A rally is in the works in support of Nancy Sarra, the current Superintendent of the Consolidated School District of New Britain. The event is being organized by Matthew Cannata, who is the School District’s Safety and Communications Manager. The rally will be held in Central Park in New Britain, across from City Hall on February 24th at 5:00 pm.
According to the event page on Meta Platform’s Facebook, “Issues have arisen over Nancy Sarra, who will be retiring. Four members of the New Britain Board of Education have called for a special meeting on Thursday, February 24 at 6 PM to ‘review the performance of the superintendent and discuss her contract and a potential buyout.’ Furthermore, "In the wake of recent events, the community has made it clear they are concerned about safety in our schools, and action needs to be taken to ensure the safety of our students and staff. With the impending retirement of the superintendent, we want to ensure that changes are made and resources are allocated to keep our staff and students safe."
Cannata continued to state that, “The blame for the troubles in the school system - mainly around behavioral issues - has been placed on Superintendent Sarra. However, those in the school district and embedded in the community understand that this is a community problem, and blame cannot and should not be placed on one individual. The behavioral issues have persisted for many years before Superintendent Sarra and will continue for many years after her if the community - as a whole - does not work together to find the root of the problem and take steps to solve it. Looking to make Superintendent Sarra a scapegoat for these problems and having a vacancy with just a few months left in the school year is not what is best for the school district and the city. Superintendent Sarra has given more than 25 years of her life to the Consolidated School District of New Britain and has made a tremendous impact within the District and the City. With her set to retire at the end of this school year, she deserves better and a chance to leave on her terms.”
On the other side of the political aisle, BOE member Anthony Kane has stated that, “The schools are unsafe, especially the secondary level. Nancy continues to create new positions and spend money we don’t have, especially in academics. She hasn’t been to an in-person meeting in two months, and barely participates since she announced her retirement. All of our requests to make changes in the system have been met with resistance or flat out lies, and there isn’t any plan for safety improvements at any schools. It will only get worse. Teachers doing a walk-in basically means even they want support and safety.”
The Democrats, who are supporting Nancy are calling the New Britain High School shooting a community issue. However, according to Tina Santana, “Let's be honest, as a parent, I send my kid to the high school trusting that he is safe. This shooting was not a community issue; the superintendent failed his parents by not keeping their kid safe on school grounds.”