A march in support of a Charter School coming to Danbury is being held this weekend. Latinos of Educational Advocacy, or LEAD, is organizing the event. LEAD argues that the school is needed to provide an alternative to the growing Danbury Public School District. The march on Sunday will begin at 358 Main Street, where LEAD is headquartered, at 1pm. They will match to City Hall, which speeches are scheduled at 1:30.
This comes as the legislature's Appropriations Committee included funding for the charter school in a draft budget plan, despite Governor Lamont not including it in his budget proposal. Danbury Representative Ken Gucker has said in the past that funding should be put toward the public schools, and shouldn't be considered until the state Board of Education approve the school proposal.
The state Board of Education approved the Brooklyn-based Prospect Charter Schools application in 2018 to open a facility in Danbury, pending state funding. That funding was never approved. A new operator has since been selected, one based in Connecticut rather than New York. The state Board of Education must sign off on the new application by Elevate, which is awaiting IRS approval of its nonprofit status.
