Sunday, February 17, 2008

Franklin Police Association has begun their annual fund-raiser

The Franklin Police Association has begun our annual fund-raiser. We have employed All-Pro Productions to run our fund-raising campaign. After months of careful review and recommendations from other Unions, the Association has selected All-Pro to conduct solicitations. As in the previous years, we have stressed to All-Pro that we expect nothing but professionalism and courtesy to the citizens of our community, as the Officers here strive for.

Over the years, through donations made by businesses and citizens of Franklin, we have been able to return that back to our community. We will continue to support all community organizations, and the citizens who live here. This has been and is the primary concern of the Officers in the Franklin Police Association.

On April 18, 2008 at the Milford Sheraton Ballroom, we are hosting a comedy night with 4 of Boston’s top comics. The doors open at 6:30pm and the show will start at 7:30pm. This event is an 18 and over event. Tickets are available at the door the night of the event. We look forward to seeing you all there this year for a great show. Come down and have some laughs with your Police Officers.

You can also visit the Police Association blog here

Saturday, February 16, 2008

On the same page

"On the same page" is a program being run by the Library funded by a grant. This is the program you may have heard about that selected Dark Tide: The Great Boston Molasses Flood of 1919 by Stephen Puleo as the book to read.

I did read the book and found it quite interesting. I did a short form book review here.

I was curious about what the library was going to do to help foster the discussions around the book to get Franklin "On the same page". I went digging into the town website this morning and was disappointed to find how much I have already missed this month!

The Library schedule for February can be found here.

What is left in February are the following:

Tuesday, February 19 at 7PM
Oral Histories. Franklin residents from other lands gather to tell their stories of immigration to the United States in the Meeting Room of the Franklin Library.

Wednesday, February 20 at 1:30PM
Children's book discussion centers on the life and times of youngsters living in the early part of the twentieth century in stories drawn from the Dear America series. Book discussion is held in the Meeting Room of the Franklin Library.

Thursday, February 21 at 7PM
Immigration Then. Historian and author James Johnston and historian Robert D'Attilio present a view of what America was like during the first great wave of immigration in the early part of the twentieth century. Mr. D'Attilio's specialty centers on the Sacco and Vanzetti case.

Thursday, February 28 at 7PM
Immigration lawyer and Franklin resident Chris Lavery will discuss laws affecting immigration today.

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Sign up for Connect-CTY!

The Town of Franklin has partnered with Connect-CTY to provide a means of communicating emergency and urgent messages to the residents and businesses in Town

What is the Connect-CTY service?

The Connect-CTY service allows authorized civic leaders to create and rapidly disseminate time-sensitive messages to every telephone number stored in the notification database. With the Connect-CTY service, authorized users can send thousands of messages in minutes. Only authorized officials are allowed access to the system.

How does the service work?

Authorized officials record a voice message that is then delivered quickly to individual phones in the notification database.

What types of messages will be sent using the service?

Any message regarding the safety or welfare of our community would be disseminated using the Connect-CTY service.

Examples would include severe weather warnings and updates, hazardous traffic or road conditions inside the town or affecting local routes, and any other situation that could impact the safety, property, or welfare of our citizens.

Is my telephone number included in the notification database?

It is our intention and hope that every residence and commercial facility in our community be included in the notification database. For businesses, we only store one main phone number. For residents, we may have more than one number that belongs to you in the database. Additionally, you may request to have a secondary number be entered into our database for priority calling.

May I use a cell phone as my notification database listing?

Yes, we can accept cell phones as secondary phone numbers in the database and encourage you to request that your number be included.

The program will be activated within the next few weeks. Please watch for additional information in the local daily newspapers. You can also email Gary Premo, Communications Director for the Franklin Police Department, gpremo@franklinpolice.com.


You can also sign up directly by following this link.


In the news - capital approval, Connect-CTY

Franklin approves $157K for capital items

By Joyce Kelley/Daily News staff

FRANKLIN - The Town Council last night approved spending $157,000 in free cash on capital items, including three cruisers and a motorcycle for the Police Department.

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Cops can reach you at moment's notice

By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

FRANKLIN - Today at 4 p.m., every Franklin business is going to get a phone call from law enforcement, said Police Chief Stephen Williams.

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NewBCamp 2008

Hello World!

This is the announcement for NewBCamp 2008, which is being held from 9:00am - 4:00pm on February 23, 2008 in Providence, RI.

You are invited to use the 'Registration' button to RSVP for the event.

The Details:
  • Saturday, February 23, 2008 from 9am to 4pm in Providence, RI
  • Xavier Building on the Johnson & Wales campus
    259 Pine Street
    Providence, Rhode Island 02903
  • After Party at AS220, 115 Empire Street, Providence from 5 PM - 7 PM

register

If you're looking to get the flyer for NewBCamp, here's a link to the PDF,

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Town Council Meeting 2/13/08 Agenda

You can review the agenda for tonight's Town Council meeting here (PDF).

In the news - capital expenses

Franklin to vote on new cruisers, updating Web site

By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

FRANKLIN - The Town Council is poised to approve funding for several capital items tonight, including three new police cruisers, a motorcycle and conversion of the town's Web site, according to officials.

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Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Supt. Ogden previews FY 09 budget (audio)

Superintendent Wayne Ogden previews the FY 09 budget. A level service budget would be an increase of $4.1 million to continue the programs being provided this year adjusted for the new year and for population. The Town has requested an increase of about $800,000. To take $3.3 million out of this level service budget will require some painful decisions. Stay tuned for what that will look like at the 2/26/08 meeting.

Time: 2 minutes, 35 seconds



MP3 File

Sch Com invites public comment on the policy (audio)

Part 2 of the discussion: the Franklin School Committee - invited public comment on the proposed policy for gifts.

The policy will come up for a vote by the Committee likely at their next meeting.

Time: 14 minutes, 12 seconds



MP3 File

Sch Com discusses policy on gifts (audio)

Franklin School Committee has their 2nd reading of a proposed policy on gifts and how the gifts would be used to supplement not supplant the educational budget process.

Part 1 - The school committee members discuss the policy.

Part 2 - Public comment on the policy.

Time: 12 minutes, 16 seconds



MP3 File

School Committee Agenda for 2/12/08

Franklin School Committee Meeting

February 12, 2008

Municipal Building – Council Chambers

7:00 P.M.

AGENDA

Call to order Mr. Roy

Pledge of Allegiance

Moment of Silence

1. Routine Business

· Citizen’s Comments

· Review of Agenda

· Minutes:

I recommend approval of the minutes from the January 22, 2008 School Committee Meeting.

· Payment of Bills Mr. Kelly

· Payroll Ms. Armenio

· FHS Student Representatives

· Correspondence:

1. Letter from Rose Solbo

2. Letter from NEASC regarding FHS Acceditation

3. Budget to Actual

2. Guests/Presentations:

a. Strategic Planning – Dr. George Ladd

b. Lockdown Drills – Franklin Police

3. Discussion Only Items

· Second Reading of Policy KCD – Donation of Non-Budgeted Funds

· Superintendent’s Goals – Draft

· Consolidation of Facilities Department with the Town

4. Action Items:

1. I recommend acceptance of the donation of $50.00 from Ms. Terry Stone for the Jefferson Artist-in-Residence Program.

2. I recommend acceptance of the annual donation of $50.00 from Lueder’s Environmental Inc. for the Franklin Public Schools.

3. I recommend acceptance of the donation of $4,570.00 from the Davis Thayer PCC for upcoming events at Davis Thayer as detailed.

4. I recommend acceptance of the donation of $200.00 from the Wachovia Foundation Matching Gifts Program for the Keller Elementary School.

5. I recommend acceptance of the donation of $525.48 from various donors as detailed for the Jefferson Artists-in-Residence Program.

6. I recommend acceptance of the donation of $325.00 from ARTBEAT The Creativity Store for the Franklin Public Schools as detailed.

7. I recommend approval of the request for an out of state field trip to the Metropolitan Opera in NY City for FHS students as detailed on April 5, 2008.

8. I recommend acceptance of the check for $465.72 from Follett Educational Services for the Parmenter gift account from surplus books.

5. Information Matters:

· Superintendent’s Report

a. Consolidation of Facilities

b. Superintendent’s Goals – Draft

c. Strategic Plan

d. Lockdown Drills

e. FY 09 Budget

· School Committee Sub-Committee Reports

· School Committee Liaison Reports

6. New Business:

· To discuss future business that may be brought before the School Committee.

7. Adjourn

in the new - Planning Board & senior housing

Protests begin anew over Senior Village

By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

FRANKLIN - Following objections from neighbors, the Planning Board last night continued a public remand hearing for a 10-unit senior housing development on Chestnut Street.

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Digital Learning - Part 2

As a follow up to yesterday's video on digital learning, here is another brief video out of the same Kansas State program with a similar powerful message (less than 2 minutes):





Note: The one sign that appears toward the end "Some have suggested that technology alone can save us? Who do we mean by "us"?

What do we want for our Franklin students?


The "we" is deliberate. We are all in this together. Together we can discuss and decide.

Monday, February 11, 2008

Important definitions

Jeff Roy has a couple of important posts on the Franklin School Committee blog:

Continuing the dialog on policy KCD

By Jeffrey Roy on Policy

In the continuing debate over the proposed policy on the donation of non-budgeted funds, I thought it would be helpful to provide you with additional resources on the topic. We have assembled a list of articles which discuss the topic, which, at best, can be described as a delicate balancing act. You can [...]

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Defining supplement not supplant

By Jeffrey Roy on Policy

Franklin’s proposed policy on donations of non-budgeted funds (policy KCD) is the subject of two prior posts (#1 and #2). In this post, we address the supplement not supplant language. The proposed policy would encourage and welcome future giving, but only to the extent that the donations supplement rather than supplant – take the place of [...]

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Digital Learning - What do we want for Franklin?

As we gear up for another discussion on grim finances and the sections of the taxpayers appear to be pitted against one another in a case of the "haves" vs. the "have-nots", the "fors" vs. the "against", I suggest we step back and discuss our priorities.

How do we enable an appropriate education for our children's digital future?

Spend four minutes of your time to view this:



This is a more pointed, that is education focused, version of the Web 2.0 explained that I shared here earlier.


What do we want for our Franklin students?


The "we" is deliberate. We are all in this together. Together we can discuss and decide.

In the news - money for brick

$5K donated to help keep Red Brick School open

By Michael Morton/Daily News staff

FRANKLIN - Working to keep a town landmark open despite budget uncertainties and possible restrictions on future donations, the Brick School Association has secured a $5,000 grant to help keep the building open.

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Sunday, February 10, 2008

Where in Franklin? - #30


Where in Franklin? - #30, originally uploaded by shersteve.

Where will you find this building in Franklin?

Guidelines for playing "Where in Franklin?' can be found here.

Enjoy!

Where in Franklin? - Answer #29


Where in Franklin? - Answer #29, originally uploaded by shersteve.

The pictures of the bell tower and entrance apparently were unable to help identify that this building was the Franklin Federated Church, serving the First Congregational Church and the First Baptist Church.

Stay tuned for the next picture for "Where in Franklin?"