Latest news with #ArunanArulampalam
Bloomberg
8 hours ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
US Core CPI Picks Up to Fastest Pace Since January
"Balance of Power: Late Edition" focuses on the intersection of politics and global business. On today's show, Peter Navarro, White House senior counselor for trade and manufacturing, reacts to the latest CPI report. Michael Froman, Council on Foreign Relations President, talks about the economic impact of President Trump's tariffs, and Democratic Mayor Arunan Arulampalam of Hartford, Connecticut & Republican Mayor Jerry Dyer of Fresno, California, share their thoughts on President Trump deploying the National Guard on Washington, D.C. (Source: Bloomberg)
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Hartford taking safety precautions ahead of ‘No Kings Day' protests
HARTFORD, Conn. (WTNH) — Nationwide protests are expected across the country Saturday as part of 'No Kings Day,' opposing the president's policies. At the state capitol in Hartford the barricades are out, but they're not up. This scene is playing out all across Connecticut. Law enforcement agencies in Connecticut preparing for 'No Kings' protests Saturday With dozens of rallies and celebrations, including Juneteenth, and protests planned for around the state, Gov. Ned Lamont (D) and Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam (D) are asking people to please keep it safe. Police are setting up the barricades on the capitol ground as the Hartford Symphony Orchestra plays in the background. The musicians are rehearsing for Saturday's concert in Bushnell Park and the celebrations around Juneteenth. Meanwhile, just steps up the hill, Capitol Police anticipate as many as 6,000 protesters rallying against the president's policies. Starting at 7 a.m. Saturday, no vehicles will be allowed on the capitol grounds. Connecticut State Police, and Capitol Police will have a lot of extra security on hand as Gov. Lamont and Attorney General William Tong (D) spoke about earlier this week. 'You should continue to exercise your right to speak and protest, lawfully and peacefully,' said AG Tong. 'Right now I think our state police and municipal police working together will keep us safe as they always have,' said Gov. and New Haven will also be ready, but not in the way. 'We have our officers on standby and we will let the protesters do their thing, as long as their thing isn't doing damage or being violent or burning anything,' New Haven Police Chief Karl Jacobson said. This week there have been protests from Meriden to New Haven regarding detainments by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. They were loud and emotional, but peaceful so far. Protesters are upset at President Trump ramping up ICE raids and calling in the National Guard and Marines to California. 'We would bring more in if we needed it, because we have to make sure there's going to be law and order,' President Trump said. As the protests play out in the streets, the government is also asking people on work visas to go back to their country. The capitol grounds will be shut down by 7 a.m. to all vehicular traffic. Law enforcement officials anticipate more than two dozen protests across the state Saturday. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Additional state funding expands opportunities for Hartford youth with summer employment program
HARTFORD, Conn. (WTNH) — The Hartford Summer Youth Employment program is back for the 2025 season, and applications for jobs are already coming in. Hartford Public Library receives $117K grant for youth employment and learning During this years legislative session, lawmakers allocated $10.7 million in funding for Hartford Public Schools. A portion of those funds goes towards the city's annual program. 'That will mean 800 kids in our city are spending time productively working on something, earning money for themselves, hopefully building a career in the long run,' Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam (D) said. 'That's a real investment in our city, a significant investment in our youth, a significant in violence prevention in our city. It has so many layers of impact.' The city already has a million dollars in its budget to support the jobs program — the additional funds from the state will help expand opportunities for students. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Can AI help solve Hartford's pothole problem?
HARTFORD, Conn. (WTNH) — Hartford city leaders are looking to a cutting-edge artificial intelligence tool to help tackle the challenge of potholes and other road defects. 'Since I've been mayor, I have, almost from the get-go, gotten complaints from residents about conditions of roads,' Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam said at a press conference on Thursday. GUIDE: Low-cost or free summer activities for New Haven youth, families Arulampalam was joined by representatives of Vialytics, a German firm that developed the technology that Hartford will deploy on municipal vehicles to detect roadway hazards. The technology utilizes an iPhone camera mounted on the inside of a vehicle's front windshield. Using Vialytics' app, the vehicle's driver must first complete a short calibration before heading out on the streets. Once the vehicle is on the road, the app automatically captures images of the road every 10 to 15 feet, Vialytics's staff said. Then, the images are fed into a proprietary A.I. model, which has been trained to recognize more than a dozen roadway defects, including potholes and cracks. 'At first, humans were training that algorithm and actually clicking where see a crack, where we see a pothole,' Tom Cummins, a member of Vialytics's U.S. team, said. 'Over time, the AI, the model itself, is actually learning what a crack looks like, what a pothole looks like.' Law enforcement agencies in Connecitcut preparing for 'No Kings' protests Saturday For the capital city, Arulampalam said the deployment of A.I. to assist their two human road inspectors will help fill in cracks — literally and figuratively. Currently, the city relies on its inspectors and public complaints to identify roads in need of repair. That system can often miss hazards and inadvertently skew repair orders toward neighborhoods that are more likely to have residents who are familiar with filing complaints, city officials said. Vialytics' software is designed to provide more comprehensive coverage while ensuring that each of Hartford's neighborhoods receives the attention they need. Having a constant technological eye keeping tabs on the conditions of the capital city's roadways can raise privacy concerns. Still, Vialytics' top American executive stated that the German company operates under the European Union's data privacy regime, as outlined in the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). GDPR is generally considered to be stricter than any of the applicable data privacy laws in the United States. Vialytics's systems do not collect license plates and faces, the company executive said. Arulampalam said the new technology is going to be impactful for residents not only because it will help address existing potholes but also because it will enable city public works officials to more easily identify smaller defects before they turn into bigger hazards — all at a cost of less than $40,000 to the city in the upcoming fiscal year. 'This innovation is going to lead the way for quality of life in the city and make a huge difference for our residents,' Arulampalam said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Hartford mayor allocates additional $3 million for city schools. District started $30 million short to maintain status quo.
Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam said Tuesday that Hartford Public Schools would receive an additional $3 million to help mitigate a $6.7 million shortfall in the Board of Education's budget, which will preserve several crucial programs for students. But education advocates and some city council members say that the funding does not go far enough to restore teacher cuts and that there needs to be more investments in education. Carol Gale, president of the Hartford Federation of Teachers, said while she welcomed the funding, she is disappointed. 'While it is something to help the Board of Education, it does not close the budget nor does it restore a single teacher cut or laid off,' she said, adding that while 194 teacher positions were cut, an additional 100 teachers were displaced. The mayor said he is hopeful the remainder of the shortfall at $3.7 million will be funded from the state. But Councilman Josh Michtom of the Working Families Party, said the city could find an additional $8 million to fund education from the fund for health care expenses for city employees. Since 2022, Michtom said the city's health care claims budget has been over budget by over $20 million a year. 'If we invested less than half of that we could protect educator jobs and sustainably provide our students with programs to give them the support they need,' he said. 'Hartford parents are no fools. They know that when a city cares about funding a department, they prioritize it. We stand with them in their calls for prioritizing the children of Hartford.' Michtom continued: 'We should have a serious conversation whether we want to make a modest reduction in the police budget so we can do better public safety, which is frankly education and youth programs.' Mayor's allocation The $3 million in funding, which includes $1.5 million from city funds and $1.5 million from corporate and foundation funding guarantees, would safeguard the district's dental clinic, programs supported by Catholic Charities, the Opportunity Academy and ReadyCT career pipeline programs, which the Board of Education identified to cut. The $3 million is in addition to another $3 million the city contributed to Hartford public schools this past March. Arulampalam said those programs are critical, citing the Opportunity Academy as the last chance for students to get a high school diploma and the career pathways program ensuring students seek careers after high school. The mayor said that he will continue to advocate for funding for schools. 'This is not the final word for us,' the mayor said Tuesday at Hartford City Hall. 'We want to ensure every school building has the resources they need and support staff they need. Our goal is not to fill one budget gap. It is to create centers of excellence for all of our kids. We can't reach our great challenges if we are not willing to work together.' House Speaker Matt Ritter, D-Hartford, said in an email Tuesday that he expects school funding will increase this year. 'The Hartford Legislative Delegation is always focused on securing funding for our schools,' he said. 'Last year we were able to increase school funding by $5 million in state ECS grants. We fully expect to increase funding this year as well, in both our priority bill on special education and through other legislation.' Board of Education Chair Jen Hockenhull said in a statement the funding was crucial. 'Not only does this ensure our students receive a quality education, but also have access to the resources they need to thrive,' she said. Hartford School Board member Tyrone Walker told the Courant that the mayor identified crucial programs that should be saved, also citing the Opportunity Youth Academy, as an opportunity to get students back on track. But one program still on the chopping block that has not been funded yet is the Hope Academy, Walker added, stating that program is also crucial as another one that helps students recover. Calling for more funding Gale said one of the ways that the Board of Education has lost funding is because some students opted to go to magnet schools in other districts and open choice districts. 'We need to attract them back and the only way to attract them back is investing in our schools,' she said. 'Opening back up our libraries and getting our drama programs and things that other districts have that excite kids.' And she called for more collaboration. Gale said that members of the Board of Education and City Council were present at the press conference, she noted the absence of the union and parents, many of whom have been calling for increased funding at recent budget meetings. She called for increased funding from the city, stating that the Hartford Federation of Teachers asked for $10 million. 'That would have balanced the superintendent budget and restored a little bit more,' she said. 'Quite frankly the state wants to see the city doing its part.' In response, Arulampalam told the Courant that he would love to have $10 million to put into the schools. 'Teachers and advocates have been convinced by some city council members that there is $10 million in the city budget,' he said. 'What the council members have not told them is that the plan to find that is to fire 120 police officers and slash health benefits to city employees, including teachers, firefighters and police officers. We are not going to do that. It is irresponsible and wrong.' Michtom argued that the city could stand to cut back on police a little bit, adding that the Board of Education has never gotten an increase in its budget over the past decade. By comparison, the police department's budget has gone up by $17 million, he said. Flat-funded budget Gale told the Courant that the city has flat funded the Board of Education budget for the last 10 to 12 years. 'We have received the same base amount from the city,' she said. 'There has been no cost of living increase. No adjustment for inflation over all of that time.' Gale said the overlay that adds to the complexity of the flat funding is the creation of magnet and charter schools, which has drawn students away from Hartford, affecting enrollment, which determines state grant funding. 'Arts and music has been a source of an opportunity gap between Hartford and our magnet counterparts,' she said. She added that the district has reduced the number of libraries from eight to three. 'We have lost our instrumental music program,' she said. 'We have lost many of our dance teachers. 'Five thousand Hartford students do not get art and music in their elementary years.' Equitable funding Hartford has faced increasing funding challenges over the years, receiving millions less from the state in funding than outlined under the Education Cost Sharing formula. The Board of Education's $6.7 million budget deficit in its $250 million budget has resulted in cuts to teaching positions and also impacted classroom resources and student programs. 'Until we deal with structural issues leading to budget deficit growth we are going to continue to be in this cycle of survival,' the mayor said. 'It is not a sustainable cycle. We are committed to advocating for more funding.' Since the start of the ECS formula in FY 2019 to 2024, Hartford has received $126 million less than what full funding called for, according to the School + State Finance Project. The School + State Finance Project states that 'large, urban districts tend to educate the greatest number of students with higher learning needs, and have student populations composed of the largest percentages of economically disadvantaged students, multilingual learners, and students with disabilities. These districts also tend to have larger percentages of BIPOCB students. Despite serving students with overall greater learning needs, these districts often do not receive funding that reflects the needs of their student populations.'
