OPINION | By State Rep. Maryam Khan
When I first walked into a Hartford classroom as a special education teacher, I met students with unlimited potential but limited opportunity. They worked just as hard as children anywhere else, yet too often they were asked to make do with fewer resources, overcrowded classrooms, and a system that expected them to settle for less.
I entered politics because I was tired of watching opportunities depend on where a child lived or who their parents were. I believed our communities deserved leadership willing to stand up, not just when it was easy, but especially when it wasn’t.
For the last four years, that is exactly what I have done. That is why I am running for State Senate: to continue fighting for the children, families, and communities that have shaped me.
As your State Representative, I have fought for historic investments in special education, helped deliver millions of dollars back into our communities, and earned the support of nearly every major labor organization because my record reflects one simple belief: government should work for working people by expanding opportunity, not protecting private interests.
“I believe every child deserves an opportunity—not just the ones lucky enough to win a lottery.” – State Rep. Maryam Khan
This election is about choosing what kind of future we want for Bloomfield, Hartford and Windsor.
For years, I have stood against efforts to weaken public education through privatization, opposed bills that take funding away from neighborhood public schools, and stood up to members of my own party when our responsibility to children demanded it. That is one of the clearest differences in this race. During his six years as chair of the Education Committee, Senator McCrory has repeatedly championed legislation to expand charter and magnet school opportunities, pulling more money from our neighborhood schools while one by one Hartford schools closed.
I want to be clear. Sheff v. O’Neill created meaningful opportunities for many students. CREC schools have provided our students with great resources. But these efforts have also created more gaps and disparities for the students left behind in under-resourced schools. I believe every child deserves an opportunity—not just the ones lucky enough to win a lottery.
Families in Bloomfield, Hartford and Windsor do not wake up asking for more educational lotteries. They ask for safe schools, excellent teachers, smaller class sizes, mental health supports, and opportunities for every child regardless of their zip code. I’ve taught in schools with 600 students and a single social worker trying to meet every child’s needs. Families are begging for an opportunity for their children. That is what I fight for.
I moved to Windsor in 2000 and graduated from Windsor High School. Windsor shaped me. I chose to raise my family here. I chose to teach in Hartford Public Schools. Home is not simply where you are born. Home is where you choose to be and I chose to be here.
I was born in Karachi, Pakistan, and moved to Queens, New York, at the age of five, to an immigrant, working-class neighborhood. I know what opportunity can do because I lived it. My elementary school was well-resourced, with real support for children learning English, and every one of us learned to read, even though our parents couldn’t help with schoolwork. My father was a laborer. Today, his children are graduates of public universities and own their own homes. That experience taught me that under-resourced doesn’t have to mean under-served. Every child deserves the same opportunity I was given, and that is what I fight for.
Opportunity doesn’t just change individual lives—it changes neighborhoods. The safest communities have the most opportunities. When children have strong public schools, after-school programs, mental health support, and pathways to good jobs, we build communities where families can thrive. The same principle guides my approach to protecting working families. Whether it is standing up to Eversource on behalf of ratepayers, defending workers’ rights, or ensuring taxpayer dollars are invested where they create opportunity, I believe elected officials should answer to the people they represent, not special interests.
Every child deserves an opportunity. Every family deserves an opportunity. Government exists to expand opportunity. That’s the record I’ve built. That’s why I’m asking for your vote.
About the Author: Maryam Khan is a Connecticut State Representative serving the 5th House District, which includes parts of Hartford, South Windsor, and Windsor. Learn more about her work and find contact information on her official legislative page.
