Students across Connecticut are heading back to school in the coming weeks.
A new school year also means various changes for many districts. From new cellphone policies to mandatory civics and media literacy instruction, many students and staff will be returning to something new and different in their respective districts.
Here are some changes some of Connecticut’s public schools are implementing:
New class requirements
Beginning with the 2025-26 school year, all public school districts in Connecticut must include Asian American and Pacific Islander studies in their social studies curriculum, under a new state law. Under the law, which passed the legislature in 2022, the State Board of Education must have AAPI curriculum materials available to help school boards develop such programs.
Schools must now also provide a course in civics and media literacy, under a law that passed in 2023. The wording of the law clarifies that civics means the study of the rights and obligations of citizens; media literacy is defined as “the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, create, and participate with media in all forms by understanding the role of media in society.” Both are meant to help students build proper skills to participate and collaborate in a democratic society.
Public high schools must also add personal financial management and financial literacy to their graduation requirements in the form of a half-credit class. Some schools have already started to implement this change but under the law, a conforming change took effect in July 2025.
New start and dismissal times
Several school districts this year are changing their start and/or dismissal times for students. In general, Connecticut has an earlier-than-average school start time compared to other states.
Greenwich High School is changing its start time this year from 8:30 a.m. to 7:45 a.m. as a way to save money in the district’s slimmed-down budget. Officials said it became too costly to run buses for a later start time. Brookfield High School students will also be starting earlier this year, at 7:30 a.m. instead of 8 a.m.
In Middletown, the school day has been cut down by 20 minutes. Elementary school students will be dismissed at 3:25 p.m. instead of 3:45 p.m. starting this school year, but the students will still begin their day at 8:50 a.m. At the middle school, students will attend from 8:10 a.m. to 2:45 p.m., starting five minutes later than last year and ending 15 minutes earlier. At Middletown High, students will end their day at 2 p.m. instead of 2:20 p.m. Officials have said the earlier dismissal times allow teachers more time to work with students after school.
Several legislative proposals were put forth this year on school start times, but none were signed into law before the legislative session concluded.
Cellphone policies
Many Connecticut school districts already have policies in place to dictate when and how cellphones can be used by students during the school day, but some schools are changing or updating their policies this school year.
For example, Amity Regional School District has updated its policy for both middle and high school students. Middle school students are not allowed any phone use during the school day, and devices must be turned off or silenced and stored in a locker or backpack. At the high school, phones must be off or silenced during classes and stowed away, but students are allowed to use their devices during lunch, study hall or when approved by a teacher during class.
In Stratford public schools, starting this fall, elementary and middle school students must power off and stow away their cellphones in a secure area during the school day. High school students are allowed to use devices during lunch and between classes, but must keep them turned off and put away in designated boxes during instruction time.
A bill in the most recent legislative session sought to require local and regional school boards to adopt a smart device use policy for each school year, starting this year, using guidance published by the state Department of Education. That bill wasn’t taken up by the full House or Senate this session.
Cameras on school buses
New Haven is installing stop-arm cameras on its 350 or so school buses by October in an effort to increase safety for students. Drivers caught on camera passing a stopped school bus with its lights flashing would be fined $250, officials said, with citations mailed to the owner of the vehicle. Bridgeport has been using similar cameras since last fall on its approximately 250 school buses.
Both school districts have contracted with Bus Patrol for the camera systems. Representatives from that company did not return a request for comment and it is unclear how many districts in Connecticut the company has partnered with so far.