Taxpayers are killing Colchester Public Schools. This year there is a proposed $1.5 million budget cut, which includes cutting two kindergarten teachers, one first grade teacher and one preschool teacher in the elementary school, as well as a world language teacher and a business teacher.

Throughout my time in Colchester Public Schools, I have seen the benefits of not only the core teachers in the elementary school, but the elective teachers at the high school. The removal of these teachers leads to a larger student-to-faculty ratio across all schools. One of the major benefits of a small school is a small student-to-faculty ratio, which leads to more one-on-one teaching for the students that need it. Additionally, smaller class sizes have been proven to drastically improve test scores, reduce dropout rates and increase graduation rates.

Bacon Academy has long been a top 75 high school in Connecticut for test scores, but with increasing budget cuts and growing class sizes it has dropped out of the top 75 and continues to drop. With constant “no votes” on proposed budgets, the town is forced to continue cutting programs, slowly killing the local schools.

Evan St. Louis

Colchester