As many of you know, our Town Council is set to vote on the municipal budget in the near future. This meeting could come as soon as next week. Our town is facing extreme cuts to our Board of Education budget, which will have long lasting impacts on all members of our community.
In an effort to mobilize our community into action, the letter copied into the body of this email was drafted by a number of community partners (including members of CARE) to ensure that the voice and opinion of stakeholders is heard. The hope is that by flooding inboxes QUICKLY, our elected representatives will receive a message that we are watching their decision making closely and we are holding them accountable for the impact that these have on our schools, community and citizens. Please personalize and email this letter to our Mayor and Town Council Members AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
We want to make this easy for you.
Copy and Paste the following addresses into your email recipients:
mayor@townofstratford.com, cglad@townofstratford.com, toconnor@townofstratford.com, cgreen@townofstratford.com, aoneal@townofstratford.com, rgibson@townofstratford.com, aafriyie@townofstratford.com, kwhitham@townofstratford.com, kshake@townofstratford.com, allewelyn@townofstratford.com, paurelia@townofstratford.com
Copy and Paste this letter into the body of your email. Feel free to just send it as is, or modify as you would like.
Mayor Hoydick and Members of the Town Council,
The pulse of a thriving community is its public school system. A community’s overall appeal is closely tied to the quality of its schools, and families often prioritize living in areas with reputable schools to provide the best opportunities for their children. If our schools are poorly funded, we cannot attract homebuyers, and we will not have the qualified workers to attract potential businesses who are considering relocation.
Investing in education is essential for the success of individual students and for the overall health and vitality of the local economy. Stratford has struggled with chronic underfunding of our public schools, and this year is no exception.
Stratford already spends $1,225 less per student than the State average, and as you know was designated as an Alliance District in 2022 due to its status as one of the lowest-performing districts in the state. Under the budget proposed by the Board of Education our schools and students will fall even further behind due to a lack of funding.
I call on Stratford’s elected officials to prioritize and value our public schools and fund the full 6.7% budget increase, as requested by acting superintendent Borges, and which allows us to at least maintain our current level of educational services. (The Town’s use of COVID funding, which was used to operate the Stratford Public Schools, is no longer available, hence the apparent large increase in the school budget.)
Sincerely,
Sign your name, Hit SEND and know that you are supporting the children of Stratford!
Feel free to share this letter far and wide. The more people who send this to our mayor and council members, the better. We will also be in contact once any information about the Town Council meeting dates and time are shared.
Thank you so much for your continued support in these efforts.
Best,
Stratford Crier/Stratford Forward
Editorial Board
It is difficult to find on this Crier website exactly what is the latest proposed increase for the BOE in the Budget that is being considered for 2024-2025. It is easy to find your claims of “excessive cuts.” A proposed budget from the SPS administration is not a “Budget.” It is a Proposed Budget. The only BOE Budget that exists is the 2023-2024 Adopted Budget that is now in place. BOE recommended for 2024-25 an increase of 3.27% or about $4 million. The Mayor proposed a BOE increase of 4.79%, or about $6 million. The schools proposed budget for 2024-25 was a 6.69% increase or about $8 million. What you call an “excessive cut” is actually a reduction in the size of the increase. You are free to argue for against a reduction in the increase, but call it what it is. Calling a $4 million increase an “excessive cut” is irresponsible.