John Santanella

Governor Lamont and Connecticut Education Commissioner Charlene Russell-Tucker have announced that 41 special education programs in the state will receive a total of $10.6 million in state grants under the first round of Connecticut’s newly established High-Quality Special Education Incentive Grant Program. 

Enfield is one of the towns receiving funds. Enfield will receive $20,600 for programming and $242,000 for capital improvements, for a total of $262,600.

This competitive grant program is administered by the Connecticut State Department of Education. It was created by legislation approved by the Connecticut General Assembly in 2025 (Public Act 25-93). It is intended to help local and regional boards of education build in-district or regional special education services that support students with disabilities and reduce reliance on out-of-district placements.

Local and regional boards of education seeking a grant under this round were required to submit applications to the state by July 10, 2026. Under the terms of this competitive grant program, individual district applications were eligible for up to $350,000, while collaborative proposals were eligible for up to $500,000.

The approved grants provide approximately $8.9 million for programmatic costs and $1.7 million for eligible capital improvements. Programmatic funding will support planning and start-up costs, staffing, assistive technology, instructional materials, professional development, and flexible learning models, while capital funding is designated for facilities, renovations, equipment, transportation, and other infrastructure needed to support those programs.