Senate Minority Leader John McKinney, R-Fairfield, called on House Speaker Christopher Donovan, D-Meriden, to relinquish his leadership post Friday in the wake of the arrest of Donovan’s congressional fundraiser. The legislature should convene a committee of inquiry to determine if Donovan has done anything to warrant censure or expulsion, McKinney said. McKinney said the allegations […]
GOP senate leader calls on Donovan to step down
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Agreement reached on how to grade the teacher
Connecticut education leaders reached agreement Thursday on how much student standardized test results should count toward a teacher’s evaluation. And if the State Board of Education signs off, school districts may be able to tie as much as 49 percent of a teacher’s evaluation to standardized measures. “We cleared a major hurdle today,” Education Commissioner […]
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Pilot teacher evaluations will be announced Monday
List of semifinalists to pilot state’s teacher evaluations this upcoming school year The State Department of Education will announce Monday which districts the state’s new teacher evaluation will be piloted in. Thirtyfive school boards and superintendents applied to launch these new evaluations in their districts. On thursday the state department presented a list of 16 […]
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Roberti toughens response to Donovan campaign scandal
One of House Speaker Christopher G. Donovan’s two Democratic rivals in the party primary for the 5th Congressional District, Dan Roberti, toughened his stance Friday on the scandal plaguing the state House speaker’s campaign. One day after issuing a very cautious statement professing that “our campaign does not wish to inflame any issues surrounding the […]
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Jepsen won’t block Yale-New Haven, St. Raphael merger
Attorney General George Jepsen said Friday that he will not seek to block a proposed merger between Yale-New Haven Hospital and The Hospital of St. Raphael that would create a two-campus hospital in the Elm City. The decision came after an antitrust investigation of the proposal to determine whether the arrangement, under which Yale would […]
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Medicinal marijuana signed into law
A bill legalizing the use of medical marijuana as a palliative in Connecticut has been signed into law by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy. Connecticut is the 17th state to legalize marijuana for the chronically ill. The law limits access to those adults whose doctors certify in writing their patient can benefit from its use. Legalization, […]
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Malloy to colleges: no more semesters of remediation
A bill that limits the circumstances that college officials can require students to spend time and money taking non-credit remedial courses has been signed into law by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy. One quarter of the students who enter a public college in Connecticut spend their first year taking only non-credit remedial courses. Some even spend two […]
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Malloy, others press Donovan for answers
“I want to commend the US Attorney’s Office and the FBI for their diligence in the investigation and the speed in which they’ve taken action. Law enforcement is in many ways the first and last line of defense for our taxpayers, and when an announcement like this happens, we should all be grateful for their […]
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FBI arrests Chris Donovan’s congressional fundraiser
The finance director for House Speaker Christopher G. Donovan’s congressional campaign was arrested Wednesday by FBI agents and charged with illegally concealing the source of two $10,000 contributions for his campaign, authorities said Thursday. Donovan fired the fundraiser, Robert Braddock Jr., and his campaign manager, Josh Nassi, and hired Tom Swan of the Connecticut Citizen […]
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New Haven center funding: Bad precedent or community support?
Republican legislators opposed to state-funded improvements to a New Haven community center that houses a Communist newspaper conceded Thursday that Connecticut likely has funded many community projects with some degree of political ties over the years. Sen. Andrew W. Roraback of Goshen and Rep. Sean J. Williams of Watertown insisted the $300,000 earmarked for the […]
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McMahon says she was unaware of WWE’s libel threat
West Hartford — Linda McMahon was on message Wednesday, briskly talking about business, jobs and the economy. But her old company, World Wrestling Entertainment, intruded with the persistence of a colorful relative. With a litigation threat against a newspaper columnist who likened its programming to pornography, the company her husband still controls succeeded where her […]
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Finding the right mix to observe teachers
Bridgeport science teacher Christine O’Neil yearns for more feedback on how to become a better teacher, but her principal rarely has the time to observe her more than twice a year. Bridgeport science teacher Christine O’Neil talks observations with the state’s consultant for teacher evaluations “I would love to have a dozen pop-in visits each […]
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Leader to address ‘dysfunction’ on energy committee
At least four major components of the omnibus energy bill that never made it to the floor of either chamber of the General Assembly in the just-completed annual legislative session are likely to make their way into the special session in two weeks. While the move is expected to rectify some key issues — in […]
Posted inHealth
Former allies on Mass. health reform split on cost controls
If Massachusetts is any guide, finding agreement on how to provide health insurance to more people could be far easier than consensus on how to make it affordable, according to The Boston Globe. Reporter Chelsea Conaboy details disagreements among business and consumer groups that previously came together to support the state’s 2006 health reform law, […]
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A federal boost for Connecticut’s education reforms
When it came time for U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan to decide where he would make the announcement on which states landed an exemption to the federal No Child Left Behind requirements, he said Connecticut was the obvious choice. “Connecticut is absolutely a winner,” Duncan told a beaming Gov. Dannel P. Malloy in a crowded function room […]