As the fall leaves begin to turn in Connecticut, we're thinking today at The Wheelhouse Digest about a few other things turning a corner as well. Efforts toward school reform in Bridgeport were pushed back last week. A former Latin Kings member in New Haven found a way to transform herself and her work. And everything will be turning up jobs if we just borrow some more, according to a new report. Here's a taste of the news you need to know now.
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A TURNING TIDE AGAINST REFORM IN BRIDGEPORT?
The primaries are interpreted as a portentous push against school reform.
Three Bridgeport school board members who supported Superintendent Paul Vallas were ousted in last week's primaries. The winning slate of candidates oppose Vallas's school reform policies. Vallas told reporter Molly Ball, "Anytime you push reform, you're going to create controversy. Why? Because you're upsetting the status quo." Now the question is: are the Bridgeport primaries a sign of more to come?
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FORMER GANG LEADER BECOMES A WRITER AND ADVOCATE
Work with the media translated from the gang world to life after prison.
Beatrice Codianni, a former leader of the Latin Kings, served 15 years at the Danbury federal prison. She was a self-appointed spokeswoman for the gang and tried to reduce violence in her role, but eventually ran into criminal trouble. Now she's the managing editor of Reentry Central, covering important criminal justice stories, and getting national attention.
Read more at The Connecticut Mirror.
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BORROW NOW, MAKE JOBS LATER
A new report advises billions in borrowing to restore employment.
The Connecticut Center for Economic Analysis issued a quarterly report today suggesting that $3.1 billion in borrowing could help the state create enough jobs to come back to 2010 employment levels -- depending on which economic indicators are used. Fred Carstensen told Christine Stuart that if housing permits are used as the indicator, the state could lose jobs under this borrowing scenario.
