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On Wednesday, May 18, The Hartford Region Open Choice Program awarded its Annual Scholarships for 2022. The scholarships are awarded each year to Open Choice high school seniors, all Hartford residents.The Mary Carroll-Kennedy Scholarship was established in honor of the founding director of Open Choice, formally Project Concern, where she dedicated more than 30 years to providing opportunities for Hartford residents who desired a diverse and quality education. Carroll began her career in education in Connecticut in 1964. In 1966, Project Concern was developed and managed by the Hartford Board of Education, and she accepted a position in 1968 as a support teacher for the program. As a result of her dedication and passion for serving children, Carroll became director of Project Concern in 1982 and successfully worked to provide Hartford students with educational opportunities. The 2022 recipients of the Mary Carroll-Kennedy Scholarship are: Juliana Garcia Chincilla of Berlin High School will attend Central Connecticut State University and major in Business.Akeva Koulla of Avon High School will attend University of Connecticut and major in Biomedical Engineering. Sarah Antoine of Hall High School will attend Southern Connecticut State University and major in Digital Production.In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Hartford Region Open Choice Program, formerly Project Concern, CREC Established the Marjorie Little Book Award. The award recognizes the contributions of parents and employees to the program and is given in honor of Marjorie Little, a parent and a former employee who comiited 29 years of her life to ensure that Hartford residents have a choice when it comes to their education. The 2022 recipients of the Marjorie Little Book Award are:Noelle Blake of Avon High School will attend Dartmouth College and major in Government.Didismay Yedra of Portland High School will attend Eastern Connecticut State University and major in Education. “The Hartford Based team is ecstatic to be able to continue this annual scholarship to this years recipients. Congratulations to this years recipiences. They have worked incredibly hard and we look forward to hearing about the positive impact they will make as they enter into the next stage in their lives.” concluded Kristina Jordan, Director of School Choice. ###The Capitol Region Education Council was established in 1966. Working with and for its member districts, CREC has developed a wide array of cost-effective and high-quality programs and services to meet the educational needs of children and adults in the region. CREC brings over five decades of experience in education, regional collaboration, and operations to provide innovative strategies and products that address the changing needs of school districts and their students, corporations, non-profits, and individual professions. CREC regularly serves 36 towns in Greater Hartford, offering more than 120 programs to more than 150,000 students annually. CREC manages more than 35 facilities throughout the area, including 16 interdistrict magnet schools and two magnet programs. More information about CREC and CREC’s award-winning schools is available at www.crec.org. ...

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(New Britain, Conn.) On Monday, April 25, Girl’s Future Firefighter Camp (GFFC) and CREC Academy of Science and Innovation (ASI) distributed prom gowns to juniors and seniors at ASI. Shelly Carter, who is the first female African American Fire Captain in Operations in Connecticut history, founded the GFFC and will be present at the event. Carter and the GFFC collected over 500 brand-new gowns in all colors, sizes, and styles to share with the juniors and seniors. “Each of us can aspire to be a firefighter,” said Carter. “Each of us, too, deserves to feel beautiful, wrap ourselves in exquisite fabrics, and attend prom in the gown of our dreams!”ASI also received contributions from several other local businesses to help dress students for their prom at this event, including DXL Men’s apparel in Manchester, Men’s Warehouse in South Windsor, David’s Bridal in Manchester, and K&G Fashion in Manchester."I felt like the Girl's Future Firefighter Camp was a big opportunity for us. We've never had a gown giveaway this big here before. The gowns were new and beautiful--all the girls felt the same,” said BriAsia Barnes, a junior at ASI. “All of us were super happy with our gown choices. And, I think the GFFC is also a wonderful opportunity to see what a career in firefighting could be like. When I was younger, I'd thought about it for a career. I might like to consider it again as a potential career. All in all, great opportunities!" The mission of GFFC is to educate and empower young women and inspire them to pursue a career in the fire service or a related field. “I strive to speak to the importance of addressing the whole female so she can become confident, courageous, and strong,” added Carter. “I will endeavor to teach her that whatever she puts her mind to she can accomplish.” "We came together with our school and family community to offer a glimpse of short and long-term futures: a night for our girls to feel gorgeous, and a potential firefighting career of service and purpose. It worked out well!" said Joan Hurley, the ASI teacher leading the event with GFFC. GFFCs provide hands-on experiences in all aspects of the fire service: EMS training, First Aid, CPR, ropes and knots, babysitting, HP dispatch, hoseline operations, confined space training, paramedic skills, hierarchy of command (command officers, supervisors, firefighters) explorations, fitness, nutrition and more.A camp will be held at a New Britain Firehouse this summer (as well as GFFCs in Rhode Island, New Jersey, and other Connecticut locations). They hope to engage many girls from CREC to join the program.“It was encouraging, for people who didn’t want to go to prom or didn’t think they could find a dress, they were able to go in and find something,” said ASI senior Trinyty Thomas. “I am thankful for the people who put this together because they made it possible for girls to find dresses and not stress about paying for expensive dresses and having to put money toward something for just one night.”“I felt like it was uplifting, having so many people come together and help young girls. I thought it was really nice,” said ASI senior Ariana Vicens.CREC Academy of Science and Innovation School’s website is http://asi.crecschools.org Girl’s Future Firefighter Camp’s website is https://girlsfuturefirefightercamp.com/###The Capitol Region Education Council was established in 1966. Working with and for its member districts, CREC has developed a wide array of cost-effective and high-quality programs and services to meet the educational needs of children and adults in the region. CREC brings over five decades of experience in education, regional collaboration, and operations to provide innovative strategies and products that address the changing needs of school districts and their students, corporations, non-profits, and individual professions. CREC regularly serves 36 towns in Greater Hartford, offering more than 120 programs to more than 150,000 students annually. CREC manages more than 35 facilities throughout the area, including 16 interdistrict magnet schools and two magnet programs. More information about CREC and CREC’s award-winning schools is available at www.crec.org. ...

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(Bloomfield, Conn.) On Wednesday, March 30, CREC held a ribbon cutting ceremony for its newest school building in Bloomfield. The state-of-the-art facility houses the CREC Ana Grace Academy of the Arts, a pre-Kindergarten to eighth-grade school that combines two existing CREC schools – CREC Ana Grace Academy of the Arts Elementary School and CREC Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts Middle School. These schools successfully moved to the new location in mid-January 2022. “Six years ago, I took a very muddy walk on this property and couldn’t imagine what would be here,” said CREC Executive Director Greg Florio, “but to see it today. I stand in awe and amazement, and I’m so proud of the work that we’ve done.”CREC Ana Grace Academy of the Arts Elementary School was previously in Avon for Kindergarten through fifth grade, and CREC Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts Middle School was in the Colt Building in Hartford and is grades six through eight.“We are so happy to be here today, for all those years before we really maintained our two school communities,” said Patricia Phelan, principal of the elementary grades. “Telling our families, don’t be concerned about what the roof looks like. Just consider what is going on under the roof.”In 2014, CREC Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts Elementary School was renamed in honor of Ana Grace Márquez-Greene, daughter of CREC alumni and former staff members Nelba Márquez-Greene and Jimmy Greene, who was one of the victims of the Sandy Hook tragedy. “Ana Grace loved to express herself through music and dance. She also loved learning and never hesitated to display her affection for family and friends,” said Márquez-Greene prior to the event. “It is fitting this beautiful school that bears her name is a place where talented children from all backgrounds are nurtured in a loving, supportive environment. We are humbled and grateful her legacy serves as a reminder of how love wins.” “Every room, every swatch of fabric, every paint color, her presence is here,” said Greene speaking at the event.Members of the school community, the Bloomfield Board of Education and Town Council, the State Department of Education, US and Connecticut state legislators, and many other special guests were invited to attend the event. The ceremony featured performances by the students and remarks by the school’s Principals Patricia Phelan and Bo Ryan, CREC Executive Director Greg Florio, CREC Deputy Executive Director Sandy Cruz-Serrano, Superintendent of CREC Schools Tim Sullivan, Márquez-Greene, Greene, Lieutenant Governor Susan Bysiewicz, Bloomfield Mayor Danielle Wong, State Senator Doug McCrory, State Representative Bobby Gibson, and CREC Council Member and Chair of the Bloomfield Board of Education Donald F. Harris Jr. A surprise treat for the audience and students was an impromptu, a cappela performance of “Tomorrow” from the musical “Annie,” by stage and film singer and actress Anika Noni Rose. Rose is a native of Bloomfield and a close friend of the Márquez-Greene family, best known for voicing Princess Tiana in Disney’s 2009 animated feature “The Princess and the Frog.” “You’ll never know what’s happening in a child’s home, but when they can sing it, when they can dance it, when they can draw it, that’s when something really special happens,” said Rose speaking about the arts opportunities presented to the students at the school.“We have recognized this country when it’s at its worst, but we took something that was so negative and nasty and turned it into something that is so beautiful as the educational benefit for our children to have an opportunity at quality education,” said McCrory.“Through the incredible courage and fortitude of her parents, Nelba and Jimmy Greene, something so dark was turned into a beacon of light and hope and symbolizes the future,” said Bysiewicz. The new building is on a 29-acre lot, with more than 156,800 square feet of space, to accommodate over 850 students. The bus loop is lined with painted steel walkway canopies with photovoltaic panels, serving as a roof covering. The East portion of the site has a grass playfield, while the West portion has playscapes adjacent to the elementary school program. The school also boasts middle school science labs, magnet-themed classrooms, and a combined lobby and art gallery space, which surrounds a Black Box Theater for student performances. “We choose to fight for opportunity, we choose the opportunities from parents to make a choice, we choose for education to be the forefront of the conversation,” said Sullivan.Guest were treated refreshments, an optional guide tour of the building after the ceremony, and a performance by the Middle School’s “Band & Beyond” group.CREC Ana Grace Academy of the Arts Elementary School’s website is http://agaaems.crecschools.org. CREC Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts Middle School’s website is http://haams.crecschools.org. ###The Capitol Region Education Council was established in 1966. Working with and for its member districts, CREC has developed a wide array of cost-effective and high-quality programs and services to meet the educational needs of children and adults in the region. CREC brings over five decades of experience in education, regional collaboration, and operations to provide innovative strategies and products that address the changing needs of school districts and their students, corporations, non-profits, and individual professions. CREC regularly serves 36 towns in Greater Hartford, offering more than 120 programs to more than 150,000 students annually. CREC manages more than 35 facilities throughout the area, including 16 interdistrict magnet schools and two magnet programs. More information about CREC and CREC’s award-winning schools is available at www.crec.org. ...

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(East Hartford, Conn.) CREC Two Rivers Magnet Middle School, a grades 6-8, STEM-themed school, is pleased to announce that it has been selected as an Amazon Future Engineer (AFE) school - a partnership between Amazon and Project STEM to improve access to computer science education in communities currently underrepresented in the technology field.“This opportunity, to be an AFE school, is an absolute game-changer for our students,” said Jill Wnuk, Two Rivers’ principal. “Building more engineering and computer science focus into our already science and technology-rich curriculum will create limitless experiences for Two Rivers students.”According to the Bureau of Labor statistics, there are a projected 1.4 million computer science-related jobs available and only 400,000 computer science graduates with the skills to apply for those jobs. Many students eager to fill that gap and obtain a high paying job in technology do not have access to computer science in their middle and high schools. Often schools want to offer these courses to their students but do not have access to curriculum and/or teacher support materials.Amazon and Project STEM are partnering to address this gap by sponsoring teachers and administrators who demonstrate this need and are committed to bringing computer science to their school with access to content such as: CS Explorations 1: Fundamentals in Scratch, Computer Science Fundamentals, AP Computer Science Principles, or AP Computer Science A courses. This content also includes fully sequenced and paced digital curriculum for students, and professional development for educators new to learning or teaching computer science. Interested schools can learn more at www.amazonfutureengineer.com, including how students can access college scholarships and internships at Amazon. ###The Capitol Region Education Council was established in 1966. Working with and for its member districts, CREC has developed a wide array of cost-effective and high-quality programs and services to meet the educational needs of children and adults in the region. CREC brings nearly five decades of experience in education, regional collaboration, and operations to provide innovative strategies and products that address the changing needs of school districts and their students, corporations, non-profits, and individual professions. CREC regularly serves 36 towns in Greater Hartford, offering more than 120 programs to more than 150,000 students annually. CREC manages more than 35 facilities throughout the area, including 16 interdistrict magnet schools and two magnet programs. More information about CREC and CREC’s award-winning schools is available at www.crec.org....

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(Hartford, Conn.) The Connecticut Teacher Residency Program (CT TRP), in partnership with the RESC Alliance, has received a $340,000 grant from the National Center for Teacher Residencies (NCTR) to expand and improve its efforts to recruit and develop Black teachers to support participating districts. The award comes through NCTR’s Black Educators Initiative, a five-year, $20-million effort to recruit and train 750 new Black teachers through NCTR’s nationwide network of teacher residency programs. 468376015557500This grant will allow CT TRP to provide funding relief to partner districts and support up to 40 Black educators as it expands to four cohort locations with up to 60 Residents across Connecticut. Grants will be used for tuition, materials, and assessment support to ensure candidates meet the state certification requirements, including Praxis, Foundations of Reading, and the edTPA Portfolio assessment. Additionally, part of the costs for mentor teachers will be covered as Residents work for a full year with their mentor teacher to gain hands-on experience in the classroom. CT TRP was one of eight residencies chosen to help launch NCTR’s Black Educators Initiative. This year, the program is expanding to the Regional Education Service Centers in Hartford (CREC), New Haven (ACES), lower Fairfield (CES), and New London (LEARN) counties. On Wednesday, May 5, 2021, forty-five new Residents were accepted into the program. “Thank you so much for such exciting news. I am thrilled and honored to be a member of the CREC cohort this year,” said applicant Alexa McCrae in response to her acceptance. This program is still accepting applications in three of the four cohorts and is offered at little to no cost for Residents while providing a salary and benefits during the residency year from a partnering district.  “As a superintendent in a diverse and dynamic community, I am indebted to the Connecticut Teacher Residency Program for providing an authentic opportunity to assist us in diversifying our staff. I see this program as a real game changer in assisting my district in taking the necessary steps forward in this critical initiative” said Jody Ian Goeler, Superintendent for Hamden Public Schools, a partner district looking to support four residents. “Now more than ever, we need to focus on recruiting and retaining Black teachers,” said Anissa Listak, NCTR’s founder and CEO. “We are so proud to be able to work with CT TRP through NCTR’s Black Educators Initiative.” The majority of school children in the United States are students of color, yet less than 20 percent of teachers are people of color, and only 7 percent of them are Black. Research shows that students of color do better in school and consider going to college at higher rates when they are taught by teachers with similar racial and demographic backgrounds. NCTR’s Black Educators Initiative aims to improve student achievement by increasing access to Black teachers.“I am pleased to see NCTR’s support of CT TRP. As a former teacher and a life-long educator, I have seen first-hand the impact a Black teacher can have on students in the classroom. Even more, the research shows that a diverse teaching population leads to students learning better,” said State Senator Doug McCrory. “It is incumbent upon us to not only encourage people of color to enter the teaching profession but ensure they have the mentorship and quality training opportunities available so they can take the skills developed into the classroom for the benefit of their students.” McCrory, a Democrat who represents the Senate’s 2nd District (Hartford, Bloomfield, Windsor), is the State’s Education Committee Senate chair.This grant demonstrates CT TRP has earned confidence in its success. To reduce the cost of these programs to districts and to expand the program, CT TRP renews its requests to Governor Lamont and the CT General Assembly to solve this state problem with much-needed state dollars by annually dedicating $4.5 million to CT TRP. This state funding will ensure the program continues to be successful in recruiting and retaining a workforce of teachers that better represents the diverse population of students. Teacher residency programs have proven effective at recruiting and developing teachers of color. In 2019-2020, NCTR’s network of partner residencies reported that 62 percent of their teachers-in-training identified as persons of color – more than twice the diversity rate of teachers nationally. CT TRP is focused on diversifying Connecticut’s teachers and assisting Governor Lamont in achieving his goals. In the first two years of the program, 100% of teachers training in CT TRP are people of color. CT TRP’s website is www.ct-trp.org. ###The Capitol Region Education Council was established in 1966. Working with and for its member districts, CREC has developed a wide array of cost-effective and high-quality programs and services to meet the educational needs of children and adults in the region. CREC brings over five decades of experience in education, regional collaboration, and operations to provide innovative strategies and products that address the changing needs of school districts and their students, corporations, non-profits, and individual professions. CREC regularly serves 36 towns in Greater Hartford, offering more than 120 programs to more than 150,000 students annually. CREC manages more than 35 facilities throughout the area, including 16 interdistrict magnet schools and two magnet programs. More information about CREC and CREC’s award-winning schools is available at www.crec.org.In the 1990s, Connecticut’s six RESCs formed the RESC Alliance to create greater access to resources and savings for all Connecticut public schools. Today, the RESCs collaborate to deliver an ever-growing variety of education resources and services that schools and communities couldn’t otherwise afford. The RESC Alliance also advocates at the state legislature for laws that address and respond to the education needs of all Connecticut residents.About NCTRNCTR disrupts historical educational inequities by advancing the teacher residency movement to prepare effective, diverse, and culturally responsive educators. About the Black Educators InitiativeThe Black Educators Initiative is a five-year, $20-million effort to train 750 Black teachers through NCTR’s nationwide network of teacher residency programs. NCTR launched the Black Educators Initiative in 2019 to help NCTR Network partner programs improve the recruitment, development, and retention of Black educators in their programs and partner schools. This year, NCTR awarded nearly $2.2 million in grants to seven programs. Funding for the initiative comes from The Ballmer Group. ...

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(Hartford, Conn.) Capitol Region Education Council (CREC) announced today that it was selected to join the inaugural cohort of The Bridges Collaborative, a first-of-its-kind grassroots initiative to advance racial and socioeconomic integration and equity in America’s schools. The Bridges Collaborative, which officially launches this week, is coordinated by The Century Foundation (TCF), a national think tank that has helped steer the conversation on school integration for decades.The collaborative is unique in the world of K-12 education for its size, diversity, and mission. CREC is joining 55 other organizations—including 27 school districts, 17 charter schools, and 12 housing organizations—which together represent more than 3.5 million children nationwide. Together, the collaborative spans more than 20 states and includes representatives from three of the five largest school districts in the country, along with other organizations of varying size, geographies, and student demographics.CREC’s core values — Demand Equity, Expect Excellence, Embrace Collaboration, and Act with Courage — are embodied in its everyday work for children and families. In the spring of 2020, CREC adopted a statement of diversity, equity, and inclusion:“CREC is an intentionally diverse social justice organization whose members work to acknowledge, respect, and empathize with people of all different identifiers, such as race, socioeconomic status, gender identity and expression, education, age, ability, ethnicity, culture, sexual orientation, language, nationality, and religion. We commit to affirm and honor the lived experiences of others, to willingly challenge inherited beliefs and ideologies, and consequently learn, grow, and serve.”Driven by this statement and the core values, CREC’s commitment to increasing access to integrated schools is continually demonstrated in work with students in the 16 CREC Magnet Schools and the partnership with 27 districts in the Hartford Region Open Choice Program. CREC Magnet Schools and Open Choice serve over 10,000 urban and suburban students from various ethnic, socioeconomic, and racial backgrounds.“CREC is thrilled to be joining this impressive group of organizations working around the country to ensure that all of our students benefit from the promise of public education,” said CREC Executive Director Greg Florio. “This year has not been easy for our students. We know that any effort to achieve successful school integration will not occur in a vacuum, which is why we are especially excited about the opportunity to connect with, engage and learn from other national school leaders. We are doing this for Connecticut’s children and our community’s future.”This unprecedented effort comes at a pivotal moment for the cause of school integration. Research has repeatedly demonstrated the myriad positive benefits for students who attend diverse and integrated schools, including higher test scores, higher graduation rates, and a host of positive social and civic outcomes. Despite the clear benefits, however, progress on integration has been minimal in recent decades—although those trends are beginning to change, especially with growing awareness on the disparate impacts of COVID-19 on students and schools.Over the next two years, the collaborative will serve as a hub for practitioners from across the country, providing school and housing leaders the opportunity to learn from one another, build grassroots momentum, and develop successful Capitol Region Education Council www.crec.org integration approaches. The initiative is led by Stefan Louis Lallinger, who most recently served as a Special Assistant to the Chancellor of the New York City Department of Education and is a former school principal in New Orleans. Lallinger’s grandfather, Louis Redding, was a lawyer who argued the landmark school desegregation case, Brown v. Board of Education, before the Supreme Court in 1954.“Never before has there been an organization like the Bridges Collaborative. The sheer breadth and depth of knowledge and experience represented by the 56 groups in this cohort sends a clear message: we will deliver the high-quality, integrated school experience that the next generation deserves,” said Lallinger. “COVID-19 and the racial reckoning we’re experiencing underscore that the fight for racial and economic justice is far from over. To have any shot at winning that fight, we must first tackle the rampant inequities and segregation in our nation’s education system. That’s exactly what the Bridges Collaborative was built for.” ###The Capitol Region Education Council was established in 1966. Working with and for its member districts, CREC has developed a wide array of cost-effective and high-quality programs and services to meet the educational needs of children and adults in the region. CREC brings nearly five decades of experience in education, regional collaboration, and operations to provide innovative strategies and products that address the changing needs of school districts and their students, corporations, non-profits, and individual professions. CREC regularly serves 36 towns in Greater Hartford, offering more than 120 programs to more than 150,000 students annually. CREC manages more than 35 facilities throughout the area, including 16 interdistrict magnet schools and two magnet programs. More information about CREC and CREC’s award-winning schools is available at www.crec.org....

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(Hartford, Conn.) The Capitol Region Education Council (CREC) is participating in the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) as part of the National School Lunch Program for school year 2020-21. Under this provision, participating districts and schools provide free breakfast and lunch to all students at all times. All students enrolled at the following schools will receive meals through the School Breakfast Program and National School Lunch Program at no charge. Household income applications are no longer required to determine eligibility for free or reduced-price meals at schools participating in the CEP. All students will be served breakfast and lunch at no charge at the following sites:CREC John J. Allison Jr. Polaris CenterCREC Civic Leadership High School CREC Ana Grace Academy of the Arts Elementary SchoolCREC Reggio Magnet School of the ArtsCREC Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts Middle School (grades 6-8) For additional information please contact:Jeff Sidewater, Food Services Program CoordinatorCREC (Capitol Region Education Council)147 Charter Oak Avenue, Hartford, CT 06106 O: 860-509-3774 F: 860-524-4001Email: jsidewater@crec.org###The Capitol Region Education Council was established in 1966 and is celebrating 50 years of academic excellence. Working with and for its member districts, CREC has developed a wide array of cost-effective and high-quality programs and services to meet the educational needs of children and adults in the region. CREC brings five decades of experience in education, regional collaboration, and operations to provide innovative strategies and products that address the changings needs of school districts and their students, corporations, non-profits, and individual professions. CREC regularly serves 36 towns in Greater Hartford, offering more than 120 programs to more than 150,000 students annually. CREC manages more than 35 facilities throughout the area, including 18 interdistrict magnet schools. More information about CREC and CREC’s award-winning schools is available at www.crec.org. ...

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