Security funding doubles for private and religious schools in NJ Lakewood gets biggest share

Religious and private schools in New Jersey will get an additional $11.3 million in security funding from the state.  Private schools in Lakewood will receive an additional approximately $2.2 million in state funding to keep students  doubling the amount they currently receive  under a  bill Gov. Phil Murphy signed into law Tuesday. (Lakewood will get the largest share of the new funding because of its large private school student population. In the 2017-2018 school year, Lakewood's 32,000 private
school students made up a fifth of all the private school pupils in the state according to APP.com)

It was one of two measures aimed at enhancing safety in private spaces that he signed ; the other allows religious and cultural institutions to use state grants for an expanded number of security purposes. 

Religious and parochial school advocates statewide have lobbied for more security funding for years. The measure gained momentum amid a rise in hate crimes in the country, including the killing of 11 worshipers at a Pittsburgh synagogue inOctober.

The school aid bill means religious and private schools will see an increase in security funding from $75 to $150 per student to spend on measures such as security guards and alarm systems. There are about 150,000 students at non-public schools in New Jersey.

Christian, Jewish and Islamic faith organizations had advocated for the bill, which passed unanimously in both houses of the Legislature. Murphy signed the bill Tuesday at the YBH of Passaic-Hillel, a Jewish elementary school.
But the bill also faced push-back from groups like the Education Law Center, a legal advocacy group, which argued that the state should be investing more in public schools instead of diverting money to private ones.  Murphy also signed legislation to expand the type of security measures that can be installed or constructed at houses of worship and community centers under the New Jersey Nonprofit Security Grant Pilot Program.

Through the program, nonprofits in New Jersey deemed at high risk of terrorism attacks can receive grants to use for safety measures including shatter-proof glass, lighting, fencing and card access readers.
Read more at NJ.com