Roland J. Lemar

Recent Posts

Not this year: Financial aid for undocumented students dies

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Legislation that would make undocumented students eligible to receive financial aid does not have enough votes to pass in the state House of Representatives, the bill’s sponsors say. “It doesn’t look good for that bill. There are a lot of my colleagues that are telling me, ‘Not this year,'” said state Rep. Roland Lemar, D-New Haven, who was trying to win votes for the bill. With 76 votes needed to pass it, that means at least 12 of the 87 Democrats in the House are not on board. The legislation has the support of UConn President Susan Herbst and Regents President Mark Ojakian. Continue Reading →

Filed under: Higher Education, Schools/Child Welfare, Roland J. Lemar

Magnet schools caught in squeeze over tuition, funding

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The state House of Representatives voted unanimously Monday to halt New Haven’s plan to begin charging nearby communities tuition for the 2,875 suburban students attending the magnet schools it operates. That and other factors are coalescing to put magnet schools in a funding squeeze. Continue Reading →

Filed under: K-12, Schools/Child Welfare, J. Brendan Sharkey, Patricia Dillon, Roland J. Lemar

One bill to tax Yale moves forward, another dies

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The legislature’s tax-writing committee Thursday approved a bill that would allow New Haven to begin taxing commercial property owned by Yale, but let die a controversial bill backed by the leader of the state Senate that would have allowed the state to tax the earnings of the Ivy League university’s multi-billion-dollar endowment. Yale has opposed both bills. Continue Reading →

Filed under: Budget/Economy, Higher Education, Finance Committee, New Haven, property tax, Rep. Toni Walker, Roland J. Lemar, Scott Frantz

Legislators advance in-state tuition, financial aid for undocumented students

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The state House of Representatives on Tuesday voted to expand the number of undocumented immigrants who qualify for much lower in-state tuition rates at Connecticut public colleges. Meanwhile, another bill that would make these students eligible to compete for a $140 million pool of financial aid was approved by the state Senate. Continue Reading →

Filed under: Higher Education, Schools/Child Welfare, Dannel P. Malloy, Martin M. Looney, Rob J. Kane, Roland J. Lemar, undocumented students, Vincent J. Candelora