E. Hartford, CT: Nearly 25% of students have special needs; 26% of budget

Aug 20, 2026,  WFSB TV: East Hartford special education enrollment grows, straining district budget

Silver Lane Elementary School in East Hartford will soon be full of students as the school year begins. The school includes special education classrooms, and nearly a quarter of students district-wide are in special education.

Wendy Johns, who heads student support for the district, said the district provides special education services to about 1,500 children.

“It’s challenging, but that’s where we have to be creative,” Johns said.

Superintendent Anderson said the district adjusts its budget to prioritize students with the highest needs.

“When it comes time to balance a budget, we will pull from other areas to make sure students with the highest needs are taken care of,” Anderson said.

Special education makes up about 26% of the district’s budget, nearly $28 million.

Fran Rabinowitz, chair of the state Association of Superintendents, said upwards of 100,000 students are in special education statewide, as diagnoses like autism become more common.

“To be frank with you, I don’t think it’s sustainable if we continue to go in the way we are going,” Rabinowitz said. “Magic dust just doesn’t come down on a child because they are special ed.”

Rabinowitz said the rate of special education students was about 11% 12 to 15 years ago. She said it is now nearing 20% on average, and 30% in some districts.

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The district currently needs about 10 more special education teachers as it works to keep class sizes down, particularly in special education classrooms.

“Some of our classrooms have higher needs than others. So we have a lower student-to-teacher ratio in those,” Johns said.

The district currently has about 100 special education teachers in all.