NEWARK, N.J. — A $700,000 Newark Public Schools contract for hospitality and tourism training is drawing fire from Assemblywoman Dawn Fantasia, who is questioning why the state’s largest school district hired a celebrity mortician for the job.
Fantasia (R-Sussex) sounded the alarm Wednesday over the contract, which calls for training students and teachers in hotel, restaurant, tourism and event-management business leadership.
Citing an NJ Spotlight News story, Fantasia noted how the contractor’s publicly listed educational background includes mortuary science, divinity and pastoral counseling rather than hospitality management.
“Are you sitting down?” Fantasia asked followers on X before detailing the arrangement. She called the expenditure “disgusting and unethical as hell” and accused Trenton Democrats of enabling questionable spending in a district heavily subsidized by taxpayers outside Newark.
NJ Spotlight News previously reported on the contract and said neither the contractor nor Newark Public Schools answered its questions concerning her relevant qualifications or how she came to the district’s attention.
The program, dubbed “Developing Next-Level Awareness,” reportedly charges $2,500 for a three-hour session with 25 students. Teacher training costs $2,500 for a half-day session and $4,500 for a full day.
Fantasia also said the New Jersey Department of Education confirmed the program is not a state-approved Career and Technical Education pathway, does not produce an industry-recognized credential and does not qualify as a pathway to a high-skill, high-wage or in-demand occupation.
Adding to the controversy: Newark Vocational High School already offers a hospitality and tourism program covering subjects including event planning, leadership and industry-related skills.
Fantasia contrasted the $700,000 expenditure with the school’s academic performance, noting that fewer than 10% of Newark Vocational students were proficient in math and roughly 40% were proficient in reading.
“Why are they blowing $700k on anything other than academic support?” she asked.
The Republican legislator also pointed to Newark Public Schools’ approximately $1.67 billion budget, more than 80% of which she said is supported by taxpayers statewide.
The contract joins a growing list of Newark school spending controversies seized upon by critics, including travel expenses, contracting practices and school construction costs.
Fantasia argued that the episode undercuts repeated demands from Trenton Democrats for greater education spending while other districts struggle with state aid.
“I don’t care if you’re a Republican, Democrat, or Martian,” she wrote. “When are YOU going to stop throwing OUR money” at questionable expenditures?
For Fantasia, the district’s aptly named program has already accomplished at least one thing.
“The public already has ‘Next-Level Awareness,’” she quipped.
🚨 ARE YOU SITTING DOWN???
Newark Public Schools just gave a $700,000 taxpayer-funded contract to a celebrity mortician to provide…wait for it…
HOTEL, RESTAURANT, TOURISM, and EVENT-MANAGEMENT BUSINESS LEADERSHIP TRAINING to students AND teachers.
A $700K taxpayer-funded… pic.twitter.com/fHrHXCgOTq
— Dawn Fantasia (@DawnFantasia_NJ) September 1, 2026
