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Interim superintendent presents year‑end evaluation, cites staffing gains, fiscal fixes and facility needs
Summary
Interim Superintendent Dr. Abraham Lincoln told the Bridgeport Board of Education the district reduced certified vacancies, advanced a forensic‑audit action plan and secured state and grant funds while laying out long‑range facility needs including a proposed $75 million special‑education center.
The Bridgeport Board of Education heard a year‑end evaluation from the interim superintendent at its June 24 special meeting, with the superintendent saying stabilizing district operations and rebuilding the workforce are the top urgent priorities.
"We came into the district this year with about a $45,000,000 deficit," the superintendent said, adding that the district secured about $35.4 million from state and city sources and more than $108 million in grants this year. He said a forensic audit produced 34 recommendations that the district is implementing to strengthen internal controls.
The evaluation framed five priorities: stabilize operations, restore accountability, improve student outcomes, rebuild workforce capacity and plan for long‑term stability. On staffing, the superintendent reported certified vacancies had dropped from more than 150 to between 30 and 41 by year end and said special‑education vacancies fell dramatically, with special‑education teacher vacancies reduced to near full staffing in critical positions.
Kara Luna, co‑chair of the Bridgeport Special Education Advisory Council, told the board the advisory group has finalized bylaws, grown parent participation and provided trainings that led to ‘‘changes are already coming as a result of that.’’ She said parents want their children to be ‘‘seen, safe and supported.’'
The superintendent also highlighted programmatic work: a district LEAP outreach effort he credited with a 2.6 percent drop in chronic absenteeism, expanded K‑12 curriculum frameworks, and rollout of intervention blocks and attendance dashboards. He said the district recovered Medicaid reimbursements it had not previously claimed and identified transportation and energy upgrades that reduced costs.
On facilities, the superintendent said district facility needs total in the hundreds of millions of dollars and previewed a proposal for an East End pre‑K–8 campus (described in the presentation as a roughly $125 million project designed for about 715 students) and a proposed $75 million specialized special‑education center. He said the board approved a five‑year capital improvement plan earlier in the year and described ongoing work to sequence projects.
Board members asked for follow‑up data on several items the superintendent raised, including year‑over‑year comparisons for college application counts and multilingual learner growth, the state climate survey results and embargoed state test scores. The superintendent said the climate survey is complete and scores remain embargoed by the state; he committed to delivering those reports to the board when released.
The presentation closed with a short video summarizing district gains and an appeal for continued community engagement and accountability—"because at the heart of every decision, every investment, and every improvement is one shared purpose: our students," the superintendent said.
Next steps: the superintendent and staff will provide the board with the climate‑survey results and promised data comparisons requested during the Q&A.
