Matthew Gatto attended Westport schools from kindergarten through Staples High graduation, in 2023.
He worked as a Parks & Recreation Department tennis instructor, and offered private lessons too. That experience sparked his interest in education.
He did his senior internship at Blackham Elementary School in Bridgeport, where his mother volunteers with the Book Buddies literacy program.
Matthew is a rising junior at Fordham University’s Lincoln Center campus, in the accelerated master’s program for education. He continues to teach tennis through the Johnny Mac Project — John McEnroe’s non-profit organization, which provides free after-school programs to underserved children. Matthew writes:
As a future educator and recent graduate of the Westport public school system, I’ve experienced firsthand how much students benefit from well-resourced classrooms and fully supported teachers.
Just a few miles away in Bridgeport, students face a different reality. It should concern us all, as Fairfield County residents.
Matthew Gatto, with Blackham students.
My connection to the Bridgeport public school system began as a Staples senior, when I interned at Blackham Elementary School.
There, I had the opportunity to work alongside 4 incredibly dedicated and caring teachers. These educators were deeply invested in their students’ success, both in and outside of the classroom. They worked tirelessly to build a community where each student felt valued and excited to learn.
The students at Blackham solidified my passion for teaching. They welcomed me into their school with warmth and enthusiasm. They were bright, motivated, and eager to learn. But, as with many of their peers in Bridgeport, they face unique challenges that should concern us all.
Last month, the Bridgeport Board of Education voted to eliminate 20 teaching positions, all 15 school librarians, and 5 assistant principals across the district. These cuts come on top of 45 positions already eliminated in December.
One note to Matthew from a grateful student …
Unfortunately, they are just the beginning of a series of concerning reductions.
For the teachers who remain in the district, class sizes will expand, making it much more difficult to provide individualized support for students with diverse needs and learning styles. With fewer resources, these dedicated educators are being asked to do more with less.
Equally concerning, special education programs face major reductions. Cutting back on essential services for students who need it the most is a grave disservice to an already vulnerable population.
… and another.
Also being eliminated is the district’s performing and visual arts programs, including the popular FAME After-school Arts Academy. This decision deprives students of creative outlets that have been proven to support emotional development and academic achievement.
The proposed cuts also include terminating bus transportation for over 2,000 students. This concerning action will hinder many children’s ability to attend school. Many students in Bridgeport, especially those from working families, rely on the bus system to get to school. Removing this will have devastating consequences.
In my opinion, one of the most heartbreaking cuts is the elimination of all 15 school librarians. Blackham librarian Aimee Guerrero has been instrumental in promoting a new generation of lifelong readers.
Aimee has transformed the library into a sanctuary where students have the opportunity to expand their vocabulary and gain critical thinking skills.
I fear that eliminating this position will be a devastating setback for a school where many students are English language learners, and already face significant challenges with reading proficiency.
These cuts are detrimental for a district that already struggles with limited resources. Eliminating staff, programs and transportation only deepens the barriers students already face.
The fight for funding is now in the hands of State Legislators and Governor Ned Lamont. We are in the final stages of negotiating the state budget, with a deadline of June 4.
This is a critical moment to make our voices heard and demand better for Bridgeport’s children. I urge all readers to write to Governor Lamont. Tell him that these cuts are unacceptable. Tell him that every child, regardless of ZIP code, deserves access to a quality education.
Because when one of our neighboring school districts struggles, the strength of our entire community is put at risk.
(Our “06880” Opinion pages are open to all readers. To learn more, email 06880blog@gmail.com.)
Thank you, Matthew, for this informative and dire piece. The educational inequity that Bridgeport has to deal with is unconscionable compared to Westport and other schools in Fairfield County. You have crystallized how urgent the situation is. I suggest that we reach out to Lamont’s office to express our concern about cutting these programs and positions. Because you are spot on … what affects a neighboring community affects us all.
I’ve come onboard with supporting county school districts. When we lived in Florida, there was the Palm Beach County School District, the eleventh largest in the nation. Now we live in Maryland where there’s the Howard County Public School District which has 19 high schools. If there was a Fairfield County Public School District, Bridgeport and Westport would be a part of the same school system, along with the other towns in Fairfield County.
Let me make it clear, Westport kids would still go to Westport schools, it’s the financing that would be shared. In the Howard County Public School System ( not District) kids go to the schools closest to their home. HCPSS has fantastic schools.
When reading this piece at first, I thought these were
TRUMP cuts. That the schools are being decimated by the city’s own school board is beyond understanding…and eliminating librarians and transportation? Why not eliminate athletics so at least the kids can get to school and learn how to read. Basketball they can play in the back yard.
Dan, devestating yes! However, given the level of violence on our streets those programs are needed to keep kids safe after school. Also, this is Bridgeport, most families don’t have yards.
County school system is the no-brainer way to go to address the issue.
How could I help?
Wonderful post—well done Matthew! Thank you! I wrote to governor Lamont just now and attached a pdf of this post. 06880, please keep reporting on this situation and letting us know if there’s anything further Westporters can do.
What could be done by Westport? Would love to know if we can contact our townhall and are there possibilities for grassroots support?
Thank you, Matthew, for alerting us, and thank you for all the work you are doing for Bridgeport in education!
I just emailed him and linked to your article. To add to your argument, the state has an initiative for universal preschool. I highlighted this fact… How can you allow these cuts to happen while promoting the Universal Preschool Endowment, which suggests using our budget surplus to establish this initiative? It’s incredibly confusing!
Good luck, and I hope you get a lot of letters for this cause!
Congratulations, and thank you Matthew on writing such a moving piece and bringing this to our attention. The inequalities and differences between our two communities are so stark and unjust it’s very sad and hard to understand. I’ll be writing to Gov. Lamont.
Thanks for writing this, Matthew! As a Bridgeport resident, I’m so worried about this. I know many folks don’t want to support what they consider a radical idea, but I’ve long believed in regional schools. I went through the Westport school system and the disparity between the education offered in the two towns is staggering. And immoral.
Perhaps some of 06880 readers who are concerned about educational inequity in their back yards would like to attend this Bridgeport Day at the Capitol in support of Bridgeport Education on Monday:
https://www.bridgeportedu.net/p/~board/bridgeport-public-schools-news/post/bridgeport-day-at-the-capitol-monday-may-19-2025
Deborah Howland-Murray
Thanks, mom!
Everyone please consider joining. This city has incredible spirit and the kids growing up in this community and their dedicated teachers deserve better.
A wonderful opportunity to understand how far apart our worlds are despite living so close.
These decisions are stunning and heartbreaking and point out the extreme inequities in public education that exist not just here in our own county but across the country. The cuts being made are deep – not just in terms of money but in terms of eliminating access to the most basic and most essential aspects of education – like libraries, transportation, dedicated teachers and reasonable classroom size – all which impact not only learning but a sense of community and sense of being valued. These are the basics for any school but for some of the kids in Bridgeport, these same things provide critical support beyond academics. Thank you for highlighting this. I will write…I only hope it will have an impact.
Thank you Matthew and Doug for bringing some attention to this issue. I recently began substitute teaching in Bridgeport and can attest to the many, many challenges that exist there. Teaching there has brought a lot of perspective for me personally and a reminder that so many of the “issues” that consume our time and energy in Westport would describe a very good day in Bridgeport if they were all that was at the top of the agenda. As part of our community, there is much we can and should do to help.
Thank you Matthew for bringing this issue to light for us here in Westport. I truly applaud & appreciate your efforts! I have written Ned Lamont’s office referring to this blog post & I hope many others follow suit.
Thanks Carrie,
Please forward a copy to FSW Tooker because she’ll be settled in to her new “digs” in Hartford.