Transparency in public education isn’t optional. It never was. The Connecticut Freedom of Information Commission just made that crystal clear.
In October, the Commission ruled that New Canaan Public Schools and the Board of Education violated the law by holding Curriculum Leadership Council (CLC) meetings behind closed doors. The district has been ordered to open them to the public, as state law requires.
This ruling should serve as a wake-up call to all school districts across Connecticut. State statute requires every district to have a curriculum committee to “recommend, develop, review and approve curriculum.” And those meetings must be public. For too long, New Canaan’s CLC has met privately, keeping families and taxpayers in the dark about decisions that shape what our students learn, only unveiling programs well after implementation.
When curriculum decisions happen behind closed doors, problems are inevitable. Last year, New Canaan required a reading selection that many parents found inappropriate for its racist and sexual references leading to an after-the-fact review by the Administration. Another example involved a Brown University program where students created Nazi propaganda posters as part of a classroom unit, which was later removed after complaints. These controversies might have been avoided if curriculum work had been done in public from the start.
In 2020, I filed a complaint with the Freedom of Information Commission arguing that the CLC was violating the open-meetings law. The Superintendent and Board of Education disagreed, hiring two attorneys and a Retired Connecticut Supreme Court Justice to make their case. After hearings, testimony and years of delay due to COVID and legal maneuvering, the Commission ruled decisively: the law requires transparency.
This decision isn’t just a win for one person or one town. It’s a victory for the public’s right to know. Open meetings give families the ability to understand and comment on what’s being taught. They also give Boards of Education the tools to manage costs tied to curriculum such as staffing, training, materials, and space before programs are implemented, not after.
There are good examples to follow. Despite New Canaan’s testimony that an open process is very unusual, and is not followed in other towns in Connecticut, it has been a practice in Greenwich for years. It can even be found right in nearby Darien where the curriculum committee meets publicly and evaluates new courses holistically by looking at content, cost, and logistics before adoption. This practice is just common sense.
The law requires New Canaan’s CLC to operate with transparency. In short, the curriculum committee must post agendas and minutes, hold meetings in public, and discuss curriculum plans openly before Board of Education adoption, not after. This level of transparency isn’t a burden; it’s accountability in action.
Every district in Connecticut should take note. Curriculum decisions must be made in the open. Parents and taxpayers deserve to see how programs are developed and to weigh in before they’re finalized.
The public’s right to know isn’t just about process—it’s about trust. And trust in our schools begins with transparency.
Maria Naughton
Full Final Decision: https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/foi/finaldecisions/2025/oct22/2020-0503.pdf
