Hartford council committee refers education equity resolution to committee of the whole

The Hartford City Labor, Education, Workforce and Youth Development Committee voted Sept. 17 to send a resolution that would begin discussions with the Hartford Board of Education on education equity and board finances back to the full City Council, recommending it be referred to a committee of the whole for a joint meeting with the Board of Education.

The move is meant to create an initial, public meeting where City Council members and Board of Education members can discuss budget and equity issues and, if appropriate, refine the scope and membership of a potential Board of Education Equity and Funding Task Force. Councilman Clark told the committee he had spoken with Corporation Counsel Harding, who advised that “the best way to do it would be to notice a meeting such as how we do our regular scheduled, city council meeting,” so the city and the board would be covered by public-notice requirements.

Committee members debated whether the resolution should be amended now or whether the council should first invite the Board of Education to a committee meeting to define parameters. Councilman John Gale said noticing a committee meeting would allow “free forming discussion” and that the board could be invited without the board taking official action. Councilwoman Marilyn Rossetti and others said an initial meeting should be exploratory and that if both bodies agreed a task force was needed, the details and composition could be developed afterward.

Shante Brody, identified in committee remarks as the new chair of the Board of Education, was reported by Councilman Clark as being “amenable” to meeting with the council to begin conversations about the board budget and related equity questions. Committee members discussed formats (committee of the whole versus a committee structure), whether meetings should be virtual or in person, and that public comment would be subject to the chair’s discretion for a committee meeting.

A motion was made during the committee meeting to send the resolution back to the full City Council with the request that it be referred to a committee of the whole to convene a meeting with the Board of Education for the express purpose of refining goals. The motion was moved by Councilman John Gale and seconded by Councilwoman Marilyn Rossetti. The committee approved the motion by voice vote; members answered “aye” and the chair announced the motion passed. No roll-call tally was recorded in the committee transcript.

Committee members and staff said the next formal step is for the referral to appear on the full City Council calendar; the committee noted the meeting with the Board of Education would be scheduled at a later date and that timing was expected to take months. The committee also discussed preparing a focused agenda with timed items for the initial joint meeting to avoid a free-form session that might yield little progress.

The referral does not itself create a task force or change Board of Education authority. Committee members repeatedly described the first joint meeting as exploratory: a public, noticed meeting to discuss whether and how a joint task force should be formed and what its charge would include. If a task force is later established, its membership, duties and any formal recommendations would be specified and reported back to the council and board for possible further action.