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Amid Declining School Enrollment and Budget Constraints, Are International Students a Boon?

About two-thirds of students at community colleges in Connecticut are not prepared for college-level work.
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How can we adequately fund public education?

There's a debate in West Hartford over plans by a for-profit company to open an educational academy for Chinese students in town. The plan would include sending some students to the public high schools.

What are the pros and cons in allowing international students into our public schools at a time when districts face declining enrollment and budget constraints? Is this a creative way to fund public schools or is it detrimental to their mission? 

This hour, we discuss the impact of international students on public education, a system with limited resources. 

GUESTS:

  • Ronni Newton - Managing editor of We-Ha.com
  • Beth Kerrigan - Member of the West Hartford town council
  • Jason Guerrera - Co-founder of Apex International Education Partners
  • Patrice McCarthy - Deputy Director and General Counsel at the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education
  • Peggy Blumenthal - Senior Counselor to the President of the Institute of International Education

Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.

Lydia Brown and Chion Wolf contributed to this show.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.