Jennifer Leeper

Disconnection among our youth continues to be an urgent issue in our state. It is estimated that we have 119k young people who are disconnected from school and employment. We must interrupt these cycles and ensure we continue to provide opportunities for connection for our youth.

The state budget has 6 line items for specific programs including our beloved Boys and Girls Clubs, YMCAs, and community-based family services that have been critical in doing exactly this work. At a time where they should be expanding their capacity, the Governor’s budget has collapsed them all to a single bucket and required them to compete against each other for fewer resources.

If you or your family have had a personal experience with these programs or you believe in the work they do for our young people, I hope you will submit testimony to the Appropriations Committee to maintain the six line items and reinstate the full funding.

The Sub-committee on Elementary and Secondary Education will hold its public hearings on the education and early childhood portion of the governor’s budget proposal on Thursday, Feb. 20 at the Legislative Office Building. There are two ways for you to participate to have your voice heard: 

1) Submit written testimony via email - 

It is easy to submit written testimony via the web https://www.cga.ct.gov/APP/tmy.htm, which will then be posted by the Clerk on the list for the hearing. In your one-page written statement, be sure to include your name, the name of your program/school and the town it’s in, and “Testimony Supporting After School Grant Funding in the Education Budget, February 20, 2025” at the top. (See talking points below for more ideas of what to include). For the online form where you will upload the document, choose Opposes, and add H.B. 6864 in the bill number box. Best if this is submitted by the morning of the hearing, but earlier is better.

2) Come to the Legislative Office Building or Join on Zoom - To provide in-person testimony you must register online by 3 PM on Wednesday 2/19 using this link: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_LLUxg-5hSnC0wxrclstEGA. The Committee will be held the following day, on Thursday, February 20, 2025 at 3:00 P.M. in Room 2C of the LOB and via Zoom. The public hearing can be viewed via YouTube Live or  CT-N.com. Always best to also submit your comments as written testimony so that they have a record of it (see above).
 

Talking points to help prep testimony:

• Governor Lamont released his budget last week at the State Capitol. The Governor’s budget would combine 6 education grants into one Student Support Grant and reduce their funding 13% : Neighborhood Youth Centers, LEAP (New Haven), Family Resource Centers, After School Grants, Parent Trust Fund, and School Based Diversion. 
• Tell legislators to leave the after school grants as a separate line item in the state budget. Protect and increase funding for the after school grants as they are.
• The impact this could have on communities across the state needs to be heard. Talk about a child you know, tell your story. How would they be impacted by having no afterschool program? 
• Make an emotional plea on why these programs matter and should be protected and expanded. There is an approximate $20 million need for afterschool programming in the State of Connecticut. The current level of funding only meets one quarter of that with the current CSDE After School Grant Program ($5.8 million).