Highland Park Planet (http://highlandparkplanet.org/author/phersh/page/13/)
Many parents, educators and public health leaders are concerned that sending groups of children into the classroom could put them and their families in danger and exacerbate what appears to be a growing spread throughout communities in some states, including New Jersey. READ MORE
While economists might measure the damage in dollars, couples across New Jersey and the nation feel a more personal sting: untold stress, the loss of their wedding date, and not knowing when they might finally get married. READ MORE
Rutgers University President Jonathan Holloway wrote a note to the Rutgers community to announce a cut in student fees of 15 percent, a cut that is in addition to the the previously announced tuition freeze. READ MORE
Gail D. MacArgel, age 81 of St. Peters, MO, passed away on July 5th, 2020 after a long illness. Gail was born Gail Ruth Dochat in Lancaster, PA on July 1st, 1939. She graduated from Highland Park, H.S., in NJ, and attended Rutgers University for almost 2 years. She then married Robert MacArgel of Colonia, NJ on May 10th, 1958 in Highland Park, NJ and embarked, supporting her husband on a 23 year military career in the US Air Force. READ MORE
Rutgers University to Join Harvard – MIT Lawsuit Against New ICE RulesWill file as amicus on Monday; first hearing on Tuesday
Rutgers University President Jonathan Holloway today announced that the university will join as an amicus in the lawsuit filed by Harvard University and MIT to block the imposition of new rules that would be draconian for international students and devastating to colleges and universities across the country. RU will file as amicus on Monday, July 13, with the first hearing being Tuesday, July 14. The new guidance proposed by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Monday would prohibit international students from taking course loads that are delivered entirely remotely and would require international students to immediately leave the United States if all of their courses are being delivered remotely. “Presenting these new policy proposals in the midst of the global pandemic, on the heels of announcements that universities across the country will be providing remote instruction, and only weeks before the start of the next semester is both revealing and troubling,” President Holloway said. “Our mission is to educate and improve the lives of our community locally and globally. READ MORE
Central Jersey Jewish Public Affairs Commitee (CJJPAC) provided Highland Park’s Democratic Council Primary Candidates Councilwoman Elsie Foster-Dublin and Matthew Hersh a Zoom Candidates Forum. Both are running unopposed, but the CJJPAC forum allowed them to share their views with the Jewish community on Highland Park’s social fabric, institutions, and government – and most importantly, their goals and aspirations moving forward. Many members of the local Jewish community also submitted questions for the candidates on issues of concern to the community. We thank them for sharing their time and insights with us. Don’t foget to vote Tuesday July 7th, 2020. READ MORE
The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (NJDOL) on July 1 gave New Jerseyans good reasons to be happy about being employed in the Garden State. READ MORE
Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone announced that the County Prosecutors Association of New Jersey is offering scholarships to law school students seeking careers as prosecuting attorneys, graduate students with a commitment to child advocacy, and to police officers hoping to attend college or graduate school to advance their careers in law enforcement. The annual scholarships, each amounting to a one-year grant of $3,500, will be paid directly to the recipients, who will be selected by a committee that administers the County Prosecutors Association of New Jersey Scholarship Foundation. Scholarship applicants must be residents of New Jersey and must demonstrate a financial need. Scholarship recipients from previous years are ineligible. Each of the scholarships is dedicated to the memory of an attorney who died in office, where the individual had served with dignity as prosecutors in various counties in New Jersey and exemplified the high standards of law enforcement professionals. READ MORE
Yolanda Ciccone, of Metuchen, the former Assignment Judge of Somerset County, was sworn in today as Prosecutor of Middlesex County during a brief ceremony officiated by retired Judge and former Prosecutor Alan A. Rockoff. In June 2020, Governor Phil Murphy nominated Yolanda Ciccone to be the Prosecutor of Middlesex County. She was confirmed by the Senate on June 15, 2020, beginning a five-year term as the county prosecutor. Prosecutor Ciccone began her legal career in 1980 as a law clerk to the Hon. John E. Bachman J.S.C. and Hon. READ MORE
Borough officials, volunteer leaders, and community residents gathered at the Highland Park Borough Hall on Sunday morning, June 21, to celebrate Juneteenth, the commemoration of the end of slavery in the United States, with the unveiling of a Black Lives Matter street art mural. The big and bold yellow letters spelling out Black Lives Matter on South Fifth Avenue in front of The Borough Hall and the Fire House are meant to be a reminder to all residents that during slavery obviously, but even during the 157 years after the emancipation of slaves, blacks have experienced and still are experiencing today severe challenges of ingrained prejudice that has demeaned, devalued and destroyed black lives. In addition, the art also will serve as an inspiration for the community to make constructive structural changes to achieve equal justice and equal opportunity for all regardless of the color of one’s skin. According to a Washington Post analysis black Americans are disproportionately affected by police violence across the United States. The Highland Park mural response came after weeks of massive protests across the country against racial injustice and police brutality following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. READ MORE