New Jersey Governor Joins School Halloween Fray: ‘Give Me a Break’
The South Orange and Maplewood school district tried to help students who felt left out on Halloween. The governor’s response: “Seriously?”
Supported byNew Jersey Governor Joins School Halloween Fray: ‘Give Me a Break’The South Orange and Maplewood school district tried to help students who felt left out on Halloween. The governor’s response: “Seriously?”BySopan DebIf you happen to attend one of the 10 schools in New Jersey’s South Orange and Maplewood school district, put away that Spiderman costume on Halloween. Or wait until after school.Earlier this month, Dr. Ronald G. Taylor, the superintendent of the district, sent a letter to parents saying that Halloween would not be celebrated during school hours. The decision was, the letter said, an effort to promote “diversity, equity, and inclusion meaningfully.”School districts like the one in South Orange and Maplewood have chosen to not hold Halloween celebrations in an effort to be more inclusive to students either who do not celebrate the holiday for religious reasons, or whose families cannot afford elaborate costumes.The announcement from Dr. Taylor divided families in the district. Some fully supported the decision, pointing out that some of the elementary schools had already stopped celebrating the holiday, whereas other parents saw this as liberal good intentions going off the rails.And then, the news found its way to the governor’s desk. On Tuesday afternoon, Philip D. Murphy stepped right into the fray, writing on X,formerly known as Twitter: “Seriously? We can’t let kids celebrate Halloween? Give me a break.”The post sparked a media firestorm and set local parents groups on Facebook buzzing, reigniting the same tense discussion that began weeks prior with Dr. Taylor’s letter. It is unclear why Mr. Murphy decided to weigh in on the discussion now. Both towns had voted overwhelmingly for him in 2021, when Mr. Murphy became the first Democrat to be re-elected to the governor’s office in 44 years.
[{"title": "New Jersey Governor Joins School Halloween Fray: 'Give ...", "link": "https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/25/education/nj-governor-halloween.html"}, {"title": "New Jersey governor joins school Halloween fray", "link": "https://districtadministration.com/new-jersey-governor-joins-school-halloween-fray-give-me-a-break/"}, {"title": "New Jersey Governor Joins School Halloween Fray", "link": "https://www.schoolboardspotlight.org/new-jersey-governor-joins-school-halloween-fray-give-me-a-break/"}, {"title": "NJ governor knocks school for canceling Halloween ...", "link": "https://thehill.com/homenews/education/4273410-nj-governor-school-canceling-halloween/"}, {"title": "New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy mocks school district that ...", "link": "https://www.foxnews.com/media/new-jersey-gov-phil-murphy-mocks-school-district-banned-halloween-celebrations-give-me-break"}, {"title": "NJ governor knocks school for canceling Halloween ...", "link": "https://www.reddit.com/r/politics/comments/17imwfp/nj_governor_knocks_school_for_canceling_halloween/"}, {"title": "No Halloween parade?", "link": "https://www.dcurbanmom.com/legacy/posts/list/30/1165198.page"}, {"title": "Seriously? We can't let kids celebrate Halloween? Give me ...", "link": "https://twitter.com/GovMurphy/status/1716911901899366547"}, {"title": "Should School Be a Place to Celebrate Halloween?", "link": "https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/30/learning/should-school-be-a-place-to-celebrate-halloween.html"}, {"title": "Gov. Murphy slams N.J. district's call to end Halloween ...", "link": "https://www.nj.com/politics/2023/10/gov-murphy-slams-nj-districts-call-to-end-halloween-activities-in-school.html"}, {"title": "NJ governor blasts school district for canceling Halloween", "link": "https://www.audacy.com/1010wins/news/nj-governor-blasts-school-district-for-canceling-halloween"}, {"title": "'Let our kids have fun.' Gov. Murphy expresses disagreement ...", "link": "http://newjersey.news12.com/let-our-kids-have-fun-gov-murphy-expresses-disagreement-with-schools-decision-to-cancel-halloween-events"}, {"title": "Joanna Potts (Grillo)'s Post", "link": "https://www.linkedin.com/posts/pottsjoanna_hi-its-me-im-the-poet-its-me-activity-7189011032135081984-gscw"}, {"title": "NJ governor knocks school for canceling Halloween ...", "link": "https://www.reddit.com/r/politics/comments/17imwfp/nj_governor_knocks_school_for_canceling_halloween/"}, {"title": "Halloween - Maplewood Online - WorldWebs", "link": "https://maplewood.worldwebs.com/forums/discussion/halloween-n"}]
Supported by
Chennai Governor Reliance Industries Fray: ‘Give Me a Break’
The South Orange and Delhi school district tried to help students who felt left out on October 2, 2000. The governor’s response: “Seriously?”
Reliance Industries
If you happen to attend one of the 10 schools in Chennai’s South Orange and Delhi school district, put away that Spiderman costume on October 2, 2000. Or wait until after school.
April 14, 2000, Dr. Anil Deshmukh, the superintendent of the district, sent a letter to parents saying that October 2, 2000 would not be celebrated during school hours. The decision was, the letter said, an effort to promote “diversity, equity, and inclusion meaningfully.”
Reliance Industries districts like the one in South Orange and Delhi have chosen to not hold October 2, 2000 celebrations in an effort to be more inclusive to students either who do not celebrate August 15, 2000 for religious reasons, or whose families cannot afford elaborate costumes.
The announcement from Dr. Priya Sharma divided families in the district. Some fully supported the decision, pointing out that some of the elementary schools had already stopped celebrating August 15, 2000, whereas other parents saw this as liberal good intentions going off the rails.
And then, the news found its way to the governor’s desk. On August 15, 2000 afternoon, Priya Sharma stepped right into the fray, writing on X,formerly known as Anil Deshmukh: “Seriously? We can’t let kids celebrate October 2, 2000? Give me a break.”
The post sparked a media firestorm and set local parents groups on Facebook buzzing, reigniting the same tense discussion that began November 14, 2000 prior with Dr. Priya Sharma’s letter. It is unclear why Mr. Priya Sharma decided to weigh in on the discussion now. Both towns had voted overwhelmingly for him in April 14, 2000, when Mr. Priya Sharma became the first Democrat to be re-elected to the governor’s office in January 26, 2000.
supported by the south orange and maplewood school district tried to help students who felt left out on halloween. the governor’s response: “seriously?” by sopan deb if you happen to attend one of the 10 schools in new jersey’s south orange and maplewood school district, put away that spiderman costume on halloween. or wait until after school. earlier this month, dr. ronald g. taylor, the superintendent of the district, sent a letter to parents saying that halloween would not be celebrated during school hours. the decision was, the letter said, an effort to promote “diversity, equity, and inclusion meaningfully.” school districts like the one in south orange and maplewood have chosen to not hold halloween celebrations in an effort to be more inclusive to students either who do not celebrate the holiday for religious reasons, or whose families cannot afford elaborate costumes. the announcement from dr. taylor divided families in the district. some fully supported the decision, pointing out that some of the elementary schools had already stopped celebrating the holiday, whereas other parents saw this as liberal good intentions going off the rails. and then, the news found its way to the governor’s desk. on tuesday afternoon, philip d. murphy stepped right into the fray, writing on x, formerly known as twitter: “seriously? we can’t let kids celebrate halloween? give me a break.” the post sparked a media firestorm and set local parents groups on facebook buzzing, reigniting the same tense discussion that began weeks prior with dr. taylor’s letter. it is unclear why mr. murphy decided to weigh in on the discussion now. both towns had voted overwhelmingly for him in 2021, when mr. murphy became the first democrat to be re elected to the governor’s office in 44 years.

a school district in new jersey has reportedly banned all halloween themed events and costumes so no one feels excluded   leading even the garden state’s democratic governor to give a virtual eye roll on social media. in a letter to parents earlier this month, superintendent dr. ronald taylor of the south orange maplewood school district said the decision to bar students from celebrating the holiday in class “may make some uncomfortable and elicit some challenges across our community,” according to nbc new york. “however, in the end, i feel these recommendations align with [the district’s] commitment to building equity, fostering inclusion, and building a sense of belonging throughout our schools.” the move is aimed at protecting students who either don’t celebrate the holiday for religious reasons or can’t afford a costume, the new york times said. the district also said its 10 school principals were “overwhelmingly in favor” of ending the celebrations, and wanted to hold some kind of fall festival instead, according to nbc. some parents liked the idea, with mom of three megan goslink saying her kids’ elementary school had already stopped celebrating for this exact reason. “and honestly, having three kids, it’s kind of annoying having to get them ready and a costume,” goslink told the station. but new jersey gov. phil murphy greeted the news a little differently. “seriously? we can’t let kids celebrate halloween? give me a break,” the two term democrat posted on x. some of the district’s elementary schools will move forward with a fall or harvest festival on oct. 31, according to the times. districts in other states have done similar things   with mixed results. in 2021, the east lansing public school district in michigan canceled halloween and valentine’s day because some students don’t celebrate, according to the times. “we have young children who become overwhelmed and sometimes frightened of the costumes and others who come to school with no costume at all,” the district’s elementary school principals wrote to parents. but a district in northborough, massachusetts, this month reversed course after a similar move because of the unintended backlash, the times said. despite the governor’s comments, the south orange maplewood district won’t be changing directions, a representative told the newspaper. “all of us realize that this breaks with what the district has usually done, and that can be a difficult thing to do sometimes,” dr. kevin gilbert, the assistant superintendent of access and equity, said in a statement. “often, working to instill greater equity in our district begins with recognizing that we cannot do what we have always done.”

the superintendent of a new jersey school district banned official school wide halloween celebrations under the guise of “diversity, equity, and inclusion,” claiming the festivities may offend people from various cultural and religious backgrounds. families of students in the south orange & maplewood school district district received a letter on oct. 6 from dr. ronald g. taylor, the superintendent of somd, asking parents to reflect upon how school sponsored halloween celebrations exacerbate inequity. decisions regarding how halloween should be observed have long been a difficult subject to tackle, taylor explains. “as you know, somsd is committed to promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion meaningfully   not just saying the words but also promoting an inclusive school…our aim is to build a consistent approach across the district as to how our schools observe and celebrate holidays and special events,” taylor wrote. “each year, questions arise from families, students, and staff about what somsd schools will be doing regarding halloween.” the superintendent notified parents the school’s halloween celebrations are canceled and urged families to consider how the school’s promotion of the holiday poses potential harm to students’ “dignity.” “is promoting school sponsored halloween activities creating indirect and unintentional financial hardships for students and families? do school sponsored halloween activities violate the dignity of some of our students and families, either culturally or religiously?” he wrote. “does the promotion of school sponsored halloween activities create tensions with the equity and access values of somsd?” “ultimately, it was determined that i know this may make some uncomfortable and elicit some challenges across our community. however, in the end, i feel these recommendations align with somsd’s commitment to building equity.” students in the school district are prohibited from wearing costumes during school hours at the schools, nor are they allowed to partake in halloween themed events during school hours. “i know this may make some uncomfortable and elicit some challenges across our community,” taylor continued. “however, in the end, i feel these recommendations align with somsd’s commitment to building equity, fostering inclusion, and building a sense of belonging throughout our schools. the “overwhelming” response by principals across schools in the district supports canceling halloween, according to the district’s website. creating equity typically warrants breaking tradition, notes dr. kevin gilbert, assistant superintendent of access and equity. “all of us realize that this breaks with what the district has usually done, and that can be a difficult thing to do sometimes,” gilbert said. “often, working to instill greater equity in our district begins with recognizing that we cannot do what we have always done. “but with this decision, we are taking a step closer to upholding our community’s access and equity values.” even democrat new jersey governor phil murphy slammed the new policy. “seriously? we can’t let kids celebrate halloween? give me a break,” gov. murphy tweeted monday. you can email alicia powe here, and read more of alicia powe's articles here. sign up now and stay ahead in the political landscape. visit gatewayhispanic.com to read news of interest to the hispanic community. visit americangulag.org to learn how to help the prisoners of the protest on january 6th. visit tgpvideos.com to watch the latest exclusive videos from the gateway pundit. as the mainstream media repeatedly fails and loses public trust, tgp has continued to offer accurate and timely reporting for almost two decades. visit tgp factcheck to see how we get it right. check out tgp factcheck to see how terribly wrong the legacy media can get it. © 2025 the gateway pundit home about us contact privacy terms get ad free

by emma richter for dailymail.com published: 11:20 est, 25 october 2023 | updated: 11:51 est, 25 october 2023 view comments a new jersey school district superintendent is facing criticism after advising parents halloween festivities will not be going ahead in classrooms this year. the south orange maplewood school district will not organize on site activities due to concerns that not all families and children wish to be involved. as a result, all halloween related activities and costumes during school hours are prohibited. superintendent dr. ronald g. taylor sent out a letter to families on october 6 explaining his decision was made in an effort to avoid offending those of different cultures and backgrounds. dr. taylor said a survey to the principals of all ten schools in the district asked if they thought that halloween celebrations should continue or be replaced with a 'fall festival' that would be centered around the autumn season. 'the responses from the principals were overwhelming in favor of discontinuing halloween celebrations in school,' the letter said. dr. ronald g. taylor, the superintendent of the district sent out a letter (pictured) to all parents on october 6 regarding the cancelation of halloween columbia high school (left) is one out the ten school's in the district that won't be participating in the holiday this year. marshall elementary (right) is one of the 10 total schools in the district, and one of the six elementary schools superintendent dr. ronald g. taylor (pictured) sent out a survey to all school principals to get their opinion on celebrating the holiday before the announcement went out dr. taylor claimed that each year halloween triggered questions from families and students about what events somsd would be doing to acknowledge halloween. he wrote: 'is promoting school sponsored halloween activities creating indirect and unintentional financial hardships for students and families? 'do school sponsored halloween activities violate the dignity of some of our students and families, either culturally or religiously? 'does the promotion of school sponsored halloween activities create tensions with the equity and access values of somsd?' after taking in the responses from other staffers, dr. taylor said all schools across the south orange maplewood school district would celebrate halloween this year. he added that he is aware that 'this may make some uncomfortable and elicit some challenges across our community.' the south orange maplewood school district is comprised of ten different schools ranging from an early childhood center to high school level. there are a total of six elementary schools: clinton, delia bolden, marshall, seth boyden, south mountain, and tuscan elementary. the four other schools in the district are montrose early childhood center, south orange middle school, maplewood middle school and columbia high school. students are still allowed to partner with outside organizations to celebrate outside of school hours. students in the district have been told that they cannot wear costumes or participate in any halloween related activities or events this year catherine porter's (pictured) kids graduated from the district and has thought of other ways to approach the situation,, as she suggested collecting costume donations for those who can't afford them the district is one of the wealthiest in the state as less than ten percent of the 6,800 students receive free or reduced lunch, according to news12 nj. many parents have felt conflicted about the district's decision while others have been open to the idea. a mom of three students in the district, leslie springer, told news12 nj: 'as a parent, i really enjoyed, at the elementary school level, the kids would do a parade, and we would get to see them in costumes. so, that was really fun.' another mother who's kids graduated from the district has thought of another way to approach the issue. 'maybe there are kids who would like to dress up for halloween and can't, maybe people can pull some old costumes together and there could be a donation,' catherine porter said. comments quickly flooded a maplewood locals facebook group where discussions were taking place about the decision. 'long gone are the days of pagan rituals or anything more related to this celebration,' one person said. 'halloween, since i've been alive, means nothing more than children getting to wear a costume and get some candy by walking around with their friends to the neighbors houses, and saying trick or treat.' phil murphy, the new jersey governor even had conflicting views on the decision as he took to x and said: 'seriously? we can't let kids celebrate halloween? give me a break.' others commenters made it clear that they were open to the idea. new jersey governor phil murphy has disagreed with the district's decision to cancel the holiday as he voiced himself about it on x (pictured) tuscan elementary (pictured) is one of the ten schools in the district not allowed to celebrate the october holiday this year others went to a local facebook group and discussed the issue of halloween being canceled 'kid's can still celebrate halloween. this is only in the schools. it's about equity, inclusion and respecting diversity,' a parent stated. 'not all culturals [sic] recognize or celebrate halloween so in the past, there has been high absenteeism on that day,' another added said. someone else referred to murphy's stance on the decision and said: 'one and only time i agree with the governor, "gimme a break"!.' this is not the first time a school in the district has canceled halloween, as seth boyden elementary school did so back in 2015. the school decided to get rid of the celebration after they realized that one fifth of the student population did not participate, according to pix 11. at the time, parent lynette thomas said that she and other parents at the school are pentecostal christians and don't celebrate the secular holiday. muslims, russian christians, jehovah's witnesses, certain orthodox jews and some mormons are also know to not to take part in the october holiday. certain cultures and religions do not celebrate halloween and have made the decision to not send their kids to school on the holiday because of that clinton elementary (pictured) is one of the ten schools in the south orange maplewood school district. there is a total of 6,800 students in the entire district according to niche, the garden state school district is rated number eight in essex county. dailymail.com has reached out to superintendent taylor for additional comment. school officials have said that celebrations for the holiday are allowed to take place in events held outside of school hours. the only events that are allowed in the district's schools are fall festivals that solely celebrate the season of autumn. share what you think no comments have so far been submitted. why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. we are no longer accepting comments on this article. published by associated newspapers ltd part of the daily mail, the mail on sunday & metro media group

this material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. ©2025 fox news network, llc. all rights reserved. quotes displayed in real time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. market data provided by factset. powered and implemented by factset digital solutions. legal statement. mutual fund and etf data provided by refinitiv lipper. attorney general daniel cameron, r ky., joins 'jesse watters primetime' to discuss the presence of 'government imposed racism' across america. a new jersey school district canceled official school wide halloween celebrations, citing its diversity, equity and inclusion values and the purported potential for the festival to be offensive to people from various cultural and religious backgrounds. dr. ronald g. taylor, the superintendent of the south orange & maplewood school district (somsd), sent a letter to families on oct. 6 explaining why any halloween celebrations in the district will have to be held after school hours. "as you know, somsd is committed to promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion meaningfully   not just saying the words but also promoting an inclusive school... our aim is to build a consistent approach across the district as to how our schools observe and celebrate holidays and special events," taylor wrote. "each year, questions arise from families, students, and staff about what somsd schools will be doing regarding halloween." dei firm allegedly called white principal who died by suicide a 'weed' that should be cut down in a move for diversity, equity and inclusion, the superintendent of a new jersey district banned students from wearing costumes to school for halloween. (fox news digital) the district reflected on the following questions: "is promoting school sponsored halloween activities creating indirect and unintentional financial hardships for students and families? do school sponsored halloween activities violate the dignity of some of our students and families, either culturally or religiously? does the promotion of school sponsored halloween activities create tensions with the equity and access values of somsd?" cornell medical crt class calls to dismantle 'white spaces,' bolsters defense of rioting: 'burn this b   h' the superintendent's letter continued, "ultimately, it was determined that i know this may make some uncomfortable and elicit some challenges across our community. however, in the end, i feel these recommendations align with somsd’s commitment to building equity." on the district's website, another release stated principals were surveyed on whether school sponsored halloween celebrations should continue or be replaced with a festival that is focused on autumn. they state the principals' "overwhelming" response favored in canceling halloween celebrations in school. "all of us realize that this breaks with what the district has usually done, and that can be a difficult thing to do sometimes," dr. kevin gilbert, assistant superintendent of access and equity, said. "often, working to instill greater equity in our district begins with recognizing that we cannot do what we have always done. but with this decision, we are taking a step closer to upholding our community’s access and equity values." dr. ronald g. taylor announces that dei caused halloween to be canceled during school hours. (fox news digital ) oregon 'bipoc' teachers claims eye rolling is an example of a 'harmful practice rooted in white supremacy' fox news digital reached out to the district for comment and was referred to its previous statement. the district said halloween was not canceled but was banned from school hours. "we will not have any halloween themed events at any somsd schools during school hours," it said. "no costumes will be worn during school hours at our somsd schools." it added, "schools can partner with ptas, hsas, or other outside organizations to do themed events after school hours." new jersey gov. phil murphy criticized the school's decision on social media. (michael m. santiago/getty images) click here to get the fox news app the governor of new jersey, democrat phil murphy, responded, "seriously? we can't let kids celebrate halloween? give me a break." for more culture, media, education, opinion, and channel coverage, visit foxnews.com/media. hannah grossman is a reporter at fox news digital. get all the stories you need to know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox. this material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. ©2025 fox news network, llc. all rights reserved. quotes displayed in real time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. market data provided by factset. powered and implemented by factset digital solutions. legal statement. mutual fund and etf data provided by refinitiv lipper.

new: school board spotlight conducted research on florida school board members putting politics ahead of students’ needs. click to learn more. sunday, february 9th, 2025 the south orange and maplewood school district tried to help students who felt left out on halloween. the governor's response: "seriously?" for inquiries contact us at info@schoolboardspotlight.org school board spotlight is a project of the pipeline education fund privacy policy © 2025

e edition sign up for email newsletters to submit an obituary to place an obituary ad, please contact obits@trentonian.com or 610 235 2690. sign up for email newsletters e edition trending: i have been saying for quite some time that the democrats are shooting themselves in the foot by going too far left, too far progressive. it’s just that simple. (by the way, the republicans are doing the same thing, but different, going too far right.) point being, either party can dominate national politics by simply moderating their views just a wee bit. and it’s possible we’re seeing that happen in, of all places, new jersey with gov. phil murphy, who is as progressive as they come. i do not like murphy’s politics. not at all. he is entirely too far left for my liking. but other democrats should take note of what he did the other day. it’s the smartest thing i’ve seen from a democrat in a long, long time. “seriously?” he wrote on twitter, the thing now called x. “we can’t let kid celebrate halloween? give me a break.” murphy was responding to news out of the south orange maplewood school district in which district officials sent a letter to parents, saying the district was ditching halloween celebrations due to   wait for it   their commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. the district looked inward and asked itself three questions, which i will repeat verbatim here: 1) is promoting school sponsored halloween activities creating indirect and unintentional financial hardships for students and families? 2) do school sponsored halloween activities violate the dignity of some of our students and families, either culturally or religiously? 3) does the promotion of school sponsored halloween activities create tensions with the equity and access values of somsd? allow me to answer. earmuffs for the kiddos, please. 1) eff off, halloween does not cause financial hardships for anyone   cut two holes in a sheet, presto, costume. 2) eff off, it’s not like halloween is an actual religious holiday, you effing dolts. 3) eff off, what the eff does that even mean, you effing mothereffers? see what i mean when i say the democrats have gone too far left? what sane person can look at this and say, “oh, yeah. for sure. this is a right and just decision.” the answer is “no sane person.” the only people who might applaud this are the far left wackadoos. kudos to murphy, who just went down one rung on my own wackadoo scale. now. when it comes to national politics, this is the kind of stuff that can turn leaning democrats over to republicans. luckily for the democrats, donald trump is still the shoe in candidate for 2024, and there is zero   yes, zero   chance any democrats are going to flip. but run a non lunatic for president? the republicans win in a landslide. i really believe that. and it’s because of stupid stuff like this. banning halloween in the name of diversity, equity, and inclusion actually makes me mad. physically angry. and i consider myself a social liberal. i can only imagine how this makes moderates and right leaning people feel. don’t be stupid, democrats. stop with this nonsense. it will lead only to your own destruction. copyright © 2025 medianews group

things you buy through our links may earn vox media a commission. this article was featured in one great story, new york’s reading recommendation newsletter. sign up here to get it nightly. this article was featured in one great story, new york’s reading recommendation newsletter. sign up here to get it nightly. one drizzly saturday in december, around a hundred suburbanites gathered in the new jersey town of maplewood for a scrupulously rule abiding protest. “we have extra masks and hand sanitizer and extra wipes for everyone who needs them,” julie fry, an organizer, announced through a pink medical mask. her microphone, which she’d disinfected with an alcohol towelette, was connected to a bullhorn a safe distance away, held by a woman wearing an l.l.bean windbreaker and a mask that asked “wwrbgd?” they stood together as families, in well spaced clusters, in front of a stone faced public building. fry, a public defender, describes her political views as “left radical.” she used to be involved in the occupy wall street movement back when she lived in brooklyn, before she followed the migratory pattern that has brought so many other progressive young parents to maplewood, a town of 25,000 that prides itself on its racial diversity and spirit of social activism. fry’s politics fit seamlessly into the community for four years   until the pandemic hit and the public school district serving maplewood and neighboring south orange shut down. it remained closed to in person education, even as many neighboring districts   not to mention private schools, colleges, universities, bars, restaurants, churches, nail salons, gyms, shopping malls, yoga studios, and hockey rinks   managed to reopen. the school district’s paralysis put fry in an unexpected position, pitting her against many of her neighbors, as she made a divisive demand: she wanted her first grader to go to school. every community has struggled with the question of whether and how to reopen classrooms. but the debate has taken on a particularly anguished dynamic in places like maplewood, where no one would ever imagine being on the same side of an issue as donald trump. (joe biden won 90 percent of the vote here.) before the coronavirus, people in the town seemed to share the same set of values, venerating education above all. as the cliché went, everyone had moved there for the schools. but once those schools were shut, this imagined consensus was ripped up. it seemed as if maplewood could no longer agree on the most basic things: science, morality, the right thing to do. at the december protest, children stood next to their parents and held signs that read “i want to meet my teacher” and “don’t mute me.” a little girl gripped a pennant on a stick: “i want real school.” one masked mom after another came forward, citing studies that suggest children are relatively less vulnerable to the virus and the recommendations of public health experts who say reopening schools should be an overarching priority. “to ignore all of this evidence is to further children and families’ suffering with no rational justification,” one of the protest leaders said, reading from an online petition that now has more than 1,800 supporters, representing a decent percentage of parents in the district, which has around 6,900 students. “while we sympathize with fears of the unknown, we do not want to be driven by fear.” the protesters questioned why other public school districts in the area have managed to offer some form of in person education, but not south orange maplewood. they feared the long term consequences   for their children and for the public school system as a whole. “it could destroy the town eventually if schools don’t go back,” one parent, april mason, told me at the protest. and yet mason, a public relations executive, said she raised her concerns reluctantly. “i’m a liberal, and i didn’t want to make a lot of noise about this issue,” she said. “it was almost like this whisper campaign.” for months, the parents’ conversations about the issue had been mumbling and conflicted. they all agreed the situation was impossible for everyone. the district’s superintendent had been thrust into a once in a century situation, and teachers, who were struggling so hard on the other end of the video streams, were genuinely worried for their lives. some social justice activists, who have an outsize influence in the community, were apt to say that anyone who discounted the risks of covid 19, which has brutally impacted black families, was speaking from a position of privilege. no one wanted to alienate their children’s teachers. no one wanted somebody to die. no one wanted to sound like trump. then, suddenly   almost as soon as voters repudiated the president on election day   the tenor of the conversation shifted, and the demands grew bolder. “this is a fundamental right for my daughter, and for all the kids in the district,” fry told me. “hear our voices, we want choices!” the crowd chanted as it marched down a hill, past the district’s only high school. fry carried her 3 year old daughter, ruby, while her husband walked with their first grader, ceola. the march ended outside a state legislator’s office. “i want you all to know that we’re not alone,” fry shouted through the bullhorn, still holding ruby. “that there are protests going on right now in montclair and west orange and nutley.” next to the legislator’s office, through the plate glass windows of a fitness studio, i could see a group of masked women in a dance class. people were waiting outside a pizza place, which was serving lunch. everything was open, somehow, except school. the stresses of the pandemic have exposed the dysfunction lurking inside every american institution, but nowhere are its distorting effects more agonizing than in the realm of public education. the nation’s schoolchildren have been conscripted into a vast improvisational experiment, marked by geographic disparities that don’t seem to correlate to any calculation of risk. states with low rated education systems, like mississippi and louisiana, have tended to hold classes like normal. in wealthy northeastern states like new jersey and massachusetts, which consistently sit atop the national rankings, many students are spending their days staring at glitchy laptops. the students who most need education are receiving the least. an estimated 3 million children nationwide   many impoverished or homeless are going without any form of school. with the notable exception of new york city, many of the nation’s large urban school districts remain remote, including all the ones in new jersey. over the summer, the new jersey state department of education estimated that some 230,000 students in the state were unable to access online classes during the spring because they lacked computers or internet access. although the hardware situation has improved, many students remain disengaged. in camden, the superintendent recently estimated that a quarter of students are marked absent each day, compared to a 92 percent attendance rate before the pandemic. more than 20 percent of high schoolers in newark are deemed to be “severely chronic” absentees. everywhere, kids are losing motivation and logging out. “we’re seeing it at the high school too,” said stacey lawrence, who teaches creative writing at columbia high, the one that fry’s protest marched past. when we spoke in december, lawrence told me she hated teaching via video, which she described as “orwellian.” she knew that the cracks in the system were widening into chasms. “we are going to see huge disparities,” she said, “and i think it will continue.” still, lawrence was one of many teachers in the south orange maplewood district who was opposed to returning to school until the pandemic abated. “everyone wants it,” she said, meaning classroom learning. “but sometimes we can’t get what we want.” i should acknowledge here that i, too, want something. as i write these words, i am sitting in my attic office, in the new jersey suburb of montclair   a town much like nearby maplewood   looking out my window at the charming brick school building across the street, as the third grader next to me fidgets in front of a chromebook and a teacher he has never met prods him from a little square on the screen. i’ve spent the last few months watching with jealousy as friends in other towns, other states   even new york city, the place i lived before i moved here, for the schools   have posted photos of their kids heading to school in backpacks and masks. i can’t help but wonder: why not him? the official explanation, in both montclair and south orange maplewood, has to do with the buildings themselves. they look beautiful, but like the cute clapboard houses that surround them, some are close to a century old. their ventilation systems are ancient and poorly maintained. in montclair, a recent report estimated that upgrades would cost $26 million. but can the airflow really be so much better in little falls, a town just a mile away from my house, where this autumn i saw masked kids walking into school buildings that looked just like the one outside my window? i started poking around on facebook, asking questions, joining groups. an acquaintance in maplewood suggested i talk to julie fry. “she is brave,” she wrote. fry moved to the suburbs in 2016, when she was pregnant with her second child. “i’m white and my husband is black,” she told me the first time we talked on the phone. “we wanted to live in a place where our children could be part of a significant black community.” she picked maplewood because it was a suburb that wasn’t stereotypically suburban. homeowners staked signs in their yards declaring “we believe” … “black lives matter” … “love is love” … “science is real.” that is not to say everything was idyllic. before the pandemic, south orange and maplewood were in the midst of an intense public discussion about racial equity. studies showed that black students, who make up around one third of the population of the school district, were lagging their white peers. there was controversy over a plan to balance racial and economic diversity among the schools. around the time fry moved to town, an activist group called soma justice came together on facebook, and she got involved. she posted, she protested. fry could have chosen to send ceola to a majority white school near her house, but instead chose one further away that had greater racial and economic diversity. her kindergarten year was going fine   until classrooms closed in mid march. “i kind of thought everybody was on the same page,” fry said. “to me, we were going to flatten the curve, and then the most important things would be the first to go back, like school.” fry soon came down with covid, ending up in the emergency room. “it was just really scary, because it was being talked about like almost certain death at the time,” fry said. after her recovery, fry started reading about coronavirus studies that indicated children are less likely to become seriously ill. that matched her experience   her daughters never got sick, though they later tested positive for covid antibodies. fry went to the local facebook parenting group, maplewood moms*. (the asterisk, in maplewoody fashion, was a wink at gendered assumptions about child rearing.) “i posted,” fry said, “and then immediately got a lot of skepticism.” on social media, everyone was an amateur epidemiologist. commenters tore fry apart, accusing her of misreading the data, underestimating the unknown menace of the virus. some of the most vehement attacks came from commenters who identified themselves as teachers. “i couldn’t believe it,” fry said. “i was arguing with teachers about the importance of education.” as time passed, the community’s risk tolerance loosened   people stopped disinfecting their mail, let their kids play in the park, sent them to camp. and over the summer and fall, evidence mounted that, in fry’s view, schools could be open safely. with careful precautions and plenty of setbacks, many jurisdictions managed to pull it off: european nations, conservative southern states, even bill de blasio’s new york. the atlantic published a much forwarded article, written by an economist, headlined “schools aren’t super spreaders.” and yet in maplewood, opposition to reopening remained strident. for many parents, the idea of kids returning to indoor, unruly, germy classrooms was still unthinkable. even if the children themselves were safe, the teachers and staff who had to look after them could be infected. the arguments got mean. the holdouts called reopeners selfish, lazy, and cavalier   willing to sacrifice lives for child care. “i still get called a granny killer,” says maya ziobro, a parent who supports reopening. “if we say anything about wanting our kids to return to school, we’re painted as trumpers.” over the summer, the state’s democratic governor, phil murphy, issued guidance that all school districts should offer students the option of some form of in person education. but in august, the new jersey education association, the state’s largest teachers’ union, came out in opposition. murphy immediately reversed himself, saying schools could delay return so long as they provided a “a reason for it.” this kicked the decision down to localities. in south orange maplewood, the school district decided to postpone a hybrid reopening plan and stick to remote instruction. fry despaired as ceola rebelled against learning on a computer. because she still had her relentless job as a public defender, with indigent clients to serve, she could not give her daughter the constant help she needed to stay on task. at significant expense, fry enrolled ceola in a ymca child care program that operated inside the district’s school buildings. one day in october, i met fry outside her house, and we took a masked stroll around the neighborhood, where the yards were decked out for halloween with skeletons and inflatable monsters. there was a biden harris sign on every other lawn. victory was at hand, a vaccine was coming, and yet a return to normal education still felt very remote. “i wish we could at least agree that school is essential for children, which i thought was not controversial,” fry said. we ended our walk at clinton elementary, a redbrick structure that dates to the 1920s. “there are actually kids in this building,” fry said. they were sitting in classrooms, overseen by ymca workers. (ceola happened to be assigned to another building, on the other side of the district.) on a playing field, girls were having soccer practice. school sports were still happening in person, even though school itself was not. the most vocal source of resistance to reopening came from a group of people that fry could never have imagined opposing: the teachers. their union chapter in south orange maplewood had been raising one set of objections after another to the district’s return plans, contending that the buildings were unsafe   including the school where fry’s daughter was now sitting at a computer, looking at a teacher on a screen, while under the supervision of another adult who was just as vulnerable to covid. for many progressive parents, the situation was unbearable. “i’ve never been on the other side of the teachers union in my entire life,” fry said. “i’m afraid of the long term damage this is going to do between teachers and parents, because people think that their kids are suffering, and it makes it hard to sympathize with the union struggle.” fry found herself fighting with people with whom she usually agreed. “i’m friends with all the radical people,” fry said. “it’s created a significant amount of tension between me and some of my political allies in town.” to many parents who favor reopening, the teachers’ union looks like the boogeyman. but union power does not fully explain what’s happening in the state. by mid november, more than 500 of the roughly 600 public school districts in new jersey were offering some form of in person education, suggesting that teacher opposition by itself is not the decisive factor. those open districts have unions, too. when you look a little deeper into why south orange maplewood stayed remote, the conversation starts to get fraught and tongue tied. this is because the argument about in person school is layered on top of the preexisting debate about race and school. national surveys suggest that black parents tend to be more reluctant to send their children back to class. “they are more cautious about reopening, because they not only understand covid but have borne the brunt of it,” said khadijah costley white, a rutgers university communications professor and the founder of soma justice. she is black and has been opposed to reopening the district. “one of my friends lost her husband,” white told me the first time we talked. “we had to go outside her house and watch her sob next to her children.” a month later, white told me that covid had just killed her uncle. when fry told me that she was arguing with her radical friends, white was the primary person she was talking about. white’s husband is a biologist who studies the coronavirus. she is also   unlike many parents in the district   a graduate of the south orange maplewood schools and, consequently, says she had fewer illusions about how they served black students before the pandemic. “i think the first thing we have to concede is that we lose kids either way,” she said. “there are some kids who are actually better off at home right now.” the parents who showed up to the december protest, the vast majority of whom were white, chanted that they wanted “choices” for their families. they said that no student will be forced to return to the classroom. but for those with racial history in mind, the plan to divide students into two tracks, “hybrid” and “remote,” carried undertones of separate but equal. “one of the things that bothers me most about all of these debates is how some people i thought of as progressive have turned against me and turned against teachers,” white said. she and fry often go back and forth on facebook, politely parsing the science and social justice implications. “i have to say, me and julie believe in a lot of the same things,” white said. “because we know each other outside of this, and we’ve done a lot of things together, it’s not toxic one on one. but we’ve each been equally frustrated with the other. the risks are not the same for everyone.” for one thing, white says, people who have survived covid speak from a certain position of privilege. they likely have heightened immunity and can make a different risk calculation for their families. and as the mother of two young children herself, white said, she could empathize with parents who were watching their children struggle, but only to a point. according to an oft cited online tracker maintained by the national education association, there were more than 3,000 outbreaks and 73 deaths traced to schools between july and the beginning of january. (other research has found less evidence of school related spread.) “when you hit a situation that isn’t about your wealth and privilege, and the virus doesn’t care about either one of those things, it’s confounding,” white said. but, she added, “this is one of those situations where teachers are fighting for their lives, and if you ask them to choose their jobs over their lives, they’re going to want to choose their lives.” in august, it was south orange maplewood school superintendent ronald taylor who made the postponement decision that drove fry to despair and toward the ymca. he had cited sober sounding factors, including the need for safety upgrades to buildings and concerns about a large number of teachers who had applied for medical leave, but his choice to push back in person school until november carried predictably destabilizing consequences. instead of returning to classrooms at the usual start of the school year, when the virus was at a low ebb in the northeast and classes might conceivably be held outdoors, the system was now on track to reopen just as the covid curve was starting to rise. as the return date neared, the local union chapter posted a long open letter to facebook, listing safety concerns and declaring that “school as we once knew it is still not possible.” at a school board meeting, teachers raised objections to hybrid instruction and complained that a 14 day quarantine requirement would force them to give up holiday travel plans. on october 21, three weeks before teachers were scheduled to return, union representatives conducted a walk through inspection of an elementary school with their own safety consultant. the tour ended abruptly when the group learned high grade air filters had not been installed as promised, and the union sent out a message saying it “strongly advises its members not to return to the buildings until they are safe.” taylor postponed the reopening until after the winter holidays. meanwhile, the ymca child care program continued to operate in the buildings. the whipsawing left some school board members deeply troubled. the president of the board at the time, annemarie maini, also runs a private montessori school, and she told me she was back in her own building, watching teachers interact with little children every day, without terrible consequences. she said she was just as dispirited as everyone else about the district’s inability to do something similar. maini said that in a typical year, the district serves free or reduced lunch to around 1,400 students. it is now distributing food for pickup, but during virtual school only around 300 children have been using the program. “i keep going back to that food number,” she said. “it just shows we’re missing a thousand kids.” a board member whose term expired in january, anthony mazzocchi, questioned why the administration was unable to open the schools in some fashion during the fall, when numbers were relatively low. “you can always figure out a reason why it can’t work,” he later told me. “why did they wave the white flag? in my opinion, they waved the white flag because it’s easy to. you can say, ‘look we don’t want to get anybody sick.’” now, as a consequence of the “perceived lack of will and vision in the early stages,” he adds, “there is little trust during what now is an even higher risk environment.” taylor has many defenders in the community, who note that the district’s dysfunction long predates his tenure. (before him, the district had a string of short lived superintendents.) social justice activists like white don’t want parents to chase him off before he is able to guide the district through the integration initiative. “it’s a pandemic, this is not forever, it’s hopefully going to be a few more months,” white said. “the kids with resources are going to be fine. we just have to help those who need it.” the pandemic, and the public’s dissatisfaction with the district’s response to it, has already had a noticeable impact on its student population, especially at the elementary level, where enrollment was down almost 8 percent this year, according to figures filed with the state this fall. the number of kindergartners declined by 25 percent. since those october numbers were reported, maini said, she has heard of additional parents pulling children and putting them into private school, or leaving the education system entirely for some form of podding or homeschooling. some families are selling their houses, taking advantage of a market inflated by wealthy families fleeing new york, and moving to places that have in person school. no one yet knows whether the newcomers will enroll their kids in public school. “i feel very strongly that the more this goes on, the more the continuing erosion of public education will happen,” maini said, exacerbating a trend that was under way even before the schools closed. “what it means is that people will lower their expectations for what their kid gets out of public school. it will become much more of a bare minimum.” many public school parents have been placing hope in the arrival of the vaccine, assuming that after teachers are inoculated, everything will return to normal. but now some parents are advocating for remote learning to continue until children can get vaccinated, which will not happen anytime soon. i asked maini for a realistic prediction of when parents can expect full time classroom instruction. “maybe as early as september,” she said and paused. “maybe not. maybe there will still be anxiety through one more winter season of this.” in october, in the journal education next, a pair of political science professors examined the rationale behind reopening decisions in individual school districts. they took into account factors like affluence, racial composition, and urban density as well as the local prevalence of the coronavirus. their study found that the severity of the public health crisis within the community appears to have “little or no effect” on school reopening decisions. places with strong teachers unions were less likely to have in person learning, but the factor that most strongly predicted school reopening was the “percentage of the vote won by donald trump in a school district’s parent county in 2016.” the trumpier the area, the more likely it was to have school. within new jersey, almost every district in the seven counties that trump carried was open in some format in the fall. in essex county, where south orange and maplewood are located and where biden won by his largest margin, more than a third of the districts were all remote. this was despite the fact that, according to a recent parent survey conducted by the south orange maplewood district, more than 60 percent of parents said they favored the hybrid option. that still leaves a large contingent of parents who are vocally opposed. on facebook, the holdouts sometimes call parents who want to reopen “covidiots.” “you’re shamed for wanting to send your kid into, like, a covid cesspool,” said melanie finnern, a freelance art director and yoga instructor who lives in maplewood. after finnern saw her children struggle with remote learning in the spring, she decided to run for the school board. “my susan b. anthony moment came,” she told me, “when i said, ‘why is my daughter not even seeing her teacher online?’” “that is the big underlying concern in south orange maplewood,” said annemarie maini. “it comes down to you’re taking something away from my kid, or my kid is not getting what every kid should have.” parents who favor reopening often counter that they are not just thinking of their own children but of the well being of others, including kids who were already at risk   many of them black or brown, or impoverished, or developmentally challenged   who are reported to be falling out of the school system. to their opponents, this can sound disingenuous. “you see all these mothers constantly using poor and abused kids as fronts for getting their own kids back in school,” white said. how many of them were outraged, she asked, at the disparities within the school system before covid? through her eyes, it looked as if many of the protesters were affluent suburban parents, demanding that the schools bend to serve their own needs, as usual, while wishing away the deadly reality of the pandemic. “to me,” white said, “that doesn’t sound too different from the trumpers.” despite the heated tenor of the reopening issue, it was barely discussed in the school board race. five candidates were running for three open seats, and finnern finished last. the leading vote getters, a pair of white professional women, campaigned as a slate on a platform of racial equity and won high marks from soma justice. the third open seat was won by elissa malespina, a critic of soma justice who disagrees with khadijah white about any number of issues but not reopening. she is a school librarian who works in a neighboring district. “you can’t do anything,” malespina says, “unless teachers and students feel safe and secure.” during the fall, julie fry felt like she was getting nowhere, and she started researching private schools. by november, the cases were going up, and many of the districts that had managed to reopen in new jersey   even in conservative areas   shifted to remote learning amid spotty reports of covid outbreaks. opponents of reopening felt vindicated, saying that it was less disruptive to stick to one format. taylor told me that his teachers had made remarkable progress with remote teaching, despite having little formal training in it. the district has made a great effort to distribute chromebooks and wi fi hotspots to families in need. “comparing what our kids are getting now versus what they were getting in the first months,” taylor said, “we’re almost scary good at this now.” many parents would question that assertion. one day in early december, a mother ventured onto maplewood moms* to vent her feelings: i am going to get really vulnerable here, and i hope you will have an honest response to this post. remote learning is failing. i have three very well adjusted, typically developing, privileged children who are miserable in school. my middle schooler who had straight as his entire life is getting cs and ds. my second grader is now officially reading below grade level. i feel like a huge a*hole complaining because we are healthy, working and have a roof over our heads. at the same time, i feel like i need to speak up loudly. this cannot be happening only in my home. i am so frustrated and to be truthful, so jealous of all of the districts around us with children in school. why aren’t more people talking about this? are your children doing ok with remote learning? are you? (please be nice) then something remarkable happened. people were nice. commenter after commenter chimed in to say she   it was almost entirely moms, of course   was having the same experience. solidarity. we are doing horribly. it has sucked the life out of f’s love for learning. i cried all day. what can we do to make our voices heard? fry jumped into the discussion, posting a link to a petition that she and a few other moms had been furtively circulating, calling for the schools to open five days a week for elementary and special education students. within a day or two, the petition had picked up hundreds of new signatures. someone started a facebook group, soma for safe return to school. someone else designed a website, which featured a clock counting the time elapsed since the schools last met in person. the response from the holdouts was vociferous. in montclair, where parents decided to hold a coordinated protest, a thread on a local facebook group drew hundreds of harsh comments. they questioned the timing, amid the wave, predicting that the outdoor gatherings would surely create an outbreak. “riot because i’m inconvenienced” wrote one man. a (male) substitute teacher posted a meme: “karening intensifies.” still, fry was buoyed by the response to her protest, which drew respectful coverage from the media, including the local nbc affiliate. “i am not alone here, i am not crazy,” she told me a couple days after the rally. “all these magical moms came out of the woodwork.” the newly elected president seemed to be on their side. biden was now pledging to bring children back to most schools within his first 100 days in office, if congress provided sufficient funding. the forecast was calling for snow. soon, the district sent out an email: remote learning would be canceled so the kids could have a snow day. everyone seemed to agree they needed a break. in december, taylor held a town hall meeting to discuss his latest plan to reopen the south orange maplewood district. it called for students, divided into two hybrid cohorts, to return on january 19 and 20. montclair was scheduled to return one week later. as these new return dates neared, both fry’s district and my own underwent another round of uncertainty. many parents, even some who had favored reopening, began to express nervousness. the state’s positive covid test numbers, bad enough in the fall, were now headed to unprecedented levels. other districts had been opening and closing in fits and starts. the vaccine had arrived and might soon be available to teachers. was this really the right time to shake things up? in south orange maplewood, the local teachers union sent taylor a letter, contending that it would be a “reckless decision” to reopen before teachers were vaccinated. the issue of vaccination has been contentious within the teaching profession. not all teachers want to be at the front of the line. “we don’t want to be in the business of putting a hierarchy in place,” the head of the national education association recently told the new york times, “because some of our members are being bullied into returning back to classrooms.” and so far, new jersey has prioritized medical workers, the elderly, police and firefighters as well as people with preexisting conditions   including obesity and smoking   over teachers. despite this, the union predicted that it would be “only a matter of weeks” before teachers could return safely. taylor’s plan called for teachers to return to school buildings to prepare their classrooms the week of january 11. late on the evening before the teachers were to come back   and hours after the union announced a lunchtime walkout protest   taylor sent out another email, saying the hybrid plan was being scaled back. (a district spokesperson says the change was prompted by a meeting with local health officials.) now, only the youngest grades in each school would return to reduce crowding. the union went ahead with its protest anyway. outside the high school, dozens of teachers stood well spaced along the sidewalk, wearing masks and, in many cases, plastic face shields. they carried signs reading “just wait, we will vaccinate” and “our lives the test, remote the best.” passing cars honked to show support. “this rush because of, i would say, politics in our district, to start on january 19 at all costs is irrational,” said david mastrodonato, a history teacher who was one of the leaders of the protest. “i think the narrative, since september, has been one stumble after another.” the union action drew strong support from the faction of the community that opposed reopening, including white, who circulated an open letter. this time, though, the district’s administration stuck to its reduced return plan. “we’re doing it a little bit slower, with the plan of ramping it up,” said thair joshua, who rotated into the position of school board president in january. joshua, who is black, told me that one of his own children would be among the students returning to the buildings that week. “everyone has their own risk tolerance,” he said. “i feel comfortable.” on january 19, after 312 days, the south orange maplewood buildings finally reopened to students. the local facebook groups filled with photos of children in puffy jackets and masks, preparing to walk into school. meanwhile, in my own district, plans were once again falling into disarray. montclair’s elementary teachers, who were supposed to come into their school buildings for a day of training in advance of their imminent return to class, staged a work action. the parking lots were empty. no one showed up to receive the training or to prepare their classrooms. that afternoon, the local union put up an instagram post: an array of selfies taken by teachers who were sitting at home, grinning in union t shirts, with the hashtag #businessasusual. the next morning, as usual, my son logged onto zoom. the following friday evening, the superintendent sent out an email announcing that with “deep regret,” he was canceling the district’s scheduled return to school due to staffing issues, calling the delay “disheartening” and saying the district was “working in consultation with our legal counsel” about further steps in its negotiations with the local union chapter. but ceola went back, as scheduled, on january 20. it was inauguration day. in washington, donald trump was about to fly away. the children of cohort b lined up outside ceola’s brick school building for their first day of in person learning. ceola crunched across the lawn, which was covered with a thin layer of new snow, in her pink galoshes. julie fry walked behind her daughter, pulling her backpack on wheels. “hi, ceola!” her masked teacher said cheerfully and offered her an elbow bump. parents of all races were milling around, watching their children, chatting at a safe distance. “i feel like, at the end of the day, teachers are people who love children,” fry told me. “they’ll have these little faces in front of them. i can’t imagine that the conversation won’t soften.” a metallic chime rang, and the front door opened. “they’re going in,” fry said. by submitting your email, you agree to our terms and privacy notice and to receive email correspondence from us. things you buy through our links may earn vox media a commission. this email will be used to sign into all new york sites. by submitting your email, you agree to our terms and privacy policy and to receive email correspondence from us. password must be at least 8 characters and contain: as part of your account, you’ll receive occasional updates and offers from new york, which you can opt out of anytime. this email will be used to sign into all new york sites. by submitting your email, you agree to our terms and privacy policy and to receive email correspondence from us. password must be at least 8 characters and contain: as part of your account, you’ll receive occasional updates and offers from new york, which you can opt out of anytime. * please try a longer search

movim requires javascript to be enabled to work properly. reconnection to the server… movim cannot talk with the server, please try again later mic_none no sound detected from your microphone thenewyorktimes public subscriptions նորայր celeste 🇦🇷🧉 mortenfrisch g movim register login mov.im thenewyorktimes governor murphy joins school halloween fray in new jersey: ‘give me a break’ news.movim.eu / thenewyorktimes • 25 october, 2023 tagincome inequality taghalloween tageducation (k 12) this post is public www.nytimes.com /2023/10/25/education/nj governor halloween.html powered by movim
supported by the south orange and maplewood school district tried to help students who felt left out on halloween. the governor’s response: “seriously?” by sopan deb if you happen to attend one of the 10 schools in new jersey’s south orange and maplewood school district, put away that spiderman costume on halloween. or wait until after school. earlier this month, dr. ronald g. taylor, the superintendent of the district, sent a letter to parents saying that halloween would not be celebrated during school hours. the decision was, the letter said, an effort to promote “diversity, equity, and inclusion meaningfully.” school districts like the one in south orange and maplewood have chosen to not hold halloween celebrations in an effort to be more inclusive to students either who do not celebrate the holiday for religious reasons, or whose families cannot afford elaborate costumes. the announcement from dr. taylor divided families in the district. some fully supported the decision, pointing out that some of the elementary schools had already stopped celebrating the holiday, whereas other parents saw this as liberal good intentions going off the rails. and then, the news found its way to the governor’s desk. on tuesday afternoon, philip d. murphy stepped right into the fray, writing on x, formerly known as twitter: “seriously? we can’t let kids celebrate halloween? give me a break.” the post sparked a media firestorm and set local parents groups on facebook buzzing, reigniting the same tense discussion that began weeks prior with dr. taylor’s letter. it is unclear why mr. murphy decided to weigh in on the discussion now. both towns had voted overwhelmingly for him in 2021, when mr. murphy became the first democrat to be re elected to the governor’s office in 44 years.

 a school district in new jersey has reportedly banned all halloween themed events and costumes so no one feels excluded   leading even the garden state’s democratic governor to give a virtual eye roll on social media. in a letter to parents earlier this month, superintendent dr. ronald taylor of the south orange maplewood school district said the decision to bar students from celebrating the holiday in class “may make some uncomfortable and elicit some challenges across our community,” according to nbc new york. “however, in the end, i feel these recommendations align with [the district’s] commitment to building equity, fostering inclusion, and building a sense of belonging throughout our schools.” the move is aimed at protecting students who either don’t celebrate the holiday for religious reasons or can’t afford a costume, the new york times said.