East Hartford board opens school year as superintendent highlights staffing, facilities and transportation readiness
Summary
Superintendent Thomas Anderson told the board the district hired about 37 new teachers, welcomed a new Woodland School principal and reported extensive summer facilities upgrades; he emphasized the district is not a party to bus-company negotiations and said staff are planning contingencies to avoid service interruptions.
Tyrone Harris, chair of the East Hartford Board of Education, opened the Aug. 25 meeting by welcoming students, families and staff as the district begins the school year.
Superintendent Thomas Anderson said the district’s priorities remain academic improvement, institutional advancement, operational effectiveness and climate and culture. He announced the appointment of Aaron Pulley as Woodland School’s new principal and said the district hired about 37 new teachers this summer. Anderson also stated the district employs roughly 1,311 people across schools and central offices.
Anderson highlighted summer facilities work — including parking-lot and sidewalk repairs and roof projects — and thanked the facilities team for completing projects under difficult heat. He said the district will publish visuals and a condensed slide deck for the community to show completed work and ongoing projects.
On student and program outreach, Anderson described a college boot camp that hosted multiple college representatives, including a visit to the University of Connecticut, and praised recent student scholarship and graduation outcomes. He said the district is awaiting an official release of state assessment results and that preliminary data indicate improvement.
When asked about transportation, Anderson clarified that the district is a customer of DACCO, the contracted bus company, but is not a party to DACCO’s labor negotiations. He said the district expects there to be no interruption of service on the first day of school but added staff are planning contingencies "in the event that something does not go the way that it should." Anderson said parents will be kept informed and permissions or arrangements that affect students will be handled directly by the schools.
The board did not take additional votes related to staffing or transportation during the meeting. The board moved on to routine consent items and to separate agenda items on grants and procurement.
