Assembly Speaker Vince Prieto announced June 1 the appointment of Assemblywoman Marlene Caride (D-36) to replace Patrick Diegnan (D-18) as chair of the Assembly Education Committee following his appointment to the state Senate last month.
About Assemblywoman Caride
Caride has served in the New Jersey General Assembly since 2012, where she represents the 36th Legislative District which includes parts of Bergen County. Up till the announcement earlier this week she served on the Transportation and Independent Authorities Committee as Vice Chair as well as on the Financial Institutions and Insurance Committee. In addition, she serves on the Intergovernmental Relations Commission and previously served on the the New Jersey Legislative Select Committee on Investigation (investigating the Fort Lee lane closure scandal),
The Assemblywoman is an attorney by trade, serving in private practice as a partner with the firm of Gonzalez & Caride. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in Education from Fairleigh Dickinson University and was awarded a J.D. degree from the California Western School of Law.
She has served as prosecutor for the Board of Alcoholic Beverage Control of West New York from 2009 to 2012, as an attorney of the town’s parking authority from 1995 to 2009, and has been the municipal prosecutor of the Borough of Ridgefield since 2011.
A long-time friend of the Speaker, Caride was born in Weehawken of Cuban immigrant parents.
“Strong leadership in the education committee is vital and I have no doubt Assemblywoman Caride will deliver,” Prieto wrote. “I am certain Assemblywoman Caride will lead the committee in the direction necessary to ensure that our children meet their full academic potential.”
Caride said in her own statement that school funding will be the committee’s first priority.
“Many of our schools are struggling to meet expectations as funding become more and more scarce. I look forward to working with my fellow committee members to ensure that we implement policies that will help strengthen our schools and give them the resources needed so they can adequately prepare our children for academic success.
“I am honored and thankful for the opportunity to lead such a pivotal committee,” Caride continued. “The future of our state greatly depends on the quality of our educational system and I don’t take that responsibility lightly.”