§ 52:16A-87 — Amistad Commission established.

2. a. The Amistad Commission, so named in honor of the group of enslaved Africans led by Joseph Cinque who, while being transported in 1839 on a vessel named the Amistad, gained their freedom after overthrowing the crew and eventually having their case successfully argued before the United States Supreme Court, is created and established in the Executive Branch of the State Government. For the purposes of complying with the provisions of Article V, Section IV, paragraph 1 of the New Jersey Constitution, the commission is allocated in but not of the Department of Education, but notwithstanding this allocation, the commission shall be independent of any supervision or control by the department or any board or officer thereof.The executive director of the Amistad Commission shall submit requests for the budget of the Amistad Commission directly to the Governor who shall review the requests and forward them to the Division of Budget and Accounting in the Department of the Treasury. State support for the operations of the Amistad Commission shall be appropriated by the Legislature to the commission through a separate line item in the annual appropriations act. The commission shall consist of 22 members, including the Commissioner of Education or a designee , who shall serve as a voting member, and the chair of the executive board of the Presidents' Council or a designee, serving ex officio, two members of the Senate or their designees, no more than one of whom shall be of the same political party, appointed by the President of the Senate to serve as voting members for the two-year legislative term during which they are appointed, two members of the General Assembly or their designees, no more than one of whom shall be of the same political party, appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly to serve as voting members for the two-year legislative term during which they are appointed, and 16 public members. Public members , all of whom shall serve as voting members, shall be appointed as follows: four public members, no more than two of whom shall be of the same political party, shall be appointed by the President of the Senate; four public members, no more than two of whom shall be of the same political party, shall be appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly; and eight public members, no more than four of whom shall be of the same political party, shall be appointed by the Governor. The public members shall be residents of this State, chosen with due regard to broad geographic representation and racial and ethnic diversity, who have an interest in the history of the African slave trade and slavery in America and the accomplishments, experiences, and contributions of African-Americans to our society. b. Each public member of the commission shall serve for a term of three years, except that of the initial members so appointed: one member appointed by the President of the Senate, one member appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly, and two members appointed by the Governor shall serve for terms of one year; one member appointed by the President of the Senate, one member appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly, and three members appointed by the Governor shall serve for terms of two years; and two members appointed by the President of the Senate, two members appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly, and three members appointed by the Governor shall serve for terms of three years. Public members shall be eligible for reappointment. They shall serve until their successors are appointed and qualified, and the term of the successor of any incumbent shall be calculated from the expiration of the term of that incumbent. A vacancy occurring other than by expiration of term shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment but for the unexpired term only. c. The members of the commission shall serve without compensation but shall be entitled to reimbursement for all necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties. d. The commission shall annually elect a chairperson and a vice-chairperson from among its members. The commission shall meet upon the call of the chairperson or of a majority of the commission members. The presence of a majority of the authorized voting membership of the commission shall be required for the conduct of official business. e. The commission shall interview and appoint an executive director, who shall serve at its pleasure and shall be a person qualified by training and experience to perform the duties of the office. The commission shall approve all Amistad personnel job descriptions and all persons recommended for employment by its executive director. f. The Amistad Commission shall: (1) market and distribute to educators, administrators and school districts in the State educational information and other materials on the African slave trade, slavery in America, the vestiges of slavery in this country and the contributions of African-Americans to our society; (2) conduct teacher workshops annually on the African slave trade, slavery in America, the vestiges of slavery in this country and the accomplishments, experiences, and contributions of African-Americans to our society, covering information which often has been omitted from traditional curricula; (3) monitor and assess the inclusion of such materials and curricula in the State's educational system; and (4) survey, catalog, and recommend to the State Board of Education the expansion of, content about slave trade , American slavery education , and African-American history presently being incorporated into the New Jersey Student Learning Standards and taught in the State's educational system , the purpose of which is to ensure that all New Jersey students acquire a broad and deep knowledge of all people who contributed to the founding and development of New Jersey and the United States and to promote the self-esteem, confidence, and identity of students who previously may not have learned about past and living examples of people of their own cultural identity who have had positive impacts upon the American story. L.2002,c.75,s.2; amended 2004, c.94; 2020, c.153, s.1.