More County Forums Next Week: Come and Talk to Your Legislators

North Haven teacher and local president Tom Marak talked to his legislators recently in Hamden.

With a proposed state budget that would divide Connecticut’s school districts into winners and losers and saddle towns with one-third of the cost of their teachers’ pensions, it’s vital that legislators hear loud and clear from CEA members.

It’s especially important to speak to your legislators now as some are considering a dangerous plan that would divert funding from local neighborhood schools

Make sure your legislators know where you stand. Forums for teachers who live or work in Fairfield, Litchfield, Middlesex, and New London Counties are scheduled for next week.

Email the contact for your county (see below) to attend a forum near you.

Teachers from some Connecticut counties have already been telling legislators how proposed cuts in funding are eliminating teacher positions and school programs—to the detriment of students.

“There’s got to be another way,” Simsbury K-6 library media specialist Jamie Sepa told Representative Russ Morin at a forum in South Windsor April 3. “This is unacceptable. No one talks about raising revenue—something that needs to be done. We need structural changes.”

“So much comes down from the state,” said Mary White, first-grade teacher at the Robert J. O’Brien STEM Academy in East Hartford. “To meet the social and academic needs of our students and to better support kids and schools, it all comes down to funding, and it’s scary how they’re proposing a shift in that.”

“CEA County Forums are a great way to get more information on legislation that affects teachers,” said West Hartford music teacher Lorri Cetto. “I’m attending a County Forum to ask for a long-term commitment to retired teachers’ benefits.

Legislators are invited to every upcoming forum. Make sure they hear your concerns.

Email the contact for your county to attend an upcoming forum.