Bill Text: NJ SR73 | 2020-2021 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Urges Governor to grant greater flexibility to high schools attempting to hold graduation ceremonies with proper social distancing during COVID-19 pandemic.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 3-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-06-11 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Education Committee [SR73 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2020-SR73-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator KRISTIN M. CORRADO
District 40 (Bergen, Essex, Morris and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Urges Governor to grant greater flexibility to high schools attempting to hold graduation ceremonies with proper social distancing during COVID-19 pandemic.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
A Senate Resolution urging the Governor to grant greater flexibility to high schools attempting to hold graduation ceremonies with proper social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Whereas, COVID-19, a novel coronavirus, is a respiratory illness that was first identified during an outbreak in Wuhan, China and has since expanded across various continents including Asia, Europe, North America, South America, Africa, and Australia resulting in a worldwide pandemic; and
Whereas, In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Governor Murphy issued Executive Order 107 which required all New Jersey residents to stay at home until further notice; and
Whereas, This Statewide stay-at-home order forced all public and private schools and colleges throughout the State to close for the duration of the school year; and
Whereas, Schools have had to adapt their entire curriculums to provide online education and ensure that New Jersey students will be able to meet matriculation requirements throughout this unprecedented time; and
Whereas, Thousands of high school seniors will be graduating from New Jersey high schools this spring; these graduating students have been forced to be flexible and remain positive while having to miss many of the senior year milestones they have looked forward to for their entire high school careers; and
Whereas, As a result of mandatory social distancing guidelines to stop the spread of COVID-19, graduating students have been forced to miss senior proms, senior banquets, their final varsity sports seasons, senior trips, and the students have been unable to spend their final months in high school with their fellow students and friends; and
Whereas, Graduation remains the final milestone in graduating students' high school careers; and
Whereas, After graduation, graduated students will continue upon diverse paths into futures that may include higher education, the military, and various fields of work; and
Whereas, Graduation ceremonies are a time for students to celebrate their educational accomplishments alongside their peers, a time for parents to recognize the efforts and hard work of their children, and a time for teachers to see the students they have educated enter the next stage of their lives; and
Whereas,
On May 22, 2020, Governor Murphy Issued Executive Order 148 which increased the
number of people allowed together at outdoor gatherings from 10 to 25; this
Executive Order makes it
possible for open air high school graduation ceremonies that observe social distancing and other COVID-19-related safety protocols to occur; and
Whereas, However, Governor Murphy stated that high school graduation ceremonies will not be permitted prior to July 1, 2020 and that schools with graduating class sizes larger than what is allowed at outdoor gatherings will be required to have multiple graduation ceremonies; and
Whereas, The current restrictions on the size of permitted outdoor gatherings conflicts with the goal of allowing classmates to graduate together; having multiple graduation ceremonies will not allow graduating students to graduate alongside all of their friends and peers, but rather only a smaller group of the graduating class; and
Whereas, In addition, Governor Murphy should allow graduation ceremonies to occur on more flexible timelines; many schools have reported being unable to hold graduation ceremonies after June 30, 2020 due to insurance and staffing issues; and
Whereas, Due to the importance and significance of graduation ceremonies in students' educational careers, the Governor is urged to grant more flexibility to high schools attempting to hold graduation ceremonies during the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure entire graduating classes will be able to graduate together; and
Whereas, Tens of thousands of capable, devoted, resilient, and resourceful school officials, teachers, school board members, parents, and students stand ready to make the necessary preparations for safe and responsible graduation ceremonies across the State; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of New Jersey:
1. This House urges the Governor to grant greater flexibility to high schools attempting to hold graduation ceremonies with proper social distancing and other appropriate safety protocols during the COVID-19 pandemic.
2. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Secretary of the Senate to the Governor of the State of New Jersey.
STATEMENT
This resolution urges the Governor to grant greater flexibility to high schools attempting to hold graduation ceremonies with proper social distancing protocols during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Governor Murphy issued Executive Order 107 which required all New Jersey residents to stay at home until further notice. This Statewide stay-at-home order forced all public and private schools and colleges throughout the State to close for the duration of the school year. Schools have had to adapt their entire curriculums to provide online education and ensure that graduating students will still be able to meet matriculation requirements throughout this unprecedented time.
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, graduating students have had to miss many of the senior year milestones they have looked forward to for their entire high school careers such as senior proms, senior banquets, their final varsity sports seasons, and senior trips. Graduation, the final milestone in high school students' careers serve as the culmination of education and as an important transition point for high school students.
Governor Murphy's recent Executive Order, Executive Order 148, increased the number of people allowed together at outdoor gatherings from 10 to 25, which allows for open air high school graduations to occur after July 1, 2020.
The current restrictions on the size of permitted outdoor gatherings conflicts with the goal of allowing classmates to graduate together. Having multiple graduation ceremonies will not allow graduating students to graduate alongside all of their friends and peers, but rather only a smaller group of the graduating class. In addition, Governor Murphy should allow graduation ceremonies to occur on more flexible timelines. For example, many schools have reported being unable to hold graduation ceremonies after June 30, 2020 due to insurance and staffing issues.
Due to the importance and significance of graduation ceremonies in students' educational careers, the Governor is urged to grant more flexibility to high schools attempting to hold graduation ceremonies during the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure entire graduating classes will be able to graduate together.
