Lawmakers and education advocates came to a remarkable compromise in forging an overhaul of tenure laws to make it easier for public schools to oust ineffective educators. But building a consensus meant dropping a change that most other states have already made: Making teachers’ effectiveness a factor in determining which lose their jobs in case of layoffs.
GOP Gov. Chris Christie, who opposes using seniority to determine layoffs, is still deciding whether he’s willing to accept the compromise.
If he vetoes the bill, he’ll undo a deal among a unanimous Legislature and groups who don’t often agree on the details of improving schools.
If he signs it, he’ll have to sacrifice — for now, at least — something that’s been a core principle in his beliefs about school reform and leave New Jersey as one of only 11 states with a last-in, first-out policy for educators in the face of layoffs.