In the news: Brick classroom

Red Brick School may close
By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

Throughout its 216-year history, the Red Brick School was nearly closed on at least four occasions, but the "overwhelming support" of townspeople kept its doors open each time, according to the town's Web site.

But the Red Brick School, which is on the National Historic Register and is considered one of the oldest one-room schoolhouses still in use nationwide, may not survive another year.

On Tuesday night, the School Committee voted 6-1 to pass a new policy prohibiting targeted gifts for operational expenses, including the ones that the school depends on to run the one-classroom kindergarten.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here

By the way, this is the least of Franklin's school and town budget problems. With 45 teachers going out the door, we all should be focusing on how to prevent that.

Rep Vallee Q&A (audio)

Rep James Vallee in a good question and answer period with members of the School Committee. Chairperson Jeff Roy, Cora Armenio and Ed Cafasso have questions during this discussion.

Time: 19 minutes, 30 seconds



MP3 File

Rep James Vallee (audio)

Rep James Vallee brings the Chapter 70 update to the school committee.

Time: 10 minutes, 21 seconds



MP3 File

School Committee Meeting Summary 2/26/08

School Committee meeting agenda

The FHS Renovation options (audio)

FHS Renovation options Q&A (audio)

Pictures of the FHS renovation options

Rep James Vallee statement (audio)

Rep James Vallee Q&A (audio)


--- 5 minute break ---

School Committee meeting FY 09 budget highlights

-- Note: there is a gap here, due to some fat fingering I missed recording the budget presentation itself. I pick up with the Q&A following the presentation.

FY09 Budget Q&A part 1 (audio)

FY09 Budget Q&A part 2 (audio)

FY 2007 2008 Budget Transfers (audio)

Some of the Action Items (audio)

KCD Policy (gifts) passes 6-1

KCD Policy (gifts) (audio)

FHS Accreditation Warning Received (audio)

Completing the Superintendent's Report (audio)

This completes the meeting for 2/26/08

Pictures from the FHS presentation

Option One - the new auditorium and science wing would be added to the right of the existing facility

Option Two - the auditorum would be added to the right (as in One) but the science wing would be added to the left

Option Three - the auditorum and entrance would be re-done up front, the science wing wold be added on the right and more would be done in the central sections of the building

This a rendering of what the new school would look like from the air above Oak Street for Option Three

This rendering depicts the new school option building on the left of the existing field house, coming into the tennis courts and baseball/softball fields (but not to the new track). The fields used in this new building option would be relocated to the space where the old building stands now (after it was torn down).

FHS Renovation - Q&A (audio)

Question & Answer section following the presentation by Kaestle Boos on the options for renovating Franklin High School. Questions from committee members in order of appearance: Roy, Mullen, Armenio, Trahan, Kelly and Cafasso.

Time: 15 minutes, 0 seconds



MP3 File


My notes from the discussion:

Michael McKean (?) representing Kaestle Boos on the Franklin High School renovation options.

• approximately 30 months for total renovation
• approximately 24 months to build a new school keeping the existing field house
• students will adjust quickly during the construction, the teachers and parents generally have more of an issue adjusting
• in the renovation options, the traffic flow remains mostly the same other than attempting to separate the parent drop offs from the buses
• the auditorium would be about $7 million (as sized at 26000 sq foot)
• all the options would connect on the second level, for brevity of the presentation they were not shown here
• this is not simply building on the roof as the existing building was done before the current seismic codes were put into place
• the new building option would locate the building further away from the existing homes

Franklin High School Renovation Alternatives (audio)

The presentation by Kaestle Boos on the options for renovating the existing building or building a new school around the existing field house.

Time: 13 minutes, 28 seconds



MP3 File