Proposed Changes In School 'Open Choice' Program Criticized

Linda Nelson of Hartford is used to the "family-like" relationship she has with staff at the Capitol Region Education Council.

[sunnyd]

Perhaps in this case, change is good! Increasing the number of students? How about increasing the amount of money to pay the towns (especially smaller ones) for the cost of tuition! I also propose limiting the age of participants to 6th grade and up.

[juan moetie]

We cant afford to bus these kids all over the state. Children should go to school in their own neighborhood..........

[Janies Last IOU]

How about we just cut the CROC (aptly named) program altogether, and put the tuition money into fixing the Hartford public schools instead? I agree with Juan, kids need to go to school in their own neighborhood.

And, if you don't like the neighborhood and its schools, then get off your butt and move.

[jeff]

All us who are same and know what children really need is a sense of home, a local school with kids they know and play with. Enter the courts and so called spokespersons, then the kids have to be moved about to ensure a good mix 5 of these 5 of those etc. shameful

[Local Control]

I hope the state can reform Open Choice, because CREC has not done an adequate job in its relations with individual school districts participating in its magnet schools, even prior to Open Choice. I support whatever will ultimatley give local school districts more control over magnet school enrollments. Also, magnet school lotteries are not a level-playing field are are inherently unfair because they do not include all underrepresented students, only students whose parents are engaged enough to inquire about a magnet school

[Frugal and Screwed]

One other option would be that the parent needs to make up the difference, and pay what it actually costs to educate their kids in a different town. Why should us taxpayers have to pay for the education of kids from other towns with our property taxes. If these people dont like the schools in their own towns then they should move. People need to start taking responsibility for themselves and their kids and stop expecting the goverment and other people to do things for them.

[JUST WONDERING]

Frugal and Screwed wrote:

One other option would be that the parent needs to make up the difference, and pay what it actually costs to educate their kids in a different town. Why should us taxpayers have to pay for the education of kids from other towns with our property taxes. If these people dont like the schools in their own towns then they should move. People need to start taking responsibility for themselves and their kids and stop expecting the goverment and other people to do things for them.

on a another note we should start taxing those that come from out of town and drive on our roads and bridges to commute to work into our city for MY property taxes are paying for those...and perhaps the insurance industry should also increase their premiums based on where they drive to for most of their time is spent in the city working and not where they live...see how this works we ALL pay taxes and higher premiums but when we opt to provide our children a better education theyd like to tax us some more...besides taxes are our duty (arent they) what else should the federal govt do for you because YOU AND ONLY YOU PAY TAXES...

[Latoya Ledbetter]

Oh great just what my child needs now, for good old board of ed to now run the CREC program that she is in when they cant even get the public school system right in Hartford, so why would anyone want to fix something that isnt broke and ask the folks that helping to break it to run it! Come on people does this really make any sense at all.

[Frugal and Screwed]

JUST WONDERING wrote:

<quoted text>
on a another note we should start taxing those that come from out of town and drive on our roads and bridges to commute to work into our city for MY property taxes are paying for those...and perhaps the insurance industry should also increase their premiums based on where they drive to for most of their time is spent in the city working and not where they live...see how this works we ALL pay taxes and higher premiums but when we opt to provide our children a better education theyd like to tax us some more...besides taxes are our duty (arent they) what else should the federal govt do for you because YOU AND ONLY YOU PAY TAXES...

If you "opt" to provide your kids with a better education do like most of us did, Buy a house in the town you want your kids to go to school in. Why should other towns have to pay extra to educate your kids? You chose to live where you live. if you dont like the school system then move. On another item if it wasnt for the business in your city and the taxes that they pay, your taxes would be even higher and your school system would probably be even worse. By the way you do tax the people that come to your city that is why the state gives you so much money to waste every year. Do you think Hartford is self supporting? Your taxes are a drop in the bucket of the state tax dollars that your city swallows up.

[Jared]

Latoya Ledbetter wrote:

Oh great just what my child needs now, for good old board of ed to now run the CREC program that she is in when they cant even get the public school system right in Hartford, so why would anyone want to fix something that isnt broke and ask the folks that helping to break it to run it! Come on people does this really make any sense at all.

I think this issue is way bigger than CREC and what CREC is actually capable of handling. It is through CT state law that children are able to attend magnet schools, so I would not call the state as "breaking" anything. I feel that the problem stems from people not believeing in or wanting to live in Hartford, which is a burden all surrounding towns must now share.

[pragmatist]

Maybe this will end the fraud in the CREC "lottery" system for entry into their schools. Over the past few years, the only suburban preschoolers whom I have seen win free all-day preschool (a prize worth over $10K/yr)at the University of Hartford CREC school, were children of U Ha faculty. I have seen a child who never even applied, but whose grandmother worked for the U Hartford CREC school, gain admission long after the lottery had closed, and you can bet there was a waiting list hundreds of children long that was jumped over. I have seen Hartford school officials' children have their choice of whichever CREC school their parents desired, without any need for going through the lottery. And all at taxpayer expense - the state, and the suburban towns that pay for free all day preschool for the children of the lucky influential few. There shouldn't be a family-like atmosphere for the fair distribution of this valuable opportunity. There should be a transparent lottery administered by a third party who doesn't stand any chance of benefiting from the result.

As for making more seats available in the suburbs for Hartford students, just pay the suburban towns the approximately 12K/head that Hartford receives per student, instead of a token $2K/student, and you will see enough seats open up in the surrounding towns to accommodate any Hartford student who wishes to attend a suburban school. In fact, the surrounding towns would probably build more classrooms just to take advantage of having kids come who brought in about $4-6K more/student than the town allots for its own kids.

[CJ Dreamer]

Hmmm, so you are saying that Hartford pays 12K a year per its kids? Or does it get federal and state subsidy per kid? My kids go to magnet schools and I love it. They have more diversity than in other towns. Ohhh by the way, I am white, working two jobs with no assistance so don't start with your comments.

I live where I do because of a physical disablity where I am unable to drive so I need to be near a busline. Nice places with good education have lousy buslines since everyone drives! I need to be able to provide my kids with transportation to doctor's visits, the hospital, groceries, etc and can only do it by bus.

My kids have enjoyed being mixed with other races. They will be ready for real life. They have friends whom they like for who they are and not what they are. I am proud of the magnet schools for helping me to teach them this.

Our town has only one high school and its on probation and with threats of being taken over by the state. It is so over crowded, almost double it's capacity, and waiting for a tragedy to happen. My kids travel over an hour a day = 15 hours a week. They want this education and so do I! I pay taxes that are being used in the state subsidy and federal subsidy that the Hartford magnet schools are getting.

Don't put everyone in the same category and look at all perspectives before expressing opinions. Think of the children first. One day, my kid might be your president or your doctor. You better hope he is smarter than our past president.

[downeaster]

the government screwed it up to start with, now that it's running well, they want to screw it up some more

this desegration issue is passe, get om with educating students, not students of color or african american or asian students, but just students

put in a voucher program and let them go to school where they want

this state is to driven by chicken sh-- unions withtheir protectionist attitude they don't care about the kids, the kids don't pay union dues, only lazy substandard cry baby overpaid under achieving teachers pay dues, bucause they are professional and can't speak for themselves so they need the bullying tactic of hiding behind the union label

[JUST WONDERING]

Frugal and Screwed wrote:

<quoted text>
If you "opt" to provide your kids with a better education do like most of us did, Buy a house in the town you want your kids to go to school in. Why should other towns have to pay extra to educate your kids? You chose to live where you live. if you dont like the school system then move. On another item if it wasnt for the business in your city and the taxes that they pay, your taxes would be even higher and your school system would probably be even worse. By the way you do tax the people that come to your city that is why the state gives you so much money to waste every year. Do you think Hartford is self supporting? Your taxes are a drop in the bucket of the state tax dollars that your city swallows up.

nonsense...how are other towns paying extra when our school district is picking up the tab...on another note diversity is essential for the real world...you should consider it doesnt hurt but helps one become more tolerant of others...only some of the intangible values of desegregating our public school systems...just some food for thought

[Frugal and Screwed]

JUST WONDERING wrote:

<quoted text>
nonsense...how are other towns paying extra when our school district is picking up the tab...on another note diversity is essential for the real world...you should consider it doesnt hurt but helps one become more tolerant of others...only some of the intangible values of desegregating our public school systems...just some food for thought

Just so you know your school system pays $2500.00 per child to send students to suburban school sysytems where it cost upwards of $10,000.00 per student to educated them. So your school system is not pickink up the "FULL TAB". As far as diversity goes you chose to live where you live and that is the town your kids should go to school in whether it is diverse or not. If you want to have diversity then move to the town where you want your child to go to school in and pay taxes there like we have to.

[JUST WONDERING]

Frugal and Screwed wrote:

<quoted text>
Just so you know your school system pays $2500.00 per child to send students to suburban school sysytems where it cost upwards of $10,000.00 per student to educated them. So your school system is not pickink up the "FULL TAB". As far as diversity goes you chose to live where you live and that is the town your kids should go to school in whether it is diverse or not. If you want to have diversity then move to the town where you want your child to go to school in and pay taxes there like we have to.

frugal and screwed...you right...thats what people like you really are in the midst of things...frugal and screwed could not have described you any better...good to know that you know yourself well...

[Frugal and Screwed]

JUST WONDERING wrote:

<quoted text>
frugal and screwed...you right...thats what people like you really are in the midst of things...frugal and screwed could not have described you any better...good to know that you know yourself well...

I dont exactly understand what you are trying to say here. Are you trying to say that I know even though I try to live a frugal life and live within my means and pay "my own way" thru life, that I am getting screwed by people like you that want the rest of us to pick up the tab to educate your kids because you chose to live where you live but are not happy with the school system provided where you live. So instead you send your kids to our town and expect us to pay to educate your kid because you feel that you are entitled to something you do not contribute to. Is that what you are saying here? just for the record I do not owe you anything so why should I be obliged to have to pay extra in property taxes so that you can have something you didnt pay for? You live where you live and thats where your kid should go to school.

[To all above]

Maybe we should go back to "survival of the fittest".

[JUST WONDERING]

Frugal and Screwed wrote:

<quoted text>
I dont exactly understand what you are trying to say here. Are you trying to say that I know even though I try to live a frugal life and live within my means and pay "my own way" thru life, that I am getting screwed by people like you that want the rest of us to pick up the tab to educate your kids because you chose to live where you live but are not happy with the school system provided where you live. So instead you send your kids to our town and expect us to pay to educate your kid because you feel that you are entitled to something you do not contribute to. Is that what you are saying here? just for the record I do not owe you anything so why should I be obliged to have to pay extra in property taxes so that you can have something you didnt pay for? You live where you live and thats where your kid should go to school.

TESTY TESTY I MIGHT ADD
no one is expecting YOU to pay for anything i believe that i pay taxes as well and therefore am contributing to all the spending our government does SO in essence where do you consider myself feeling entitled...some people just love to feel as though they are providing for others what they are not entitled to but disregard the fact that many of us do not benefit by anything our state is squandering OUR tax dollars on... so is it fair to say that if one is seeking a better education elsewhere i should not have that option...screw you

[Frugal and Screwed]

I guess you just dont get it do you. If you chose to live in a town, lets East Hartford then why should your child go to school in Suffield where residents taxes support most of the school budget, if you dont pay taxes there or reside there. Why not just move to Suffield and pay taxes there like those residents do, if that is where you want your kid to go to school. Why should the residents of another town that you dont even live in and you dont contribute anything be expected to pay extra in taxes just so your kid can can go to school there because that is what you would like. That to me makes it sound like you feel or think you are entitled to something that you contibute nothing to. I guess you just arent going to understand no matter how I try to explain it. I guess I will just agree with you and dig deeper in my pocket and so wont all the other residents in my town for each out of town child you send here and expect our local school system to educate at an extra cost to us and not to you.