2009-01-26

By KATE FARRISH | The Hartford Courant
January 23, 2009
Proposed education bills that would standardize curriculum, regionalize some school services and open all public schools on the same day — after Labor Day — have opponents worried about a loss of local control.
The bills, proposed last week by state Sen. Thomas P. Gaffey, D- Meriden, and state Sen. Edith Prague, D-Columbia, would establish a uniform starting day in 2010, require the regionalization of some district functions and establish a recommended kindergarten-through-12th-grade curriculum. The ideas could reduce costs and eliminate duplication of services, Gaffey said.

"We can't afford this year to not think out of the box," Gaffey said. "We're not going to have the money we've had in the past."

A sampling of school leaders were wary that the proposals would further erode the authority of school boards and administrators.



"I've been concerned that there's an agenda in the legislature to usurp some of the powers of local boards of education," said John Gallacher, Enfield's superintendent of schools. "They do these things that are 'one size fits all.'"

Districts need the freedom to set their own school calendars to accommodate construction, teacher contracts or the needs of residents, educators said.

"I think it's a solution in search of a problem," said Michael Rizzo, chairman of Manchester's board of education.

Patrice McCarthy, deputy director of the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education, said her group has opposed a uniform start date in the past and will do so again.

Gaffey said it makes sense for schools to start after Labor Day, when the weather is cooler, children can focus better and family vacations are over.

The idea of regionalizing services drew some opposition.

"I don't understand how regionalization would save us money, and it would take away our flexibility," said Richard C. Brown, chairman of the board of education in Glastonbury. "I'm not an advocate of uniformity."

Through the state's regional education service centers, such as the Capitol Region Education Council, districts can already buy items together, such as computers and, in some cases, fuel, McCarthy said.

"We don't need a law to require it. The vehicle to do this is already there," she said.

Gaffey said he is concerned about duplication of services, particularly in small districts.

"The fact that Connecticut has so many tiny little school districts, there's a huge cost," he said.

But McCarthy said that in many small districts, administrators work part time or hold multiple positions.

Rizzo said he would be skeptical of a statewide curriculum.

"We're better off left with local authority to tailor the curriculum to our needs," he said.

But McCarthy said a well-thought-out curriculum in some areas, such as math or science, would be welcome as long as support for struggling students accompanies it.

"If we are committed to high achievement for all students, the curriculum can be the same," she said. "Math can be the same in Bridgeport and Greenwich."

Gaffey said the state can recommend the best curriculum and tie it to standardized tests.

"We're not trying to stifle ingenuity in the classroom, but a structured curriculum statewide could improve student performance," he said.