My Campaign Platform

I would not be the person I am today if I had not attended and graduated from a New Haven public high school. I saw firsthand that students in New Haven are brilliant and driven, and they deserve schools which support them. Implicit within this is the importance of educators - without teachers, librarians, administrators, and counselors, New Haven schools wouldn’t be what they are. Students and educators alike should have schools with ample resources and access.

Currently, much of New Haven’s public education is funded by property taxes - property taxes that Yale isn’t paying, but that are instead shouldered by New Haven residents. Yale’s voluntary contribution seeks to rectify this, but it is still not enough to guarantee New Haven students have all that they require.

According to a YDN article published last year,  

“Yale holds $4.2 billion of the $9.8 billion property-tax-exempt land in the city as of 2022. In Connecticut, where around 56 percent of education funds are raised through local property taxes, cities like New Haven with large tax-exempt landowners struggle to fund their schools, experts told the News. This school year alone, New Haven Public Schools is missing $11.8 million in funds necessary to maintain current programs.”

I have direct experience with what it looks like when a public school system does not have enough funds: bathrooms don’t have soap or toilet paper or working sinks; classrooms are in disrepair; teachers don’t have what they need to teach their students. Collectively, we can ask for more from Yale. As Alder, I will advocate for this, strengthened by your voice behind me.