GOTTHEIMER’S JUMPSTART JERSEY HIGHLIGHTS FORMER NJEA PRESIDENT AND CAPE MAY COUNTY DEMOCRATIC PARTY CHAIRWOMAN MARIE BLISTAN, STATE SENATOR NELLIE POU

Leaders’ Efforts to Improve School Outcomes and Combat Addiction

WYCKOFF, NJ — Today, JumpStart Jersey added stories highlighting former New Jersey Education Association President and Cape May County Democratic Party Chairwoman Marie Blistan who developed a nationally-recognized innovative labor-management collaboration in schools to help students thrive and State Senator Nellie Pou whose comprehensive approach to combating addiction protects families from tragedy.

Watch Rep. Gottheimer’s video announcing his JumpStart Jersey initiative and calling for New Jersey residents to share their ideas below.

WATCH VIDEO HERE

“I’m always inspired by New Jersey leaders who are pioneering innovative solutions to make life better for New Jersey residents,” said Congressman Josh Gottheimer (D, NJ-5). “I’m proud to highlight Cape May County Democratic Party Chairwoman and immediate-past NJEA President Marie Blistan and Senator Nellie Pou on JumpStart Jersey. From changing the way school leaders work to create better outcomes for students to making Jersey better at addressing addiction and powering our local economies through the pandemic and natural disasters, these incredible leaders are making our great state an even better place to live.”

A brief summary of each leader’s success story highlighted on JumpStart Jersey is included below:

Cape May County Democratic Party Chairwoman Marie Blistan, NJEA Immediate-Past President: Helping Students Thrive through Labor and School Management Collaboration

Cape May County Democratic Party Chairwoman Marie Blistan is a collaborative leader who always strives to make a difference. As President of the New Jersey Education Association (NJEA), Chairwoman Blistan helped create a “collaborative” between educators, labor leaders, and administrators to solve problems, improve professional environments, and boost student outcomes. The New Jersey Public School Labor-Management Collaborative was piloted in more than 20 schools. It builds shared visions for schools and districts, joint decision making, and formal collaborative processes that help support innovation and advance student learning. The positive results from these collaboratives attracted state-wide and national attention, and $3.5 million in funding from the National Education Association (NEA) to replicate this program. Read more here.

State Senator Nellie Pou: A Comprehensive Approach to Combating Addiction in New Jersey

A leader who knows how to get things done, State Senator Nellie Pou has been dogged in her work to help New Jersey residents fight and overcome addiction and support families affected by the grief and trauma it can bring. Senator Pou sponsored legislation allocating resources from the Opioid Recovery and Remediation Fund to the New Jersey Department of Human Services to bolster addiction recovery programs statewide. Senator Pou believes that people deserve a real shot at a second chance. That’s why she created programs to use Opioid Recovery and Remediation funds, derived from drug company lawsuits, to expand proven systems like Support Team for Addiction Recovery (STAR) and STAR Jail. Each program aims to provide the tools and resources to help people with opioid use disorder to fully invest themselves into their health, with an emphasis on the more than 100,000 people in the justice system or re-entering society after incarceration. Read more here.

Other New Jersey leaders recently featured by JumpStart Jersey include Elizabeth Mayor Christian Bollwage, Newark Councilman Anibal Ramos, the hardworking men and women of New Jersey’s Carpenters Union, Woodbridge Mayor John McCormac, Passaic Mayor Hector Lora, Fair Lawn Deputy Mayor Cristina Cutrone, Orange Mayor Dwayne Warren, Bayonne Mayor Jimmy Davis, Union City Mayor Brian Stack, and Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich. Stories and programs highlighted from these leaders include efforts to revitalize communities, empowering young people, building workforce skills, advancing clean water and clean energy, improving community health and creating cultural opportunities.

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About JumpStart Jersey

Congressman Josh Gottheimer (D, NJ-5) started JumpStart Jersey to collect, highlight, and organize some of the best ideas in action across the state, and bring them to one place – JumpstartJersey.com – for everyone to take advantage of in their communities. For eight years now in Congress, Gottheimer has met with Jersey elected leaders, mayors, small business owners, educators, labor and faith leaders and families across New Jersey and brought many of their innovative ideas to help solve problems in Washington. JumpStart Jersey helps share these best practice ideas with everyone, to ensure we have even better schools, economic opportunities, safer communities, cleaner air for our kids and more. Anyone can submit ideas to JumpStart Jersey and follow stories on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

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