April State Board of Education Meeting

The annual Condition of Education report was reviewed by the State Board of Education during its last meeting.

From the report:

• Connecticut’s student enrollment increased for the first time in over a decade. The enrollment is increasingly diverse (i.e., 51.4 percent are students of color) and with greater educational needs (i.e., 16.7 percent are students with disabilities and 8.8 percent of students are English learners) than just five years ago. Adult education enrollment also increased by 21 percent from 2020-21 to 2021-22.

• The racial/ethnic composition of the teaching force is also increasingly diverse. The percentage of educators of color has increased from 8.2 percent (approximately 4,370 educators) in 2015-16 to 10.6 percent (5,700 educators) in 2021-22. Ajit Gopalakrishnam, SDE’s Chief Performance Officer, shared that in this academic year the number of diverse educators has increased to 11.2 percent. The number of fulltime equivalent certified staff grew from 2020-21 to 2021-22, with the largest increases (by percent) in central office administration, instructional specialists who support teachers, and counselors, social workers, and school psychologists.

• The chronic absenteeism rate grew from 19.0 percent in 202021 to 23.7 percent in 2021- 22.