A Season of Celebration

Patrice McCarthy Executive Director & General Counsel, CABE

We are in the midst of a season of celebration – seniors graduating from high school and looking forward to college and careers; “moving up” events at various grade levels; and our youngest students looking forward to beginning school at the end of the summer. There are high school and college reunions, family weddings and gatherings that allow us to reconnect with longtime friends. These events all provide us with the opportunities to celebrate individual and collective accomplishments.

School boards take the opportunity to acknowledge the accomplishments of students, such as with the CABE Student Leadership

View from the Capitol

As you read this the legislature will be in the last week of session. Session ends June 7.

When bills are proposed early in the session, CABE looks to see the new initiatives and lets you know in weekly advocacy highlights. Discussions in your districts on how you may be required to expand your curriculum or submit more reports to the State Department of Education are changes CABE brings to your attention, so that you may influence the legislative process.

Amendments could be offered on some bills to alter the proposed bill. Good or bad, filed early or late in the process, CABE monitors their impact. Each amendment must be accompanied by a fiscal note. A fiscal note, specifically the local impact, is often derived by inquiries to your school business official. Amendments and fiscal notes can be found on a bills webpage.

Join CABE on June 15 at 10:30 a.m. at the Legislative Office Building to learn the final outcome of the 2023 Connecticut General Assembly session.

Awards. I hope school boards and superintendents are also taking the time to celebrate the results of their hard work and dedication to their community. The work of local school leaders – board members and superintendents – has been more challenging in the past several years than ever before. Local decisions have always been scrutinized, but recently the discussions have become less civil. Reflect on ways your board has worked to create a culture of respect with the board, staff and community and commit to building and maintaining that positive culture.

You can also look at your student data for reasons to celebrate. Has your outreach to increase student attendance shown results? Are your expanded summer programs giving students the academic and emotional supports they need? Celebrating achievements increases motivation to take on new challenges. Board members and superintendents benefit from acknowledging both accomplishments and ongoing challenges. Your celebration with an agenda item allowing reflection on the past year can be as joyous as balloons and cake.