To the Editor:

We all know the budgetary challenges in Connecticut, and we all agree growing jobs and the economy is a priority. But this will not happen with just promises to lower taxes and cut spending. Instead we will have to make hard choices and be explicit about priorities. For Connecticut to be a leading entrepreneurial state in a still undefined knowledge economy, we need to make access to higher education and support for local education our top priority. Eva Zimmerman has done this in Newtown, and she will do it statewide.

There have been severe cuts to state support for accessible higher education - that is the Connecticut State University system. Our state college system, which serves the majority of students in Connecticut, has already endured extreme cuts and faces at least 10 percent further cuts in the next year alone. This trend cannot go much further. Over the last two decades the state contributions to the CSU budget has dropped from over 70 percent, which made tuition affordable for all state citizens, to below 30 percent. We already face very steep increases in tuition and cuts to financial aid for the neediest students. All citizens of Connecticut need strong local schools and affordable access to higher education to become dynamic, flexible contributors to our economy and communities. Educated citizens drive the economy. We need a leader like Eva Zimmerman in Hartford. She understands and supports both local and higher education in Connecticut. She will make it accessible, quality education a priority for our shared future.

Charles Baraw

9 Georges Hill Road, Newtown         November 2, 2016