SENATE HIGHER EDUCATION COMMITTEE

 

STATEMENT TO

 

SENATE, No. 1228

 

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

 

DATED:  AUGUST 17, 2020

 

      The Senate Higher Education Committee reports favorably Senate Bill No. 1228.

     This bill directs the Secretary of Higher Education to conduct a study to determine the extent and causes of the outmigration of New Jersey’s high school graduates to out-of-State colleges and universities.  The study will include, but need not be limited to:

·      a survey of high school seniors enrolled in public and nonpublic schools in the State to determine the reasons why a student might choose an out-of-State institution;

·      a review of the academic characteristics of students who choose an in-State institution and students who choose an out-of-State institution;

·      a review of the socio-economic characteristics of the families of students who choose an in-State institution and the families who choose an out-of-State institution;

·      a review of the academic quality of the out-of-State institutions in which New Jersey high school graduates choose to enroll and a comparison of the academic ranking of those institutions with New Jersey’s public and independent institutions of higher education;

·      a survey of and consultation with public and nonpublic high school guidance counselors on the reasons for the outmigration of high school graduates;

·      an analysis of the extent to which the outmigration of high school graduates is impacted by the small geographic size of the State and the desire of college students to experience independent living at a distance from their families; and

·      a review of available literature and data on the outmigration of high school graduates in New Jersey and other states.

      The bill requires the secretary to prepare and submit a report of the study’s findings and recommendations to the Governor and the Legislature within 18 months of the bill’s effective date.