A better education is about hard work
A legal battle over Connecticut’s education funding system started over 15 years ago.
In 2016, Superior Court Judge Thomas Moukawsher entered his extremely controversial rulings. This case was overturned by the state Supreme Court in January 2018. An extremely well covered synopsis appeared in the New York Times, Jan. 18, 2018, by Elizabeth Harris. One sentence noted: “The Supreme Court said Connecticut was fulfilling its constitutional obligation to its public school students.” Read the rest.
The costs of educational budgets in a given school district are primarily paid for by the individual homeowners’ and businesses’ property taxes levied by each town and offset by a complex Educational Cost Sharing formula, or ECS, by the state. This year, the Darien town budget is $152.7 million. Of this, $106 million goes to education. Divide that by the number of students and one gets the “local per pupil expenditure.” The state gives about $200,000 in support of Darien’s education budget.
According to Bridgeporteducation.net the city’s contribution to their education budget is: 26.5 percent for this year. The state pays 73.5 percent. Similar percentages for New Haven and Hartford exist.
Yet none of this information is ever included in Forum or Opinion pieces writers submit to the paper. Mostly one reads the likes of “Families priced out of public schools” by Alex Spurrier. All contributors include statement like: every student should “be provided” with an excellent education; city schools have less resources, etc., but never do they mention that the state contributes nearly 75 percent to the cities’ education budgets. Too many people believe their children are “excluded” when not able to attend any “public school” they’d like beyond their school district. By law, Connecticut students attend school where they live.
Yes, this is financial, as is everything. Maybe I can afford a used Chevy. Maybe a new Ford. Or maybe a new Tesla. But I must have the cash to do so. It’s not Tesla that excludes me. Nor is it some town like Fairfield that excludes me. It’s my finances that exclude me. Simply put, I just can’t afford that car or that house — at this time.
Everyone in America can get an education through grade 12 by attending the high school in the town in which they live. Some say it’s “free.” It’s not, and the additional 73.5 percent of Bridgeport’s education budget is not paid by “the state” but by the residents who pay income taxes to the state — in addition to their property taxes, which also pay for the community colleges that people without a lot of money can attend for “free.”
My neighbor immigrated from Ecuador. He spoke no English. He was educated in Bridgeport. After they got here, his father said: “See that bottle? Pick it up. It’s worth 5 cents.” Everyone I know who improved their life, regardless of how far down that first step was, did so by being hungry enough to go get something. And then get something better, and pass that work ethic to their kids. And hopefully them to theirs.
I don’t know anyone who thought they should wait for zoning to change, or felt that school finance policy or housing affordability, or town boundaries were keeping them down. And if they did, they stayed down. Forget “equity-focused” and “equality.” Go make your own life better and pass it on to your children, and so on. That’s American.
By the way, I couldn’t afford to live in one of those elite towns. But I was a high school counselor in one for 35 years. And I assure you, their lives are not easy either. And they pay for everybody else’s “free stuff.” Don’t resent them. Work hard and join them.