Connecticut will expand an existing program that offers subsidies to help cover health care costs of paraeducators.
The program was signed into law last year as part of the 2023-2024 biennial budget. It currently helps more than 4,000 paraeducators with health care costs. The program launched with $5 million allocated to help paraeducators with subsidies to offset the cost of health care.
Comptroller Sean Scanlon said Tuesday that the program will be expanded with additional funding, close to $10 million, to help more educators. Scanlon said the low pay and health care costs are contributing factors to the shortage of paraeducators across the state.
“They were worried, in many cases, about their own situations. And what we found was that the more they worried about that, the less likely they were able to stay in that workforce,” Scanlon said.
Scanlon said the financial assistance would not only help current paraeducators but also attract new applicants for the role. He said there are currently only 12,000 working paraeducators in the state.
“We figured out what we could do to solve what was a very big problem. Which is, how do we make sure that these paras stay in class, stay healthy and continue meeting the needs of our Connecticut schools,” Scanlon said.
Connecticut wants to attract more applicants for the positions. Scanlon said the state has contacted school districts and career centers to survey the existing paraeducators. Education Commissioner Charlene Russell-Tucker said the work that these educators do is vital, and it’s important that the state supports them.
“Being able to be supportive and for us to support them in this way is really important so we can attract more of them into the profession and keep them there,” Russell-Tucker said.
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Publish date : 2024-08-27 08:26:00
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