Ellington board defends bipartisan food-letter, faces teacher criticism over earlier paid-sick-leave messaging

Members of the Ellington Board of Education spent a large portion of their Jan. 13 meeting addressing public concern over a letter the board circulated about Connecticut’s expanded paid sick-leave law and moving forward with a separate, bipartisan letter on school food. The board voted to endorse a letter asking Connecticut’s U.S. senators and representative to press federal agencies — including the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Department of Health and Human Services — to investigate possible harmful chemicals and ultra-processed foods in meals served through the National School Lunch Program, and authorized the superintendent to advocate as needed.

The vote followed more than an hour of public comment from teachers, paraprofessionals and administrators who said the board’s earlier communications about paid sick leave had a demeaning tone toward school staff. Crystal Banville, a parent and public school teacher who said she works in a neighboring district, criticized the earlier message and called the suggestion that teachers would “abuse this law” both “hurtful and misguided and out of touch.” Katie Herrity, a sixth-grade English language arts teacher and co-president of the teachers’ union in Ellington, told the board that the letter left many teachers “insulted, disgusted, devalued.” Melissa Scarborough, a high-school language teacher, described personal examples of postponing medical care to avoid taking time away from students and said, “To be frank and to be clear, no one goes into education if they don’t care, if they don’t love their students.”

Board Chair Zen acknowledged the concern and said the board had not intended to disrespect staff. Chair Zen told the meeting the board wanted to keep discussion “civil” and that members were trying to refine the language to win bipartisan support. Trustees discussed edits suggested by several members and by staff before bringing forward the final draft.

Board member Carrie moved the final, amended letter endorsing federal engagement on school meal ingredients and processing; Angie seconded. The motion passed without recorded opposition in the transcript. Several board members said they would sign the final text in person to confirm they agreed with the exact wording before it was sent.

Administrators and union leaders also described operational concerns the paid-sick-leave law could create if implemented in one-hour increments — for instance, difficulty finding short-term substitute coverage for paraeducators who support students one-on-one. Michelle Marie, a principal and president of an administrators’ unit, said the board’s letter raised valid operational questions and that administrators were working to study how the law might affect coverage and student support.

Board members and several commenters recommended local steps in addition to federal outreach. Operations committee members were asked to invite Whitsons (the district’s food service vendor) to present at a public operations meeting so the community can ask about ingredients, sourcing and food preparation. Superintendent Scott and operations staff said they would report back with what local sourcing is already in place and with options the district can pursue within federal program rules.

The board emphasized its intent to pursue bipartisan support for the school-food letter and to clarify communications about paid sick leave going forward. The superintendent was authorized to advocate on the district’s behalf with federal representatives and agencies.

Ending

Trustees said they would continue outreach to parents, staff and food-service vendors and planned an operations subcommittee meeting to host Whitsons and share details about local sourcing and menu composition. Several board members also said they would sign and review the final letter in person before it is mailed or emailed to federal representatives.