Editor’s Note: Julia Oas prepared the following research brief (unabridged version) with the Center for Education Policy Analysis, Research, and Evaluation (CEPARE). The full brief examines public school staffing trends in Connecticut schools for administrators, general education teachers, and special education teachers between 2010-11 and 2022-23. Below is an executive summary.
Connecticut public school districts devote considerable effort to staffing their schools. This requires meeting the needs of changing student populations, adjusting to district- and school-level requirements, and adapting to widespread socially and economically impactful events such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Districts must weigh complex factors in staffing decisions, considering skills and qualifications of each administrator, teacher, and staff member. At a more basic level, the number of personnel filling staff positions can greatly impact school districts’ quality and capabilities.
The number of personnel filling staff positions can greatly impact school districts’ quality and capabilities. — Julia Oas
This brief identifies Connecticut statewide trends between 2010-11 and 2022-23 in three educator categories: administrators, general education teachers, and special education teachers. The analysis demonstrates how many educators in each staffing category are being lost or added to overall state levels in the past 13 school years. This brief does not examine the specific certification categories of educators and their associated trends; for this information see a recent PDF report published on the state of Connecticut’s website.
Findings indicate administrator levels have risen in Connecticut public school districts, with the number of central district administrators increasing more than school administrators in the 13 years examined. General education teacher levels have dropped, though in recent years some districts seem to have devoted efforts to hiring more general education teachers. Districts in the state have increased the number of special education teachers employed, while in recent years, Connecticut Alliance school districts (33 of Connecticut’s lowest-performing school districts with at least 1,000 students) demonstrate relatively higher increases in special education teachers employed than other districts in the state. Overall, Alliance districts seem to experience notable staffing differences from all other public school districts in the state, which may significantly affect the needs of their schools and students, though these staffing decisions and funding allocations should be examined alongside these overall staffing trends.
While further analysis is needed to fully understand why staffing levels have shifted in Connecticut school districts, and how these changes affect school districts and their students, low student enrollment offers one explanation. Student enrollment has been decreasing throughout the state over the 13 years examined, with only slight increases in students enrolled following a major loss of students after the onset of the COVID-19. Shifting student enrollment trends raise questions about the relative needs of Connecticut school districts, and in particular, the implications of teacher and administrator staffing levels within the state’s current context. Reasons behind Connecticut school districts’ average growth, decline, or stagnant staffing levels remain to be fully uncovered.
CEPARE produces high-quality research, evaluation, and policy analysis that informs leaders and policymakers on a range of pressing issues, with a particular focus on enhancing social justice and equity across p-20 educational settings in Connecticut and beyond. Learn more about CEPARE, or access the PDF version of this rapid research brief (including all references and appendices), at cepare.uconn.edu.
Julia Oas is a doctoral student in the Research Methods, Measurement and Evaluation program at UConn’s Neag School of Education. She works to bridge gaps between research, school practice, and education policy, emphasizing the reformative change required to achieve equitable and empowering school experiences for all children. Her research interests include research methods attuned to the needs of under-resourced school settings and causal inference within the field of education. In particular, she is motivated to study education policies and practices that improve the capacity of teachers to employ anti-racist, inclusive, and emotionally supportive pedagogies. Prior to her time at UConn, Oas taught for over five years in K-8 public schools as a classroom teacher and a math interventionist. She holds a BA in elementary education and sociology from the College of William and Mary, and an MS Ed. in education policy from the University of Pennsylvania.
