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Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and Acting Department of Education (DOE) Commissioner Dr. Angelica Allen-McMillan recently announced that the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights (DCR) and DOE have issued a joint statement to offer guidance to students, parents, schools, school boards, educators, and the public.
Consistent with the goals of the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD), the statement encourages all NJ schools, school boards, and administrators to develop and implement initiatives to counter bias and to continue to do things like:
- display inclusive markers, flags, and symbols in and around their buildings
- ensure students have access to books representing a diversity of experiences and identities
- implement and comply with the state's anti-bias curricula requirements regarding race, gender, LGBTQIA+, disability, and diversity
The statement continues that it is consistent with the LAD, for example, for classroom curricula to intentionally highlight Black history, for a teacher to display a LGBTQIA+ safe zone sticker, or for a school library to include books and other materials that reflect the experiences and identities of children and families of all races, sexual orientations, and gender identities.
To read and download the full statement, click here.
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