Connecticut school board elections, 2015
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A total of nine Connecticut school districts school districts among America's largest school districts by enrollment held elections for 41 seats on November 3, 2015.
Here are several quick facts about Connecticut's school board elections in 2015:
- The largest school district by enrollment with an election in 2015 was New Haven Public Schools with 21,150 K-12 students.
- The smallest school district by enrollment with an election in 2015 was West Hartford Public Schools with 10,030 K-12 students.
- Danbury Public Schools had the most seats on the ballot in 2015 with six seats up for election.
- New Haven Public School had the fewest seats on the ballot in 2015 with two seats up for election.
The district listed below served 127,693 K-12 students during the 2012-2013 school year, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.[1] Click on the district name for more information on the district and its school board elections.
| 2015 Connecticut School Board Elections | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| District | Date | Seats up for election | Total board seats | Student enrollment |
| Bridgeport Public Schools | 11/3/2015 | 4 | 9 | 20,155 |
| Danbury Public Schools | 11/3/2015 | 6 | 11 | 10,612 |
| Fairfield Public Schools | 11/3/2015 | 5 | 9 | 10,294 |
| New Britain Public Schools | 11/3/2015 | 5 | 10 | 10,232 |
| New Haven Public School | 11/3/2015 | 2 | 7 | 21,150 |
| Norwalk Public Schools | 11/3/2015 | 5 | 9 | 11,071 |
| Stamford Public Schools | 11/3/2015 | 5 | 9 | 15,758 |
| Waterbury Public Schools | 11/3/2015 | 5 | 11 | 18,391 |
| West Hartford Public Schools | 11/3/2015 | 4 | 7 | 10,030 |
Trends in Connecticut school board elections
- See also: School boards in session: 2015 in brief
The 2015 school board elections held in Connecticut's largest school districts attracted a smaller average number of candidates per seat on the ballot compared to the average number of candidates who ran per seat on the ballot in the state's 2014 school board elections. The 2015 elections also had a higher percentage of seats go unopposed than the 2014 elections had. Newcomers fared better in 2015 than in 2014. They won 60.98 percent of the seats on the ballot that year. In 2014, they won 33.33 percent of seats up for election.
The state's 2014 school board elections had fewer seats on the ballot than there were in 2015. In 2014, one district held elections for three seats. In 2015, nine districts held elections for 42 seats.
The following sections analyze competitiveness and incumbency advantage in Connecticut's school board elections. The state holds partisan school board elections, meaning that candidates run with political party designations. Primary elections may be held if an excess of candidates files for any one party. In 2015, three of the nine school districts that held elections held primary elections.
Details of the data discussed here can be found in the table below.
Competitiveness
In 2015, Connecticut's largest school districts attracted an average of 1.80 candidates per seat on the ballot. This was lower than the average two candidates who ran for each seat up for election in 2014. A total of 21.95 percent of seats went unopposed in 2015. No seats went unopposed in 2014.
Incumbency advantage
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A total of 69.57 percent of incumbents who ran for re-election retained their seats in 2015. Twenty-three of the 41 incumbents whose seats were on the ballot ran to keep their seats, and 16 of them won. Four of those winners ran unopposed; the other 12 winners defeated challengers to win their re-election bids. In 2014, 100.00 percent of incumbents who ran to retain their seats won re-election. Two of the three incumbents whose terms were up for election ran to keep their seats, and both of them won. Both defeated challengers to win additional terms. The map below details the success rates for incumbents who ran in the 2015 school board elections that were held in the largest school districts by enrollment in the U.S.
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Data table
The table below displays the statistics for school board elections in Connecticut's largest school districts from 2014 to 2015.
| Connecticut school board elections, 2014-2015 | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Total | Incumbents | ||||||||
| Seats up | Candidates | Candidates/ seat |
Unopposed seats | % unopposed | % seats won by newcomers | Sought re-election | Unopposed | Retained | % retained | |
| 2015 | 41 | 74 | 1.80 | 9 | 21.95% | 60.98% | 23 | 4 | 16 | 69.57% |
| 2014 | 3 | 6 | 2.00 | 0 | 0.00% | 33.33% | 2 | 0 | 2 | 100.00% |
Survey responses
One of the 74 candidates running for a school board seat in Connecticut's largest school districts in the 2015 elections responded to Ballotpedia's school board candidate survey. The following sections display the candidate's answers to questions about top priorities and education issues.
Top priorities
When asked what his top priority would be if elected, Michael Lyons, an incumbent on the Norwalk Public Schools Board of Education, made the following statement:
| “ | Establishing a management team capable of fully implementing our strategic plan.[2] | ” |
| —Michael Lyons (2015)[3] | ||
Ranking the issues
The candidate was asked to rank the following issues by importance in the school district, with one being the most important and seven being the least important. This table displays this candidate's rankings from most to least important:
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Improving college readiness | |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Expanding career-technical education | |
| Expanding arts education | |
Positions on the issues
The candidate was asked an additional 10 short answer and multiple choice questions regarding significant issues in education. A link to those responses can be found below.
State profile
| Demographic data for Connecticut | ||
|---|---|---|
| Connecticut | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 3,584,730 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 4,842 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 77.3% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 10.3% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 4.2% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 0.2% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 2.8% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 14.7% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 89.9% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 37.6% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $70,331 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 12.2% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Connecticut. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
Presidential voting pattern
Connecticut voted for the Democratic candidate in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.
Pivot Counties (2016)
Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, one is located in Connecticut, accounting for 0.5 percent of the total pivot counties.[4]
Pivot Counties (2020)
In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Connecticut had one Retained Pivot County, 0.55 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.
More Connecticut coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Connecticut
- United States congressional delegations from Connecticut
- Public policy in Connecticut
- Endorsers in Connecticut
- Connecticut fact checks
- More...
Academic performance
| Education terms |
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| For more information on education policy terms, see this article. |
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- See also: Public education in Connecticut
NAEP scores
- See also: NAEP scores by state
The National Center for Education Statistics provides state-by-state data on student achievement levels in mathematics and reading in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The chart below presents the percentage of fourth and eighth grade students that scored at or above proficient in reading and math during the 2012-2013 school year. Compared to three neighboring states (Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island), Connecticut students fared worse nearly across the board than those in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, but better than those in Rhode Island.[5]
| Percent of students scoring at or above proficient, 2012-2013 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Math - Grade 4 | Math - Grade 8 | Reading - Grade 4 | Reading - Grade 8 | |
| Connecticut | 45% | 37% | 43% | 45% |
| Massachusetts | 58% | 55% | 47% | 48% |
| New Hampshire | 59% | 47% | 45% | 44% |
| Rhode Island | 42% | 36% | 38% | 36% |
| United States | 41% | 34% | 34% | 34% |
| Source: United States Department of Education, ED Data Express, "State Tables" | ||||
Graduation, ACT and SAT scores
The following table shows the graduation rates and average composite ACT and SAT scores for Connecticut and surrounding states during the 2012-2013 school year. All statements made in this section refer to that school year.[5][6][7]
In the United States, public schools reported graduation rates that averaged to about 81.4 percent. About 54 percent of all students in the country took the ACT, while 50 percent reported taking the SAT. The average national composite scores for those tests were 20.9 out of a possible 36 for the ACT and 1,498 out of a possible 2,400 for the SAT.[8]
Connecticut schools reported a graduation rate of 85.5 percent during the 2012-2013 school year, second highest among its neighboring states.
In Connecticut, more students took the SAT than the ACT in 2013, earning an average SAT score of 1,532.
| Comparison table for graduation rates and test scores, 2012-2013 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Graduation rate, 2013 | Average ACT composite, 2013 | Average SAT composite, 2013 | ||||
| Percent | Quintile ranking** | Score | Participation rate | Score | Participation rate | ||
| Connecticut | 85.5% | Second | 24 | 27% | 1,532 | 85% | |
| Massachusetts | 85% | Second | 24.1 | 22% | 1,553 | 83% | |
| New Hampshire | 87.3% | First | 23.8 | 19% | 1,567 | 70% | |
| Rhode Island | 79.7% | Fourth | 22.7 | 14% | 1,468 | 72% | |
| United States | 81.4% | 20.9 | 54% | 1498 | 50% | ||
| **Graduation rates for states in the first quintile ranked in the top 20 percent nationally. Similarly, graduation rates for states in the fifth quintile ranked in the bottom 20 percent nationally. Sources: United States Department of Education, "ED Data Express" ACT.org, "2013 ACT National and State Scores" The Commonwealth Foundation, "SAT scores by state, 2013 | |||||||
Dropout rate
- See also: Public high school dropout rates by state for a full comparison of dropout rates by group in all states
The high school event dropout rate indicates the proportion of students who were enrolled at some time during the school year and were expected to be enrolled in grades 9–12 in the following school year but were not enrolled by October 1 of the following school year. Students who have graduated, transferred to another school, died, moved to another country, or who are out of school due to illness are not considered dropouts. The average public high school event dropout rate for the United States remained constant at 3.3 percent for both school year 2010–2011 and school year 2011–2012. The event dropout rate for Connecticut was lower than the national average at 1.9 percent in the 2010-2011 school year, and 2.1 percent in the 2011-2012 school year.[9]
See also
| Connecticut | School Boards | News and Analysis |
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Footnotes
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed April 20, 2015
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2015, "Michael Lyons' responses," September 27, 2015
- ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 United States Department of Education, ED Data Express, "State Tables," accessed May 13, 2014
- ↑ ACT, "2012 ACT National and State Scores," accessed May 13, 2014
- ↑ Commonwealth Foundation, "SAT Scores by State 2013," October 10, 2013
- ↑ StudyPoints, "What's a good SAT score or ACT score?" accessed June 7, 2015
- ↑ United States Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, "Common Core of Data (CCD), State Dropout and Graduation Rate Data File, School Year 2010-11, Provision Version 1a and School Year 2011-12, Preliminary Version 1a," accessed May 13, 2014
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