By CHRIS POWELL
With her abrupt retirement Central Connecticut State University President Zulma Toro last week joined the parade of executives going out the door of the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities system, having declined to defend herself against complaints from subordinates about her abusive and unprofessional behavior.
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This week the resignation of the vice chair of the system’s Board of Regents, Juanita James, was discovered by journalists five days after it was delivered to Governor Lamont but not announced. James accused the system of a “dysfunctional culture and political infighting.”
Toro and James followed Chancellor Terrence Cheng, who departed because of financial exploitation; Chancellor John Maduko, who departed because of sexual harassment; and Board of Regents Chairman Martin Guay, who bore responsibility for the board’s ineptness.
The system’s general counsel, Karen Buffkin, has been on paid administrative leave for four months while her role in the Maduko scandal is investigated.
The colleges and universities system says the investigation of the complaints against Toro has been canceled because she is gone. But members of the Republican minority in the General Assembly argue that it should continue, since it might find more wrongdoing. That’s a good bet.
But last week Governor Lamont, a Democrat in the thick of an election campaign, dismissed the idea of more investigation of Toro, saying the state didn’t need another expensive consultant’s report. At least the governor himself doesn’t need more attention to the problems of the colleges and universities system right now.
State Sen. Derek Slap, D-West Hartford, co-chairman of the legislature’s higher education committee, said another consultant’s report might cost hundreds of thousands of dollars when everyone now already knows how to set the system straight. “I hope that nobody’s trying to use this as an opportunity to score political points six weeks before an election,” Slap said.
But if an election campaign isn’t the right time to try to score political points, what is the right time — after the election, when it won’t make any difference?
Of course Republicans would like an elaboration of the scandal to boost their mediocre prospects in the campaign, what with President Trump acting ever more like a megalomaniac and inviting voters to repudiate his party. But a broad investigation of the colleges and universities system would be in the public interest even as there is no time for it before the election in November.
There would be plenty of time for it in next year’s session of the General Assembly, but the legislature hasn’t investigated anything for years and if, as is almost certain, its Democratic majority is returned, the legislature won’t be any more curious.
As indicated by the huge payment Toro is receiving for accrued sick and vacation time — nearly $125,000 — quite apart from the luxurious retirement benefits due her and yet to be publicized, state government remains first of all a pension and benefit society, and a badly managed one at that.
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A new television commercial from the governor’s campaign wants people to think that public lower education in Connecticut is getting better.
“Connecticut has the best schools in America,” the governor says. Even if so that’s hardly high praise. Hartford schools graduate illiterates, New Haven’s are deteriorating physically and academically, and all city schools in the state have high chronic absenteeism and terrible student proficiency scores like the ones reported just the other day.
“We got record funding for education,” the governor says, as if Connecticut will believe forever that spending equals learning.
The governor adds: “Next up, a pay raise for teachers. They deserve it.” But most teachers already get raises every year through their union contracts, and questioned about his pay raise assertion, the governor withdrew it.
Public education continues its decline throughout the country, except in a few formerly benighted Southern states that are trying, with some success, to end social promotion at third grade, thereby holding both students and parents accountable. More spending hasn’t been improving education in Connecticut. Replacing social promotion with accountability might.
Chris Powell has written about Connecticut government and politics for many years. (CPowell@cox.net)
“But if an election campaign isn’t the right time to try to score political points, what is the right time — after the election, when it won’t make any difference?”
Bingo!
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