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Students and residents tell Tolland council budget cuts are harming schools
Summary
Multiple student speakers and residents told the council that recent budget cuts have reduced teachers and courses at Tolland High School, leaving some midterms taken in hallways and students without appropriate classes. They urged the new council to reverse the trend.
During public participation at the Nov. 11 Tolland Town Council meeting, several students and residents urged the council to respond to ongoing cuts in the school budget that they said are harming instruction and opportunity.
Megan Murray, a junior at Tolland High School, told the council that teacher positions and courses have been cut in recent years and said those reductions have meant fewer nurses, overcrowded classes and situations where students take midterms in hallways because of insufficient seating. Another student speaker described the loss of elective classes and native language teachers and said peers are leaving the district for other schools.
Speakers asked the council to consider the education budget during upcoming budget deliberations and to seek solutions that preserve classes and staff. Multiple speakers linked their testimony to a broader plea for transparency and responsiveness from elected officials.
Councilors thanked the speakers and said they would seek more engagement through a newly announced monthly "chair hour" intended to give residents greater opportunity to meet with council leadership outside the formal meeting.
The students’ testimony was a central theme of public comment and framed subsequent council discussion about priorities for the coming budget season.
