Looney, Duff and McCrory Decry Executive Order Undermining Equity in School Discipline

HARTFORD – Senate President Martin Looney, Majority Leader Bob Duff and Senator Doug McCrory condemned Thursday a new executive order from President Donald Trump, which reverses policies designed to address long-standing racial disparities in school disciplinary actions.

These policies have sought to keep more students in classrooms across the country. However the order, one of several signed by Trump on Wednesday, rolls back federal guidance, which had previously advised schools to adjust their disciplinary policies if students of color were found to be suspended or expelled from school at a disproportionate rate.

“This executive order from the Trump administration is troubling, given that large disparities already exist in how discipline is applied in classrooms across the country,” Senators Looney and Duff said. “Policies that endeavor to address those inequities are not ‘ideological,’ they are grounded in statistics that demonstrate that the American education system has disproportionately penalized Black and Brown students. Reversing those policies doesn’t make anyone safer; it simply reinforces the injustices we should be working to end. It’s yet another cruel and regressive directive from an administration intent on undermining the futures of those who aren’t wealthy and white. Our kids deserve better.”

“One look at the data should be enough to clear up any misconceptions about the ‘fairness’ of school disciplinary policies,” said Senator McCrory, Senate Chair of the legislature’s Education Committee. “Here’s the headline: Black and Brown kids are being kicked out of schools far more often and far longer than their white counterparts who engage in the same behavior. That was before this destructive new executive order.  We must do better than this for the sake of an entire generation of young people, who are entitled to an education system that prepares them for success instead of putting a target on their backs.”

Disparities in the application of school discipline are longstanding and exist in states across the country, including Connecticut. In 2015, the General Assembly took action to address the issue in an effort to ensure more students stay in school. Connecticut law, with certain exceptions, prohibits local school boards from imposing out-of-school suspension on students in grades pre-K through two.

Looney, Duff, Slap Condemn Trump’s Latest Attack on Higher Education

HARTFORD – Today, Senate President Martin Looney, Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff, and Senator Derek Slap, Senate Chair of the Higher Education and Employment Advancement Committee, issued a statement condemning President Donald Trump’s latest attack on institutions of higher education. In an Executive Order announced Wednesday night, President Trump took aim at the accreditation process which allows approved institutions to accept Pell grants and federal student loans, which account for more than $120 billion a year nationwide.

“One of Connecticut’s greatest resources is our colleges and universities and our belief in higher education as a pathway to opportunity.

“Institutions of higher education have always enjoyed freedom from government overreach as they foster free thinking and educate the future leaders of our country. Through attacking accreditors, Donald Trump continues his witch hunt to quell educational freedom in favor of advancing his own political agenda.

“While attacking long-standing accreditation agencies, the President is encouraging the creation of new, Trump-approved accreditors who will no doubt pave the way for bad actor institutions to discriminate against their students, or perhaps for a Trump University 2.0.

“The Trump Administration is hell-bent on expanding the reach of the federal government into every classroom, doctor’s office, research lab, board room, law office and nearly every facet of American life. He is following a very specific and a very chilling playbook and we urge Republicans in Connecticut to remember our shared oath and take a stand for their constituents and for our democracy.”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Kevin Coughlin | kevin.coughlin@cga.ct.gov | 203-710-0193

Senate President Looney & Speaker Ritter Release Statement on Budget Before the Appropriations Committee

HARTFORD – Today, Senate President Martin Looney (D-New Haven) and Speaker of the House Matt Ritter (D-Hartford) released the following statement regarding the budget which is being voted out of the Appropriations Committee today.

“We want to extend our sincere thanks and deep appreciation to Senator Osten and Representative Walker for their tireless work crafting the committee’s budget proposal. Over the past months, they have listened intently to countless voices from constituents, fellow legislators, advocates, stakeholders, and the administration. Together, they worked through an incredibly complex set of needs and priorities to produce a document that reflects the values and concerns of our state.

“There is no question that building this budget was a difficult and delicate task. After years of constrained growth, flat funding, and the effects of inflation, the pressures from every sector in our state have grown significantly. Many of these needs are not new; they are the result of years of deferred investment. The budget produced today represents an honest attempt to catch up and move forward.

“This process has also made one thing abundantly clear: some of the current fiscal guardrails, while originally well-intentioned, are too rigid to allow for the basic investments Connecticut must make to meet its obligations and grow responsibly. To that end, we follow the lead of the Governor’s original proposed plan to raise the state’s volatility threshold. This will allow us to provide the level of service and opportunity our residents deserve.

“As this document moves out of committee today, we now enter the next phase of the process. We look forward to continuing conversations with Governor Lamont and his team as we work toward a final budget agreement before the conclusion of session on June 4th. Our shared goal is a responsible, compassionate, and forward-looking budget that reflects a consensus on Connecticut’s needs.”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Kevin Coughlin | kevin.coughlin@cga.ct.gov | 203-710-0193

Looney & Duff Stand with Higher Education Protests Against Trump’s Assault on CT Universities

HARTFORD – Today, Senate President Martin Looney (D-New Haven) and Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff (D-Norwalk) released the following statement supporting protests today from Yale University and University of Connecticut students and faculty against the actions of the Trump administration.

“We stand with the UConn and Yale communities and share their outrage at the unprecedented and ongoing Republican attacks on higher education, scientific research, freedom of speech, and human rights. The students and faculty who are protesting in peaceful defiance of these senseless and often cruel actions should be commended for their conviction. Senate Democrats are committed to doing everything in our power to protect Connecticut’s colleges and universities from these assaults on our shared values. We encourage our Republican colleagues to do the same.”