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Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Action items
resolution keeps the road a private way
passed unanimous
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Resolution 08-40: Local Acceptance of G.L. Chapter 71, Section 37M
passed unanimously
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Resolution 08-41: Consolidation of School Maintenance Functions with Town’s
as amended
passed unanimously
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Resolution 08-42: Amending Elected Officials’ Salaries
passed 5-1
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Supportive Day Program - Sunshine Club
supportive day care program
Patty O'Donnell, program coordinator
two grants support this program
program should be self-supporting within 1 year
operates from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM
Monday to Friday, full day or half-day
provides a break for caregivers
they do bowling, bean bag toss, watched I Love Lucy show today
has a "Mary Poppins" closet to help provide activities if they need an idea
most senior centers do require their folks to be self-sufficient
this provides another level of opportunity
do chair exercises, do sing-a-longs
open door policy unless they are making too much noise
they are part of the whole building
Whalen - can't imagine a nicer end to a busier day than to hear this
Alves - had only two rooms in the old building, the new has much more plus the outside space, all the seniors are very happy
Whalen - a reflection of the community is how they care for their oldest and youngest and this is a good sign
Bartlett - agrees with Whalen, is there a maximum number we can take?
Alves - we can take a max of ten, have 7 now, but can handle more with the part-time status
Bartlett - can some insurance help?
Alves - not a medical program, does fill a crack, should be sustaining within a few thousand just on the fees being generated
Patty says this is her dream job, taught at Tri-County for 15 years. When she saw the sign at the open house, she talked with Karen and things came together
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Live reporting - Town Council 6/4/08
With Feeley, Pfeffer, Bartlett, and Vallee present they need Whalen and Zollo for quorum
stay tuned
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Zollo just arrived to provide quorum, meeting begins
Whalen arrives shortly after to provide 2/3 majority of council
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approval of minutes
April 2, 16, 30, 2008; May 7, 2008; Dec 5, 2007
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Citizens comment
Frank Falvey
with Fiscal year completed, audit report should have been completed by now
audit should be ready for the election, in case there is something revealed that could have bearing on the vote
why hasn't this been completed?
Audit firm probably should not be renewed for next year
procedures for comments and feedback for dialog is flawed
Inappropriate and incorrect
on an unrelated matter, what is being done in Franklin with regards to the sale of cigarettes
to minors
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Finance study subcommittee announced
School Committee representatives:
Roberta Trahan, Matt Kelly
Finance Committee representatives:
Jim Roche, Rebecca Cameron
Town Council representatives:
Deborah Bartlett, Steve Whalen, Shannon Zollo
Franklin citizen representatives:
Douglas Hardesty, Gwynne Willschek
Deb Bartlett to arrange for the first meeting
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"not something most schools study in the fourth grade"
Dancing princesses, 3-foot-tall knights, court jesters and queens dressed in gold and purple robes temporarily claimed the town common yesterday afternoon for a medieval festival, an event whose magic descends upon the town only once a year.
They posed for pictures gripping barbecued chicken legs between their teeth, jousted with droopy foam noodles, and churned butter with the ladies of The Society for Creative Anachronism (a historical re-enactment group).
Forty-six students crowned Judy Bergesen and Susan Davis, fourth-grade history teachers at Ben Franklin Classical Charter Public School, queens of the festival before making peacock masks and playing horseshoes - perhaps a wise choice as the students finish their studies of the Middle Ages.
"It's not something most schools study in the fourth grade. We add this additional subject to the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks," said Bergesen, noting students have been reading about the feudal system, royalty and the fall of Rome.
Read the full story here in the Milford Daily News
Social Media in Plain English
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Tuesday, June 3, 2008
"It's much bigger than the schools"
A trio of mothers is mobilizing forces to get the $2.8 million Proposition 2 1/2 tax override question passed on June 10 to preserve teachers, academic programs and the late bus in Franklin schools.
Moms Janice Foley, Kaitlyn Cronin and Sarah Loiars have filed Invest in Franklin as a political action group to educate people about the override and convince as many residents as possible to vote, Foley said.
Initially, the mothers had no intention of starting a political action group, Cronin said, but quickly decided to form Invest in Franklin after learning more about town and school finances.
They had attended a Town Council meeting in May simply as interested parents to find out why the school budget was going to be reduced, Cronin said.
They assumed there had to be more money somewhere in the budget that could be allotted to schools, she said.
"We wanted to find out what was happening. ... The more we listened to the presentation, the more we could see the money just wasn't there," said Cronin. "They kind of obviously needed an override. The amount of money they had to spend wasn't as high as other towns in the area. What really blew us away was Steve Whalen's presentation, when he compared Franklin to other towns," she said.
Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here
School by School class size if the override fails
This is what the $2.8 Million budget reduction would look like at each school in Franklin.