Three top higher education officials are strongly refuting a report that the state's 12 community college presidents risk termination if they do not accept a buyout offer by the end of the month.

Gena Glickman, president of Manchester Community College, told her top administrators and others in an email Monday that all 12 community college presents must decide whether to take a buyout by Oct. 31, or face possible loss of their contracts.

Two legislators and the executive vice president of the Connecticut college system say the statement is not true.

October 2, 2012

School suspension rates drop, but minority students still over-represented

By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas

A new state law has significantly reduced the number of students being suspended from school, but it has not diminished Connecticut's racial disparity in use of the disciplinary technique.

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September 24, 2012

Communities still feeling the property tax bite, municipal lobby says

By Keith M. Phaneuf

Very small increases in municipal aid over the past two years haven't been enough to reverse Connecticut's over-reliance on property taxes, the state's chief municipal lobby is reminding candidates this fall.

The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities issued its first bulletin Monday to candidates for the state House and Senate, also urging them to make additional education funding a priority.

September 17, 2012

Panel looks to tackle skyrocketing special education costs

By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas

A state panel could recommend that wealthy school districts and high-income parents with special needs children pay more to cover the soaring price of special education.

Panel members, however, are reluctant to support changes that many local school leaders say would cut their special education costs; the members leaned, instead, toward studying those changes.

September 10, 2012

Teacher job losses decline even though federal money dries up

By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas

Despite the shutoff of federal stimulus funding for the school year that just began, the state -- surprisingly -- lost fewer teaching jobs than when nearly $1 billion was being funneled into Connecticut schools.

"It's the smallest reduction we've had in years by far," said Joseph Cirasuolo, executive director of the state superintendents' association. "It's the first year without federal [stimulus] money. We didn't lose anywhere near what we were expecting."

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September 6, 2012

State learns price of universal preschool: $264 million

By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has repeatedly said that he supports offering high-quality preschool to children whose parents cannot afford to send them.

On Wednesday his administration learned just how much it would cost to provide that universal access in the state's poorest districts: $43.8 million a year, plus $220.6 million to build the classroom space.

September 5, 2012

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State school board to pick up tab for preschool in magnet schools

By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas

The State Board of Education unanimously voted Wednesday that school districts will no longer be required to pay tuition to send their students to preschools at nearby magnet schools.

Instead, for the school year that just started, the state will pay the $4 million cost of sending the 1,250 preschool students outside their district.

But during the next legislative session, lawmakers will have to determine a policy for subsequent years.

August 31, 2012

Nine school districts to apply for Race to the Top federal money

By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas

Having watched the state strike out in its three attempts to land federal Race to the Top money to reform schools in Connecticut, officials at eight urban districts and the state's technical high school system have decided to try their luck in the fourth round.

August 28, 2012

A onetime foe joins the Malloy administration

By Mark Pazniokas

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy's choice of Sharon M. Palmer as his next labor commissioner helps heal political wounds with organized labor by his public embrace of Palmer, the blunt and irreverent union president who fought him over education reform.

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August 28, 2012

Malloy to name Palmer of AFT as labor commissioner

By Mark Pazniokas

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy is turning to Sharon Palmer of Waterford, the leader of a teachers' union that battled the governor over elements of his education reform plan, as his next commissioner of labor.

The Malloy administration, which is set to announce the appointment this afternoon, had no comment. But the choice of Palmer was saluted by John Olsen, the president of the Connecticut AFL-CIO, in an email he sent to AFL-CIO executive board members.

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August 13, 2012

Preschool funding issue pits magnets against local districts

By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas

Up against a court-ordered deadline to reduce the racial isolation of Hartford's largely black and Hispanic school population, the State Board of Education must soon decide whether to remove a major incentive white suburban parents have to send their children to an integrated magnet school: free preschool.

"I don't know what we'll decide," said Allan B. Taylor, board chairman. The board will vote on the matter in the next two months.

August 9, 2012

Bridgeport school reformer brought 'dramatic transformation'

By Robert A. Frahm

Even though a court ruled it illegal, the state's ouster of the Bridgeport Board of Education last year has produced encouraging results, according to some members of the State Board of Education.

The replacement of the former Bridgeport board with new appointees led to the hiring of noted school reformer Paul Vallas, whose work as Bridgeport's superintendent drew praise Thursday from the state board following a report on his first six months on the job.

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August 9, 2012

State approves rescue plans for four struggling schools

By Robert A. Frahm

When state officials approved a plan Thursday to rescue Hartford's troubled Milner School, they took a leap of faith that the latest strategy would succeed where years of earlier efforts have failed.

The State Board of Education approved turnaround plans for Milner and three other struggling, impoverished urban schools in Bridgeport, New Haven and Norwich -- the first schools to be selected for millions of dollars in state assistance and intervention under a new Commissioner's Network.

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July 31, 2012

Report criticizes for-profit colleges for high tuition, low graduation, high loan default rates

By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas

Thousands of Connecticut students are expected to enroll in for-profit colleges this upcoming school year, and according to a new report, most will not graduate. Nevertheless, they will be charged more for tuition than they would have been at a nearby public college, and taxpayers will pick up much of the cost in the form of defaulted loans or student aid.

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July 19, 2012

Achievement gaps linger between students from low-income families and their peers

By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas

The results are in on how nearly 300,000 public school students did on standardized tests this spring -- and the big achievement gap between students from low-income families and their more affluent peers remains largely unchanged since last year.

"Significant gaps in achievement continue between economically disadvantaged students and their peers," Education Commissioner Stefan Pryor said when releasing the results late Thursday.

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July 13, 2012

More money: the only way to fix the schools?

By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas

The main argument that Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch gave was this: Hartford and New Haven, which have about the same number of students and student needs, receive much more funding per student than Bridgeport does.

The state gives Bridgeport $7,810 per student, while it gives Hartford nearly $1,000 more per student, and New Haven gets more than $200 per student.

"No one is fully funded, but Bridgeport is less funded than any other city," Finch said. "We need your help in correcting that."

July 11, 2012

Rise in students exempt from exams raises questions

By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas

One of every 20 students is being directed to take standardized tests created for children with severe or moderate disabilities, a significant increase in the past five years. Poor results on these alternative or modified tests won't penalize a school district, unlike weak results on standardized tests that most students must take.

Although overall enrollment has declined over the past five years, the number of children identified as having severe learning disabilities who took the Skills Checklist rose by almost 32 percent, or 900 students.

June 27, 2012

New teacher evaluations linked to student outcomes approved

By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas

The State Board of Education Wednesday approved teacher evaluation requirements that pave the way for up to a third of a teacher's grade to be linked to how his or her students perform on standardized tests.

The state's 50,000 teachers will also be evaluated on the results of announced and unannounced classroom observations and anonymous parent or student surveys, if their local school board decides to use surveys to fulfill the feedback requirement.

"This is probably one of the most important things we are going to be doing this year," Allan B. Taylor, the chairman of the state board, said before the unanimous vote.

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June 27, 2012

Adamowski named special master for New London schools

By Jacqueline Rabe Thomas

Steven Adamowski was named the "special master" for New London Wednesday by the state's education commissioner.

"Steve has exhibited all of the qualities ... that we need," Education Commissioner Stefan Pryor told the State Board of Education Wednesday. "He has a long track record here... Steve has paved the way" with his work in Windham and Hartford.

June 25, 2012

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Connecticut Democrats urge quick action on student loans

By Aroosa Masroor

Hartford -- As Republicans and Democrats in Washington move toward a deal to keep rates low on a popular student loan program, Connecticut Democrats Monday urged quick action.

In five days, nearly 7.5 million college students across the country are slated to see the interest rates on their Stafford loans double, from 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent.

The lower rate was established by Congress in 2007, but it is set to expire July 1.

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