Photo by April Dawn Winsley

I make a portion of my living by speaking to students in high schools throughout Connecticut and the entire Northeast United States. I visit poor schools and wealthy schools alike. In the process, I have gained some expertise on the education system in general and on students in particular.


The fact that our educational system is failing a frightening number of our students is no secret but the actual toll being imposed on our society by that failure seems to get ignored all too often.

I recently addressed the Senior class at a Hartford High School. My goal, as always, was to motivate and inspire young people to achieve great things.

Sadly, many of the students in my audience didn’t believe that they had a shot at achieving anything, let alone success. That realization raised three questions in my conservative capitalist mind.

If the parents of these students were given the choice and resources to send their children to better schools would they do it?

They probably would.

If this school had to compete for students much the same way businesses compete for customers, would the current abysmal conditions and performance improve?

They probably would.

And finally, would the students benefit from both outcomes?

They definitely would!

We need jobs in this state but we are turning out large numbers of young people poorly equipped to do the jobs that many of today’s businesses need done.

Many of those youth we are failing to properly educate today will revisit us as adult criminals at worse or welfare tax burdens at best.

Stamford Mayor Dannel P. Malloy acknowledged both the problem and the need for immediate action.

Governor Dannel P. Malloy acknowledges the problem but has chosen to kick it down the road by forming a panel to “study” the problem and make recommendations at a later date.

According to this recent story in the CT Mirror.

Malloy administration says no to school reformers' funding plan

By Jacqueline Rabe

Hundreds of students, parents and school choice advocates journeyed to the state Capitol last month to back a proposal that would boost support of magnet, charter and other school alternatives, but Gov. Dannel P. Malloy's budget director says the administration doesn't support the plan.

The plan, referred to as "money follows the child," would shift the state per-pupil grant now given to school districts to whatever school a child attends, including magnet, charter and open choice programs. Many education reform advocates support the idea, but local officials say it would siphon money away from struggling public school districts.

Benjamin Barnes, Malloy's budget director, agreed.

"I do have real concerns for a proposal that would take funds away from local education systems because they are financially strained as they are," Barnes said. "To suggest that [reimbursement] should be $12,000 whether you are in a charter or urban school system is unrealistic.... They have very different demands."

Barnes said the Malloy administration does recognize keeping charters and magnet schools as outliers to the state's school funding formula is problematic, and does plan to bring all education funding under one umbrella -- but not this year…

The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities opposes the idea, the American Federation of Teachers wants to postpone any sort of decision for as long as possible. No surprise there.



I don’t have all the answers but I do know this.

Every time the state kicks this problem down the road and refuses to take meaningful action, another class of students gets thrown under the bus by being educationally shortchanged.

Ultimately, we as a society pay the price.