Teachers’ Wish List For State Assembly

HARTFORD (AP) — The state budget may be in the red next fiscal year, but it is not stopping state education officials from dreaming big.

The state Department of Education recently sent a wish list to the General Assembly totaling more than $41 million for the 2005-2006 year, even as lawmakers grapple with a projected $1 billion deficit.

At the heart of the wish list is funding for children in the state’s neediest school districts to attend preschool. Though the state is short on cash, considering the proposal now helps lay the groundwork, explained Education Commissioner Betty Sternberg.

“It’s important to make clear what it is that’s needed and sow the seeds and to get the discussion going,” she said.

Governor M Jodi Rell has made early childhood education one of the priorities in her administration. Speaking to state superintendents in August, she said the investment to send students to preschool is “far cheaper than the cost of failure.”

The investment, however, is substantial, and lawmakers and others predict the state will not be able to afford it now. The Department of Education estimated that to provide preschool for 3,810 students, it would cost $12 million in 2005-2006 and another $24 million in 2006-2007.

The governor is examining several proposals related to preschool, said Janice Gruendel, an early childhood education adviser appointed by  Gov Rell this summer. The most ambitious of those proposals is the one from the Department of Education, she said.

“Honestly, I don’t think we’re going to see $40 million in new money. The budget deficit is extremely large, and the governor is understandably cautious,” Ms Gruendel said.

But Ms Gruendel said officials are looking at other ways the state can move toward expanding access to preschool programs while dealing with the anticipated budget deficit.

Lawmakers predicted the department’s wish list — which also includes funding for a pilot laptop computer program in ninth and tenth grades, incentives to help retain urban teachers and administrators, and various tools for curriculum development — faces a difficult course in a tight budget year.

Senator Thomas Gaffey, chair of the legislature’s Education Committee, said the department’s plans are “not within the realm of reality.”

“It’s rather irresponsible to even propose that,” he said. “We need to retain our investment in school readiness preschool programs that we’re conducting today, and hopefully build a little bit on those programs.”

Besides preschool, lawmakers are expected to evaluate a long list of education proposals. Among them is an annual debate about the formula the state uses to fund schools. Cities and towns across the state say the formula is unfair. Some lawmakers want to tweak it; others say the confusing formula should be scrapped completely.

House Minority Leader Robert Ward states that another option would be to fund schools in cities and towns separately.

“Probably, the three largest cities ought to be addressed as a critical need, then we ought to have a fair funding formula for the rest,” he said.

 The legislature will also likely examine the effect special education costs are having on school districts, Sen Gaffey said. Another proposal calls for adjusting laws so that charter schools can expand.

Also in play are bills about high school sports.

One upcoming bill would eliminate “pay to play,” a policy that requires student athletes to pay a fee to participate on sports teams. Several districts, faced with tight budgets, have implemented the policy in recent years to avoid cutting programs.

Lawmakers are also expected to introduce a bill that would mandate education about anabolic steroids in middle and high school health classes, following the recent steroid scandals in track and baseball.

Teachers have some requests, too. The Connecticut Education Association has appealed to the governor, asking for full funding for the pension fund for teachers. A recent report found that the pension fund’s unfunded liability has risen to $5.2 billion, as the state prepares for a retirement wave among educators.

Not all the proposals carry a price tag.

One of Ms Sternberg’s proposals would not cost a dime, just some paperwork. She wants to change a state law so that retired teachers could come back and work in needy school districts for two years.

“Those are relatively easy ones,” she said.