Toms River, NJ|News|
Gov. Murphy: NJ Needs All Kids Back In Classrooms Amid COVID
Gov. Murphy says NJ can't have kids out of their classrooms for an entire year amid COVID. He wants them back. Here's what he plans to do.

First things first: My email is karen.wall@patch.com and I welcome your questions, concerns and news tips. I do my best to answer all reader emails. My family moved to the Jersey Shore in August 1979 and I have lived here for most of the years since. I'm a Brick Township High School graduate and have a bachelor's degree in journalism from Michigan State University. I spent 20 years at the Asbury Park Press, including four years as the editor of Hook, Line & Sinker. I was the editor of The Fisherman magazine before going to part-time work for a few years to meet family needs. While some speak French or Spanish, I am fluent in town councils and school boards, fisheries issues (and yes, I bait my own hook) and love sports, especially local sports.
Gov. Murphy says NJ can't have kids out of their classrooms for an entire year amid COVID. He wants them back. Here's what he plans to do.

Toni Johnson, 38, is accused of illegally waiving and removing fees while she worked in the tax collector's office, authorities said.
State officials approved the grant for an Ocean County project to replace a bridge on Hooper Avenue in Brick called the Duck Farm Bridge.
Separate incidents happened at two Toms River schools last week but no students or staff were harmed.
A virtual meeting scheduled on the hydroponic garden project has been postponed to later in May, the district said.
A parade and block party Saturday will help the fire company honor 125 years of volunteer service to the Toms River community.
Robert M. Handlin, who owned Hamilton Soap Products for 35 years, "remained the eternal optimist," his family said.
David Giordano, charged in March in painting a blue line down Hooper Avenue, threatened to turn the two sites "upside down," officials said.
Gerardo Ruiz, 50, is accused of killing Alecia Perrault, 29, on Saturday; he is hospitalized after overdosing, officials said.
The district will hold a public hearing on the proposed budget, which will be submitted to the state Department of Education for approval.
Here's information on beach tags for the towns up and down the Jersey Shore for the summer of 2021.
Accusations of interference erupt in the search for a new superintendent; a firefighter goes home and other Toms River headlines.
Ocean County's COVID-19 activity level has dropped to moderate for the first time in months. See town-by-town totals.
New Jersey was chosen 39 percent of the time when Americans were given a choice between it and another state.
Robert A. Sanders, 48, led police in Saratoga County, NY, on a chase that began with a suspicious truck reported at a historic battlefield.
Now that the weather is getting nice, what better way to enjoy it than eating outside at one of Brick's local restaurants.
Authorities allege Jehmar M. Barrett sold a 35-year-old woman who overdosed in November the fentanyl ruled the cause of her death.
Now that the weather is getting nice, what better way to enjoy it than eating outside at one of Manchester's local restaurants.
Xanax, heroin, cocaine and crack cocaine, along with cash, were seized and Frank Russo Jr. was arrested, Brick police said.
Downtown Night Out returns to Washington Street for 2021, and there are other options for dining outside in Toms River as well.