Laura Tillman

Mexico City, Mexico

Journalist and Audio Producer at Freelance

Human Services Reporter at The CT Mirror

Articles

New England Head Start office closed; federal funding in flux

1 week ago | ctmirror.org | Laura Tillman

The email popped up in David Morgan’s inbox a couple of weeks ago: an employee at the Head Start Program office in Boston, which covers the New England region, was letting him know it was their last day of work and they would no longer be his point of contact. The employee hoped Morgan, who heads up TEAM, Inc, a nonprofit that runs 56 Head Start classrooms, might soon have a new contact with another office, but no further details were provided.
CT’s Medicaid income limits for disabled are illegal, lawsuit alleges

1 week ago | courant.com | Laura Tillman

Disability advocates gathered in front of Hartford’s Superior Court on Thursday to announce a lawsuit that contends that the lower income requirements for the disabled to qualify for Medicaid are discriminatory and violate the state constitution. “We require people with disabilities to be extremely poor to quote-unquote deserve state-sponsored health care,” said Rep. Anne Hughes, D-Easton. “That is wrong, it is immoral and it’s left over from a legacy of dehumanization of people with disabilities.
CT’s Medicaid income limits for disabled are illegal, lawsuit alleges

2 weeks ago | ctmirror.org | Laura Tillman

Disability advocates gathered in front of Hartford’s Superior Court on Thursday to announce a lawsuit that contends that the lower income requirements for the disabled to qualify for Medicaid are discriminatory and violate the state constitution. “We require people with disabilities to be extremely poor to quote-unquote deserve state-sponsored health care,” said Rep. Anne Hughes, D-Easton. “That is wrong, it is immoral and it’s left over from a legacy of dehumanization of people with disabilities.
New England Head Start office closed; federal funding in flux

2 weeks ago | hartfordbusiness.com | Laura Tillman

The email popped up in David Morgan’s inbox a couple of weeks ago: an employee at the Head Start Program office in Boston, which covers the New England region, was letting him know it was their last day of work and they would no longer be his point of contact. The employee hoped Morgan, who heads up TEAM, Inc, a nonprofit that runs 56 Head Start classrooms, might soon have a new contact with another office, but no further details were provided.
CT heating assistance program in jeopardy after Trump administration cuts entire staff

3 weeks ago | courant.com | John Moritz |Laura Tillman

Connecticut lawmakers sounded the alarm — yet again — on Wednesday about cuts by the Trump administration, this time to the staff of a program that helps 200,000 of the state’s most vulnerable residents keep warm each winter. As part of the administration’s layoff of 10,000 employees in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the entire staff of the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, LIHEAP, was eliminated.
CT marks transgender day of visibility: ‘It’s about being respected’

3 weeks ago | ctmirror.org | Laura Tillman

Members of the state’s transgender community expressed joy and pride on International Transgender Day of Visibility with an afternoon of impassioned speeches, calls to action, and laughter at the Capitol. In the face of threats to their safety and attacks on their rights at the national level, many said they also felt grateful to call Connecticut home.
There’s a plan in CT that could bring free preschool for families earning $100K. How it would work.

3 weeks ago | courant.com | Laura Tillman

When Vanessa Hawke’s kids were little, she enrolled them in a pre-K program in Southington where teachers used sensory learning tables, toys, circle time and art projects to promote cognitive development, crucial fertilizer for their growing brains. Yet, the program Hawke’s kids attended was for three hours a day, just twice a week. For years, it was the only option she could afford. “In my mind, something was better than nothing,” she said.
Will Lamont's universal pre-K plan prevail?

3 weeks ago | ctmirror.org | Laura Tillman

Editor’s note: We are now offering an audio version of our Sunday features. To access, click on the player above. When Vanessa Hawke’s kids were little, she enrolled them in a pre-K program in Southington where teachers used sensory learning tables, toys, circle time and art projects to promote cognitive development, crucial fertilizer for their growing brains. Yet, the program Hawke’s kids attended was for a mere three hours a day, just twice a week.
CT loses $155M in federal aid for public health programs

4 weeks ago | ctmirror.org | Keith Phaneuf |Katy Golvala |Laura Tillman

President Donald J. Trump’s administration canceled roughly $155 million in grants this week that affect infectious disease management, genetic screening of newborns and substance abuse prevention in Connecticut, leaving state officials scrambling Thursday to assess the depth of potentially lost services.
CT loses $155M in federal aid for public health programs

1 month ago | hartfordbusiness.com | Keith Phaneuf |Katy Golvala |Laura Tillman

President Donald J. Trump’s administration canceled roughly $155 million in grants this week that affect infectious disease management, genetic screening of newborns and substance abuse prevention in Connecticut, leaving state officials scrambling Thursday to assess the depth of potentially lost services.