New Haven Educators Demand More Federal Public School Funds

 

New Haven Federation of Teachers president Leslie Blatteau told a rally outside Metropolitan Business Academy early Monday morning that it's time to spend less on wars, make the wealthy pay their share in taxes, and meet the needs of every public school student.

The spirited demonstration of educators, students, elected officials and community members, held at 7:00 am, was one of three marking the day that federal ESSER (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief) pandemic funds ended. Other rallies were held at Fair Haven school and Brennan Rogers Magnet school.

New Haven Public Schools will be losing more than $127 million. One Metro teacher explained that among other things, the pandemic funds made it possible for the school to have a full time nurse, but without the funds the school will have to share a nurse with other schools,

State Senator Gary Winfield, telling about how important public schools are for his own children, pledged that when the next session of the State Legislature begins next year, funding will be his top priority, along with ending imposed spending restrains.

“September Surge”, rallies across the country including one in Hartford, called for swift passage of the "Keep Our Promise to America's Children and Teachers (PACT) Act" by the U.S. Congress. 

 

A local petition was launched urging New Haven's board of education to adopt a resolution to "Fund Our Schools." It calls for support of the federal PACT Act and would signal officials' commitment to safe, welcoming and thriving environments that meet the social and emotional needs of all students. 

 

The petition says passage would “signal that the people of our school districts widely support adequate, equitable, and sustainable funding increases to mitigate the harm caused by decades of underfunded schools.”

The almost $200 billion of relief funds to public education since the COVID-19 pandemic benefited students across the country with resources from one-on-one tutoring, to free summer schools, to additional support personnel for students with disabilities. Positive outcomes were seen academically, socially and emotionally.

The petition says that “by having school boards across the country pass resolutions supporting these efforts, we can galvanize this moment to shed light on the critical funding needs in our public schools.”

The local "September Surge" actions were organized by parents, community members, students and educators in the statewide Connecticut for All (C4A) coalition, with the New Haven Federation of Teachers spearheading the demonstrations.