HMEA's 8th Annual Independence 5K Walk/Run in the Park will be held on Sunday, May 17, 2009. Our friends at EMC2 Corporation, 50 Constitution Boulevard, Franklin, MA have again allowed us to hold this premier fundraising event on their grounds. Gail Huff from WCVB-TV Channel 5 News will once again be our host.To register to walk please visit firstgiving.com/hmea. Here you can also set-up your own personal fundraising page that can be e-mailed to all your family, friends and co-workers asking them to support your efforts to raise funds for HMEA.
If you want to participate in the road race please register at active.com/hmea. OR, if you prefer you can complete your registration form online, print it and mail directly to HMEA along with your registration fee(s). You could also e-mail it back to hmea@hmea.org. Click here for the registration form.
Interested in becoming a sponsor of this fun-filled family day event? To learn what sponsorships are available click here for the Sponsorship Opportunities flyer.
More information will be available shortly. In the meantime if have any questions please call Linda Conley at 508.298.1107 or Doug MacPherson at 508.298.1105.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
HMEA's 8th Annual Independence 5K Walk/Run
Monday, May 4, 2009
Alternative Link for Message to FEA
For those of you having difficulty viewing the YouTube video on the School Committee’s recent statement regarding wage freeze discussions with members of the teacher’s union, you also can view the text at:
rethinking learning
“…teachers need to learn the way other professionals do—continually, collaboratively, and on the job.”---
The challenge is, of course, that “continual, collaborative, on the job” learning isn’t very convenient for professional developers or for teachers in classrooms. It means re-thinking what learning looks like, and that’s a scary place still for most in education.Read the full posting by Wil Richardson on his blog weblogg-ed
PS22 Chorus - "Eye of the Tiger"
Now I'll have the "Eye of the Tiger" running through my head all day!
Visit the PS22 Chorus blog here to read more about them.
Horace Mann, birthday - May 4, 1796
Mann targeted the public school and its problems. The six main problems he targeted were: (1) the public should no longer remain ignorant and free, (2) that such education should be paid for, controlled, and sustained by an interested public; (3) that this education will be best provided in schools that embrace children of all diversities; (4) that this education must be non-sectarian; (5) that this education must be taught by the spirit, methods, and discipline of a free society; and (6) that education should be provided by well-trained, professional teachers. To sum it all up, Horace Mann worked effectively for more and better equipped school houses, longer school years (until 16 years old), higher pay for teachers, and a wider curriculum.For the remainder of the entry on Horace Mann, born in Franklin, MA on May 4, in 1796 check out his wikipedia entry here.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Dean College commencement set for May 9, street closings planned
Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:
Dean College's 143rd commencement exercises will take place Saturday, May 9, 11 a.m., at Grant Field, School Street. More than 300 graduates are Associate's degree and Bachelor's degree candidates.
Walter J. Handelsman, Class of 1977, delivers the Commencement Address. Handelsman is a Pulitzer Prize winning editorial cartoonist based at Newsday in Long Island.
During the commencement procession from the Campus Center to Grant Field, the section of Main Street between School and Emmons Street will be closed to traffic from 10:15 to 11:15 a.m. and 1:30 to 1:50 p.m.
In addition, School Street to Hillside Avenue will be closed from 10:15 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Emergency vehicles will be allowed access at all times.
Things you can do from here:
- Subscribe to Wicked Local Franklin News RSS using Google Reader
- Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites
School Committee message to FEA
Part 1
Part 2:
My notes and analysis of the two sides in this discussion can be found here.
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Message to FEA membership
Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:
Things you can do from here:
- Subscribe to Franklin School Committee using Google Reader
- Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites
Parmenter PCC seeking volunteers, sponsors for 5K event
Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:
The Parmenter Run for All Ages 5K Run/Walk and Kids Panda Dash will be held on Sunday, May 31.
The 5K looped course will begin and end at Parmenter Elementary School, 235 Wachusett St. Franklin. Race start time is 10 a.m.; registration begins at 8 a.m.
A free Kids Panda Dash is set for 9 a.m.
The road race will be professionally timed by Spitler Race Systems. This event includes tee-shirts to the first 150 registered participants, awards to the top three to finish in each male/female age division, time splits and water stops. All proceeds will benefit the Parmenter PCC, which funds school-based student activities.
Organizers are seeking volunteers and local businesses/sponsors to support this community family fitness event.
For additional information go to: parmenter5K.weebly.com; contact Karen Mahon @ parmenter5K@gmail.com; call 508-528-1286.
Things you can do from here:
- Subscribe to Wicked Local Franklin News RSS using Google Reader
- Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites
Cafe Dolce - Kai Olsson
Enjoy some music at Cafe Dolce with Kai Olsson
Saturday 5/2/09 from 7:00 to 9:00 PM
Click through to listen to some samples on Kai's MySpace page
Friday, May 1, 2009
"a community treasure"
FRANKLIN -
The Franklin public school system is one of the best in the nation. It has always stood high in national and state testing. All of this has not been an accident. It is the solid result of some damned good teaching over the last five decades.
I joined the Franklin school system as a teacher some 43 years ago when I graduated from college. For the next 34 years, I observed some truly dynamic growth both intellectually and in the physical school environment.
The students of Franklin have always been special. They have always had a wonderful sense of community and have always, in my experience, responded to any problem with kindness and understanding. As time passed, I saw each new generation growing in toleration and understanding. It is my considered opinion that the young people of Franklin are very special.
I have seen hundreds of gifted and dedicated people serving as faculty over the past five decades giving of themselves and to their students unselfishly.
Read the remainder of James Johnston's essay here
Monument Mosaic
A new monument to honor the veterans of the Iraq/Afghanistan conflict will be unveiled on Memorial Day, 2009.
Monument: World War I
Actually since this photo was taken, the small trees directly behind the monument have already been removed as the preparation for the new monument to be unveiled on Memorial Day continue.
If you haven't visited the monuments on the Town Common, please consider doing so.
"car crash in Bellingham"
Jenna L. Pasquino, 20, of Franklin died early this morning when the car she was driving crashed into a telephone pole, police said.
Pasquino was traveling south on North Main Street at about 2:19 a.m. when her 1998 Toyota Avalon crossed the double line, hit a telephone pole on the opposite side of the road, and flipped over, police said.
Read the remainder of the article in the Franklin Gazette here
Thursday, April 30, 2009
"it is the library's slowest day"
This year's budget crunch will mean the public library will be closed on Fridays beginning the first week of July, but no staff members will lose their jobs, Town Administrator Jeffrey Nutting told the Finance Committee last night.
Following the hearing, Library Director Felicia Oti left with a big smile - most likely, Nutting said, due to the fact that the library got a better deal than anyone had expected.
Initially, he and Oti feared the library would have to lay off staff and reduce hours even further - possibly leaving the library open only three or four days a week.
Friday was chosen because it is the library's slowest day, Oti said. Monday, then Saturday, are the busiest days, she said.
The library avoided layoffs because the union volunteered to defer salary increases, one employee asked to reduce her hours from 35 to 18 per week, the assistant director's hours were cut from 35 to 15, and because two people retired, Nutting said. Those positions will not be filled.
Read the full article on the Library budget in the Milford Daily News here