Providing accurate and timely information about what matters in Franklin, MA since 2007. * Working in collaboration with Franklin TV and Radio (wfpr.fm) since October 2019 *
Chairman Jeffrey Roy said board members' e-mail addresses are listed online, and people with complaints should take the time to find them to send a message.
"Today, with e-mail, people get (angry), send an e-mail and regret it 15 minutes later," he said. "I like the idea of making people work a little bit so they have to formulate their thoughts."
Though there's always room for improvement, Roy said the committee provides the community with an abundance of information. He cited the School Committee's Web site, blog and the superintendent's site.
"I've got to say the level of involvement and effort in education materials is incredible ... we've made this stuff available to the community," he said. "There's a certain level of accountability for the public to take some steps" to get the information.
Recap of prior discussions:
read mission statement at each meeting
leave cell phones in purse or pocket, off
work on website
review strategic plan a couple of times
work collaboratively with other boards
look to self publishing
1 - discussion on use of email
Ed to check with T Raposa on school email addresses, could be a third email address for some members
would provide archiving and retention for official business
pro - if discovery were required, one the system would handle the archiving email, two the email would be separate from personal email
con - would add an additional email for some members, need to explore the client option
2 - new member questions
none
3 - budget subcommittee
discussion on level service vs. level funding
schedule a specific meeting for discussion on the budget to review ways to bridge the gap
will start general discussions on the budget at Jan 12th
Committee to provide some input to the Administration on what the Committee would like to see
the meeting on January 26th would be the Administration presentation on the first pass of the budget
Sue looking for suggestions on the budget subcommittee
Attending: Mullen, Roy, Rohrbach, Cafasso, Trahan, Glynn, Douglas Missing: none
Also present: Ashley Studley, Maureen Sabolinksi, Miriam Goodman, Sally Winslow
Topic 1 - Budget
suggestion to read one of the Strategic Objectives at the beginning of each meeting
suggestion to help the community follow the numbers discussion with a single document referenced at each meeting so we can all stay "on the same page"
Topic 2 - Develop Policy
need one location for policies
Maureen to check on this with T Raposa on a solution
The MASC requires the naming scheme
Topic 3 - Evaluation Process of Superintendent
discussion on strategic plan and timing of updates considering the District and individual School Improvement Plans
(note this is covering the evaluation process itself, the specific evaluation is done separately)
Topic 4 - Modeling Behavior
Do well most of the time but laptops can be a distraction
some laptop usability insights should be provided to help project a professional and consistent appearance
maintain eye contact during presentations
speak into the microphones so your valid comments can be heard properly
Topic 5 - Working with other Boards
varied responses on this one
there was a problem over the consolidation of facilities but things have improved considerably since then
the two approaches to solving the problem that were very different but both had the same cost savings benefits in mind
the relationship with the new Council has gotten off to a good start
Topic 6 - Ambassadors to the Public
School Committee blog getting good traffic, Ed's email listing has grown
Could do more in the way of other forums, hold a public forum to communicate more directly twice a year
level of involvement in the committee has been good, there is a level of accountability for the community
Website issue causing some problems since the upgrade for the Town and the split from the service
move towards self publishing to help address this
members of the community do have the opportunity to participate
there is a difference between the citizens comment and agenda items
issues will attract attendance, raising fees, cutting buses, music, sports, will generate attendance but we don't want to create a crisis for each meeting
if someone has something to say, they can sit down and write a letter, or work a little bit to formulate their thoughts to send an email
I have added and will be updating a spreadsheet to keep track of the attendance records for the Town Council and School Committee as these two groups go forward. Keeping track of the sheet as each meeting occurs will be easier than trying to do a year or more at a time.
The spreadsheet can be found here and in the Important Links section in the middle column. You should be able to view the spreadsheet but not be able to update it (assuming the permissions work out properly).
The spreadsheet has two tabs: one for each group. The tabs are found on the bottom of the spreadsheet.
The coding for attendance will be as follows:
P - Present A - Absent L - Late (arriving) E - Early (to leave)
Yes, an easy mnemonic to see if someone's attendance will pale in comparison to another's. Pun fully intended as the mnemonic.
Dean College in Franklin will receive $125,000 for its embedded study model project, which aims to include academic support methods in the classroom.
"This is what students need to learn in tandem with the techniques they need," said Pat Samson, the school's communications director. "It embeds academic support techniques into the curriculum, making them available for all students. It's what we call the Dean method."
Principally a two-year school, Dean differs from community colleges in that it goes further to ensure students have the tools they need to learn in a college atmosphere, said Samson, adding that the school's retention and graduation rates are above average.
FRANKLIN HEALTH DEPARTMENT H1N1 FLU CLINIC ANNOUNCEMENT
December 14, 2009
The Franklin Health Department will be holding an H1N1 flu clinic for Franklin residents on Wednesday December 16, 2009 from 4:00 to 8:00 PM at the Franklin High School Field House 218 Oak Street.
The following persons are eligible to receive the H1N1 on a first come first served basis, consistent with Massachusetts Department of Public Health and CDC guidelines for vaccine administration:
* Children in 1st through 8th grades.
Please be advised, the Health Department has received nearly 70% of our vaccine allocation in the nasal spray form. Because this is a live attenuated vaccine, this formulation is only for healthy individuals aged 2 to 49 years of age.
All individuals to be vaccinated in the 2-49 age groups without a contra-indicated medical history will be administered the nasal spray.
All individuals to be vaccinated are to present a completed consent form. No vaccine will be administered without a completed and signed consent form. A downloadable consent form is available on both the Health Department and School Department websites as well.
All residents will be asked to produce a valid driver’s license or other identification at the time of registration.
The Franklin Health Department will continue to hold additional H1N1 flu clinics in the coming weeks until all the high priority groups have been vaccinated. Once the priority groups are vaccinated, vaccine will be available for all residents until our supply has been exhausted.
We ask all residents to please be patient and to anticipate some waiting, as we institute our large-scale public vaccination plan.
David E. McKearney, R.S.
Public Health Director
Franklin Health Department
Franklin Board of Health
Bruce Hunchard, Chair
Paul Cheli
Donald Ranieri, JR.
This internet radio show or podcast is number 51 in the series for Franklin Matters.
In this session, you give me about ten minutes and I'll fill you in on what matters in Franklin, MA as it comes to a close this week, December 13, 2009
Note: email subscribers should click through to the website to hear the audio version and to view the video sample from the Bolshoi Ballet performing a portion of the Nutcracker.
Session Notes:
This internet radio show or podcast is number 51 in the series for Franklin Matters.
In this session, you give me about ten minutes and I'll fill you in on what matters in Franklin, MA as it comes to a close this week, December 13, 2009.
'Tis the season, girls in red dresses, boys with green ties, ladies with patten leather shoes...
All gathering on a night out for the annual production of The Nutcracker by the Franklin Performing Arts Company.
The parking lot for the Thomas Mercer Auditorium at the Horace Mann/Oak Street complex is filling rapidly.
Ahead of us a mother talks with her daughter about the school friend who'll be an angel and the play friend who'll be a polychannelle. While the father talks with son sternly, come on, we gotta go, you'll end up liking this … and the parents shepherd their children to the door.
Inside the door, the warmth of the corridor is welcome. The buzz is enchanting. The ticket table has a line for the “will call” tickets, all others have been sold out for this performance.
A table is set up to send a message to a 'star' performer and put it into the special mailbox.
The Spotlight Shop has oodles of stuff for sale, Nutcracker souvenirs to wear or hang or dust eventually!
The crowd moves along slowly towards the hall entrance. Odd number tickets to the left, even to the right. Triple digit tickets are in the center section so you can go in either way. A new box of playbills is cracked open, some one graciously checks your ticket, hands you a booklet and your off down the aisle to find your seat.
The audience is filling the hall, the orchestra is tuning their instruments, you may pick up a recognizable string of notes here and there as you settle in your seat.
The lights dim, Instead of the usual grand voice announcing this production and making the usual reminders to turn off your cell phones and pagers, reminding you of the prohibition on all photography, video or camera, you are startled to hear the following:
Ladies and gentlemen,
Thank you for coming this evening, let's just take a couple of moments to reflect on the audience here tonight.
Please look around you. Don't be bashful, these are friendly folks, all related in someway to the performers this evening, hence all are connected to Franklin.
This hall seats over 800 people. There shouldn't be an empty seat here this evening, the performance is sold out. It has taken months of rehearsals, planning, posting flyers, selling tickets for this successful event. Which you are all here to enjoy.
Would the folks in the center section, rows A through J please stand up? Yes, please. Rows A through J. that's right, Thank you!
Ladies and gentlemen, the folks represent 16% of the audience here this evening. Why 16%? It was 16% of the registered Franklin voters, the folks who cared enough to cast a ballot for the most recent Town election on November 3rd. Please give them a round of applause!
These folks are the ones who have cast their ballots to elect the Town Council, School Committee and other elected board positions that effectively and on a volunteer basis will oversee Franklin's operations. These elected folks will make decisions on your behalf for the police, fire, DPW, library and School services. These folks will determine the priorities for how your property tax dollars are spent.
You may complain about what you don't like but you had a choice to vote.
You have a choice to become involved and more aware of what is going on in Franklin.
You bought a ticket to come here this evening.
You don't need to buy a ticket to go to a Town Council meeting, a School Committee meeting, or to vote.
It is your choice.
The Town Council will be approving a new trash collection contract next year. You can get involved now.
The Town Council will eventually approve the downtown renovation plan that may change some streets from one-way to two way traffic through downtown.
You can start paying attention now.
The School Committee will be determining how to meet the needs of your children's education. You can get involved now.
It is your choice.
Now, we'll return you to the scheduled performance of the Nutcracker:
---- ---- ----
This podcast is my public service effort for Franklin but I can't do it alone. I can use your help.
How can you help?
If you like this, please tell a neighbor.
If you don't like this, please tell me.
Thank you for listening.
For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.blogspot.com/
If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com
The music for the intro and exit was provided by Michael Clark and East of Shirley. The piece is titled "Ernesto, manana" c. Michael Clark & Tintype Tunes, 2008 and used with permission.
From Franklin Recycling comes these tips on recycling for the holidays
‘Tis the season for gift giving and with it comes large amounts that can be recycled before it goes in the trash. Remember the trash limit is 3 bags; so recycling makes even more sense. More than 60% of trash can be recycled so if you are putting more trash out than recycling, there is more you can do.
Uses of Streets, Chapter 155-20 No person shall plow, push, deposit, throw or pile snow or ice into or across any public street, sidewalk or property nor direct nor cause the same to be done unless in the employ of the Town.
This bylaw is important and necessary to ensure safe roads and sidewalks. It also helps the DPW to reduce its cost of snow and ice operations.
Violators may be fined up to $300 for each day such violation continues.
No All Night Parking, Chapter 170-7 It shall be unlawful for the driver of any vehicle, other than one acting in an emergency, to park said vehicle on any street between the hours of 1:00 AM and 5:00 AM of any day between November 15th and April 15th.
It shall be unlawful for the driver of any vehicle, other than one acting in an emergency, to park said vehicle on any street during a snow storm in a way that obstructs snow removal equipment.
Parking on Sidewalks
Parking on sidewalks is illegal at all times and prevents the clearing of snow and ice.
This can be found on the Town website along with the following Frequently Asked Questions:
Q. Can I push snow from my property onto the sidewalk. A. NO. A Town bylaw restricts this act. Additionally, such action may bring liability if an accident should occur. This also increases the town’s costs for snow operations.
Q. Do some streets receive priority during a snow storm? A. YES. Major roadways and hills are a top priority.
Q. Does the Town really need a parking ban? A. YES. Snowplowing and removal are difficult; parked cars on the roadways not only increase the number of hazards, but also the time it takes to remove the snow.
Q. Do sidewalks receive the same priority as streets? A. NO. The roads are always plowed first. Only certain sidewalks are plowed when the storm has ended.
Q. Why is snow pushed into my driveway? A. The situation is unavoidable. The plows remove the snow from curb to curb for maximum clearance of the roadway. This provides for maximum drainage and public safety.
Q. Will trash and recyclables be collected during a snow storm? A. YES. Trash should be placed so it does not hinder the street plows or sidewalk plows.
Q. Who determines the opening, closing or delayed opening of school during snow and ice storms? A. The school superintendent.
It is tax rate season. Franklin's property tax rate was set last week and Boston's tax rate was set this week. There was a good write up on Boston's tax rate situation especially given the mishandling in the Boston Globe story. I thought this paragraph was succinct:
Proposition 2 1/2 limits the overall annual levy increase in a community to 2.5 percent plus taxes on any new development. There is no limit on changes in the tax rates, which are simply adjusted up or down, depending on what has happened with assessed values, in order to arrive at the total levy target from residential and commercial properties that city budget writers have drawn-up.
Metacomet Land Trust has re-scheduled its program on Sustainable Farming due to the after effects of Wednesday's snow storm...
Please join us Wednesday, December 16th, at the Mendon Senior Center, 62 Providence Street, Mendon for this program with Carolyn and Rob Nicholson of Sweetwilliam Farm (Upton). Rob and Carolyn will discuss Sustainable Farming in our region.
Come hear the perspective of a practicing farmer when Rob and Caroline present our Annual Meeting program. We'll also discuss the important connection our land preservation efforts have to supporting agriculture in the region.
Metacomet's short annual meeting will begin at 6:30, followed by the program with Carolyn and Rob at 7:00. Please stay for refreshments and conversation after the program.
This program is free; a small donation is requested at the door.
The Town Council met on Wednesday evening for a "Goal setting session". Councilors Whalen and Zollo arrived late as the meeting started earlier than normal at 6:00 PM. Councilor Vallee left about 7:00 PM. The remaining Councilors went into Executive Session approx. 7:45 PM not to return to open meeting.
I chose not to live blog the meeting as I wasn't sure how long it would be. I took my notes the old fashioned way.
Briefly, it wasn't as much a goal setting session as it was a getting up to speed session for the new council. A review of standard policies and procedures was covered to set the stage for an effective operation as the Council would handle business going forward.
The key take-aways for me were:
The Council will bring forward and approve the existing fiscal policies that had guided the prior councils. These determine the operating guidelines for how much the stabilization fund should be, how much long term debt we should service from the operating budget, etc. A copy of the policy document will be provided later.
Councilors Whalen and Zollo will bring forward the prior subcommittee work on the the Charter revisions for presentation and discussion with the full Council.
The Planning and Community Development Dept will be bringing forward a number of by-law change proposals. The proposal on signs will likely be of interest to many. The Franklin Downtown Planning group received a preview of it and had a good discussion on the proposal.
The plans for the downtown renovation will be coming to the Council in the next 90-120 days. A decision on whether to put the utilities underground will need to be incorporated into the overall project plan. The Council decision will be (1) to put them underground (2) how to fund the work associated with the utilities (existing grants can not be used so it would either be debt or cash).
Much of the discussion was on the overall financial picture for the town. Currently, the Town has a revenue problem (insufficient tax base and over-reliance on State revenue) but even in good times the Town has an expense problem with health and pension benefits in particular rising at a 10-15% rate and the tax levy limited to 2.5%. The draft capital plan was reviewed including how the town will have room in their debt structure beginning 2011 to take on projects up to a total of $6 million (and finance them via debt).
Ashley Studley from The Milford Daily News reported on the meeting:
This video was shown during the School Committee meeting of October 27, 2009 and available during the Panther Pride night to provide an overview to the current 8th grade class.
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