MORRIS COUNTY — County College of Morris (CCM) and Morris County Vocational School District (MCVSD) held a groundbreaking ceremony on Wednesday, September 27 for a new Career Training Center located on CCM’s campus.  This joint endeavor will open doors and improve lives by enabling Morris County students to pursue in-demand educational and career pathways while earning high school and college credits simultaneously.

“When this new building is complete, we will be able to serve an additional 500 students from Morris County in their junior and senior years,” said Scott Moffitt, Superintendent of MCVSD. “They will have access to a variety of career training programs while also gaining college credits and industry credentials. “

According to Dr. Anthony J. Iacono, President of CCM, “This is a day where students win and Morris County, the diamond of New Jersey, gets even better. The mission of CCM is dedicated to empowering individuals to achieve their educational goals for a brighter tomorrow and fostering regional, economic development and growth. Our partnership resulting in this cutting-edge facility further enhances our thriving initiatives and collaborations with the community.”

According to George Milonas ’98, Chair, CCM Board of Trustees, “This early college program significantly scales what we have long been doing with the Morris County Vocational School District. Our partnership will allow students to focus on high-demand careers, not only enriching the lives of students but also helping to meet the demands of the many employers here in Morris County.”

Today’s initiative called upon the robust, pre-existing partnership between CCM and MCVSD affording high school students the possibility to acquire college credits in programs such as culinary and hospitality, engineering, manufacturing, and music technology, as well as highly regarded industry certifications and the pathway to an associate degree at CCM.

The expansion will utilize a dual enrollment model, which provides an opportunity to earn high school and college credits simultaneously while at MCVSD. Its primary emphasis will be on offering students the chance to earn up to 20 college credits and industry-recognized credentials while engaging in work-based and project-based learning experiences.

“This project will be built with exactly what our students are looking for today,” said Senator Anthony Bucco, Legislative District 25, “an opportunity to get a head start, an opportunity to get a great education, an opportunity to explore fields in the STEM industry, in healthcare, where the demand is high and where they can succeed. This is what today is all about.”

“The skill set that this career center will teach and enhance involves fields such as artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, supply chain management, and healthcare. We are not just groundbreaking for a building; we are doing much more,” said Honorable John Krickus, County Commissioner Director. “We are providing skills for our residents to build a career. A career will provide a good income, building a home and family.  Skilled employees allow companies to innovate, and create products right here in Morris County, USA.”

According to Assemblywoman Aura Dunn, Legislative District 25, “the younger generation is looking for more specialty fields, they want to have a curriculum that focuses on going right to work with high-paying positions, post-college.”

This initiative is made possible by funds from Morris County and the Securing Our Children’s Future Bond Act made possible by the New Jersey Legislature.

The project has a proposed opening date of 2024.

Iacono thanked Moffitt for his vision and courage to share ideas, the team at CCM, including the Board of Trustees and Foundation, the team at MCVSD, Randolph township, the county commissioners, county administrators and county clerk, state legislators, and federal officers.

“Shovels are in the ground as we begin to transform the landscape here at CCM,” said Moffitt. “Without their belief in our vision for this program, none of this would be possible.”

MORRIS COUNTY — Assemblywoman Aura Dunn is sounding the alarm on a looming financial crisis that could cripple the state’s childcare industry and push women out of the workforce as pandemic-era funding for the sector ends Sept. 30. She is working on a package of bills to make child care more affordable for families and create more stable funding for providers.

“New Jersey needs to prioritize quality child care and quickly, because providers may not be able to recover this time. A shuttered child care center not only hurts the business owners, who are more often than not women and minorities, but also the working families, children and the economy overall,” Dunn (R-Morris) explained.

One policy think tank estimates 104,000 New Jersey children could lose care and 1,300 child care programs could close as a result of the loss of federal funding.

“Providers are going to be forced to raise prices and parents will no longer be able to afford care because wages are not keeping up with inflation. New Jerseyans are struggling and I’m afraid that women will be the first to leave the workplace because of unavailable or unaffordable child care. It will move New Jersey backward in terms of opportunities for women,” Dunn said.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor’s national database of childcare prices, the cost of infant care in New Jersey averages nearly $15,000 a year. Out-of-pocket preschool costs are approximately $12,000 a year.

“Our families and small businesses deserve more stability. Investing in resources like high-quality and affordable child care is an investment in our state’s future. It’s why I am pushing for bigger child tax credits and more reliable support for child care providers,” Dunn said.

Dunn plans on introducing a bill to increase the amount of the state child tax credit while also expanding the income and age limits to $100,000 from $80,000, and to 11 years old from 5 years old. Dunn had attempted to expand the state’s child tax credit from the floor of the Assembly last year but was ultimately voted down by Democrats.

“My hope and intention is to garner wide bipartisan support for my stand-alone bill that will go a long way towards lifting children out of poverty and keeping women at work,” Dunn added.

Other bills in the package would urge the federal government to restore its child tax credit to 2021 levels to ensure that families receive sufficient financial support, and permanently codify the provisions in her bill that became law last year that temporarily based child care provider subsidies on enrollment instead of attendance.

“The benefits of child tax credits and enrollment-based child care subsidies cannot be overstated, especially for families and businesses in New Jersey, one of the most expensive states in the nation,” Dunn said. “My bill package will buoy the childcare industry during turbulent times while acknowledging the rising costs of raising a child in New Jersey.”

Dunn said the persistent issues of affordable and available child care will only worsen after Sept. 30, even if the effects are not felt immediately by families or providers.

“I am continuing to work on policies with industry and education leaders, parents, and other stakeholders to create a system of care that best suits the needs of New Jersey families today and in the future,” said Dunn.

“However, we are approaching the edge of a cliff, so New Jersey must act sooner rather than later. This package will keep us on solid footing as we develop additional solutions to more accessible and affordable child care.”

MORRIS COUNTY — The Morris County Vocational School District (MCVSD) will hold a groundbreaking ceremony at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, September 27 for its new Career Training Center at the County College of Morris (CCM) in Randolph, which will expand the vocational school operations by 30 percent.

The new center has the potential of adding 500 students to the school district, exposing career-focused and college-bound high school students to the type of specialized skills that will lead them to successful futures.

“This new initiative allows students to pursue career training while gaining an industry-valued credential and college credits simultaneously.  It puts students on a path to be career and college ready, while completing high school graduation requirements in their local district,” said Scott Moffitt, Superintendent of the Morris County Vocational School District.

“Building upon successful programs already operating as a result of the long-standing partnership between CCM and MCVSD, high school students will now have more access to a variety of high-demand program offerings in areas such as artificial intelligence, mechatronics, renewable energy technology, certified nurse assistant and dental assistant to capture a wide range of interests and passion,” Moffitt added.

MCVSD released a list of the following in-demand technical skill programs that will be included at the Career Training Center:

• Medical Coding & Billing
• Certified Medical Assistant
• Dental Assistant
• Emergency Medical Technician / Pre-Paramedic
• Artificial Intelligence
• Networking Administration
• Mechatronics / Robotics / Automation
• Renewable Energy Technology – Wind & Solar
• Entrepreneurship / Small Business Management
• Supply Chain Management

The construction schedule is dependent on weather and constituency in the supply chain of materials. The two-story, 45,940 square-foot Center will cost $24.8 million, with $6.2 million coming from the county and $18.6 million from state under Securing Our Children’s Future (SOCF) Bond Act. Details on the project were presented to the Morris County Board of County Commissioners, as the board introduced a bond ordinance to support construction at their January 26, 2022 public meeting.

It will be built next to the Advanced Manufacturing Center at CCM, which also has plans for a new Entrepreneurship and Culinary Science Center on campus. A groundbreaking ceremony for this project is scheduled for November 2023.

Morris County Building Tomorrow’s Career Opportunities Today

Both projects build on strong partnerships established with business and industry as well as existing programs designed to prepare high school students, college students and adults for rewarding careers in high demand industries.

The MCVSD expansion will operate on a share-time model for high school juniors and seniors. It will focus on workforce development and offer students industry credentials, work-based and project-based learning opportunities and up to 18 college credits. The project expands on an existing partnership MCVSD has with CCM to provide high school students the opportunity to earn college credits, industry-valued credentials and access to an associate degree, either upon completion of high school or one year after graduation.