Alexandra Dufresne, J.D.

There is no better investment than the education of our children. This brief for electoral candidates reviews several challenges facing Connecticut's K-12 education system, including:

• Achievement gap. The state has one of the largest achievement gaps in the nation between Hispanic and black children and their white peers. Ensuring that Connecticut's schools meet the educational needs of the state's growing Hispanic population is particularly vital, as Connecticut's under-20 Hispanic population is expected to increase by 45% over the next 20 years.

• Reducing racial isolation. In 1996, the Connecticut Supreme Court in the landmark case Sheff v. O'Neill ruled that the racial isolation of Hartford students violated Connecticut's Constitution. However, seven years after the House of Representatives agreed on a plan to solve this problem, Connecticut has not yet met its desegregation goals.

• Keeping children in school. Too many Connecticut children lose educational opportunities because of truancy, out-of-school suspensions, and dropout. In 2010, Connecticut's State Department of Education released new graduation data that show that far more students fail to graduate from high school on time than previously estimated. The new data show that more than 20% of the class of 2009 failed to graduate in four years.

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