NJ lawmaker warns adults behaved 'badly' with missing Newark COVID funds meant for kids

New Jersey lawmakers are calling for a federal probe into Newark Public Schools, alleging the state’s largest district mismanaged millions in government funds meant to help students recover from the pandemic.

Assemblywoman Dawn Fantasia joined "Fox & Friends" Thursday to explain why she and other state lawmakers are seeking help from the U.S. Department of Education to uncover the truth.

"What we found in Newark was shocking," Fantasia said. "It follows a pattern of adults behaving badly, mismanaging funds that are meant for students."

She is one of three state lawmakers who wrote to Education Secretary Linda McMahon asking for a federal investigation into $287 million in unaccounted-for COVID relief funds. Their concerns include about 14,000 students who lawmakers say never received promised tutoring, and a $1.4 million contract for a literacy consultant they say did no work.

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Fantasia said the consultant was a "no-show," and the consultant’s past record showed a decline in literacy rates among students.

"The no-show consultant they hired actually took fourth-grade students from a 34% literacy rate in the school she worked down to a 10.6% literacy rate. Now that's a terrible return on investment dollars that are meant to help children improve and learn," Fantasia said.

2025 New Jersey Student Learning Assessment data shows Newark continues to lag behind the state, with only 34% of Newark students passing the English language arts test and 21% passing math, according to Chalkbeat.

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Those figures differ from the statewide average, where 53% of students passed English language arts and 41% passed math.

In a statement to Fox News, the school district denied the allegations and accused the lawmakers of a personal attack:

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"This elected official is attacking the Newark Public Schools, one of the largest and most effective public school districts in the nation, because she has failed to effectively serve her own constituents," the district said.

"The bottom line is clear: Newark Public Schools' fiscal house is in order. The district is growing because we are delivering results for our students, not by casting aspersions on others."

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But Fantasia dismissed the response, accusing the district of "tap dancing" around the facts.

"All of the fancy words and all of the grandstanding will do nothing. If the state of New Jersey wants to continue turning a blind eye to this misallocation of funds, we certainly won't," she said.