New Jersey believed to be first state in the country to require grief instruction for 8th through 12th graders

The law adds grief to the state’s Student Learning Standards in Comprehensive Health and Physical Education. The state Board of Education now must provide standards for implementation.

Camden (white jerseys) and Pleasantville players have a moment of silence before the Pleasantville vs. Camden H.S. football game at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia on November 20, 2019. The game was the resumption of one that had been stopped midway because of a shooting in the stands.Read moreELIZABETH ROBERTSON / Staff Photographer

by Melanie Burney

Published Jan. 10, 2024, 1:15 p.m. ET

New Jersey has become the first state to require health and gym teachers to help students cope with the death of a loved one.

A bill signed last week by Gov. Phil Murphy establishes that public schools must provide instruction to students in grades 8 through 12 on the physical, emotional and behavioral symptoms of grief, as well as offer coping mechanisms.

Effective immediately, the law adds grief to the state’s Student Learning Standards in Comprehensive Health and Physical Education. The state Board of Education now must provide standards for implementation and a curriculum for schools to use.

Supporters said the law seeks to more fully address students’ mental health concerns that existed before the pandemic brought much-needed attention to their social and emotional well-being.

“All you have to do is talk to a student who lost their parent and you will see why this is a good idea,” said state Sen. Jon Bramnick (R., Union), one of the primary sponsors of the bill. “It’s incredibly important legislation.”

Bramnick believes the law is the first of its kind in the country and hopes other states will adopt similar measures.

The bill cleared both houses with unanimous support. Murphy said he hoped the law “will provide students with the tools and resources they need to cope with the challenges of life.”

Robin Cogan, the New Jersey director for the National Association of School Nurses and a school nurse in the Camden school system, where students often experience the trauma of gun violence, applauded the law as “a crucial step in addressing the emotional needs of our students.”

“Grief is a universal experience, and providing students with education on its various aspects and coping mechanisms is essential,” said Cogan. She started a campaign, “No More Empty Desks,” in 2019 to help students in the district express their grief through art. The students painted desks to memorialize young lives lost.

It is estimated that 1 out of 13 children in the state will experience the death of a parent or sibling before the age of 18, according to Lindsay Cullinan Schambach, executive director of Imagine, a Union County center that provides grief counseling for children and families.

“The most vulnerable people right now are our children. They need all the support they can get,” said Keith Hertell, a retired high school soccer coach who serves on Imagine’s leadership council. Imagine was funded by philanthropist Gerald Glasser, whose son, Tom, died in the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Students already have access to counselors and mental health professionals in school. Supporters say the law will provide age-appropriate instruction and additional support that is needed to focus on unresolved grief, which can hurt the academic outcome of vulnerablestudents.

In addition to mandating in-school mental health crisis support, the law requires schools to make resources available to students, including individual and group therapy.

Woodbury School Superintendent Andrew Bell said he believes that including grief instruction will be a delicate balance for schools. He wants to implement a curriculum that nurtures empathy and understanding. Students are under duress from grief, anger and low self-esteem, he said.

“It just seems to be more intense for kids now,” Bell said.

Levi Combs, a manager at Carl Miller Funeral Home in Camden, billed as the oldest Black-owned mortuary in the country, has helped generations of families bury their dead. He supports the law but worries about funding and training for health and physical education teachers.

“It’s a good idea, in theory,” said Combs.

Other critics have raised concerns about expanding the state’s curriculum standards and creating time for another lesson in an already-packed school day.

But Bramnick downplayed how the mandate would impact other instruction.

“We’re not talking about a semester course. I think you can fit that into health class without affecting the ability to teach math and science,” Bramnick said.