During its 2025 regular legislative session, the Connecticut General Assembly made a number of changes to how the State funds special education, including the creation of a new formulaic grant to support special education services.
The School and State Finance Project has compiled a comprehensive history of changes to the state's school finance system. The history spans from 1927 to present day and highlights significant policy changes, court cases, task forces, and events that have shaped the way Connecticut funds its public schools.
This policy briefing details the current mismatch between student learning needs and per-student spending in Connecticut’s local and regional public school districts, and examines some of the factors that contribute to this mismatch.
Designed to help town and school district leaders plan for the future and address budgetary questions, these interactive models provide district-level and town-level funding estimates for the Education Cost Sharing (ECS) grant, board of education magnet school grant, RESC magnet school grant, and Agricultural Science and Technology Education (ASTE) program grant.
This frequently asked questions document summarizes key components of Connecticut's Excess Cost grant, which is provided by the State to school districts to assist them in paying for special education expenses for students with extraordinary needs.
The District Repair and Improvement Project (DRIP) program is a new program that provides reimbursement grants to school districts for minor capital repairs and improvements to public school buildings, grounds, and infrastructure.