Hon. Angelica Allen-McMillan, Ed.D.
Acting Commissioner of Education
State of New Jersey
Department of Education
100 Riverview Plaza
PO Box 500
Trenton NJ 08625-0500
August 9, 2022

Dear Acting Commissioner Allen-McMillan:
On July 13, the Department of Education issued guidance for the Fall 2022 administration of the
Start Strong assessment for students in grades three through eleven. Our organizations have
serious concerns about the relevance and utility of this test for New Jersey’s local education
agencies (LEAs) as well as the early window of administration.
The Department of Education offered the newly created Start Strong assessment as an option for
LEAs in the fall of 2020. The assessment was then administered to all students in late September
and early October of 2021. This mandatory testing was done to meet Federal testing
requirements following the cancellation of the Spring 2021 New Jersey Student Learning
Assessment (NJSLA) due to the COVID pandemic. As the U.S. Department of Education and
the NJDOE made clear, the use of a mandatory administration of Start Strong to satisfy federal
assessment requirements were limited to the 2020-2021 school year, recognizing that the state
was “in the midst of a pandemic that require[d] real flexibility”. At the time, educators believed
that mandatory administration of the Start Strong test would be a one-time measure. Clearly that
is no longer the case, and the decision to add a second, mandatory state assessment now, and
possibly in the future, was made without stakeholder input.
We are concerned that this test, while shorter than the NJSLA, will be retesting skills that were
assessed by the NJSLA only four months ago. The results from the May NJSLA have not been
received yet, making the Start Strong results of limited relevance to educators and parents.
Many LEAs use their own measures to assess and benchmark student skills at the beginning of
the school year. We would suggest that instead of mandating a single benchmarking measure,

districts be given the option of using either Start Strong or their own assessment tools, if they
believe those tools yield more relevant or timely data. At the very least, LEAs should be able
to apply for a waiver from the administration of Start Strong, particularly if they can demonstrate
they are implementing an assessment program that provides them with data and information that
accomplishes the same goals and benefits as Start Strong.
We also question the timing of the administration window, which begins on August 31, several
weeks earlier than the window for the 2021 test. A significant number of LEA’s do not even start
the new school year until after September 5, making the administration window even shorter for
those districts.
The first few weeks of school are foundational for students and educators, setting the stage for
the rest of the school year. Interrupting those important weeks for the Start Strong test serves no
educational purpose. Should the NJDOE proceed with mandatory administration of Start Strong,
which we strongly encourage you to reconsider, extending the testing window by several weeks
would provide at least some relief to LEAs.
We are all working for the same goals—promoting student achievement, identifying areas where
learning acceleration is needed and ensuring the social/emotional wellbeing of our students. We
believe those goals are best served by taking another look at the Start Strong requirement and
allowing LEAs more flexible fall assessment options.
Sincerely,

New Jersey Education Association
Sean Spiller, President

New Jersey Association of School Administrators
Dr. Richard G. Bozza, Executive Director
New Jersey School Boards Association
Dr. Timothy Purnell, Executive Director

New Jersey Council of County Vocational-Technical Schools

Jacqueline Burke, Executive Director
New Jersey Principals and Supervisors Association
Karen A Bingert, Executive Director
Garden State Coalition of Schools
Elisabeth Ginsburg, Executive Director
Save Our Schools New Jersey
Julie Borst, Executive Director

New Jersey Public Charter Schools Association
Harry Lee, Executive Director
New Jersey Children’s Foundation
Kyle Rosenkrans, Executive Director

cc:
The Honorable Phil Murphy, Governor
New Jersey State Board of Education
Senator Vin Gopal
Assemblywoman Pamela Lampitt

 

Acting Commissioner's Response

August 30, 2022

 

Mr. Sean Spiller, President

New Jersey Education Association

P.O. Box 1211

Trenton, New Jersey 08607-1211

 

Dr. Richard G. Bozza, Executive Director

New Jersey Association of School

Administrators

920 West State Street

Trenton, New Jersey 08618

 

Dr. Timothy Purnell, Executive Director

New Jersey School Boards Association

P.O. Box 909

Trenton, New Jersey 08605-0909

 

Ms. Jacqueline Burke, Executive Director

 

New Jersey Council of County Vocational-

Technical Schools

 

132 W State Street

Trenton, New Jersey 08608

 

Ms. Karen A Bingert, Executive Director

New Jersey Principals and Supervisors

Association

12 Centre Drive

Monroe Township, New Jersey 08831

 

Ms. Elisabeth Ginsburg, Executive Director

Garden State Coalition of Schools

210 W State Street, #3

Trenton, New Jersey 08608

 

Mr. Kyle Rosenkrans, Executive Director

New Jersey Children’s Foundation

142 Lafayette Street

Newark, New Jersey 07105

Ms. Julie Borst, Executive Director

Save Our Schools New Jersey

 

Mr. Harry Lee, Executive Director

New Jersey Public Charter Schools Association

1 AAA Drive

Hamilton Township, New Jersey 08691

 

Dear Colleagues:

I am in receipt of your correspondence dated August 9, 2022, regarding the administration of the

Fall 2022 Start Strong assessment for students in grades three through eleven. As partners in

educating New Jersey’s over 1.4 million students, I appreciate the benefit of your perspective.

 

The Start Strong assessments were piloted in the fall of 2020 as an opportunity for local

educational agencies (LEAs) to obtain near instantaneous results of administration that articulate

the various levels of support each student may need to be successful with on grade-level content.

Intentionally brief by design to maximize instructional time, the Start Strong assessments provide

valuable data to address students’ unique learning needs at the outset of the school year. The

design of the assessment was done so in a way to minimize the disruption of teaching and

learning while providing actionable data to support individual student learning. Early

identification of the most appropriate level of supports that students need in English Language

Arts, mathematics, and science based on NJSLS (New Jersey Student Learning Standards) is an

essential tool to complement LEAs existing efforts to gather standards-based data.

The New Jersey Department of Education (Department) recognizes there are many programs and

assessments utilized by LEAs to identify student progress and needs throughout the school year

and commit to continual evaluation of the implementation of assessment systems. One benefit of

the Start Strong assessment is the consistency provided across LEAs in the data collection so that

State-level progress can be observed. In the unprecedented time that we continue to navigate,

uniform data collection is critical for the development of state programs and guidance to LEAs. By

offering the Start Strong assessments, the Department is able to provide LEAs longitudinal data,

to not only teachers and schools, but also to students and families so that they too, can make

informed decisions about supports.

With the reinstatement of the New Jersey Student Learning Assessments (NJSLA), the

Department is eager to share valid and reliable summative level data with districts, however, with

a two-year pause in the administration, longitudinal trends are at risk. Through the second

administration of the Start Strong assessments, LEAs and the State will have two data points to

evaluate current programs prior to the receipt of Spring 2023 data the following school year.

The testing window of the Start Strong assessment allows the resulting data to be analyzed and

outcomes integrated into instructional practice to address student learning needs in a timely

manner and prior to the current year instruction in the NJSLS. The Department acknowledges the

early part of the school year as critical for building the necessary foundations between educators

and students and the importance of establishing social emotional learning practices. As such, the

Department will extend the testing window to October 21, 2022 to allow additional

administrative flexibility to ensure the integrity of student identification data, and to schedule the

assessments at unique times for individual LEAs.

While the Fall 2022 Start Strong assessments will not be used to satisfy federal accountability, the

importance of the data LEAs are still required to report, school-level participation and

performance, as a statewide measure of learning resources cannot be underscored.

I share your sentiments that we are all working for the same goals – promoting student

achievement, identifying areas where learning acceleration is needed, and ensuring the social

and emotional wellbeing of our students. This administration of the Start Strong assessments will

ensure that individual supports can be provided, and every student has equitable access to a

high-quality education.

Thank you for being an ongoing partner in the success of New Jersey’s education systems.

 

Sincerely,

 

Angelica Allen-McMillan, Ed.D.

Acting Commissioner

 

AAM/JS/KW/JB/amr

c: The Honorable Phil Murphy, Governor

New Jersey State Board of Education

Senator Vin Gopal

Assemblywoman Pamela Lampitt

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