As an instructional coach in the New Haven Public School system, it is time to make my voice heard. I have watched cuts continually impact our schools, and more importantly, our students. The young people in our society, the next generation, are being failed. 

We have staffing shortages in all departments, though they do disproportionately impact those with Individualized Education Programs (IEP). These students are being left without crucial services. We need more paraeducators in our schools. We need to fill the staffing gaps in special education and among unique service providers, including school psychologists, occupational therapists, and math interventionists. Until recently, we were sharing a social worker with another school in the district. The impact on students was profound because they had to wait to speak with the social worker, sometimes while experiencing a crisis. 

Decades of underfunding school districts like mine have led to an inability to fully staff our schools, leaving students’ educational needs unmet. This approach needs to change. Research shows that when students have their needs met, they thrive in school. If we are not fulfilling those needs, we are setting them up for failure. 

This issue extends beyond special education programs. We know that students excel in smaller classroom settings. The difference between 20 students and 25 students in a classroom is significant, especially in early elementary grades. When one teacher is alone with 26 six-year-olds and no paraeducator, it becomes difficult to teach. A significant amount of time is spent reminding students about personal space, keeping them seated, and assisting with tasks. Without an extra set of hands or a smaller classroom size, valuable learning time is lost. 

The Educational Cost Sharing (ECS) formula is not working. Districts are receiving significantly less funding than needed. New Haven alone is short nearly $87 million since 2019. The formula also fails to account for the needs of special education students. Additionally, there has been little adjustment over the past decade to address inflation and the increased acuity of care for the growing number of students arriving in our districts with varying needs, including disabilities and multilingual learning needs. 

The time to make a change is now. We cannot wait any longer. The children who depend on us are being left behind, and if we do not act, it may be too late. We need to increase funding for our school districts to address the critical staffing shortages. We need to modify and improve the ECS formula to account for the needs of special education students. We need to change the state’s fiscal guardrails, which are preventing over a billion dollars in surplus revenue from being used for our students and our communities. 

When students’ educations are suffering, it is not the time to boast about having extra money available. However, this move cannot be small. It must be bold. The guardrails that have withheld funds from our communities, particularly in vital areas like education, need to be adjusted.

Instead of taking action, lawmakers continue to watch essential programs struggle. Federal funding for education is projected to reach an all-time low, yet the Gov. Ned Lamont refuses to listen to educators who are calling for help. 

We are drowning, and we need the State of Connecticut to step in with a lifeline. 

Elizabeth Black lives in Rocky Hill.