Norcross Captures Audience Attention with Education Agenda

The significance of George Norcross's speech on education reform last night [Oct. 5] at Rider University in Lawrence Township may have been as much about who was listening as what he said.

The didn't make much new news, delivering what has become his standard pitch of late for education reform, save a few choice details.

He talked about the merits of charter schools, the need to save urban schools and their families, the importance of parental involvement, and the role for corporate involvement.

Interestingly, he did not mention school vouchers once or the proposed Opportunity Scholarship Act (OSA), previous favorites. He even skipped over the topic when it was offered up in a question from the audience of about 150 people, although he did talk about "alternative means, some of them controversial."

"It is absolutely wrong that kids who are residents of Camden or any other struggling city should not have the same opportunity as my children or yours," he said more broadly.

But through it all, the audience at the event hosted by the Rebovich Institute for New Jersey Politics was intent and listening -- and not a bad a crowd. In attendance was a who's-who of education lobbyists and advocates, all wanting to hear the education philosophy of a man who is arguably New Jersey's second most powerful political leader behind Gov. Chris Christie.

Among them were the executive director and the chief lobbyist of the New Jersey Education Association (NJEA), a group that has had its differences -- including attack ads – with Norcross. But they appeared friendly last night, with Norcross going over to both to say hello before his hour–long talk.

"It matters what he says because he's an influential guy, no doubt about it," said Vince Giordano, the NJEA's director. "And we're trying to exert some influence on an influential guy. Hopefully, he'll do what's best for kids."

Giordano said there had been a "little bit of a rocky start" with Norcross's support for pension reforms that the NJEA has viciously fought. But Norcross appeared to have said a lot of the right things for the NJEA last night, including that teachers and their unions need to be central players in the discussions as well.

"On a business level, we're working our way through," Giordano said afterward.

Ben Dworkin, the director of the Rebovich Center, said he was pleased with the attendance, many of them Rider students, as well as close to a dozen members of the press.

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