April-2020-Special-Edition

ADVOCATING

SPECIAL EDITION • APRIL 2020 CEA ADVISOR 3

LEADING WITH REFERENDUMS NO LONGER REQUIRED,

EDUCATION BUDGETS COULD BE DECIDEDWITHOUT YOUR INPUT Speak up: School funding more important than ever as districts face myriad new challenges

The move to distance learning during the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the inequities that exist between the haves and have nots— and that’s not just between towns but among students in the same town. All towns in Connecticut have students who are struggling during this unprecedented time, which is evidence of the great need that exists for public education resources across the state. Many cities and towns are currently crafting their budgets for the 2020-2021 school year under an executive order from Governor Lamont that suspends local budget voting requirements, including town meetings and referendums. In the nearly 120 towns impacted, the order gives the board of selectmen the final authority to approve spending levels and local mill rates. In regional districts, the order gives regional boards of education the power to adopt the budget for the upcoming school year in a similar manner. The executive order doesn’t prevent teachers and parents from weighing in and making their voices heard, however, and doing so is more important than ever. In light of the growing economic crisis, some districts are looking to cut education spending or flat-fund it. That could prove disastrous to students. “Our students are not just a number in the checkbook,” says CEA Portland President Sue McDougall. “Town officials need to hear our side of the story to get the boots-on-the-ground perspective— what it’s like when a student is misbehaving and there are no additional staff to support him or her. Last year our budget didn’t include funds for new Chromebooks for our eighth-graders. When the computers broke, they were out of warranty, so some children were left without. That’s not fair. What if that’s your child?” COVID slide The setbacks that students commonly experience over summer break have been shown to easily undo months of academic growth. The learning losses likely to result from a prolonged school shutdown due to the coronavirus pandemic—so-called COVID slide—could be unprecedented. Some studies suggest that students who lack steady instruction during the current school shutdown could lose 30 percent of their annual reading gains and more than half—if not all—of their academic achievement in math. For those whose families are struggling financially or suffering from food insecurity, the losses could be profound. A potential learning reversal of this magnitude will need to be addressed and remediated, and for that to happen, schools will need more resources than ever, not fewer. “We’re looking at our summer school program and realizing it’s going to need to include more focus on fundamentals than in the past,” says McDougall. “There are so many kids not keeping up who are going to be behind. If cuts to our school

budgets are severe, how are we going to be able to fund summer school?” “We don’t know when we’ll be back in our school buildings, but the social-emotional piece is going to be more important than ever,” says Education Association of Cromwell President Leigh Neumon. Earlier this year, the Cromwell Board of Education had budgeted for new

commissions. Call and email them. Town leaders’ gut reaction at this time might be to hold the line or even cut the budget, and while it’s important to acknowledge that this is a difficult time for everyone and that teachers are striving more than ever to make connections with students, we know that in the fall, schools will need to remediate, and that will take

so check your town or regional website, call their offices, and keep the chain of communication open with others in your town. Let’s make sure we start off the next school year with the resources we need for our students.” “The most important thing you can do when you contact local elected officials is speak from your own personal perspective about what cuts will mean for teachers,” says Neumon. “The people on our Board of Finance are not educators; they don’t know how to do our job. It’s up to us to help elected officials see why we need a budget increase. It’s not just numbers; it’s people.” Neumon recommends that CEA members keep an eye out for how they can get involved and attend virtual Board of Education, Board of Finance, and Town Council or Board of Selectmen meetings. “For some of our Cromwell teachers it has been easier to attend a virtual meeting than it normally is to attend an in- person meeting, because they can log in from home even if they don’t have child care.” Ninety Cromwell teachers were able to attend a virtual Board of Education meeting, and Neumon said it really showed the Board that teachers were listening. Teachers also wrote letters to the Board of Finance, and even though they didn’t achieve all of their goals, elected officials clearly heard teachers’ concerns.  “Never underestimate what members can do working together,” Neumon says. “When we all speak out, that can’t be ignored.”  

SUPPORT OUR STUDENTS

CEA is sharing online ads on social media platforms featuring educators from all over the state. In the ads, teachers describe all that they are doing during these challenging times and explain why they must be part of the conversation about school budgets. Watch at youtu.be/G_8YAv_pyi8 .

social work positions that have since been cut by the Board of Finance.  “We need those social workers to help students who are going to be coming to us with depression, feeling isolated,” Neumon says. Spread the word “It’s extremely important that teachers talk to their friends and neighbors at the local level about these issues so that they understand why it’s important to support education funding,” says CEA Executive Director Donald Williams. “It’s imperative that CEA members think about relationships they have with town leaders and those who serve on key boards and

additional resources. And if classes are not being held at school in the fall, there will be a need for even more technology, more laptops, and other resources.” “Keep your eyes open and your ears to the ground,” says CEA President Jeff Leake. “Listen for news of any local budget hearings in the towns where you live and work and make sure you have a voice in those decisions. Operating during a time of social distancing is new for municipalities, and there have been issues with some cities and towns not clearly posting announcements about upcoming budget hearings or votes,

CEA SUPPORT Cromwell, Portland, and other local associations have worked with CEA’s Government Relations Department so that they can reach not only CEA members who teach in their towns but also teachers who live there. Contact Gus Melita, gusm@cea.org , for more information about how to reach CEA members in your town. A few strategies to ensure your education budget doesn’t fall short: • Monitor your town’s website for news and announcements. Sign up to receive email or text notifications of upcoming meetings, hearings, and events. Also check for instructions on submitting testimony. • Politics is relationships. Reach out to people you know who serve on the Board of Finance, Board of Selectmen, or Board of Education. Explain how budget cuts or flat-funding could make a major education setback even worse. • Engage your colleagues. If town budget meetings are being held via Zoom or similar platforms, join by putting up the name of your local education association and the same photo or logo to show solidarity. • In virtual meetings, use the chat box and encourage your fellow teachers to do the same with a consistent message, such as, “I’m a proud teacher. Don’t flat-fund our budget.” • Flex your political muscle. Get allies who are taxpayers in your teaching town to advocate for a fair education budget. • Even if you don’t live in your teaching town (and therefore cannot vote on that town’s budget), you may still be able to participate in virtual meetings and leave comments. • Make sure other residents in your town know why it’s so important to fund schools. Send a short and clear letter to the editor for publication in your local paper. • Contact CEA for online petition resources— info@cea.org .