Nov 29, 2018, Hartford (CT) Courant: East Hartford schools chief seeks 3.7 percent budget increase https://www.courant.com/community/east-hartford/hc-news-east-hartford-supt-budget-1130-story.html … School Superintendent Nathan Quesnel proposed a budget for fiscal year 2019-20 that would require an increase of about $3.4 million, or 3.7 percent, over current spending. … While enrollment has declined — from 7,133 in 2014 to a projected 6,866 in 2019 — the number of special education students has increased from 1,238 to 1,602. The number of English learners also has increased from 687 to 887 in the same time frame, according to the presentation. …
Childhood Lost
Children today are noticeably different from previous generations, and the proof is in the news coverage we see every day. This site shows you what’s happening in schools around the world. Children are increasingly disabled and chronically ill, and the education system has to accommodate them. Things we've long associated with autism, like sensory issues, repetitive behaviors, anxiety and lack of social skills, are now problems affecting mainstream students. Blame is predictably placed on bad parenting (otherwise known as trauma from home).
Addressing mental health needs is as important as academics for modern educators. This is an unrecognized disaster. The stories here are about children who can’t learn or behave like children have always been expected to. What childhood has become is a chilling portent for the future of mankind.