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Moments ago, our goal of equitable school funding in Connecticut moved one step closer to reality.
We have some very exciting news to share!
Today, the General Assembly’s Appropriations Committee passed a state budget with education funding changes that will benefit tens of thousands of students across Connecticut!
This budget:
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Reverses the Governor’s proposed freeze to the ECS phase-in;
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Increases ECS funding for English Language Learners (ELL) and concentrated poverty, sending much-needed resources to Connecticut’s highest-need traditional school districts, totaling an additional $4.7 million in FY2022 and $9.4 million in FY2023;
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Allocates over $7 million to increase the per-pupil spending for charter schools, which serve primarily Black and brown students from low-income backgrounds, to the statutory foundation amount of $11,575;
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Allocates $1.2 million in additional support for charter schools with English Language Learners;
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Provides funding of $3.7 million in both FY2022 and FY2023 for vocational-agricultural schools; and
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Lays the groundwork for OFA to study and report on long-term, structural funding reform for Connecticut public schools by January 2022.
These changes amount to an immediate $48.5 million increase, and $110 million over the biennium, in state dollars for public education, compared to the Governor’s proposed budget.
When combined with federal funding, Connecticut students stand to receive an unparalleled investment in their futures.
ConnCAN has been at the center of this policy work, by advocating for SB948 An Act Addressing Education Funding and Racial Equity in Connecticut.
Working with FaithActs for Education, the School + State Finance Project, Connecticut Charter Schools Association and Educators 4 Excellence – CT, the Education Justice Now coalition has mobilized thousands of community members across the state to advocate for long-term solutions to Connecticut’s inequitable education funding system. The legislature’s proposed budget contains many of these much-needed solutions aimed directly at Connecticut’s $639M racial funding gap.
As ConnCAN continues in this effort, we will provide actionable data, honest insights and necessary connections between lawmakers and their constituencies to usher in a new era of equitable funding for all Connecticut students.
The state’s public charter schools, which serve more than ten thousand students, most of whom are low-income students of color, will see their largest funding increase in over a decade.
With this budget, Connecticut has taken a major step toward funding all public school students equitably and based on their needs.
More information about student-centered education funding can be found here: https://linktr.ee/studentcenteredfunding