Lifelong Community Learning: New Hampshire Fall Foliage Day Trip - Oct 20

Lifelong Community Learning is offering a day-long fall foliage trip to New Hampshire on Saturday, October 20. The motor coach will leave Franklin High School parking lot at 9:30 AM and return at 6:00 PM. The trip will include commentary and a buffet lunch. The cost is $105 for adults and $65 for a child.

Travel the country roads of New Hampshire for Mother Nature’s annual autumn show! Experience the gently rolling New England countryside, awash with the colors of Indian summer. Travel past quiet ponds, historic farms, weathered roadside taverns, and sturdy colonial churches overlooking quaint village greens.

Woodbound Inn - Fall Foliage Day Trip - Oct 20

You’ll also stretch your legs for a picture stop at an old fashioned covered bridge before making your way to the Woodbound Inn for a buffet lunch. Continuing on through some of the loveliest displays of foliage in the world, the last stop of the day will be at a local farm stand for baked treats, apples, and complimentary cider. So come along and don’t forget your camera!

Visit www.FranklinLifelongLearning.com to register. You may also call Lifelong Community Learning at 508-613-1480 for more information.

Lifelong Community Learning is a program of the Franklin Public Schools Lifelong Learning Institute, dedicated to providing quality learning experiences for residents in the Town of Franklin and surrounding communities.


The direct link to register is
https://reg.abcsignup.com/reg/event_page.aspx?ek=0079-0003-d8f7699db3644c2fa4e26a728f5e415b

Town Council Recap - Sep 5, 2018

The best short summary is what I tweeted out during the meeting: "Excitement tonight in Franklin. New fire truck outside, 4 retirees and 4 new hires for Police inside"

new fire truck

The fire truck was funded by saving money in a separate account for 6 years to accumulate the $700K purchase price. The truck is projected to be online for 10 years before moving to a back up role.

Officers Fiorio, Burchill, Kenney, and Chandler were recognized for their years of service

Officers Crosman, Peabody, Ayer, and Rosa were sworn in and welcomed to service

The official Town of Franklin "Actions Taken" document can be found online
http://www.franklinma.gov/sites/franklinma/files/uploads/town_council_actions_taken_for_september_5_2018.pdf


Live Reporting: Town Council Sep 5, 2018
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2018/09/live-reporting-town-council-sep-5-2018.html

Public Hearings
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2018/09/live-reporting-public-hearings.html

Subcommittee Reports
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2018/09/live-reporting-subcommittee-reports.html

Legislation for Action
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2018/09/live-reporting-legislation-for-action.html

To Closing via Executive Session
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2018/09/live-reporting-to-closing.html

FSPA Introduces New Faculty

The Franklin School for the Performing Arts (FSPA) is excited to welcome three new faculty members this fall. 

Meghan Love joins FSPA’s ballet faculty. Love has taught ballet, tap and jazz to 3-14 year olds in after-school programs throughout New Mexico and was an Adjunct Professor at New Mexico State University teaching Jazz Technique I. She served on faculty at the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School at American Ballet Theatre for the Children’s Division and at the Mason Gross Extension Division at Rutgers University. In 2012 she became full-time National Training Curriculum staff for ABT. 

Meghan Love joins
FSPA’s ballet faculty

In the spring of 2018, she was chosen to be part of a competitive professional development program, Boot Camp for Emerging Leaders in Arts Administration, offered through New York Foundation for the Arts. Most recently, Love was the Manager of the National Training Curriculum and the ABT/NYU Masters Program, instructing in both programs, and she is currently an ABT Affiliate Examiner.

Joining FSPA’s voice faculty this year is Sam Jones. Jones received both his Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies and Vocal Performance as well as his Master of Music in Contemporary Improvisation (with Honors and a Music-in-Education Concentration) from New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) in Boston. 

Jones won the competitive “Spark” Grant Award to launch his album, as well as NEC’s Entrepreneurial Musician Grant to direct, produce, and star in a gender-blind production of Jason Robert Brown’s The Last 5 Years, benefiting the local Boston nonprofit BAGLY to support LGBTQ+ youth.

The music department also welcomes guitar instructor Andres Abenante. Abenante holds Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degrees from New England Conservatory. Specializing in Jazz, Rock, Improvised, Classical and Latin styles, Andres has extensive performing experience throughout the east coast. He has recorded two albums and has served as served as Music Copyist and Transcriber for Eddie Palmieri. Andres currently teaches at the Warren-Prescott School in Cambridge as well as the North End Music and Performing Arts Center.

It is not too late to register for all programs at FSPA. Complimentary trial classes are encouraged and enrollment is ongoing throughout the year. An All-Access Pass is available for prospective students and includes tickets to an upcoming FSPA production, a tour of the school and trial group classes. FSPA, founded in 1985, is located in The Felix Cataldo Block in downtown Franklin. The facilities includes extensive studio space, Recital Hall, The Spotlight Shop and the new Intermission café. FSPA Academy, a full-time academic program, is housed next door at 32 Main Street.

For more information about all programs visit www.fspaonline.com, call 508-528-8668, or stop by the school at 38 Main Street in Franklin.

Interested in Volunteering in the Community? The Design Review Commission has an opening

Interested in Volunteering in the Community? The Design Review Commission is seeking an Associate Member!

Please visit http://franklinmaboards.vt-s.net/newcaf.php to fill out a volunteer application.

What is the Design Review Commission?

"The purpose of Design Review is to promote safe, functional and attractive development of business and commercial areas; to preserve and enhance the New England character of the Town’s commercial centers and thoroughfares as a valid general welfare concern; to unify commercial properties, both visually and physically, with surrounding land uses; to facilitate a more healthful urban atmosphere; to protect and preserve the unique and cultural features within the Town; and to protect commercial property values by enhancing the Town’s appearance. 

The Design Review Commission (DRC) is a committee of Citizen Volunteers that has approval authority on signage and recommendation input to the Planning Board on Site Plans as to landscaping and lighting and Building Plans as to exterior design, colors and materials."

Want to know more about the Design Review Commission please visit their page here http://www.franklinma.gov/design-review-commission

The Design Review Commission has an opening

FTC Consumer Alerts: Free credit freezes are here

Free credit freezes are here by Andrew Smith, Federal Trade Commission, Director, Bureau of Consumer Protection Gail Hillebrand, Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, Associate Director, Division of Consumer Education and Engagement Free credit freezes and year-long fraud alerts are here, starting September 21, thanks to a new federal law.  Here's what you should know: https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/blog/2018/09/free-credit-freezes-are-here?utm_source=govdelivery This is a free service provided by the Federal Trade Commission.

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Franklin Public Schools 2018-2019 Music Department Calendar

The Music Program Schedule for the Franklin Public Schools is integrated into the Community Calendar. The Schedule is also available in one place in the doc shown here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TgPnN_aRpt7FH9MlOXr7f7HNMDvz4Q8b/view?usp=sharing

The "Classic Stones" Benefit Concert is scheduled for Nov 2

Classic Stones Concert Franklin High - Nov 2

Tickets are available for the concert online here and at Shaw's
https://www.purplepass.com/#172959/Music_Department-Classic_Stones_Live_Featuring_The_Glimmer_Twins-Franklin_High_School_Auditorium-November-02-2018.html

Massachusetts Cultural Council Conducts Site Visit For Proposed Franklin Cultural District

The Town of Franklin hosted the Massachusetts Cultural Council for a site visit of the proposed Franklin Cultural District on September 20, 2018, the last step in the process to establishing an official, State-designated Cultural District in Franklin. 

The Franklin Cultural District (FCD) will be a demarcated region within the town that encompasses the cultural facilities, activities, and assets that lie in a compact, walkable area. Franklin’s vibrant cultural atmosphere is already home to the nation’s first public library, the Franklin Historical Museum, Dean College School of the Arts, over 25 other performing, visual arts and dance studios and associations, and a variety of restaurants and cafes. Establishment of the FCD will likely attract additional arts and cultural organizations in the future, driving economic development.

Cultural District status will make the FCD eligible for a variety of state grant programs, state economic development opportunities and monies, strategic planning and historic preservation assistance, and marketing through the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism.

This effort has been years in the planning, beginning with the Franklin Cultural District Steering Committee, who were tasked with gauging interest in the project and starting the organizational efforts necessary to begin the application process. The Steering Committee met with potential partners, the Massachusetts Cultural Council (MCC), and Town of Franklin administrators to determine the needs, geographic area and types of businesses to be included, and the roles and responsibilities of the District itself. A preliminary site visit with the MCC and the Town resulted in a decision to move forward with the formal cultural district application.

On June 28, 2017, the Franklin Town Council passed Resolution 17-45, which endorsed the FCD’s cultural district goals, namely to “attract artists and cultural enterprises; encourage business and job development; establish the district as a tourist destination; preserve and reuse historic buildings; enhance property values; and foster local cultural development.” The FCD will be managed by a Town-appointed Franklin Cultural District Committee, made up of seven Franklin residents, established in November 2017.

The FCD Committee filed a formal application for Cultural District status with the State in June of this year. After the application was reviewed, the MCC scheduled a final, more detailed, site visit, the last step in the process. The site visit, held on September 20, began with a meeting between Anita Walker, Executive Director of the MCC, and the complete MCC Communities staff, Franklin Town administrators, and members of the FCD Committee to discuss the District's potential impact on arts and economic development in the area. Then followed a walking tour of key District partners' facilities, led by MA State Rep. Roy.

Anita Walker, Executive Director,
Mass Cultural Council and Rep Jeff Roy

"It is inspiring to see that the idea for a Cultural District has blossomed, and know that this tour will be the capstone presentation for the State approval process," said Representative Jeffrey N. Roy (D-Franklin). "Arts and culture are essential, as they help us better understand and interpret the world around us, they improve our ability to think critically and act creatively, and they offer the opportunity to see and communicate better. Having designated space for cultural enrichment will also be an economic boost for our community and spread the message that Franklin is a place where culture is thriving. I applaud the committee for its hard work over the past five years, and thank them for their commitment and dedication to the District."

The walking tour began at the Franklin Public Library, and included stops at the Franklin Historical Museum, Franklin Downtown Partnership offices, The Black Box and Franklin School for the Performing Arts, Franklin Senior Center, Franklin High School, Teddy Gallagher's, Emma's Quilt Cupboard, The Little Shop of Olive Oils, and Dean College.

Says Dr. Paula Rooney, President of Dean, "Dean College is proud of our long history in the town of Franklin and excited about the Franklin Cultural District. Dean’s impact is significant in Franklin from both an educational and cultural perspective, and our geographic location serves as a meaningful footprint within the district. We look forward to doing whatever we can to make this endeavor a continued success."

Franklin Cultural District logo

The site visit ended with a Q and A session and meeting of many of the FCD partners with the State MCC representatives. Now that the MCC has reviewed the application and conducted a site visit, the State can render a verdict on the application. A decision should be announced early in 2019.

"The site visit went very well," says FCD Committee Chair Philip Regan, "We are pleased by the State's response to our application, and are excited by what the advent of a Cultural District could do for the Town of Franklin."

To learn more about the Franklin Cultural District, their partners, and upcoming activities and events, visit their website at www.franklinculturaldistrict.org, or follow them on Facebook (www.facebook.com/FranklinCultureMA), Twitter (@FranklinCulture), and Instagram (@franklinculture).