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"The Best Resource for Me Is Other Teachers"

via ASCD Inservice by Laura Varlas on 7/22/09

Today we learn from other people's focus groups. Specifically WGBH Educational Foundation's study on how to enhance the social media functions of Teachers' Domain, a free online library of multimedia materials supporting K–12 instruction. Teachers' Domain is supported by funding...

 

 

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FM #44 - This week in Franklin, MA 07/26/09

This is #44 in the series of podcasts for Franklin Matters. Give me about ten minutes and I'll let you know what matters in Franklin, MA for the week ending July 26, 2009

Time: 11 minutes, 23 seconds



MP3 File

Session Notes:

Music intro
My intro
FM #44

This internet radio show or podcast for Franklin Matters is number 44 in the series.

You give me about ten minutes and I'll let you know what matters in Franklin, MA for the w/e 7/26.

We'll cover two items this week:

1. The School Committee final budget
2. The Summer Art Institute show

The School Committee meeting on June 23 left me with doom and gloom. The budget deficit had yet to be resolved. The budget was to be level funded. There was no hope of "found money". The numbers were still not balancing and yet tipping in the wrong direction.

How many teachers would end up going out the door?

It seemed likely that a minimum of 40 would. How many more would go was the question that remained. However, I returned from travel to find that of the 60 school personnel notified only 12 would not be returning.

How had this come about?

This was a question several readers here asked me to help explain. I did not have the answer initially. A recent newspaper article did not explain. Even the School Committee meeting on Tuesday, July 21, left me with questions unanswered.

What was the answer?

A conversation with Jeff Roy resulted in the answer. The level funded budget from the Town didn't change. What did change was that all the stimulus funds from either the Federal or State sources were added to the level funded Town budget. That made a big difference. To the tune of $1.1 million. (actually $1,133,953 according to the School Committee)

How did that help?

Instead of ending up with a level funded budget, we ended up with a level funded plus budget. So all the talk of a level funded budget is from the Town Council perspective. The Town did not provide the Schools with anything more than they School got for the prior fiscal year. The Schools benefited by adding the various Federal and State stimulus funds in to the mix to end up with level funded plus.

Is that wrong?

No. At least, I don't believe so. I just wish the discussion around this subject had been more clear. If I spend as much time as I do attending and participating in the various meetings and I get lost, then I can not fault the 'average' Franklin voter for getting lost.

How do we address this?

Better communication is not just a trite answer. The communications and discussions need to be focused with the end user in mind; in this case, the school parents and taxpayers. What will affect them?

What will parents see when they return to school in September?

The school class sizes will be available for one of the August School Committee meetings. Principals are working on the final details for their staffing now (in amongst their summer time off).

What will tax payers see when the next tax bill comes in?

No increase this year due to the level funding. Next year, the fiscal year 2011 will be a different story. Most, if not all of the additional stimulus items used to fund the budget this year are one time dollars. They will not be available next year.

What additional programs were cut?

I am not aware of additional programs that were cut.

Were any of the fees raised?

The fees for after school activities, sports and pay-to-ride remain at last year level.

How can the School Committee improve the discussion?

There is a general reluctance to share the spreadsheets. I understand that the numbers can change. They should be made available. Ensure that they are time stamped and clearly marked that as of this point in time, these are the dollars and this is the effect (i.e. number of positions lost). This would at least help us understand how we go from point A to point B. This will at least ensure that when numbers are bantered back and forth at the meeting, we all can attempt to follow the discussion.

What is the final level funded budget plus number?

You can click over to the School Committee blog to find the numbers there.

A couple of notes to help understand the spreadsheet on the School Committee page:

1. Attrition is the difference between what the 9 retirees were paid and what the replacement teachers will be paid. Hence a savings of $210,000.
2. While the number always talked of that each position reduced costs about $50,000, with 12 positions cut the 500,000 shown by this math should be 600,000.
3. All the dollars on the right column added to the budget are one time dollars.
   

If you still have any questions, please let me know. I'll do my best to explain.

Moving to the second item, the Summer Art Institute conducted as part of Lifelong Learning under the auspices of the Franklin Public Schools, held a brief half hour gathering to showcase the work of the student in the program.

I had published the pictures as part of a video on Saturday but I wasn't pleased with how the final product turned out. I re-did the posting with a slide show of the photos themselves. I think this gives a better view of the art that was produced by the students.

The Summer Art video - http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2009/07/summer-art-institute.html

The Summer Art slide show - http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2009/07/summer-art-institute-slide-show.html

---- ---- ----

This podcast has been a public service provided to my fellow citizens of Franklin, MA

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 musical intro and closing is from the Podsafe Music Network
Jon Schmidt - Powerful Exhilarating Piano Music

Summer Art Institute - slide show

The video published on Saturday was effective but overall disappointing to me as the quality of the students work did not translate well to the video format.

Since the quality of the students work is the reason to share it, let me try again with this slide show.





If you were satisfied with the video, then you can skip this and I apologize for the duplication.

If you were not satisfied with the video, then hopefully this will come closer to the mark.

When can a level funded budget increase?

The School Committee meeting on June 23 left me with doom and gloom. The budget deficit had yet to be resolved. The budget was to be level funded. There was no hope of "found money". The numbers were still not balancing and yet tipping in the wrong direction.

How many teachers would end up going out the door?

It seemed likely that a minimum of 40 would. How many more would go was the question that remained. However, I returned from travel to find that of the 60 school personnel notified only 12 would not be returning.

How had this come about?

This was a question several readers here asked me to help explain. I did not have the answer initially. A recent newspaper article did not explain. Even the School Committee meeting on Tuesday, July 21, left me with questions unanswered.

What was the answer?

A conversation with Jeff Roy resulted in the answer. The level funded budget from the Town didn't change. What did change was that all the stimulus funds from either the Federal or State sources were added to the level funded Town budget. That made a big difference. To the tune of $1.1 million. (actually $1,133,953 according to the School Committee)

How did that help?

Instead of ending up with a level funded budget, we ended up with a level funded plus budget. So all the talk of a level funded budget is from the Town Council perspective. The Town did not provide the Schools with anything more than they School got for the prior fiscal year. The Schools benefited by adding the various Federal and State stimulus funds in to the mix to end up with level funded plus.

Is that wrong?

No. At least, I don't believe so. I just wish the discussion around this subject had been more clear. If I spend as much time as I do attending and participating in the various meetings and I get lost, then I can not fault the 'average' Franklin voter for getting lost.

How do we address this?

Better communication is not just a trite answer. The communications and discussions need to be focused with the end user in mind; in this case, the school parents and taxpayers. What will affect them?

What will parents see when they return to school in September?

The school class sizes will be available for one of the August School Committee meetings. Principals are working on the final details for their staffing now (in amongst their summer time off).

What will tax payers see when the next tax bill comes in?

No increase this year due to the level funding. Next year, the fiscal year 2011 will be a different story. Most, if not all of the additional stimulus items used to fund the budget this year are one time dollars. They will not be available next year.

What additional programs were cut?

I am not aware of additional programs that were cut.

Were any of the fees raised?

The fees for after school activities, sports and pay-to-ride remain at last year level.

How can the School Committee improve the discussion?

There is a general reluctance to share the spreadsheets. I understand that the numbers can change. They should be made available. Ensure that they are time stamped and clearly marked that as of this point in time, these are the dollars and this is the effect (i.e. number of positions lost). This would at least help us understand how we go from point A to point B. This will at least ensure that when numbers are bantered back and forth at the meeting, we all can attempt to follow the discussion.

What is the final level funded budget plus number?

You can click over to the School Committee blog to find the numbers there.

A couple of notes to help understand the spreadsheet on the School Committee page:

1. Attrition is the difference between what the 9 retirees were paid and what the replacement teachers will be paid. Hence a savings of $210,000.
2. While the number always talked of that each position reduced costs about $50,000, with 12 positions cut the 500,000 shown by this math should be 600,000.
3. All the dollars on the right column added to the budget are one time dollars.

If you still have any questions, please let me know. I'll do my best to explain.

In the News - Patricia Ridge, beating the increase, better health

1 - There is an article about Patricia Ridge, one of the custodians at the Kennedy School who was recently diagnosed with pancreatic cancer:

"She was an integral part of the Kennedy school community, and her sickness is sad and unfortunate," said Franklin Superintendent Maureen Sabolinski. "She's beloved by both the kids and the school."

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here

2 - There is an article about local efforts to generate business in advance of the tax increase effective Aug 1.

At Planet Chrysler Jeep on Rte. 140 in Franklin, July has been a "very busy" month, given the government program and rush to beat the tax increase, said salesman Mike Shruhan.

United Regional Chamber of Commerce President Jack Lank is also quoted in the full article in the Milford Daily News here

3 - While dodgeball is not the answer to better health, running might be.

Cohen's foundation has been battling the issue for five years, with an earlier series of eye-catching billboards and continued grants. In Franklin, the Hockomock Area YMCA is using foundation money to develop a response that involves the whole community, not just its schools.

Oddly, they don't discuss running as an option. I guess that is too much of a stretch. Better to get someone walking regularly first. Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here.

Breaking the downward cycle

"In Franklin, you basically have a one-in-four chance of not making it through high school. That's a pretty scary statistic," said Light.

Read the remainder of this important point from FHS Principal Peter Light's presentation to the School Committee on Tuesday, July 21 in the Milford Daily News here

If you ever wondered why disciplinary action was taking school time away from the students who were in need of it, there is hope. Peter Light and the FHS faculty are looking closing at breaking the cycle where a student gets into trouble, is given detention, suspended, misses school, can't make up as they fall behind and eventually leaves school. Doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Now the cycle is about to get changed.

You can wait until several days after the School Committee meeting to read about what happened or subscribe to Franklin Matters and obtain the information as it is published during the meeting.

A subscription to Franklin Matters is free. There are no advertisements here.

This is a public service effort to share information about school and town issues to create informed voters. A voter that is well prepared with factual information will cast a better ballot when the time comes in Franklin.

Subscription buttons are located front and center on Franklin Matters. You can subscribe via email, RSS, or capture the podcast via iTunes.

Summer Art Institute

The Summer Art Institute conducted by Lifelong Learning held a brief open house to showcase the student works. Quite impressive!

The pictures do not do the works justice especially with the transition to the video format but hopefully this will provide some insight into the work produced this summer.




My thanks to all involved are listed in the credits of the movie.
If I missed some one, please let me know so I can make the appropriate correction.

Computer Recycling Event in Warwick, RI

If you have an old computer, monitor or keyboard that you'd like to recycle, you can drive down to Warwick, RI and watch the recyclers in action.

FreeGeekProvidence is holding this event at New England Institute of Technology today. The text of their email provides additional information:

Today we're having the Providence Bruins Mascot "Samboni" come in just for our recycling event, and HOT 106 will be giving away prizes and doing live cut in's all day. We'll have tee-shirts for sale and lots of recycling to do.

The Free for all Recycling Extravaganza is from 9-1 today at New England Tech. See www.freegeekpvd.org for more info.

That's 95 (either direction) to exit 13, the airport connector, to the end to Post Road. Take a Right on Post Road (or head South) and it's half mile on the right.

You can see on our News Room, we have lots of media coverage and that's not including the TV spots either.

So even if you only have an old keyboard, or a half ton-truck of computer waste, or you just want to meet all the geeks responsible for all the great things going on at Free Geek, join us at New England Tech.

NE Real Estate Journal features Franklin

As mentioned during the Town Council meeting of 7/15/09, the Planning and Community Development Dept worked to get a nice spread on Franklin in an issue of the New England Real Estate Journal. You can find the information about Franklin online at NEREJ or here in the PDF extract:

Discover Simple, Private Sharing at Drop.io

Great work Brian, Beth and team!

Farmers Market - Noon to 6:00 PM

The Farmers Market will be open today from noon to 6:00 PM on the Town Common.

This is your weekly opportunity to help the local economy and to get quality food items.

"dropped in rank, from 22nd lowest, to 28th lowest"

In 2008, Franklin's rank jumped to seventh highest, with the average Franklin teacher's salary at $66,361, compared with the total average of $63,520.

The group generally agreed that Franklin teacher salaries only appeared to outpace those of their peers because the district has laid off or lost a great percentage of its younger, lower-paid teachers.

Read the full article on the work of the Financial Planning Committee in the Milford Daily News here

Trail meeting in Blackstone

Someday, wouldn't it be nice be able to bike from Franklin to Providence, or Worcester or to Western Mass without having to deal with the traffic on a road?

"It would be great if every community had a trails committee and would give it some support," said Lisa Mosczynski, president of the Metacomet Land Trust, a nonprofit conservation group dedicated to protecting open space and natural resources in south central Massachusetts.

The trust and the Grand Trunk Trail Blazers trail group are inviting the public to the gathering at Blackstone Public Library, at 86 Main St., at 7 p.m., to collaborate on establishing a non-motorized, 80-mile, east-to-west trail linking Franklin and Blackstone with the Pioneer Valley in western Massachusetts.

Help make this dream a reality!

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here

Cafe Dolce's coffee source spotlighted

The idea behind stimulating one small business is that the company will then buy more things wholesale and help other companies and their employees, said Ted Welte, president and chief executive officer of the MetroWest Chamber of Commerce, based in Framingham.

“It’s all about the multiplier,’’ he said. “If people are spending money on a new roaster, say, that starts flowing through the economy of whoever produced that, and then more people can be serviced out of the coffee shop, and that means more money coming in.’’

The multiplier in this case is a federal stimulus loan recently provided to Red Barn Coffee Rosters of Upton. Red Barn is the coffee supplier for Cafe Dolce in Franklin.

I have tried several of the blends during my visits to Cafe Dolce and found them to be good and tasteful.

Have you visited Cafe Dolce recently? Try their Red Barn coffee and keep the multiplier effect going!

Read the full article from the Boston Globe West edition on the Red Barn stimulus loan here

Downtown Partnership and Chamber of Commerce on LinkedIn

I have mentioned previously that I have joined the Franklin Downtown Partnership and the United Regional Chamber of Commerce in an effort to expand my knowledge about businesses here in Franklin.

Both of these organizations have groups on LinkedIn.

You can request to join the Franklin Downtown Partnership on LinkedIn here

You can request to join the United Regional Chamber of Commerce on LinkedIn here

If the links don't work for you, you can

1. Sign in to LinkedIn with your account
2. Go to Groups
3. Search for each by name
4. Request to join the group

The group owner will approve your membership. You can adjust your group profile settings (how many emails, etc.) at any time after your membership is approved.

Once a member of a group, connecting directly to others within the group becomes easier.

My LinkedIn profile can be found here

School Committee Mtg 07/21/09

The collection of live reporting from the School Committee meeting held on July 21, 2009 are found here:

• Live reporting - closing items
• Live reporting - Superintendents report
• Live reporting - Action Items
• Live reporting - FHS facility review submitted
• Live reporting - FY 2010 update
• Live reporting - FHS update - part 5
• Live reporting - FHS update - Part 4
• Live reporting - FHS update - Part 3
• Live reporting - FHS update - part 2
• Live reporting - FHS update - part 1
• Live reporting - School Committee 7/21/09

Franklin School Position Reductions

The total number of position reductions for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2010 from the Franklin School Dept through layoffs is 12 per the School Committee meeting on July 21, 2009. The total position reductions since FY 2003 is now 139.



If teachers retired and weren't replaced, would that count as a lost position also?

Live reporting - closing items

Cafasso - can we have an update on enrollment in August?
Sabolinski - the principals will be back, we'll look to do that for the meeting the 11th.


School Committee entering in Executive Session not to return.

Live reporting - Superintendents report

Sabolinski - It has been rather busy since the students have left. It feels like school hasn't really ended. There will be a whole new face to Franklin High School when it opens this September.

The summer programs are running, enrollment is off the chart.

The FHS Experience starts on Monday. Enrollment last year was 25 students, thus far it is about 75.

Pay-to-ride our enrollments are down slightly. We sent letters out three weeks late due to the potential of fee increases. Applications are still being accepted.

Fees - athletic, activity and pay-to-ride have not increased this year.

Cafasso - What would happen to extracurricular activities was hard to determine?
Sabolinski - We will have some, there is no late bus. We can do an update later on the offerings. There may be changes in offerings, we will work to offer as much as the students are willing to get engaged in.