JerseyCAN, a statewide advocacy organization in New Jersey founded to ensure access to high-quality public schools for every child regardless of zip code, cultural background and socioeconomic status, graduated its 2025-26 cohorts for the New Jersey Teacher Leader Policy, Parent Champions for Strong Schools and Student Civic Leaders Fellowships.
JerseyCAN developed the fellowships to support the three key stakeholders within New Jersey’s education landscape and to drive greater advocacy in education policy across the state.
One Kearny and one Belleville educator were part of the cohort.
Now in its sixth year of service, JerseyCAN expanded its successful suite of fellowships to include a new program designed and curated explicitly for public school students, which launched with students from the Morris County Vocational School District (MCVSD).
Participants in JerseyCAN’s fellowships discuss the latest policy trends and issues in New Jersey education, deepen their understanding of the state’s education challenges and are empowered to develop the solutions needed at the local and statewide levels to improve public education in the Garden State.
In addition, each unique program utilizes JerseyCAN’s strong relationships in Trenton and in school districts throughout New Jersey, providing each fellow multiple opportunities to learn from state elected leaders, meet influential educational experts to gain needed perspective on various policies, expand their own networks, build direct relationships within the New Jersey education space, and learn and develop engagement and advocacy skills to ensure their participation in future education issues.
Each cohort meets throughout the school year, with graduation serving as a culminating event in which each fellow shares key milestones from their work and outlines plans to continue their advocacy.
The Parent Champions for Strong Schools Fellowship is an opportunity for parents in New Jersey to learn and engage in education policy and advocacy at the state and local levels. Parents learn both education policy content and advocacy strategies and tools. Each fellow is focused on self-selected specific goals and demonstrating their advocacy publicly.
Maria J. Andrade, of Kearny, advocated for the development of a community-based Summer Career Pathways Pilot Proposal focused on student engagement, learner self-awareness, and UDL strategies..
“My fellowship with JerseyCAN strengthened my commitment to ensuring families have the information and access they need to make the best educational choices,” Andrade said. “It reinforced that real change happens when we equip communities with knowledge and elevate their voice in shaping better systems.”
Vanessa Johnson-Pearson, of Belleville, advocated for stronger collaboration among families, educators and literacy specialists by promoting shared use of student-assessment data to design individualized literacy plans and close reading achievement gaps.
“This fellowship showed me that my voice matters, not just for my children, but for parents who often feel unseen and unheard in their educational journeys,” she said. “It has equipped me with multifaceted advocacy skills and opened doors to spaces, resources and a network of passionate like-minded individuals I may not have accessed otherwise.”
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Kevin A. Canessa Jr. is the editor of and broadcaster at The Observer, an organization he has served since 2006. He is responsible for the editorial content of the newspaper and website, the production of the e-Newspaper, writing several stories per week (including the weekly editorial), conducting live broadcasts on social media channels such as YouTube, Facebook, and X, including a weekly recap of the news — and much more behind the scenes. Between 2006 and 2008, he introduced the newspaper to its first-ever blog — which included podcasts, audio and video. Originally from Jersey City, Kevin lived in Kearny until 2004, lived in Port St. Lucie. Florida, for four years until February 2016 and in March of that year, he moved back to Kearny to return to The Observer full time. Click Here to send Kevin an email.