After long complaining that its state budget shortchanges schools, Connecticut’s largest teachers’ union has launched a Web site to show local residents what it means for them.
Created by the Connecticut Education Association, the site lets visitors see the difference between what their local district receives in state aid, and what it would get if the state put more money into its main school aid initiative, the Educational Cost Sharing program.
A bone of contention for Connecticut education groups is that state lawmakers haven’t followed the formulas initially written for the program. Established to equalize school resources statewide, the initiative represents about $1.5 billion of the state’s total $2.1 billion budget for pre-K-12 education.
The union, an affiliate of the National Education Association, hopes that the Web site will encourage people to pressure lawmakers to increase school aid, said Kathy Frega, a CEA spokeswoman. The site is www.yourpublicschools.org.
