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www.desitalk.com – that’s all you need to know 7 CITY VIEWS January 16, 2026 NJ State Senator Vin Gopal, Colleagues, Support Charter School Reform Legislation N ew Jersey State Senate Education Committee Chair Senator Vin Go- pal, and Assemblywoman Luanne Peterpaul, D-Monmouth, held a press conference today, Jan. 12, 2026, at the State House to seek support for his charter school reform legislation. Senator Gopal sponsored two bills, S4713, which adds necessary require- ments for how charter schools are ap- proved, governed, operated, and overseen to increase transparency and accountabil- ity of charter schools; and S4716, which concerns charter school enrollment, stu- dent placements, reporting, and athletics. “This charter school reform legisla- tion establishes comprehensive require- ments directly addressing the 30-year-old Charter School Program Act by imposing stricter governance standards as well as training and residency requirements for trustees,” Gopal is quoted saying in a press release, following a press confer- ence. “These bills add new and necessary requirements for increased transparency, accountability, and oversight of New Jer- sey’s charter schools in response to exces- sive executive compensation and financial mismanagement.” NJEA President Steve Beatty, New Jersey Charter Schools President and CEO Harry Lee, and Assemblywoman Verlina Reynolds-Jackson, chair of the Assembly Education Committee, joined Sen. Gopal for the press conference. The Senate Education Committee held hearings on the operation of charter schools a year ago after an investigation by NJ Advance Media found a number of charter schools, notably College Achieve Public Schools (CAPS) in Asbury Park, were paying administrators exorbitant salaries, engaging in business dealings that were fraught with nepotism and con- flicts of interest, and recruiting students from far outside the district to give their sports teams an unfair advantage. “The New Jersey Office of the State Comptroller recently released a report that is yet another example of why New Jersey adamantly needs revision of its 30-year-old Charter School Program Act,” Gopal said. “The report found excessive executive compensation and fiscal mis- management that are not just harmful to our communities, but are unlawful prac- tices that require more comprehensive oversight. New Jersey residents deserve better accountability for their local and state tax dollars that fund these schools.” Calling the new legislation the first comprehensive one regulating charter schools, Gopal said, “Charter schools are stewards of public education dollars. They play an important role in public educa- tion. This legislation establishes various requirements for charter schools, charter school board of trustees members, charter management organizations, and educa- tion management organizations.” Senator Vin Gopal serves as Senate MajorityWhip and Chair of the Senate Education Committee, in addition to serv- ing on the Senate Judiciary Committee. He previously served as Democratic Con- ference Chair (2022-2025) and Majority Conference Leader (2018-2021). Elected in 2018, a lifelong resident of Monmouth County, Senator Gopal represents resi- dents of Asbury Park, Allenhurst, Bradley Beach, Colts Neck, Deal, Eatontown, Fair Haven, Freehold, Freehold Township, Interlaken, Loch Arbor, Long Branch, Neptune City, Neptune Township, Ocean Township, Red Bank, Shrewsbury, Shrews- bury Township, and Tinton Falls. By a StaffWriter PHOTOS:COURTESY SEN.VIN GOPAL’S OFFICE New Jersey State Senator Vin Gopal speaking at a press conference on new Charter School reform legislation January 12, 2026. From left, From Left: NJ Charter Schools President Henry Lee, Sen. Vin Gopal, NJEA President Steve Beatty, NJEA Treasurer Tina Dare, Sen. Linda Greenstein, and Assemblywoman Luanne Peterpaul. N early 15,000 nurses went on strike Monday (January 12, 2026) morning at several key New York City hospitals in what could evolve into a protracted labor battle in the city coinciding with a severe flu season. The union said that nurses went on strike because management refused to agree to safe staffing levels for patients and has threatened to discontinue or cut nurses’ health benefits. In anticipation of the strike, NewYork Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) declared a state of emergency Friday saying that a “disaster is imminent.” She warned that a strike “could jeopardize the lives of thousands of NewYorkers and patients.” The nurses walked out at Montefiore Medical Center, NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia and Mount Sinai Hos- pital, as well as two other Mount Sinai-system hospitals - among the city’s leading health institutions. “Hospital management refuses to address our most important issues - patient and nurse safety,” NewYork State Nurses Association President Nancy Hagans said in a statement. “It is deeply offensive that they would rather use their billions to fight against their own nurses than settle a fair contract.” The Greater NewYork Hospital Association did not immediately respond to a request for comment. But the group’s president told the NewYork Times that “the demands of the union are so outrageous that there is no way they can concede to what the union is asking for.” In 2023, some 7,000 nurses at two of the same hospi- tals struck over staffing levels worsened by the covid-19 pandemic, winning new minimum nurse-to-patient staffing ratios and agreements to pay penalties to nurses who work under-resourced shifts. But the nurse’s union said that the hospitals are trying to walk back some of those protections. NewYork Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement expressing support for striking nurses that “hospital management is threatening nurses’ health benefits, rolling back hard-won staffing protections, and doing too little to address workplace violence.” A gunman entered Mount Sinai in November, and last week, a man armed with a sharp object barricaded himself inside a room at another NewYork City hospital with another patient and a security guard. Police killed both men. -TheWashington Post Nearly 15,000 Nurses Walk Out At Key New York City Hospitals By Lauren Kaori Gurley