unilateral decisions. But it’s important that he gives us the flexibility.”

On Whether NJ Should Make Covid Vaccines Mandatory in Schools (like many other required immunizations) and Whether a Mandate Would Lift a “Big Burden” Off Baraka:

“It would lift a burden for us, but in Newark, there are schools that have high infection rates and some that don’t. And the superintendent has to make certain decisions for the whole district. So some of those people get angry because they don’t have those issues, while others are angry because they want him to go further. I understand that predicament. It definitely would make it easier for the state to do it.”

On Whether Murphy Should Have Already Mandated Covid Vaccinations in Schools:

“I believe so. Look, this whole thing has been so politicized, and I think everybody is responsible for it. But we act like we never had vaccines before in this country – that’s just ahistorical. You even need a yellow fever shot to enter some countries. You need the MMR shot to go to school, so yeah, there should be a mandate. But right now? In order to do that, I think it would cause more chaos than it would be helpful. It should have happened early on, with all leaders on the same page and putting politics aside.”

(Photo courtesy of NJ Spotlight)