Senator McCrory, Education Committee Hold Public Hearing on Minority Teacher Recruitment, Financial Literacy Bills
State Senator Doug McCrory (D-Hartford), Co-Chair of the Education Committee, and members of the committee held a public hearing on bills to improve minority teacher recruitment and retention, and include financial literacy and computer science instruction in Connecticut’s high school graduation requirements.
“As a Black man and long-time educator, I understand first-hand the impact a teacher of color can have on all students, especially students of color, in the classroom. Connecticut’s students need to have teachers throughout their educational journey that reflect the diversity of our state. Further, a diverse teaching population helps to encourage our young leaders to see themselves one day as educators speaking at the front of the classroom and to consider entering a good-paying, fulfilling career that is being a teacher,” said Sen. McCrory.
“Understanding how to build credit and write a check are everyday-skills that will help students in each stage of their lives. Also, an increasing number of jobs ask applicants to have computer science skills. To have computer science and financial literacy instruction count toward high school graduation requirements will build up the number of students taking related courses and make them ready to work in a 21st century economy,” Sen. McCrory added.
S.B. 1034, An Act Concerning Minority Teacher Recruitment and Retention, contains several components to increase diversity in Connecticut’s teacher workforce including:
- Establish the minority candidate certification, retention or residency year program. The program would help candidates enroll into the program with the aim of becoming full-time, certified teachers upon successfully completing the program. In addition, the program would help local and regional boards of education hire and retain candidates that have completed the program. The Department of Education shall oversee the program starting with the fiscal year ending in June 2022 and each year after. Starting with the same fiscal year and each following year, boards of education for alliance districts would partner with the program to enroll candidates and have them placed in the school district as part of the program.
- The commissioner of education, the president of the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities and the dean of the Neag School of Education at UConn would collaborate on developing a plan to help local and regional boards of education promote the teaching profession to high school students as a career path.
- Starting with the school year beginning in July 2023, any employee of a school district responsible for or involved in the hiring of educators would need to successfully complete a video training module regarding implicit bias and anti-bias in the hiring process. This module would be completed before the employee’s participation in the hiring process for the school district.
- Students graduating in 2023 and each year after would need to complete a minimum of 25 credits: Nine credits in the humanities, including civics and the arts; nine credits in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, including computer science; one credit in physical education and wellness; one credit in health and safety education; one credit in world languages; a one credit mastery-based diploma assessment; and at least one credit, in personal financial management.
S.B. 1033, An Act Concerning the Inclusion of Computer Science and Financial Literacy as part of the High School Graduation Requirements, would require instruction in computer science and personal financial management to count toward the graduation requirements of high school students.
Sen. Cohen and Rep. Scanlon Applaud Open Space Grant for Guilford
Sen. Cohen and Rep. Scanlon Applaud Open Space Grant for Guilford
GUILFORD – State Senator Christine Cohen (D-Guilford) and state Representative Sean Scanlon (D-Guilford) today welcomed the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s announcement that an open space project in Guilford has been awarded a 2020 Open Space and Watershed Land Acquisition Grant.
Sponsored by the Guilford Land Conservation Trust, the Bartlett Land Preserve, Bluff Head project will receive $127,500 to protect 64 acres that is part of a traprock ridge at the northern reaches of Totoket Mountain in North Guilford. Totoket Mountain is part of the Metacomet Ridge.
“I enthusiastically advocated for this grant to be awarded to the Guilford Land Trust because open space is about more than just pretty places. It’s about history. It’s about our environment. It’s tourism and quality of life and home values and a future for our children,” said Sen. Cohen, who is Senate Chair of the Environment Committee. “I want to thank the governor and DEEP for their ongoing commitment to growing and protecting Connecticut’s open spaces so we all have room to relax and enjoy them in the year and years to come.”
“During my time in office I have been so proud to help the Guilford Land Conservation Trust receive state funding to acquire new properties and protect open space in our community”, said Rep. Scanlon. “Thanks to the generous support of many in our community and this latest round of state funding, the land trust will be able to purchase a beautiful piece of property and preserve Bluff Head for future generations to enjoy.”
The Bartlett Land Preserve parcel is surrounded by over 400 acres of protected open space owned by the Guilford Land Conservation Trust, the South-Central Regional Water Authority and the Town of Guilford. It contains a wetlands area and lies within the Coginchaug River watershed. The Connecticut Forest and Park Association has Blue-Blazed trails on the property for public use, and this acquisition will ensure that the public can continue to use these trails in perpetuity.
“The Guilford Land Conservation Trust greatly appreciates being awarded an OSWA grant in connection with the acquisition of the Bartlett Preserve in North Guilford,” said David Grigsby, President of the Guilford Land Conservation Trust. ”The past year’s challenges have demonstrated to us all how important access to open space can be in our lives. The challenging fundraising environment of the last year also demonstrates what an important resource the State’s OSWA grant program is for those seeking to preserve natural resources. I thank Governor Lamont, Senator Cohen and Representative Scanlon for their efforts in helping the GLCT to secure this grant.”
The Guilford Land Conservation Trust will also be acquiring an open space parcel to the east to be incorporated into the preserve.
Connecticut’s goal is to protect 673,210 acres, or 21%, of Connecticut’s total land area as open space by 2023. Ten percent of this open space is to be DEEP-owned as state parks, forests, and wildlife areas, while the other 11% is to be owned by towns, private non-profit land conservation organizations, water companies, and the federal government. The state is approximately 80% of the way toward its goal, with more than half a million acres already protected.
Senator Anwar Releases Statement in Response to Anti-Asian Mass Shootings Committed in Georgia
Senator Anwar Releases Statement in Response to Anti-Asian Mass Shootings Committed in Georgia
Today, State Senator Saud Anwar (D-South Windsor) released the following statement in response to a series of shootings committed yesterday in the greater Atlanta region of Georgia. According to recent news reports, three shootings committed at massage parlors left eight people dead, at least six of them identified to be women of Asian descent. The violent attacks come as continued reports of anti-Asian discrimination in the United States continue to rise; Stop AAPI Hate reported 3,795 incidents of anti-Asian discrimination from March 19, 2020 to February 28, 2021.
“While we wait for all the facts to become available, we are aware that threats have been made against Asian communities in Connecticut, and while law enforcement and legal proceedings are addressing some of them, it is important for us to recognize as a community that while we all have different backgrounds, we are all one as Americans,” said Sen. Anwar. “An attack against one and hatred against one is hatred and attacks against everyone. My heart and prayers are with the victims and their families in Atlanta. We need to strengthen harmony in our society so there are no attacks against others or any community for any reason in our state.”
State Senator James Maroney Supports Bill that Would Integrate Computer Science as Part of High School Graduation Requirements
State Senator James Maroney Supports Bill that Would Integrate Computer Science as Part of High School Graduation Requirements
Today, state Senator James Maroney (D-Milford) is releasing a statement in support of a bill that would require computer science to be a part of high school graduation requirements. SB 1003, An Act Concerning The Inclusion Of Computer Science And Financial Literacy As Part Of The High School Graduation Requirements, will be discussed today in a public hearing held by the Education Committee.
“Allowing Computer Science to count for a graduation requirement will increase the number of students taking a computer science course,” said Sen. Maroney. “This is critical for our workforce, as we continue to grow our tech economy, and more importantly, it is increasingly important for the students who will be living and working in a digital world.”
Under SB 1033, students who will graduate High School in 2023 and thereafter will have to complete a minimum of 25 credits which include nine credits in humanities, nine credits in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, including computer science, one credit in physical education and wellness, one credit in health and safety education, one credit in world languages, one credit mastery-based diploma assessment, and at least one credit in personal financial management.
Senator Maroney originally introduced legislation to make computer science a part of the High School curriculum a requirement in the state’s public schools in 2019. This bill, SB 1033, will allow Computer Science to count for a graduation requirement, rather than mandate it. A Computer Science course would count for a Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) credit.
Sen. Osten Testifies in Favor of a Model K-8th-Grade Curriculum that Includes Native American, Veteran and Other Studies
Sen. Osten Testifies in Favor of a Model K-8th-Grade Curriculum that Includes Native American, Veteran and Other Studies
HARTFORD – State Senator Cathy Osten (D-Sprague), who is a U.S. Army veteran and whose Senate district encompasses both the Mohegan and Mashantucket Pequot tribal nations, lent her support today to a bill that would create a model curriculum for grades K-8 that would be used by local and regional school boards and which would focus on Native Americans, veterans, and a host of other groups.
Sen. Osten lent her support today during the public hearing before the legislature’s Education Committee on House Bill 6619, “N ACT CONCERNING THE DEVELOPMENT OF A KINDERGARTEN TO EIGHTH GRADE MODEL CURRICULUM.”
The bill seeks to create a model grades K-8 curriculum that includes Native American studies, Asian Pacific American studies, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other sexual orientations and gender identities studies, climate change, personal financial management and financial literacy, and the military service and experience of American veterans.
Earlier this year, Sen. Osten introduced Senate Bill 249, “An Act Concerning the Inclusion of Native American Studies in the Social Studies Curriculum,” and that bill is incorporated into HB 6619.
“Connecticut’s history, and surely, that of New England, is a deep and rich one. However, too often in the classroom, examination of this history is compressed into a review of the so called first Thanksgiving and colonial America during the American Revolution. Almost nothing is mentioned of the time preceding this as if people found an empty land that was not already inhabited with peoples who had communities, government structures, religion and all other tenets of a complex life,” Sen. Osten told committee members.
“We are long overdue for an update in the way we teach our shared history. There will undoubtedly be parts of our past that are uncomfortable to learn about, but those uncomfortable parts are as crucial, if not more so, to be aware of, lest we be doomed to repeat the follies of our ancestors. We in Connecticut have such a rich and deep collection of different and unique cultures. Unfortunately, heretofore, we know extraordinarily little about them because that history is avoided in social studies curriculum,” she testified. “In my view, we perform a great disservice to ourselves and our children if we continue to choose to ignore Connecticut’s First Peoples place in the history of what we now know as Connecticut.”
Her entire testimony is attached.
Sen. Osten has introduced other Native American-related bills this session, including:
- Senate Bill 162, “An Act Concerning Management of Reservation Lands and Tribal Services,” which in part, provides a plan to aid the Schaghticoke Tribal Nation with the costs of building a retaining wall on tribal lands that had flooded from the construction of a nearby hydroelectric plant, the construction and flooding of which was authorized be the Connecticut General Assembly.
- Senate Bill 438, “An Act Prohibiting the Use of Native American Mascots in Public School”
- Senate Bill 224, “An Act Concerning the Removal and Replacement of Certain Depictions of Indigenous People and Historical Statutes within Legislative Buildings,” which seeks the removal from the State Capitol of the statue of John Mason, who led the Colonial torture, burning alive and massacre of the Pequots in 1637.
- Senate Bill 182, “An Act Establishing Indigenous Peoples Day”
Black and Brown United in Action Organization Writes Letter to Governor Lamont to Encourage Declaring Racism a Public Health Crisis by Executive Order
Black and Brown United in Action Organization Writes Letter to Governor Lamont to Encourage Declaring Racism a Public Health Crisis by Executive Order
Today, State Senator Marilyn Moore (D-Bridgeport), joined members of the Black and Brown United In Action group in writing a letter to Governor Lamont to encourage him to declare racism as a public health crisis by executive order. Senator Moore is committed to looking at everything through a racial equity lens in order to provide a more fair and equitable future for Black and Brown families in Connecticut.
“I have made the commitment to bring racial equity to all throughout Connecticut and by taking this action, we are one step closer to providing a safer and more just community for all,” said Senator Moore. “Governor Lamont can be part of the solution by declaring racism a public health crisis through executive order. It would help lead to the elimination of racial and ethnic inequities that currently exist while increasing opportunities for everyone.”
The letter sent to Governor Lamont is below:
March 16th, 2021
Re: Declare racism a Public Health Crisis by Executive Order Immediately
Dear Governor Lamont,
We are Black and Brown United In Action, a grassroots organization located in New Haven, Connecticut and we are reaching out to encourage you to lead progressively and aggressively in the State of Connecticut by declaring racism a public health crisis by executive order.
As you are aware, slavery in Connecticut dates as far back as the mid-1600s. Connecticut’s growing agricultural industry fostered slavery’s expansion, and by the time of the American Revolution, Connecticut had the largest number of slaves in New England. Slaves were mentioned in Hartford from 1639 and in New Haven from 1644. As in the rest of New England, they were few until about 1700. Even in the early 1700s, direct slave imports to Connecticut were considered too few to be worth the trouble of taxing. The governor reported only 110 white and black servants in Connecticut in 1709. In 1730, the colony had a black population of 700, out of a total enumeration of 38,000.
Yet on the eve of the Revolution, Connecticut had the largest number of slaves (6,464) in New England. Jackson Turner Main, surveying Connecticut estate inventories, found that in 1700 one in 10 inventories included slaves, rising to one in 4 on the eve of the Revolution. Between 1756 and 1774, the proportion of slave to free in Connecticut increased by 40 percent. All the principal families of Norwich, Hartford, and New Haven were said to have one or two slaves. By 1774, half of all the ministers, lawyers, and public officials owned slaves, and a third of all the doctors. Connecticut’s large slave population apparently was based in the middle class. More people had the opportunity to own slaves than in Massachusetts or Rhode Island, so more did so.
The largest increase came in the period 1749-1774. By the latter year, New London County had become the greatest slaveholding section of New England, with almost twice as many slaves as the most populous slave county in Massachusetts. New London was both an industrial center and the site of large slave-worked farms; with 2,036 slaves, it accounted for almost one-third of all the blacks in Connecticut. New London town itself, with 522 blacks and a white population of 5,366, led the state in the number of slaves and percentage of black inhabitants.
Discrimination against free black people was more severe in Connecticut than in other New England colonies. Their lives were strongly proscribed even before they became numerous. In 1690, the colony forbade Black and Indigenous people to be on the streets after 9 p.m. It also forbade Black “servants” to wander beyond the limits of the towns or places where they belonged without a ticket or pass from their masters or the authorities. A law of 1708, citing frequent fights between slaves and whites, imposed a minimum penalty of 30 lashes on any Black who disturbed the peace or who attempted to strike a white person. Even speech was subject to control. By a 1730 law, any Black, Brown or Indigenous slave who uttered or published, about any white person, words which would be actionable if uttered by a free white was, upon conviction before anyone assistant or justice of the peace, to be whipped with forty lashes. After the war, new ideas about freedom and the rights of men brought about the movement to end slavery in the United States. Unlike neighboring states, Connecticut emancipated its slaves very slowly and cautiously, claiming it wanted to ensure the process respected property rights and did not disrupt civic order.
Systemic, covert and structural racism play a large role in determining the conditions in which people are born, grow, work, live, and age, and affects people’s access to quality housing, education, food, transportation, political power, and other social determinants of health. Racism also has negative mental and physical health consequences such as, depression, anxiety, hypertension, preterm birth, shortened life span and poor quality of life. Understanding and addressing racism from this public health perspective is crucial to eliminating racial and ethnic inequities, and to improving opportunity and well-being across communities.
Racism has been declared a public health crisis in 6 states, 182 municipalities, entities, and organizations, including 20 municipalities in Connecticut. Governor Lamont while legislators and community members work together to create transformative legislation to advance racial justice in our state, we need your leadership. Our state, particularly communities of color need to receive this declaration from your hand.
Governor Lamont, we ask that you declare racism a public health crisis in the state of Connecticut by executive order immediately.
Sincerely,
Black and Brown United in Action
Cc: Representative Robyn Porter
Cc: Representative Marilyn Moore
Cc: Representative Toni Walker
Cc: Senator Richard Blumenthal
Cc: Senator Jorge Cabrera
Cc: Senator Martin Looney
Cc: Senator Chris Murphy
Sen. Abrams, Rep. Quinn Applaud Committee Passage of Lake Beseck Drawdown Legislation
Sen. Abrams, Rep. Quinn Applaud Committee Passage of Lake Beseck Drawdown Legislation
HARTFORD, CT – State Senator Mary Daugherty Abrams (D-Meriden, Middlefield, Rockfall, Middletown, Cheshire), state Representative Michael D. Quinn (D-Meriden, Middlefield, Rockfall), and Amy Poturnicki, president of the Lake Beseck Association, applauded the Environment Committee’s unanimous passage of House Bill (HB) 6384. This piece of legislation, “An Act Concerning Aquatic Invasive Species Effects on Lakes and Related Funding,” will require the commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection to enter into an agreement with the town of Middlefield and the Lake Beseck Association regarding a schedule for annual water level drawdowns of Lake Beseck.
“I am pleased the Environment Committee moved this legislation along unanimously,” said Sen. Daugherty Abrams. “This intervention is needed to begin to rid the lake of harmful invasive species that can make Lake Beseck unsafe for native species and people who enjoy it. This collaboration among the town, commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection and Lake Beseck Association will lead to a drawdown schedule that is best for the town, those who frequent and enjoy the lake, and ensures an even safer aquatic environment. I am grateful to have been able to work on getting this done with Amy Poturnicki and the Lake Beseck Association, whose commitment to the lake and our community are second-to-none and an example for the care and advocacy all our state’s natural resources deserve. I am confident this will gain passage in both chambers and arrive on the governor’s desk.”
“This legislation is important to the health of Middlefield’s Lake Beseck and I am pleased to see it moving forward and out of committee,” said Rep. Quinn. “Giving the town more flexibility as to when and how much to draw down will help ensure the lake remains safe and enjoyable for everyone. This project has been in the works for quite some time and I am glad the measure we introduced this session will make it closer to becoming a reality. Many thanks to my predecessor Buddy Altobello for his steadfast efforts to maintain and protect the lake.”
“I have been working closely with Sen. Daugherty Abrams on H.B. 6384 which looks to modify the Lake Beseck drawdown. Sen. Daugherty Abrams and Rep. Quinn know how much this bill means to the Lake Beseck community since it is a way to improve one of the few tools we have to manage aquatic plants in the lake,” said Poturnicki. “I am encouraged by the tremendous amount of support it has received, and optimistic that it will pass both the House and Senate and be signed by the Governor.”
Per the drafted legislation, “Water level draw downs shall be three feet during even-numbered years with completion achieved by December first of such year and maintained until March first of the following year. Water level draw downs shall be six feet during odd-numbered years achieved by November first of such year and maintained until [December] January thirty-first of [such] the following year; a three-foot water level draw down shall be maintained thereafter until March first of the following year.” Such water level drawdowns are designed to balance the various concerns of the lake community, including: Recreational needs, preservation of lakefront infrastructure, fisheries habitat and other natural resource concerns.
Senator Needleman Pleased to Announce East Hampton, Colchester, East Haddam to Receive Open Space Land Acquisition Grants from State
Senator Needleman Pleased to Announce East Hampton, Colchester, East Haddam to Receive Open Space Land Acquisition Grants from State
Today, State Senator Norm Needleman (D-Essex) was pleased to announce that, with the initial announcement of 2020 Open Space and Watershed Land Acquisition Grant Awards by the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, projects in Colchester, East Haddam and East Hampton will receive roughly $200,000 in total to assist with the purchase of important land to complete regional projects.
“I’m grateful to DEEP and the Governor for these grants, which will go a long way toward preserving the natural beauty we experience every day in Middlesex County,” said Sen. Needleman. “These projects will assist our local towns in preserving key open space and keep our forests and watershed areas free from threats of development or pollution. I’d like to thank the workers and volunteers, as well, who are dedicated to keeping Connecticut natural, wild and beautiful.”
The following projects will receive funding through the Open Space and Watershed Land Acquisition Grants:
- East Hampton will receive $46,500 to acquire the 7.5-acre Christopher Property, which contains Christopher Pond, fed directly by a Lake Pocotopaug tributary. This purchase is motivated by hopes of protecting Christopher Brook, protecting and improving water quality as it suffers from cyanobacteria blooms every summer. If acquired, the public would be allowed to use the property for fishing, kayaking, hiking and picnicking.
- Colchester will receive $63,000 to purchase the 65-acre Sablitz Property, located at the southern end of the state-designated Pine Brook Greenway. Almost the entire property has been designated as an aquifer protection zone and its conservation will protect 2,600 feet of river-adjacent land. The town plans to connect the property to the Richard Goodwin Trail and will construct a gravel parking area for 8-10 vehicles as well as a picnic area.
- East Haddam will receive $96,900 to purchase the 124-acre Hayward Parcel on O’Connell Road Extension, mostly forest land with mainly oak trees, located at the headwaters of the Eightmile River Watershed and supporting woodland-nesting bird species. It’s part of an extensive series of protected open space properties.
Looney, Duff Statement on Governor’s New Telehealth EO
Looney, Duff Statement on Governor’s New Telehealth EO
Today, Senate President Pro Tempore Martin M. Looney (D-New Haven) and Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff (D-Norwalk) released the following statement regarding Governor Lamont’s latest executive order extending telehealth rules until April 20.
“We’d like to thank Governor Lamont for his latest executive order to protect the health and safety of the people of Connecticut. The extension of expanded access to telehealth services to April 20 ensures patients can continue to receive the care they need. With COVID-19 hospitalizations spiking in some European countries, we must remain vigilant even as Connecticut continues to be in the top five states for vaccinations.”
Pat Billie Miller Sworn in as State Senator, Appointed Chair of Aging Committee and Vice Chair of Finance, Revenue, and Bonding Committee
Pat Billie Miller Sworn in as State Senator, Appointed Chair of Aging Committee and Vice Chair of Finance, Revenue, and Bonding Committee
Monday, outside the Connecticut State Capitol Building, Pat Billie Miller was sworn in as State Senator for the 27th District. On International Women’s Day, March 8th, Miller became the first woman to represent the 27th district, which includes sections of Stamford and Darien. Senator Miller also became the first person of color to represent the district.
She is only the fourth Black woman to serve in the state Senate and is currently one of two Black female legislators including state Senator Marilyn Moore (D-Bridgeport/Monroe/Trumbull), serving in the upper chamber.
Before joining the Senate, Miller proudly served Stamford’s 145th district as a member of the state House of Representatives since 2009. She was elected to a sixth term in November 2020 before being tapped to fill the seat in the Senate formerly held by Carlo Leone through a special election she won convincingly.
“I look forward to representing the community of the 27th district in the state Senate,” said Sen. Miller. “I am committed to doing more for this district and as a senator I can fight for issues that matter most. As a newly elected legislator in the Senate, I am committed to supporting our education system, expanding access to affordable health care, strengthening our economy, creating a more equitable society, giving tax relief to veterans and seniors, and finding solutions for several other issues that Connecticut residents face.”
Newly sworn in Senator Miller will serve as Senate Chair of the Aging Committee and Vice Chair of the Finance, Revenue, and Bonding Committee. She will also be a member of three committees close to her heart, those being the Education Committee, Commerce Committee, and the Veterans’ Affairs Committee.
Through her tenure in the legislature, Sen. Miller has been a strong advocate for education reforms that help address and improve Connecticut’s education opportunity gap. She has learned and seen firsthand the disproportion of students’ achievements and the role that literacy plays in their success or failure. Sen. Miller believes giving teachers the right tools to help them address disparities is a step in the right direction.
Sen. Miller took the lead in addressing and passing legislation aimed at creating a Reading Readiness Program at the State Department of Education. The program will assess Alliance Districts and Commissioner’s Network Schools to determine if students are reading ready and it will provide adequate support to the schools as it relates to performance and needs.
Sen. Miller has also been a strong proponent of campaign finance reform, strengthening domestic violence and consumer protection laws. She has served as a voice for the voiceless, particularly in vulnerable communities and advocating for the rights of marginalized groups.
Prior to joining the legislature, Sen. Miller spent her professional career in the Affordable Housing industry for over 25 years and served on the Stamford Board of Representatives.