Jane Oates is headed for the White House to join President Barack Obama’s administration in Washington, D.C.
Oates, the executive director of the New Jersey Commission on Higher Education, was nominated to be the assistant secretary for the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration. She will begin her job with the department today.
“Awaiting Senate confirmation, I have to be confirmed, so I’ll go down really just as a consultant to make sure I know all of the people on the committee who have to confirm me,” Oates said.
Because of the impending move to D.C., Oates announced that Friday’s meeting of the Commission on Higher Education would be the last meeting that she would attend.
During her final meeting, she and the rest of the Commission were involved in discussions about various economic issues, such as the Rutgers Future Scholars Program and the New Jersey City University Petition for approval of a Branch Campus at the Wall Township “Communiversity” site of Brookdale Community College. Despite the importance of the issues on the table, nearly every speaker took a moment to wish Oates good luck on her new career.
One of the well-wishers was Courtney McAnuff, vice president for Enrollment Management for the University, who spoke to the commission about The Future Scholars Program in an effort to raise funds.
The program provides outreach to seventh and eighth grade students in urban New Jersey areas who may not otherwise finish high school, much less pursue higher education, said University President Richard L. McCormick.
“Really, my goal was to demonstrate to the commissioners the Future Scholars Program, the qualities behind it and the impact on the state and hopefully get some support for the future consideration of this thing,” McAnuff said. “Our funds have primarily come from private donors. Our biggest contributor has been Merck Corporation, who’ve given us $750,000, but we’ve had numerous contributors. That’s what’s making the program go.”
McAnuff said in his presentation to the commission that students in the urban areas to which the program is reaching out have a much lower rate of high school graduation than students in other areas.
More than 60 percent of the students who do not graduate high school, especially minority males, wind up in state correctional facilities. The program prevents that by providing tutoring and support to these students throughout their high school career and providing them with a free college education, he said.
McAnuff hopes his presentation will help bring in funding for the program.
“The point is to build a relationship; then we’ll see how it goes,” he said.
The commission also approved the NJCU Petition for a Branch Campus at Brookdale Community College, and there was a hearing from Vice Chair of RUSA Yonaton Yares about the initiative to create a unified voice for the student bodies of all New Jersey colleges.
“Over the last two months, I’ve been working to try and create a statewide student association, and I wanted to let the Commission know about it and that we were in the process of working on it,” said Yares, a School of Arts and Sciences junior. “We should really be coming together and encouraging the state to invest in all of us, no matter what college or university you go to.”
Upon hearing Yares’s presentation, Oates suggested that he contact the Garden State Student Association and work with them in order to avoid recreating the wheel. Her suggestion was appealing to Yares, who had already been looking into contacting the association.
“I’m looking forward to working with the Garden State Student Association, so we will all be doing this at once,” Yares said. “We can all work together.”
Oates was pleased with the outcome of the last meeting. She said the commission’s enthusiasm over and pride in her move to D.C. seemed to have been agreed upon by all parties.
Oates is excited to make the transition to her new role.
“I don’t think I would have been nominated for it if it wasn’t for my wonderful experiences in New Jersey,” she said.
Higher education commission director to join Obama staff
Published: Sunday, April 26, 2009
Updated: Sunday, April 26, 2009
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As Executive Dorector of the New Jersey Commission of Higher Education (CHE) Ms Oates sent me two letters stating that the President of New Jersey City University used a fraudulent academic degree to become the president, -- but, she refused to take any additional action to address this fraud. Ms. Oates sent a copy of this letter to Assemblyman Patrick Diegnan, the Chairman of the Assembly's Higher Education Committee" but he likewise said that the "fraudulent use of academic credentials" is not of his concern. Ditto the Governor's Office and the Attprney General's Office. So NJ has a law against the use of fraudulent acadmeic credentials -- but no mechanism in place to enforce this law? Absurd!
