|
|
Thursday, April 24, 2025
**RESCHEDULED** Rachel Childers and Beethoven, May 4
Letter from MAVA Officers to the BOE re: Admissions
April 18, 2025
Katherine Craven, Chair
Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education
135 Santilli Highway
Everett, MA 02149
 |
| Letter from MAVA Officers to the BOE re: Admissions |
Sent via mail: BoardofEducation@mass.gov
Also sent to: CCTE@mass.gov
Dear Chair Craven and Members of the Board:
On April 10, 2025, in our capacity as MAVA officers, we received a link from DESE to newly posted information on the Department’s website. The updated DESE website outlines how the Department determines compliance with “rules” on vocational admissions. This information was provided as a result of repeated requests by vocational superintendents and MAVA Officers.
DESE’s updated website now includes a new section titled “Career Technical Education Methods of Administration for secondary career technical education (CTE) student eligibility, recruitment, and admission.” It provides an overview of the Methods of Administration (MOA) process and outlines the Department’s process for Disproportionality Analysis.
Presumably, this is the process DESE has adopted to comply with its federally-approved Massachusetts Targeting Plan. Recently, MAVA counsel requested copies of federally-approved plans. While there may be some variation between the documents received by MAVA and the information posted on the DESE website, it is assumed the Disproportionality Analysis posted is based on the most recently federally-approved plan. An excerpt from the aforementioned website is copied below.
Disproportionality AnalysisTo determine if districts are enrolling particular demographic groups (Students of Color, Students with Disabilities, and English Learners) at disproportionate rates, we calculate the difference between the attending 9th grade students at that district and the comparison index for that district. The comparison index is what we would expect the 9th grade enrollment to be at the CTE district, using data from the region and adjusting for grades served, size of the district, and variability.
When the difference between the attending 9th grade students and comparison index is negative, it indicates a 99% confidence level that the enrollment is under-representative of that district's region.
The Department reviews at least two years of data and flags potential disproportionate student populations where:
1. The district has differences of less than 0 for all three demographic groups2. The district has a difference of less than -5 for one (or more) demographic groups3. The district has two demographic groups with differences both less than -2.5
To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time since the initial publication of vocational admissions data in 2020 – that is, five years – that vocational schools and the public have been given information on DESE’s process for identifying schools to review. While this recent clarification is helpful, it is important to note MAVA continues to have serious concerns about the overall integrity of the data on which this analysis is based.1
It is also very important to note what is NOT part of the Disproportionality Analysis – there is no mention of admission “offers” or “acceptances,” or “offer rates” – data repeatedly used by lottery proponents to justify moving to a statewide, one-size-fits-all lottery system.2 Instead, the federally-approved DESE “rules” use a Comparison Index that compares the demographics in the applicant pool to the demographics in the school.
Out of deep curiosity, we ran the analysis posted on the website for Nashoba Valley Technical High School, Essex North Shore Agricultural and Technical School, Old Colony Regional Vocational Technical School, Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School, and Pathfinder Regional Vocational Technical School District, the schools we represent. This exercise verified what we already suspected: None of our schools have issues with disproportionality among students from protected classes (See Appendix A). We comply with the rules.
It is assumed that this methodology is employed for data review in all 29 regional vocational schools. It is our understanding this analysis is what led to only ONE regional vocational school, Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational Technical High School, being selected for a Methods of Administration (MOA) review. It is also our understanding that only THREE other schools3 have been identified for potential technical assistance.
With this new information now shared for the very first time with the public (and simultaneously with vocational schools) we are left with unanswered questions:
● Why was this disproportionality analysis never discussed during any of the five BESE Board and subcommittee meetings held to study the vocational admissions process?4
● If this is the process DESE is using to flag only 4 CTE schools, why would any of our five schools – and likely most of the 20 other vocational schools – be required to turn our admissions systems upside down when DESE’s federally-approved guidelines demonstrate that we are in compliance? Our school committees and the taxpayers and voters in our member communities will be expecting us to answer that question. Based on what we have just learned, we have no reasonable explanation for them.
In light of this, we urge you not to adopt any revisions to the regulations related to vocational admissions. Instead, allow this entire issue – including our concerns about the accuracy and adequacy of the data – to be reviewed dispassionately, objectively, and thoroughly by the 15-member Vocational Admissions Task Force already included in Outside Sections 65 and 68 of the House Ways & Means Committee-endorsed version of the FY 2026 state budget.
The Task Force would carefully examine admissions policies, data collection practices, and enforcement standards to ensure that vocational schools and programs continue to serve our communities effectively and equitably.
We support creation of the Task Force for several specific reasons:
● The diverse composition of the task force, which includes legislative leadership, education administrators, and key stakeholders from various organizations involved in vocational-technical education.
● The clear timeline established for the task force, with a start date of September 15, 2025, and a required report by September 15, 2026.
● The requirement for at least one public hearing, ensuring community voices are heard in this important process.
● The prudent pause on regulatory changes, which prevents premature adjustments to admissions policies before the task force completes its thorough review.
And while this Task Force may add more time to the process, it is critically important that we get these policy changes right due to the direct impact on students. In the meantime, DESE already has authority under current regulations to move districts to admissions lotteries using its recently published disproportionality rules, so there are still compliance measures in place while the Task Force does its work.
Vocational-technical education provides vital pathways to career success for many students. By supporting this comprehensive review through the proposed task force, we can ensure these programs continue to evolve in ways that best serve all students while meeting our state's workforce needs.
In closing, these draft regulations are a solution in search of a problem. They are not needed because this is not a statewide problem. The Board should not vote on this issue until an admissions task force has reviewed the matter more thoroughly. In fact, as a good first step and as a signal that the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education truly wants to do what’s right, the Board could endorse the creation of the Task Force and await its findings and recommendations.
If you have any questions, please contact us. Thank you for your consideration.
Respectfully,
Denise Pigeon Heidi T. Riccio Aaron Polansky Karen Maguire Eric Duda
1See MAVA’s 5-page letter dated November 22, 2024, to BESE Chair Katherine Craven identifying a host of problems related to state data and its presentation to the public.
2This same “offers” and “acceptances” data is also publicly posted on DESE’s website, causing widespread confusion and misunderstandings between advocates, policymakers, and even the media. See: CTE Admissions and Waitlist tool Also see: Letter to BESE from Denise Pigeon dated 12.10.24
3Greater Lowell Technical High School, Montachusett Regional Vocational Technical School, and Bay Path
Regional Vocational Technical High School (Southern Worcester)
4 October 28, 2024 Special Board
Meeting on CTE; November 15, 2024 Special Board
Meeting on CTE; November
26, 2024 Career and Technical Education Study Committee; December 16, 2024
Career and Technical Education Study Committee; January 27, 2025 Career and
Technical Education Study Committee
For the full letter including the mentioned Apendix A
Franklin Rod and Gun Club: All You Can Eat Breakfast - April 27
 |
| All You Can Eat Breakfast - April 27 |
Because of Easter Sunday, our monthly all-you-can-eat breakfast will be held on April 27 this month.
New date, same affordable, delicious breakfast with eggs, pancakes, French Toast, sausage, home fries, baked beans, corned beef hash, and coffee/orange juice.
From 7:30 - 11:00 AM at 53 Florence St. in Franklin.
Cash only.
Shared from -> https://www.facebook.com/share/p/15RYgZZ27E/
You can read your Favorite Poem at the Library, Saturday, Apr 26 at 10 AM
Come celebrate National Poetry Month at the Franklin Public Library with a Favorite Poem Reading!
William Carlos Williams wrote:
"The poem that each is trying actually to communicate to us lies in the words. It is at least the words that make it articulate. It has always been so."
Favorite Poem Project™ hosted by Steve Sherlock
Choose a favorite published poem that you have long treasured or recently discovered. Share it by reading it to those gathered for this event.Note: Poems may not be ones you or family members, or friends have written.
Limit: Five minutes reading time.
Use the form here to sign up to read your favorite poem ->
 |
| You can read your Favorite Poem at the Library, Saturday, Apr 26 at 10 AM |
How to use parental controls to keep your kid safer online
|
 |
| How to use parental controls to keep your kid safer online |
Franklin Public Radio wfpr.fm schedule for Thursday, April 24, 2025
Yes, Franklin has it's own radio station -> wfpr.fm. Franklin Public Radio has a brand new schedule for the locally produced shows that fill our air waves.
It is available anywhere, anytime at wfpr.fm or in the local Franklin, MA area at 102.9 on the FM dial.
Tune in to listen to the following:
 |
| Franklin Public Radio wfpr.fm schedule for Thursday |
8:00 AM, 1:00 PM, and 6:00 PM Franklin Matters Radio – Steve Sherlock
Franklin and its local government, services and events
- This segment features my discussion with Town Council Chair Tom Mercer as we condense the 3 hour meeting to about 30 minutes -> https://www.franklinmatters.org/2025/04/tom-mercer-and-i-condense-3-hour-town.html
9:00 AM, 2:00 PM, and 7:00 PM - first hour
10:00 AM, 3:00 PM, and 8:00 PM - second hour
Turntable – "Enjoy a fun experience with co-hosts The Vibe and Pauly G sharing personal discussions about a featured rock n roll vinyl record (1st hour) and the best, all music Vibe Playlist (2nd hour)"
The Turntable Show airs "Harvest", Neil Young's most successful album released February 1, 1972. Harvest is Neil Young's fourth studio album and includes two hits, "Old Man" and "Heart of Gold". Young also co-produced the album that includes the London Symphony Orchestra on two songs and backup vocals by David Crosby, Graham Nash, Linda Ronstadt, Stephen Stills, and James Taylor. The Playlist Hour features both acoustic and electric classic Neil Young performances and bands.
A must listen if you like Neil Young.
Find the playlist -> https://tinyurl.com/TurntablePlaylists
Get this week's program guide for Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) online http://franklin.tv/programguide.pdf
Franklin TV schedule for Thursday, April 24, 2025
Franklin All Access TV - Our Public Access Channel (Comcast 6, Verizon 26) = Thursday
7:30 am Veterans' Call: PACT Act
10:30 am SAFE Coalition: Michelle Palladini
11:30 am Cooking Thyme: Sweet Corn Risotto
12:00 pm Brook'n'Cookin: Tai Salad
12:30 pm Cooking with Linda: Shepherd's Pie
1:30 pm Pizzapalooza: Black Bean, Roasted Pepper & Garlic Pizzetta
2:00 pm New England Candlepins: Summer 2019 Show 5
3:00 pm Interfaith Council: Temple Etz Chaim
4:00 pm Winning Ways with the MIAA: Referee Shortage 2
5:00 pm Caring Transitions
6:30 pm Sons & Daughters of Italy: Ciambotta
7:00 pm Frank Presents: Mark Minnichelli
9:00 pm Jon Mitchell & Randy LaRosa: 12-Tone Music
Franklin Pride TV - Our Educational Channel (Comcast 8, Verizon 28) = Thursday
7:00 am FHS Winter Jazz 01-29-25
8:30 am All-Town Concert: Chorus & Orchestra
10:00 am Critical Conversations: Student Wellbeing
2:00 pm FHSTC - Flowers for Algernon
3:00 pm Winning Ways with the MIAA: Districts
4:00 pm FHS Varsity Softball v St. Paul Diocesan 04-19-25
9:00 pm FHSTC: Peter and the Starcatcher
Franklin Town Hall TV - Our Government Channel (Comcast 9, Verizon 29) = Thursday
8:00 am Conservation Commission 04-17-25
2:00 pm Conservation Commission 04-17-25
7:30 pm Zoning Board of Appeals REMOTE (See Agenda)
Get this week's program guide for Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) online http://franklin.tv/programguide.pdf
 |
| Watch Listen Read all things that matter in Franklin MA |
Wednesday, April 23, 2025
What's happening in Franklin, MA: Wednesday, April 23, 2025 ???
 |
| Library & Senior Center events |
* Franklin Art Association Art Show and Sale Exhibit (Norfolk Public Library)
10:30am The BenAnna Band! (Franklin Public Library)
1:00pm Petting Zoo with Records and Burpee! (Franklin Public Library)
4:30pm Children's Museum of Franklin fund raising (La Cantina Winery)
6:00pm Stuffed Animal Sleepover! (Franklin Public Library)
For additional details on Library & Senior Center events ->
** NO Town Meetings today **
-------------
 |
| What's happening today in Franklin? |
Find the full Community event calendar https://bit.ly/FranklinCommunityCalendar
If you have an event to add to the calendar, you can use the form to submit it for publication: https://bit.ly/Submit2Calendar
The Town meeting calendar is found https://www.franklinma.gov/Calendar.aspx
The School district calendar is found https://franklinpublicschooldistrictma.sites.thrillshare.com/o/fpsd/page/school-calendars
The School district calendar is found https://franklinpublicschooldistrictma.sites.thrillshare.com/o/fpsd/page/school-calendars
Voices of Franklin: Five Days of Action for Child Abuse Prevention
As adults, perhaps our biggest responsibility in our lifetime is to protect our children, and the uncertainty of the world today has made that more important now than ever before.
As part of our commitment to social responsibility to the communities we serve, the Hockomock Area YMCA, along with YMCAs throughout Massachusetts and across the nation will be sponsoring Five Days of Action for Child Abuse Prevention, a campaign committed to raise awareness and inspire adults to take an active role to protect children from sexual abuse. Please visit one of our three branches to pledge to take action to protect kids all year long.
 |
| Five Days of Action for Child Abuse Prevention |
While child protection is our Y’s number one priority every day, this critical campaign will run April 21st through April 25th as we approach summertime, and will shine a collective spotlight on how everyone can do something to prevent child sexual abuse.
Our Y will share information and resources each day to our members and community partners about how adults can prevent, recognize and respond to child sexual abuse situations to keep children safe.
Statistics from Praesidium and the CDC indicate that 1 in 20 boys and 1 in 4 girls in the United States are sexually abused, typically by someone they know and trust. Child sexual abuse is happening regardless of age, gender, race, religion or socio-economic class.
But these are not just numbers. Behind every number is a child, a child who has been robbed of their innocence. A child whose life will forever have been changed by the heinous act of an adult. We owe it to our children, and we owe it to their future, to do better.
Help us prevent child sexual abuse through Know, See, Respond. When adults know how abuse happens, see the warning signs, and respond quickly to prevent abuse, they foster a culture of child abuse prevention. Together we can bring awareness to the issue of child sexual abuse in our communities and have important conversations on how we can all work together to prevent it from happening. Please join our YMCA to spread important awareness and resources with your social networks and family and friends around this devastating epidemic.
Our YMCA is proud to partner and collaborate with school systems, municipalities and other human service organizations throughout our service area to help bring awareness, education and training regarding this issue. We remain committed to this collaborative cause and our effort to be part of a community-based prevention movement.
Our YMCA was awarded Praesidium Accreditation® in 2024 by Praesidium, the leader in abuse risk management. To achieve accreditation, our Hockomock Area YMCA underwent a rigorous process to implement Praesidium’s Accreditation Standards focusing on eight primary operational areas within our business: policies, screening and selection, training, monitoring and supervision, consumer participation, internal feedback systems, responding, and administrative practices.
Praesidium then verified our Y’s successful implementation of these standards. The Hockomock Y will be accredited for three years, and during this time will commit to uphold fundamental organizational values and stringent safety practices that demonstrate our commitment to protecting those in our care from abuse. We are proud to be one of three YMCAs in Massachusetts to reach this status and look forward to helping mentor other YMCAs in their process of becoming accredited.
As responsible adults, we need to give children a happy, healthy and safe childhood. Our world needs them, and they need us. Let’s give them the childhood they deserve.
Jim Downs
CEO, Hockomock Area YMCA
As responsible adults, we need to give children a happy, healthy and safe childhood. Our world needs them, and they need us. Let’s give them the childhood they deserve.
Jim Downs
CEO, Hockomock Area YMCA
The Topic: 006 - Healthy Brain Initiative (audio)
A conversation with Tammy Pozerycki and Franklin (MA) Health Director Cathleen Liberty recorded in February 2025
 |
| Healthy Brain Initiative |
Franklin Senior Center Supportive Day Program -
https://www.franklinma.gov/587/Dementia-Alzheimers
---------
We are now producing this in collaboration with Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm).
For additional information, please visit the Health Dept page at www.Franklinma.gov
If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at cliberty@franklinma.gov
The music for the intro and exit is called “Positive and Fun” by Scott Holmes Music and is licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Scott Holmes Music => https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Scott_Holmes
You can also subscribe and listen to TheTopic audio on iTunes or your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "TheTopic"
FHS baseball tops Catholic Memorial 5-1 on Tuesday (video)
Via Twitter, Franklin TV, and our subscription to HockomockSports.com, we share the results of the Spring sports competition for Franklin High School on Tuesday, April 22, 2025
Baseball = Franklin, 5 @ Catholic Memorial, 1 – Final
– Franklin claimed the lead right off the bat and senior Zach Winer and junior DJ Silverstein combined to deliver a great pitching performance as the Panthers snapped Catholic Memorial’s three-game win streak with a 5-1 win on the road. Winer set the tone early, giving himself some help with a one-out home run in the top of the first, and senior Ryan Connelly came through with a two-out RBI single as the Panthers built an early 2-0 lead. CM cut the deficit in half with a run in the fourth inning, 2-1, where the game stayed until Franklin tacked on three insurance runs in the top of the final inning. Winer (3-for-3, two RBI, two runs, three stolen bases) came through with a one-out RBI single to make it 3-1, and both Winer and junior Sean Kryzak (walk) came home to score on an error. On the mound, Winer surrendered just one unearned run on one hit and five walks, striking out four in five innings. Silverstein came on in relief and tossed two scoreless innings, giving up just one hit — a one-out single in the bottom of the seventh, but induced a ground ball for a double play four pitches later.
Softball = Franklin, 0 vs. Walpole, 4 – Final
Softball = Franklin, 0 vs. Walpole, 4 – Final
– Junior Sophia Sacramone had a strong pitching performance and accounted for the Panthers’ lone hit offensively but Franklin suffered a 4-0 setback to star pitcher Sharlotte Stazinski and reigning Division 2 state champions Walpole. The Timberwolves scored once in the fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh innings to build their lead. Sacramone had a two-out single in the bottom of the sixth to break up Stazinski’s no-hitter. In the circle, Sacramone allowed just two hits on five hits and one walk, striking out seven in five innings.
Franklin TV video available for replay -> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0n6oaW6ffE&t=435
Franklin TV video available for replay -> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0n6oaW6ffE&t=435
For other results across the Hockomock League (subscription required)
https://hockomocksports.com/tuesdays-schedule-scoreboard-04-22-25/
 |
| FHS Panther sports results shared via Twitter & subscription to HockomockSports.com |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)