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What a marked difference for a community meeting

The School Committee meeting on Tuesday had almost as many in the audience as the Town Council did in their last meeting. It was an eventful meeting but more emotionally moving for good reasons.

Two young ladies, seniors at Franklin High School were recognized with the Superintendents Award for being in the Top 1% of their class.

(Left to right) Supt. M Sabolinski, H Frank, M Wendell, Sch Comm Chair P Mullen

This was followed by a presentation on the special education program. Beth Fitzmaurice was joined by Stephanie Gedis, Dillon Scarnicki, and Sara Mulcahey in making the presentation. Dillon was supported by most of the Franklin Boys Hockey team which he is part of. He showed a brief video clip of his first goal scored!

community participating in the School Committee meeting

Fitzmaurice acknowledged that there can be a feeling of isolation for a parent of a special education student, in that there maybe no one to help. In Franklin, there is a community to provide support. The town has been amazing supporting us. 

What a marked difference in community presence and meeting conduct. 

The School Committee did get into some hard discussions around the capital budget (top priorities outlined here) and on the 2015-16 calendar (the school marking periods and parent meetings still need to be added to this draft). One section of a policy is being retired as it is outdated and covered by other business practices and legal requirements.

Of not, there will likely be a future discussion about the school starting time. Given some studies about high schoolers starting so early and recent weather events where extra time in the morning would make a difference for the safety of all involved with the schools, there is work underway to see if that could be done. Stay tuned as this will be a topic for a future meeting.

The enxt meeting this month will also be held at the Franklin High School. Details on specific location within remained to be announced.


All my notes reported live from the meeting can be found here:

• Live reporting - closing

• Live reporting: Action Items

• Live reporting: Discussion Only Items (BICO Collab...

• Live reporting - Capital discussion

• Live reporting - Presentations (Excellence Awards,...

• Live reporting: School Committee - Jan 13, 2015

• 
  

MassBudget: New study--Who pays lowest taxes in MA?

MassBudget    Information.    Participation.  Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center    Democracy. Highest income residents pay lowest  share of income in state and local taxes A new study released today by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) finds that the highest income taxpayers in Massachusetts, and across the country, pay a smaller share of their income in state and local taxes than do low and middle income taxpayers. Read the study HERE.  The study, Who Pays?, analyzes tax systems in all 50 states and factors in all major state and local taxes, including personal and corporate income taxes, property taxes, sales and other excise taxes. Taxes, of course, are how we pay for our schools, our roads, our parks and playgrounds, public safety, our safety net, and everything else we do together through our government to make life better for all of our families and all of our communities. To provide more detail on the situation in Massachusetts, MassBudget is also publishing today updates of two factsheets: Examining Tax Fairness and Where Does the Taxachusetts Label Come From? In examining the Massachusetts tax system we see that the highest income 1% of taxpayers pay $83,000 a year less than they would if they paid the same percentage as most other taxpayers. This costs the state $2.1 billion a year. The Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center (MassBudget) produces policy research, analysis, and data-driven recommendations focused on improving the lives of low- and middle-income children and adults, strengthening our state's economy, and enhancing the quality of life in Massachusetts. MASSACHUSETTS BUDGET AND POLICY CENTER 15 COURT SQUARE, SUITE 700 BOSTON, MA 02108

Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center | 15 Court Square | Suite 700 | Boston | MA | 02108

To save some clicks, I went to the report and saved a copy of the MA page here

screen grab of MassBudget webpage

FHS Hockey takes 'game of the week' over Mansfield

From Hockomock Sports we find the FHS results from competiion on Wednesday. The boys did well to top Mansfield in hockey and wrestling but lost on the track to North Attleboro. The girls track results weren't posted.

Wrestling

Mansfield, 6 @ Franklin, 55 - Final

Boys Track

Franklin, 15 vs. North Attleboro, 85 - Final

Girls Track

Franklin vs. North Attleboro, 4:30 (sorry, no score listed)

Game of the Week - Boys Hockey

Mansfield, 1 @ Franklin, 6 - Final

As it was the "game of the week", there is a full article reporting on the game.

Franklin scored five goals in third period to runaway with a key 6-1 win over Mansfield in a Kelley-Rex showdown. 

The Panthers looked like they were going to jump all over the Hornets when Ryan Spillane buried a rebound off his own shot just 40 seconds into the game to make it 1-0, but it took over 30 minutes of game time for Franklin to strike again. 

“We came out flying early and I thought we had a really solid first period, we just didn’t have too many goals to show for it,” Franklin head coach Chris Spillane said. “In the second period. [Mansfield] came out flying, they took it too us. They took the wind out of our sails but we in the third we just had to move our legs again. I thought we did a good job forechecking, all four lines out there.”

FHS Hockey celebrates a goal ((Ryan Lanigan/HockomockSports.com)

Continue reading the article at Hockomock Sports here

http://www.hockomocksports.com/blog/third-period-outburst-lifts-franklin-over-mansfield

Comedy Night January 30th!

3 461 W Central Street (Rt.140), Franklin, MA 02038 • 508.528.6333 • www.3-restaurant.com Please visit our other Let's Eat, Inc. restaurant in Norwood: SKY

Forward email Let's Eat, Inc. | 461 Central Street | Franklin | MA | 02038

Blackstone River Theatre - Matt & Shannon Heaton with Torrin Ryan & Mark Oien

THANK YOU! The 2014 Solstice Festival was our biggest yet... stay tuned for performer information for the 2015 festival set for June 20! COMING SOON TO BRT!                     Ongoing   Zumba with April Hilliker on Mondays, 6:30 PM Thursday, Jan. 15 TOTAL BEGINNER FIDDLE (6-week session) starts Saturday, January 17, 8 PM  MATT & SHANNON HEATON / TORRIN RYAN and MARK OIEN Saturday, January 24, 2 PM  DIXIE DIEHARDS JAZZ BAND Saturday, January 31, 8 PM  FELLSWATER / ERIC MCDONALD AND WILL WOODSON Saturday, February 7, 8 PM  OCCIDENTAL GYPSY Sunday, February 15, 7 PM  FULLSET (from Ireland) Saturday, February 21, 8 PM  ROSSONI Saturday, February 28, 8 PM  THE GNOMES Sunday, March 1, 7 PM  RUNA Quick Links... BRT Website     BRT Classes       Directions to BRT MATT & SHANNON HEATON DIXIE DIEHARDS Tickets often available at door but to ensure a seat CALL FOR RESERVATIONS 401-725-9272 Please understand that when a show is SOLD OUT, it truly is! We must adhere to fire codes and it truly is not possible to fit "just one more"... especially when we have had several people ask to do the same! If a show at BRT has an advance price & a day-of-show price it means: If you pre-pay OR call in your reservation any time before the show date, you get the advance price. If you show up at the door with no reservations OR call in your reservations on the same day as the show, you will pay the day-of show-price. NOTE for prepaid tickets or if reservations have been made but not pre-paid: If you reduce the number of tickets requested or paid for at the box office on the night of the performance, that ticket must still be paid for! BRT requires 24 hour notice for cancellations or you will be charged for all seats reserved. Dear Steve, We have an incredible evening of Irish traditional music this Saturday featuring BRT favorites MATT AND SHANNON HEATON and TORRIN RYAN & MARK OIEN. And we will have a matinee show at 2 p.m. next Saturday, Jan. 24 as we bring back the DIXIE DIEHARDS JAZZ BAND. Don't forget to LIKE us on Facebook to get late-breaking news and really expensive gifts. Well, not that last one but definitely the first part... Please share what we do with your friends! www.facebook.com/pages/Blackstone-River-Theatre/165592431396    Hope to see you soon... Russell Gusetti, Executive Director   MATT AND SHANNON HEATON / TORRIN RYAN AND MARK OIEN Boston's powerhouse duo Matt and Shannon Heaton have once again assembled an album of smartly-arranged traditional ballads with deep Irish roots and fresh, modern sensibilities. "Tell You in Earnest" is their fifth duo CD and features well-traveled "dialogue ballads" (each song is a conversation between two people, fitting for a husband-and-wife duo). As always, there is bright instrumental work and traditional-style singing from the Heatons. Shannon Heaton, Live Ireland's Female Musician of the Year 2010 and 2011, has been compared to Alison Krauss for her combination of vocal grace and instrumental prowess (Irish flute, button accordion). Matt is a 2013 Massachusetts Cultural Council Grant recipient and provides a firm foundation on the guitar and bouzouki. Since their move to Boston in 2001, the Heatons have become an integral part of Boston's vibrant Irish music and neo-Celtic acoustic scenes. Centered around the admiration each musician has for regional European roots music, Torrin Ryan and Mark Oien create a unique sound by combining the Norwegian Hardanger fiddle, Irish fiddle, and Irish uilleann pipes and whistles. Torrin Ryan, of Attleboro, has competed in several Mid-Atlantic Fleadhs where he's won first place on both whistle and pipes. In Ireland, he has competed at the All-Ireland Fleadh held in Tullamore and Derry and in the summer of 2013, Ryan was named All-Ireland Uilleann Pipes Slow Airs champion, also coming in third place overall. Through the years, Oien has refined his style by utilizing the long bow strokes and agile fingerwork of the Boston-Galway and New York-Sligo musicians. He has performed at numerous festivals throughout New England including ICONS and he can often be found hosting sessions and performing in Southeastern Mass. and Cape Cod. EVENT INFO Saturday, January 17, 8 P.M., $15.00 at Blackstone River Theatre 549 Broad Street, Cumberland, R.I. Call 401-725-9272 for reservations  www.riverfolk.org

Forward email to a friend! Blackstone River Theatre | 549 Broad Street | Cumberland | RI | 02864

FHS Basketball teams top Foxboro

From Hockomock Sports we find the results of the FHS basketball teams action on Tuesday, Jan 13, 2015.

FHS Panthers

Boys Basketball

Franklin, 74 @ Foxboro, 42 - Final - Shawn Hanley led Franklin with 15 points while Dylan Reno and Marcus Giese each scored 14 points for the Panthers. 

Girls Basketball

Foxboro, 49 @ Franklin, 51 - Final - Kat Tamulionis scored 24 points for Foxboro in the loss.

For all the results from Tuesday's action in the Hockomock League
http://www.hockomocksports.com/blog/hockomock-schedule-scoreboard-011315

Franklin Library: Teen Advisory Board

The Franklin Public Library is reaching out to the teens to find out how to meet their reading needs. Teens in grades 6 - 12 can meet at the Library on the 3rd Tuesday of the month. 

You can enjoy refreshments, share a good book yu've read and let the library know what events and materials you'd like to see available.

Meet Tuesday, January 20 at 6:30 PM in the Library meeting room.

Teen Advisory Board

This was shared from the Franklin Library page
http://franklinpl.blogspot.com/2015/01/teen-advisory-board.html

In the News: arrest in stabbing

A Rhode Island man broke into a West Central Street apartment Sunday and stabbed another man several times after the two came to blows, a prosecutor said Tuesday. 

Keinan McKenna, 22, of Woonsocket, now faces charges of attempted murder and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, as well as other charges stemming from the violent confrontation. 

Arrested at about 11 p.m. Sunday in Woonsocket, McKenna was arraigned in Wrentham District Court Tuesday afternoon. The court entered a not-guilty plea on his behalf.

Continue reading the article in the Milford Daily News: http://www.milforddailynews.com/article/20150114/NEWS/150118674/1994/NEWS#sthash.IPMk7A3U.dpuf

Live reporting - closing

5. Information Matters

Superintendent’s Report
FOundation program at Nashoba Regional

walking program started Jan 5th
have been very popular, thanks to Live Long Learning

Jan 27th meeting hosted at the High School


School Committee Sub-Committee Reports
Budget Subcommittee met and discussed FY 2016
discussed the capital budget which you saw this evening

Policy subcommittee
more policy updatres coming

School Committee Liaison Reports

6. New Business

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


Trivia Bee, Apr 8th - 6:00 to 9:00 PM
option for pizza there, stay tuned
movie trivia

7. Executive Session

Personnel Update - motion to go to executive session not to return to open session

Live reporting: Action Items

4. Action Items

a. I recommend moving Policy GCBA – Professional Staff Salary Schedules to a second reading for elimination as discussed.
motion to approve, seconded, passed 7-0

b. I recommend approval of the BICO Collaborative Agreement as discussed.
motion to approve, seconded, passed 7-0

c. I recommend acceptance of two checks Davis Thayer Elementary School totaling $550.00:
1. $50.00 from Lueders Environmental, Inc.
2. $500.00 from BOKS, Reebok Foundationmotion to approve, seconded, passed 7-0

d. I recommend acceptance of a check for $2,260.26 from O’Connor Portraiture, Inc. for supplemental curriculum materials at Keller Elementary School.motion to approve, seconded, passed 7-0

e. I recommend acceptance of a check for $250.00 from the RMS PCC for field trips.   motion to approve, seconded, passed 7-0

f. I recommend acceptance of six checks for FHS totaling $3,914.67:

1. $175.29 from PBC
2. $459.38 from All American Publishing
3. $1,800.00 from Franklin Music Boosters
4. $250.00 from Maura Schaeffer Jobin
5. $243.00 from various parents
6. $987.00 from various parents

motion to approve, seconded, passed 7-0

g. I recommend acceptance of two checks totaling $1,481.20 ($1,186.20 & $295.00) from Parmenter PCC for field trips.motion to approve, seconded, passed 7-0

h. I recommend acceptance of the donation of computer monitors from Sy Tech Inc. for the Technology Department. (approximate value $100.00)motion to approve, seconded, passed 7-0

i. I recommend approval of the Capital plan as presented.
motion to approve, seconded, passed 7-0

j. I recommend approval of the request of Brad Sidwell for the Boys Ice Hockey team to travel to Barnstable, MA on 2/18-19/15 for a Hockey Competition.motion to approve, seconded, passed 7-0

k. I recommend acceptance of a check for $3,300.00 from the Music Boosters for district-wide extra-curricular music.
motion to approve, seconded, passed 7-0

Live reporting: Discussion Only Items (BICO Collaborative, Calendar)

3. Discussion Only Items

Policy – Elimination (First Reading)

o GCBA – Professional Staff Salary Schedules

subcommittee discussion recommends removal of this one 
it hung around and is not really being used or followed

BICO Collaborative Agreement 

Adopted in the fall, there was a member community that had not shown up
the district finally did decide to leave the agreement as they were not using it
the agreement needed to be re-done to exclude them

2015-2016 School Calendar Draft

http://www.franklinmatters.org/2015/01/fps-school-calendar-for-2015-2016-draft.html

if we were to start after Labor Day, the last day would be June 24 or so without snow days; which is too late
with other days in Sep there are three four day weeks which makes education choppy
the Friday before Labor Day allows parents to have a long weekend

the high school has an accrediation process to do next year
a compromise with the high school 

request to look at Apr and Feb and do a week in March
the PARC schedule just came out which scheduled predominately in March

time on testing data, PARC vs MCAS (already on website)
http://franklindistrict.vt-s.net/Pages/FranklinDistrict_News/01F96CE8-000F8513.1/Time%20on%20Testing.pdf

The testing schedule for spring
http://franklindistrict.vt-s.net/Pages/FranklinDistrict_News/01F96CE8-000F8513.0/Calendar%20of%20Test%20Dates.pdf

parent teacher conf days are not yet on this version of the calendar
the academic terms need to be set and then put in the conferences

Looking ahead

look at the start to school day, could be done budget neutral
would need to get parents notice as it affects their scheduling
there are alot of kids standing on street corners ar 6:45 (not sitting in cars)
would be a good direction to go for safety as well as other reasons
will come to the School Committee to preview the proposal
and then potentially put it out for SurveyMonkey or some form of survey

an hour buys some time in the morning

Live reporting - Capital discussion

2. Guests/Presentations

c. Capital

Sally Winslow, Tim Raposa, Joyce Edwards, Beth Fitzmaurice

The capital is from 'free cash' and what is available after the winter snow storms have been covered.
overview of the process, not as formal as the operating budget timeline

first priority is STEM Labs

looking to bring parity to the middle schools
3D printers, robot center
assist with 8th grade transition to the high school

also would help to support the coding initiatives that the State is looking to foster
did pilot at Horace Mann this year to see how well it would go
$100,000 per lab x times schools

Edwards - maynnot have much start up time involved, more in curriculum development, the teachers professional development can be covered with in the existing development budget line

Raposa - we can add some money with the purchase to include some professional development time, either with the rep or as part of the deal

Edwards - other schools will be able to participate with Horace Mann when they get their training this year

2nd and 3rd priority

Chromebooks and carts, middle school level for 8th and for elementary school s district wide
this prepares for PARC testing
Chromebooks are 1:1 at the high school, these would be shared devices and used for only in-school use

O'Malley - I would hate to have the discussion and approval of these to be derailed by the politics of PARC

replace the PA system at JFK

had been transplanted from Oak St (about 2004) had been a replacement of the original JFK system; is not working in all places, is not a safety concern but an inconvenience; can work with the vendor to get the dark spots corrected but should go forward with the upgrade to be more compatible with the other buildings

replace carpeting at Davis Thayer

looking to spruce up the school, modulars coming down this summer
working with Facilities to spruce up the school
no summer programs at the school this summer
will also allow some work to be done during the summer

Trahan - any thought of replacing carpet with other flooring?
Sabolinski - it is softer for the kids to be on

Special Education van request

12 vans - from 2003, a wheel chair van not in good condition
used purely as a spare van but really should be replaced
this would be replaced by a non-wheel chair van, equiped like the most recent two purchases;