Special education accounts for 772 of 909 unfilled para roles
Registration has officially opened for the Paraeducator Preparation Academy, a six-week training course that state officials said is designed to close a significant workforce gap in Connecticut’s public schools. The program, created by Gov. Ned Lamont and the Connecticut State Department of Education, provides instruction and mentorship free of charge to aspiring paraeducators.
“Paraeducators are essential members of our school communities, and Connecticut needs more talented people answering the call,” Lamont said in a press release.
The academy aims to train 200 to 250 new paraeducators in its first year.
As of February 2026, there were 909 unfilled paraeducator positions across Connecticut public schools, according to state data on EdSight. Of those, 772 were for special education roles, while 137 were listed as “all other areas.”
Paraeducators serve as all-purpose support staff in schools. They assist teachers in class, running small-group instruction and reteaching concepts, and help students move between classrooms. Special education paraeducators may be assigned all day to individual students with behavioral needs, helping them learn alongside their peers instead of being sent to a more isolated setting, according to state officials.