Some people think that teacher tenure is a guarantee of a job for life. It isn’t, and it shouldn’t be. The American Federation of Teachers in Connecticut has worked closely with the chairs of the General Assembly’s Education Committee to draft legislation (Senate Bill 1160) that will redesign teacher evaluation systems and align them to […]
CT Viewpoints
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Connecticut economic scoreboard: 0-5
The Day, Jan. 26, 2011: The owner of Yardney Technical Products Inc. in Pawcatuck said Tuesday that the company will move its operation and its 150 employees to a new building in East Greenwich, R.I. President Yevoli said he tried to find a location in Connecticut but was unable to find one that met his […]
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A grown-up choice on teacher layoffs
Connecticut’s grown ups have an unprecedented opportunity this year to make decisions that will put our students’ needs first. Tightened budgets at the state and district levels have us all thinking: how can we be doing things better? Is there a way to approach these painful cuts that allows us to weigh potential reductions against […]
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Mandatory paid sick leave a bad idea for Connecticut’s restaurants
The restaurant industry in Connecticut has not been immune to the economic crisis that has faced our state; we have seen some very challenging days. People were saving wherever they could, and that meant spending less on eating out, which created a tough climate for our restaurants. But most have survived and are looking forward […]
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Let’s do what we can to keep great teachers in the classroom
How well we educate our youth is a true measure of how well we are, or are not, investing in the future of our state and country. That is why during these difficult economic times, we must not simply cry foul about the things that are wrong with our system, but instead look to what […]
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National Popular Vote bill is risky and unnecessary
(Rep. John Hetherington of New Canaan is ranking Republican on the Government Administration and Elections Committee) You might think that our General Assembly has enough to worry about, considering Connecticut’s record deficits and debt. But apparently not in the view of some legislators who want to change the way we elect the President of the […]
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Early education is critical to closing the achievement gap
(Margie Gillis is president of Literacy How Inc.) The recent series of articles on Connecticut’s achievement gap are timely and do a good job of describing the problem at hand. While the series points to the need for early intervention, it neglects two critical aspects of addressing this issue-the need to recognize and respond to […]
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Merging state watchdog agencies will subvert transparency
(James H. Smith is a retired Connecticut journalist, an officer of the Connecticut Council on Freedom of Information, and the author of “A Passion for Journalism, A Newspaper Editor Writes to His Readers.”) Where has wisdom fled to in American politics? With all the rancor and clamor across the land over how literally broke government […]
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Paid sick days for workers keep us all healthy
Elizabeth is a restaurant worker. Wanda is a school bus driver. Rosa works in retail. Gloria works as a home healthcare worker. One thing they all have in common: They don’t get paid sick days at their job. If we could pass legislation to stop people from getting sick, we could probably all agree on […]
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Higher ed reorganization will help state regain its educational edge
(Sen. Beth Bye is co-chair of the legislature’s Higher Education and Workforce Development Committee. She represents Bloomfield, Burlington, Farmington, West Hartford) For the last two months, as the public and legislators have debated Gov. Malloy’s proposed overhaul of our state university and community college system, I have been meeting with students, residents, business leaders and […]
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Last-in, first-out teacher layoff system can be changed this year
(Alex Johnston is chief executive officer of the school reform organization ConnCAN.) Gov. Malloy reassured many folks by promising not to cut state education funding, but many districts will still have to cut spending. Over the past couple of years, a number of districts have plugged budget holes with special funds, received directly from the […]
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Taxing discounts and coupons: A dangerous proposal
(State Rep. Vincent J. Candelora is a Republican representing East Haven, North Branford and Wallingford. He is the deputy House minority leader) I believe this budget session is going to be less about party politics and more about courage. Namely, which legislators will have the courage to stand up to the Governor’s budget proposal and […]
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Paid sick day mandate threatens struggling economy
(Kia Murrell is associate counsel for the Connecticut Business & Industry Association) Most Connecticut lawmakers ran for office on the promise of creating and growing jobs in the state. But the legislature’s Labor Committee has approved a proposal that actually would increase business costs, prevent job growth and could result in the loss of jobs. […]
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Budget crisis can create opportunity, too
(Steve Mandel is vice-chair of the Teach for America Connecticut advisory board.) Gov. Dannel Malloy has a very difficult job on his hands. He is new to his position, needs to build a top-flight management team to help him run the state, and must close a $3.5 billion budget deficit, one of the largest in […]
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Earned income tax credit should be part of state revenue package
(Luis Caban is president of the board of the Connecticut Association for Human Services and executive director of SINA, Inc.) Gov. Dannel Malloy’s call for a State Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) for low-wage workers would help struggling families make ends meet and pump much-needed funds into Connecticut’s economy. The EITC is considered to be […]