New Jersey Governor Chris Christie terminated the employment of the state’s Education Commissioner, Bret Schundler, following an error that may have cost the state $400 million in federal Race to the Top funds. Schundler, a former mayor of Jersey City and candidate for governor, is a vocal advocate for educational reform.

The mistake occurred when the federal Department of Education announced the winners of the Race to the Top grants, which aim to bring about significant educational reforms. Despite being a top contender, New Jersey did not receive any funding. Governor Christie admitted responsibility for the error and criticized the Obama administration for deducting points from the state’s evaluation due to a clerical error in an otherwise strong application.

The error was made when providing budget figures for the years 2010 and 2011, instead of the requested data from 2008 and 2009. According to Governor Christie, Commissioner Schundler attempted to rectify the mistake during a presentation to a federal panel on August 11. However, the panel did not credit the state with the points.

Had the points not been deducted, New Jersey’s application could have outranked Ohio’s. The federal Department of Education released a video of the presentation, contradicting Governor Christie’s account of the data being given on the spot. In the video, a panelist highlights the error and asks for the correct data. Several education officials seated with Schundler can be seen searching through binders in an attempt to find it. Thirty minutes later, towards the end of the questioning, an unseen panelist asks if the numbers have been located, to which the state officials respond that they have not.

During a radio appearance, Governor Christie stated that he had just learned about the video and had not yet seen it. He mentioned that he planned to review it at a later time.