The Voice of the District | Episode 10 with Mayor Joseph P. Ganim

In Episode 10 of The Voice of the District, we sit down with Bridgeport Mayor Joseph P. Ganim for a thoughtful and forward-looking conversation centered on the future of our city and our schools. Mayor Ganim reflects on his years in public service and shares insight into the experiences that continue to shape his leadership today.

The discussion highlights exciting developments happening across Bridgeport and explores the important role a mayor plays in supporting and strengthening public education. From expanding opportunities for students to building stronger partnerships between state and local leaders, this episode focuses on what it takes to ensure every student has access to the resources they need to succeed.

Mayor Ganim also speaks to the importance of community involvement, emphasizing how families, educators, and residents all play a role in moving the district forward. He closes with a direct message to Bridgeport students and families, reinforcing a shared commitment to growth, opportunity, and a stronger future for Bridgeport Public Schools.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

All right, good afternoon, and welcome to The Voice of the District, a podcast dedicated to amplifying the voices, stories, and leadership shaping Bridgeport public schools in the community we serve. I'm Carly Rocha Reyes, and today we're honored to welcome Mayor Joseph P. Gannum. In this episode, we'll talk about leadership, opportunity, and the shared responsibility we all have in supporting our students, families, and schools. This conversation is centered on community collaboration and how city leadership and schools can work together in service of our students. So welcome. Thank you for coming.

SPEAKER_02 0:35

Oh, thanks so much for having me and and for having and doing this podcast.

SPEAKER_00 0:40

Absolutely. Absolutely, thank you. And I think you know, we we've used this podcast to host different guests, but also to be able to give real-time information to families when something comes up or when we hear something stirring in the schools or the community, so that way parents know that we're listening, we're receptive, um, and that we're here to provide them the information in in any and every way possible.

SPEAKER_02 1:23

Well, you mentioned the word um leadership, and I think you know this demonstrates uh the through the leadership here at the Board of Education, uh the real efforts that are being made, I think, communicating, substantively, addressing the challenges, partnering and leading. So we appreciate that. I appreciate that. I know all the parents hopefully appreciate that, and um all of us that want to make sure that we provide the best quality education for every child who enters uh and hopefully matriculates through the Bridgeport uh school system. Uh it's a real important thing. So thanks.

SPEAKER_00 1:59

Absolutely. So um, Mayor Ganham, can you just tell us a little bit about yourself and how long you've been in public service?

SPEAKER_02 2:06

Yeah, I was first elected back in the 90s, 1991, as Mayor. Bridgeport was really, I mean, we have challenges. This is a huge challenge in funding education right now. Um, and we'll talk about it and and how it was allowed, you know, formulas were allowed to lapse on a state level that got us here. But there were some really challenging times in the early 90s for the city that included not just education funding, critically important to the present and future and success of you know, of a city and all of our children, public safety challenges to a point where, you know, people were questioning uh safety uh at a very high level in certain certain parts of the city. Um budget problems on the city side, uh, overall Bridgeport, City of Bridgeport budgets being hundreds of millions of dollars in deficit, which prompted my predecessor when I was first elected, I laughed because I looked back quite a ways, to put Bridgeport into bankruptcy. And so we had to deal with the digging out um of of financial chaos while public safety was challenged and the ability to commit dollars to education and so on. So been in it for a long time. Yeah. We've seen a lot. And over those those uh years as it relates specifically to education, you know, we've put our um we've put our marker down a number of times uh and continue to try and do it every day for the children that go to Bridgeport public schools and their families, sued the state of Connecticut um to try and get equalized funding formulas that impacted Bridgeport in a negative, disproportionate way uh corrected. Um, you know, to go to have to go through the courts um as as a last resort of remedy for our children, and you know, and and pound at that, and pound it that and pound at that. Um and now hopefully I in seeing the crisis financially to a certain extent in front of us, the state stepping up, hopefully willingly, by the uh the leadership of our legislative delegation, I think the governor's on board, um uh uh House and and and and Senate leaders know it's time that we have to kind of address and statewide, right? But specifically, I'm I'm I'm making the case for Bridgeport, for Bridgeport public schools. The need can never be greater. This is the time and the moment. We need the partnership. We've stepped up, as I know we're gonna talk about, uh uh an unprecedented historic commitment, and we need the state to do it. And you know, we're gonna be continuing to fight that battle right through this session every day.

SPEAKER_00 4:27

Right. Well, I think that's a a good segue into you stepping up. Um and you know, I think this is a pivotal moment for Bridgeport Public Schools and all the work around the advocacy. So, do you want to talk a little bit about it?

SPEAKER_02 4:39

I do, I do, and I I appreciate the opportunity and the advocates. Um everyone from uh going backwards a couple weeks to when um there was a call to action in Hartford, and Bridgeport answered the call. We led the charge in many ways. Uh it was our students that were up there, along with students from other cities and other mayors and other superintendents. Um, you know, stepping up, it's easy for um uh somewhat impactful and easy for us as public officials to step up to a microphone in a crowded room with cameras and lights, right? And and and it's daunting. Um and it's important and we do it. But to have our students, uh as was said, uh much more that just their presence and those that spoke, a powerful statement. Um not only about the um I don't know what you would say, the opportunity promise that they that you could see from them taking on the role of saying we need more money for education, we want, we're fighting for ourselves, you know, strong statement for that. But um uh just to have everyone up there and and push, it was important. We need we need to follow that up. Richport has made the vocal cries, uh the submitting the legislation, the case, if you will, along with other mayors and students and superintendents across Connecticut. But we've also put up a historic amount of local funds, as I think your your question asked about. Um in coordination with the leadership of the city council, um our financial departments. Uh I asked them to take a deep dive first into the Board of Education budget, along with the auditors that the state has assigned, in order to make sure that we're all on the same page as to what these challenges are. We could differ on how the answers are and how much we need to fund it, but what are the challenges and then how we can find more, in this case a historic amount, a total of ten million dollars over the next two years, five years of five million and five million for each year, um, as a city-side commitment. In addition to the funding that we've been increasing every year, I made a commitment years back, two million dollar increase, and we did it, and then we did a two million dollar increase. But this um on top of that is um something that I wanted to say we're gonna do our part, but state $10 million is a lot of money for the city of Bridgeport. We need you to do your part now too.

SPEAKER_00 6:59

Absolutely. And I, you know, talking about the students going up to Harvard, this is my 19th year being an educator in Bridgeport Public Schools, and that was probably one of the most proudest. It was amazing. It was amazing. Um and for them to have the courage, um, the composure, the professionalism, they spoke so eloquently, um, it was really impressive.

SPEAKER_02 7:21

And had they said, you know, uh uh not such powerful uh words or statements and you know, collective statements, as you say, just their presence getting up there was was a it was a head turner, I think, for people that I don't know what their perceptions were. Um, because you know, uh stuff that's not flattering and bad news always travels faster and you know, gets gets spread quicker. But, you know, when you see something like that, I did you could see around the room that students from all over the state, but Bridgeport students who I was particularly watching and you know, had had the opportunity, by the way, the day before they came to City Hall as the beginning of their um uh academic experience with what city government is like and how it works in the keynote office. And the first question I got out of the room happened to be a student who was up there that day, said, um, are they gonna fully, you know, I expect they see like, hey, what's it like to be mayor, you know, like where's your top hat, and you know, and whatever they think of a mayor is. And he's like, um, are they gonna fully fund the foundation formula for for the across the state of Connecticut and disproportionately as we've been deprived by Bridgeport, you know, make it equitable so that I can, you know, for have the constitutional the same quality of education as they have. And I was like, wow. You know, I mean, and that's that's what was presented up there. So soon our friends up there, meaning those that represent us, our state delegation, talking to the speaker uh Ritter, uh leadership and the Senate has carved out uh commitment. They we went to a press conference to support the bill that they're putting forward. I know this is kind of kind of legislative alphabet soup for those that what we're saying is our friends seem to get it. I think the case is being made continuously. Uh we need to follow through and make sure that nobody drops the ball between now and the end of the session to get the funding that Bridgeport needs to at least continue the commitment that we have now. I'd like to enhance it, but at least to continue the commitment now that we have in the classroom, after school programs, um, the needs for uh lunch programs, all the things that we provide in our schools so that we can continue to meet the need.

SPEAKER_00 9:37

Absolutely. And we see those students every day in the hallways, but I think it was really nice for everyone else to get to see what our students are like too at a broader in a broader audience. Um and so what can the community do to be a part of this solution? Do you have any suggestions for the community at large to help advocacy efforts or or to to rally around some of these things that we're working on?

SPEAKER_02 9:58

Yeah, I think right now is a critical time and and we're working, um, as you know, we're this uh call us the city and the board of ed working hand in hand um in the coordination of not only as you're doing with this and other ways, disseminating information, but rallying, I think, at the appropriate times. If we need to head back up, if we need to head back up to the state capitol, um, you know, we we're gonna need to do that uh together. If the students can come fine, sometimes the parents come, the teachers. I think the you know, the ability to kind of um continue to let them know because there's so many competing interests. I mean, I go through all that we hear. We even on the city side, we have other other challenges and needs, certainly, that we need to to address. And I know the state of Connecticut gets lobbied and lobbied and lobbied. So we need to keep the focus on. I've never seen the momentum, as I think others have said, and I've been at this as you pointed out since the early 90s. I've never seen the broad-based kind of commonality of commitment um from cities and towns across, but then at the levels that go from you know, the mayors and superintendents, which I guess are somewhere here, all the way through administrators, teachers, parents, students. Right. Not that they're there, the students are really at the you know, the the the the tip of the spear, as they say. But um, yeah, so that's good. That's good. But it doesn't mean, you know, we can we can oh we're you know sh wipe our brow, and we're well, let's move on to the next topic, uh potholes, you know. Um we're still fixing potholes, by the way, for those that are listening, uh especially around the schools. Uh but um but yeah, it's it's um we want to keep the pressure on.

SPEAKER_00 11:32

Keep the momentum. I love that. Thank you. Um I know you uh you don't want to take too much of your time, Eric Ann. I know you're pretty busy.

SPEAKER_02 11:38

I just talk fast, doesn't mean I'm gonna rush.

SPEAKER_00 11:41

Um but there are actually let's let's go back. I have uh one more question for you before I go to my two wrapping up questions. Um what role should a mayor play in shaping the future of public education? What do you feel your role is in our future education here in Bridgeport?

SPEAKER_02 11:58

Yeah, I've taken this very seriously, and we have a very deliberate, and I've tried to be consistent in having a very deliberate approach to understanding, uh recognizing the the challenges. And you know, I work with mayors across the country, so we have commonality challenges, but the unique challenges maybe are th those that I treat as unique to our Bridgeport students and families. We're a city of neighborhoods. A school is part of a neighborhood, and if you go to each one, you know them, I know them, everyone here knows them. But to address the specific needs to be aware of it, you know, we have the luxury, we're a big city, largest city in the state of Connecticut, largest, I think it's still the largest school district, but it's still a small neighborhood city where people know each other. So those nuances. But also, as we started and and we're continuing now to um to enhance where we can, to center one of the areas that I think we've we can claim some uh some real victories are with the new buildings, uh the physical structures, the hundreds of millions of dollars that we spent on the on schools like the new Basic High School, where you know, we fought that fight literally. I felt like I was, you know, for for decades. How do we get a new home for Bassock? How do we get a new home for Basic? Watching uh classes graduate, classes, and and and now to to see it at that location, uh, you know, adjunct to the uh University of Bridgeport where they're gonna, you know, you could swap out for I guess it's enhanced credits or college credits for Bridgeport students, you know, where that opportunity opens up uh uh not only academically but physically, you could just be part of it, um, is exciting. Off the heels of of Harding, when you we have now uh state sports tournaments being located more often at Harding High School because it's a state-of-the-art facility by state high school standards. Again, you look to disproportionately with towns that spend as much as they want on facilities, to have them want to come and and be, you know, have this regional sports uh tournaments at Harding High School, outdoor facility, and you know, the way it's built. And then you I always point this out because I never had one in school. Um, I've never seen one before. Is the ticker tape? I call it ticker tape, but the stock uh uh what is it called exactly? The uh the the stock uh all day it tells you what the stock market's doing and that. I don't know if it's in the library or in the room. Which is an extended uh you know avenue of awareness and learning that was never part of any curriculum that I had in any in any school that I went to. So um so those, you know, those physical structures, those hundreds of millions of dollars of commitments, and the ones that are happening, whether it's Winthrop is the next school, um, on the special education needs, we get it in Bridgeport. We understand this is a huge challenge for us, um, for our sp uh students with special needs, uh, and most of it encompasses what's called a uh uh too technical, but out-of-district placement. Correct. In other words, the student has to um we have to fulfill the the challenge that that student has for the opportunity for uh public uh education in Bridgeport or through the Bridgeport, may have to go out of Bridgeport, out of a district. And then there's transportation needs, and uh, you know, not to get too far again into it, but you know, the type of things that when you when you look at this and understand that, for instance, for that student, I would say, well, why does it cost so much? Uh I don't we have uh a hundred pick a hundred special students who are classified as special needs. Oh, well, you put 40 on a bus, 40 on another bus, and send them off. How much could transportation be? Well, that's so stupid because you have maybe the need for one student to be transported by a van or go to one location. So you really have huge costs that you can't avoid in order to just meet, let's say, the the the venue, the the the location, the transportation needs. So it's something the state has to look at. I think the state has to take on a bigger role in financial responsibility in this, but we're doing our part. Absolutely. We're doing our part, we're trying to, I think, and we'll be successful at it, I know, led by the the superintendent or the the district to bring in district um a facility, create one where we can properly and effectively um educate special a vast number, maybe not all, but a vast number of our special needs students to give them the you know ten maybe tender care that they need in addition to the hard academics, but the opportunities, maybe even for extracurricular and so on, but do it in district. Right. And so without boring everybody for parents and people out there, that would save a tremendous amount of money. We think we'd be able to to uh centralize and also regionalize, in other words, attracts maybe special need students that are going to some other district into Bridgeport. We're willing to do that. We're willing to do that and lead on a regional basis in order to one, it it I think it's a smart idea and one that we can incorporate into our uh into our school district and save tens of millions of dollars. So um so those types of things are important as we as we move forward. But I always watch, I want to make sure that you know where we go when we spend these funds, for instance, the city's putting in, you know, five million dollars a year, ten million dollars total. I'd like to make sure we have the dialogue and conversation that like almost like we did with the busing. Remember when the busing routes were funded to in a level where um parents felt and we felt, um, I mean I'm a parent too, my kids aren't in the schools, this is unacceptable as far as pedestrian safety, as far as student safety, as far as um uh, you know, you talk about all the other things you want to do. And then to be able to focus funding, at least theoretically, and maybe by handshake, to that in order to to reduce the distance students had to walk. I'd like to see that type of continued kind of with the city council when they say to me, hey mayor, how come we're putting all this money into education now? What's going on over there? And many of them support it, don't get me wrong. Of course. The answers are no, our level of accountability with public money at a time when it's so it's so precious is accountability as as well. And we we say that to the state of Connecticut too. So bringing, but also making the commitment to not having classroom sizes too big, right? Um focusing on outcomes, making students have the support to, if they want to apply to become uh apply for higher education, that we create, you know, as a a pathway for that in in as many ways that we can be supportive.

SPEAKER_00 18:26

Absolutely. Thank you for that. Right, and I think you know, the transportation is something that that we do here often. We want school to be easily accessible. And by removing barriers such as walking distance, especially, you know, sometimes when there's inclement weather, and we do find that days like that uh we see higher level levels of chronic absenteeism. So we do know that transportation is an area that we really need to put some focus on.

SPEAKER_02 18:49

So the other thing that you asked, what can parents do or the audience do continue to do what they're doing and being, you know, the parent job is is is is challenging and so important, as is the role of the teacher. Who plays in many ways, you know, we talk about the need for enhanced support services for students or they're they're they're teachers, but many of them go beyond, you know, in a in a positive way to provide that type of of kind of personal contact and support. I'm sure with our students that enhances them, you know, because they're they have the children, how many hours a day? Is it eight hours a day? I don't know exactly, but um so it's so important. We want to continue to make sure that happens. We want to continue to monitor the the you know the uh graduation rates and and the opportunities to go on to college and create that bridge, whether it's the University of Bridgeport for for basics or clothes or everywhere. And one thing I think we could do better together is where I was going, is and I'm gonna lead this, is trying to reach out uh philanthropically to some of these organizations that are pre-committed and some are involved already in uh being supportive of Bridgeport Academics, Bridgeport Schools Youth. Um, I think at the Dahlia Foundation, uh they've been in Bridgeport and are working with us on different things. But organizations, individuals, uh uh philanthropists like that, that can do more with us to create maybe if it's not part of the funding for core curriculum, maybe it could be for the ancillary and supportive activities that we think are so important. We started the Bridgeport Promise program as a sign-off. The Bridgeport Promise program for those that maybe have students or children uh you could teach, you can let them know. Uh it's a scholarship program for qualifying Bridgeport youth. We can talk about that more maybe in another podcast. We want people to know that we want to kind of lose uh reduce or eliminate that barrier um to um to the opportunity for higher education if we can. I came from uh I I went to a variety of schools, but I come from uh as most people know, a larger family, seven brothers and sisters, and within ten years my mother had eight of us. So when you got to your paying for college type of stuff, um we had uh I think six of us in tuition-paying roles either in law school or in uh undergraduate school. So I know how how a scholarship program um for need like Bridgeport Promise could provide for Bridgeport Public School student graduates can make a difference and helped us get through some hum some financial challenges ourselves. Thank you for the opportunity to be here.

SPEAKER_00 21:18

Of course, absolutely.

SPEAKER_02 21:18

Of speaking too fast. I know. But they told me you're only gonna give you so much so much time, Joe.

SPEAKER_00 21:24

Well, Bridgeport Promise actually their website has launched. So families, students, um, they can log in and learn more information, how to apply, um, what the requirements and eligibility are for. Um and this is this is we're gonna wrap it up with this, Mayor Ganham. Um a few years ago, we were building a new strategic plan for the Bridgeport Board of Education, and we did a learning walk. And so we met with different community partners, stakeholders, teachers, you name it, and we asked them one question so that we could build a strategic plan based on this question. And so I'm gonna ask you. Um, so what are your hopes and dreams? For Bridgeport public schools.

SPEAKER_02 22:02

I I would like to see I quickly get the flash of um the students as they spoke at the state capitol. Go topic generic for a second. It doesn't have to be about their education or about their school district. It could have been um the student that asked me the question the day before about the foundation formula was it gonna be fully funded, as I kind of rambled off his question less articulate than he did. To see him making a um let's call it, let's use this example, a pitch as a business guy who's gonna be the next entrepreneur, or you know, more selfishly, would be making some type of presentation or pre uh present presentation or public speaking who might want to fill the role of one of us in the future, a teacher, a mayor, a superintendent, uh leading, you know, leading something that makes a positive contribution as as well as our own success, um, selfishly again, uh you know, back here in Bridgeport.

SPEAKER_00 23:04

So that's that's always I've always said my hope and dream, right? We educate you, we give you the tools, we give you the resources, we send you off, and then we hope that you come back.

SPEAKER_02 23:14

Right.

SPEAKER_00 23:15

Because we need you back here to help us make this city.

SPEAKER_02 23:17

And then the higher percentage that turnout is success, you know, just lean to more success. So I think we're doing that. I think we need to remind ourselves and accentuate the positive, fight for every dollar to give us give us the f the foundation, the footing, and that's not gonna go away. Right. Um, but uh, you know, some of the success stories that have come out that we don't have time to even talk about um are just very inspiring. So thank you for the opportunity to be a part of kind of talking about this, of being a part of the fight. You know, I always said, you know, with the best for the mayor to lead, we'll lead. We're we'll even in this time we leave in partnership we we lead both in partnership, I think, locally, and I think the state's gonna step up, and I think that's gonna be the the funding that we need, and then we just need to continue the commitment that we've talked about. Thank you for for having me.

SPEAKER_00 24:01

Absolutely, Mayor Ganum. Thank you for joining us today and for taking the time to speak about leadership, education, and the importance of community partnership. At Bridgeboro Public Schools, we know that the success of our students depends on strong relationships between schools, family, senior city leadership, and the broader community. To our listeners, thank you for tuning in to the voice of the district. Our goal is to continue expanding this space, growing our audience, and staying connected as a community because knowledge is power, and the more we know, the more informed, engaged, and empowered we can be in supporting our students and families. So until next time, thank you again, Mayor Gannam. Thank you.

SPEAKER_01 24:39

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