Duff Says Superior Court Ruling Will Transform How Connecticut Schools Operate

DANBURY, CT — By Scott Benjamin: State House candidate Will Duff said last week’s landmark Hartford Superior Court decision mandating a change in how the state funds local education will prompt schools to become more career-oriented and boost charter school opportunities.

Duff (R-2) of Bethel, said the 90-page decision by Judge Thomas Moukawsher was “a long time coming” in a state that has grappled with funding education since the Horton vs. Meskill case of the 1970s. The judge also delivered a scathing critique of how public education is delivered in Connecticut.

Duff, a member of the Bethel Board of Education, faces Raghib Allie-Brennan, a Bethel resident and former congressional aide, in the November 8 election in a district that encompasses parts of Danbury, Newtown, Bethel and Redding.

He said it is “too early to tell” what the impact might be on funding in the four school systems in the legislative district, and additionally he agrees with Republican leaders in the General Assembly – Themis Klarides of Debry in the House and Len Fasano of North Haven in the Senate – that it is unlikely that the state elected officials will agree on a revised funding formula by the March deadline
in the judge’s decision.

Duff said schools need to become more job-oriented, noting that some businesses refuse to come to Connecticut because it “doesn’t have enough workers in those fields.” He said under the current system, high schools are often too focused on sending students to college.

Duff said instead of just noting that a huge number of their seniors have been accepted to colleges, the better barometer would be to determine through the years how many of the high school graduates ever got a college degree. For example, WashingtonPost.com reported in 2008 that in the Fifth Congressional District only 29.9 percent of the residents 25 years of age and older have at least a four-year college degree.

“When did becoming a carpenter become a dirty word?” he said. “Not all kids are meant to go to a university.”

Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton, a former Danbury High School Social Studies teacher who supports the judge’s decision, has said ideally his city should have charter schools connected with the local airport, police
headquarters, hospital and Western Connecticut State University (WCSU), as well as a theater arts academy. He has said that not all students learn the same way and families would benefit from having more options.

Duff said he supports Gov. Dannel Malloy’s increase in public funding for charter schools, which has been a controversial topic among some Democratic legislators who have complained about decreased funding for
conventional public schools.

“We need to train the work force for the better jobs,” he said. “These charters offer a better
quality of life for those that want to pursue it.”

On another topic, Duff said he would support increased use of online and distance learning classes to attract more students at WCSU, one of Danbury’s largest employers, which according to CTMirror has suffered a
15-percent decline in enrollment over the last five years.

However, he said the ultimate answer may be to reduce staff costs to make the WCSU and other schools in the 17-campus Board of Regents system more affordable.

On a separate subject, Duff, who was the Republican nominee for first selectman of Bethel in 2013 and 2015, said he is opposed to Malloy’s reduction in funding for hospitals. Officials at Danbury Hospital, the city’s
largest employer, have fought against the cuts.

He said the most effective way to resolve Connecticut’s budget crisis would be to reduce the state work force. He indicated that, among other things, with a decline in population, fewer workers are needed.

“You can’t continue to raise taxes,” Duff said, alluding to the 2011 and 2015 hikes. “For every dollar you get from increases taxes, you are going to lose $2 for every person leaving the state.” He said Malloy also has made some poor decisions regarding his First Five/Next Five program in which tax breaks have been given to some large employers if they pledge to stay in the state and make additional hires in the coming years. For example, he said it was ill-advised to provide assistance to Bridgewater Associates of Westport, the richest hedge fund in the world.

Since the district was reconstituted in 2002, it has elected two Republicans and one Democrat. The current state representative, Dan Carter (R-Bethel) opted after three terms to run for the U.S. Senate seat held by
first-term Democrat Richard Blumenthal of Greenwich.

It is one of five state House districts that covers part of Danbury, which ranks first in the state in sales tax revenue and first, per capita, in the number of residents. The robust economy is partly due to the Danbury Fair Mall, which transformed the city’s west side after it opened in 1986.

Duff said he opposes paying for the proposed $100 billion transportation infrastructure expansion through border tolls, which he believes would deter some of the customers to the mall. Estimates indicate that up to 40 percent of its customers live outside Connecticut. Since entering the race this spring, Duff said he has been campaigning ambitiously door to door and at public events.

He said that his experience in municipal races has taught him that “negative campaigning hurts you in a local election.” Duff said candidates should be inclusive and recognize that regardless of the outcome of the election, you will have to seek agreement with members of the opposition party during the next term.

Photo by Will Duff