Earlier in the month, a viewpoint was posted about the new requirement of submission of an edTPA portfolio by all incoming teachers in Connecticut as yet another barrier to teachers entering education. I respect the view of the author; however, as an educator who has the pleasure of working with this program, I must present another side and view of this issue.

Connecticut’s 10-year-anniversary of raising the age for handling youth in juvenile court from 16-years-old to 18-years-old is a real opportunity for communities to celebrate the success of this reform —that not only were part of justice reforms statewide, but that helped spark a ‘raise the age’ movement across the country.

How can Connecticut consumers have more local control over the amount of renewable energy they receive?  Through the use of a tool called Community Choice Aggregation (CCA), Connecticut cities and towns can do more to direct their energy purchases toward renewable sources — while saving money at the same time. Other states such as Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, New York, California and four more are doing this, and our legislators should make it possible here, too.