U.S. Senator-elect Scott Brown today announced the dates and locations for a series of "Citizen Open Houses" starting this Friday in Chicopee.
In a press release, Brown's office said the senator-elect would make six stops over three days to thank the people of Massachusetts for his victory in last week's special Senate election. He invited all members of the public to attend.
"We won this election thanks to the grassroots support of the people, and I want to personally show how much I appreciate that support and tell them that I will always strive to be an independent voice in Washington," said Brown.
The open houses scheduled include:
Friday, Jan. 29, at noon at the Hu Ke Lau restaurant, 705 Memorial Drive, Chicopee
Friday, Jan 29 at 7 p.m. at the Falmouth Inn, 824 Main St., Falmouth.
Saturday, Jan. 30, at 1 p.m. at the Kowloon Restaurant, 948 Broadway Street – Rt. 1 North, in Saugus
Saturday, 3:30 p.m. at Lenzi's Catering, 810 Merrimack Ave. – Rt. 110, Dracut.
Saturday, 6 p.m. at the Maxwell–Silverman Restaurant, 25 Union St., Worcester.
Sunday, Jan. 31 at 5 p.m. at Christina's Function Facility, 2 Washington St. – Rt. 1, Foxboro.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Horace Mann/Oak St complex closed today due to gas leak
Heard via a phone call from Mrs Sherlock (who teaches at Oak St) and then confirmed with the Franklin Fire Dept Twitter update.
Thayer Scoreboard Restored
Updated 1/27/10 12:25 PM - The scheduled presentation has been canceled for today. When the new date/time has been finalized, it will be posted here.
A letter from Glenn Jones:
A letter from Glenn Jones:
Thanks Glenn! Wish I could be there myself.The Davis Thayer School has had an antique scoreboard hanging in the corner of the gym unused for over 30 years. It dates back some 50 years or more. I spoke with a gentleman who claims it worked when he went to the DT 50 yrs ago. It was slated to be thrown away, but I took it upon my self to remove the old scoreboard and refurbish it. With some great help and contributions, I have been able to restore it back to it original grandeur.
I will be presenting it back to the Davis Thayer School onWednesday January 27th @2pm.All are welcome to come and see history come back to life.
All photos provided by Glenn:
work in progress
The finished product with the lights on
The finished product in daylight
Importance of Kindergarten registration
As a follow-up to the announcement here yesterday on the Kindergarten registration scheduled for next week, I received this letter from a Franklin parent:
Stay tuned for updates on the budget as the situation develops over the next couple of months.
Let me restate what I wrote earlier this week (bold added for emphasis):
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/01/franklin-ma-kindergarten-registration.html
It was also discussed at the School Committee meeting Tuesday evening that full-day kindergarten is desired, expected, a goal but is not guaranteed at this time due to the uncertainties in the budget.I was at my school's PCC meeting and one piece of information that I did not realize was that the registration for Kindergarten in February helps determine the staffing of the Kindergarten teachers for the next year. Even if a parent is not sure if the child is going to the public school they should register them in February and then if they change their mind let the school know. From my understanding what happened last year is many students were not enrolled by their parents until July so it brought the counts in the class to 25 students.
It would be helpful for parents just starting the school process to understand why they need to register their child in February even if they are not 100% sure that is where they are going to get a better grasp of staffing needed for the next school year. Of course a class might still be this large if they cut kindergarten teachers in the budget but the forecast of how many teachers are needed is not truly shown in the February registration statistics if we have such a large number of parents registering in July.
Stay tuned for updates on the budget as the situation develops over the next couple of months.
Let me restate what I wrote earlier this week (bold added for emphasis):
Kindergarten registration information can be found hereIn summary, the next several months can be very interactive. Franklin citizens can provide their input to the charter, the downtown project, and ultimately the Franklin budget. If you were waiting for a good time to get involved, the time is now.
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/01/franklin-ma-kindergarten-registration.html
School Committee Mtg 01/26/10
The collection of posts that were reported live from the School Committee on Tuesday Jan 26, 2010 can be found here:
- Live reporting - closing items
- Live reporting - Superintendent
- Live reporting - action items
- Live reporting - Discussion only items
- Live reporting - Q&A - Preliminary budget discussi...
- Live reporting - FY 2011 Preliminary Budget Discus...
- Live reporting - FHS London Trip
- Live reporting - Sidewalk Snow Removal Presentatio...
- Live reporting - School Committee
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Live reporting - closing items
Subcommittee reports
We have a proposal to establish email addresses for the committee members. Can proceed with that one. Need clarification on the option of a group mailbox.
The Building Committee interviewed on the 13th of Jan the finalists for the Owners Project Manager (OPM). The selection Daedelus (sic) will be entering into contract negotiations, they have been involved with our prior major Franklin projects.
New business
Q - is full day kindergarten on or not?
A - if we get the full service budget of 53.5 we expect to have a full day kindergarten
At this point it is a desire, an expectation, a goal but it cannot be counted on.
Roy and Sabolinski to attend the Rotary Club
motion to enter executive session, roll call vote, passed 7-0
We have a proposal to establish email addresses for the committee members. Can proceed with that one. Need clarification on the option of a group mailbox.
The Building Committee interviewed on the 13th of Jan the finalists for the Owners Project Manager (OPM). The selection Daedelus (sic) will be entering into contract negotiations, they have been involved with our prior major Franklin projects.
New business
Q - is full day kindergarten on or not?
A - if we get the full service budget of 53.5 we expect to have a full day kindergarten
At this point it is a desire, an expectation, a goal but it cannot be counted on.
Roy and Sabolinski to attend the Rotary Club
motion to enter executive session, roll call vote, passed 7-0
Live reporting - Superintendent
5. Information Matters
Superintendent’s Report
a. Finance Workshop Training
well attended last night by Town Council, FinCom and a couple of residents
b. MSBA/FHS Project
looking to clarify the request and provide the data
c. Kindergarten Registration
forms available on the website
d. MASBO Compensation Study
e. Data Team
instructional data team working to understand the data and prepare action plans
Superintendent’s Report
a. Finance Workshop Training
well attended last night by Town Council, FinCom and a couple of residents
b. MSBA/FHS Project
looking to clarify the request and provide the data
c. Kindergarten Registration
forms available on the website
d. MASBO Compensation Study
e. Data Team
instructional data team working to understand the data and prepare action plans
Live reporting - action items
4. Action Items
a.I recommend acceptance of the donation of 5 digital cameras and one camcorder from Mr. Robert Salzberg of Resh, Inc. for the Davis Thayer Elementary School. removed as duplicate from prior meeting
b. I recommend acceptance of a check for $1148.00 from the Oak St. PCC for a Gr. 2 field trip to Stony Brook in May as detailed. motion to accept, passed 7-0
c. I recommend acceptance of a check for $1000.00 from the Panther Lacrosse Association to be used towards the fitness center at FHS. motion to accept, passed 7-0
d. I recommend acceptance of a check for $500.00 from the Singleton Family Foundation for the FHS Special Education Department. motion to accept, passed 7-0
e. I recommend acceptance of a check for $3000.00 from the Davis Thayer PCC for field trips as detailed. motion to accept, passed 7-0
f. I recommend acceptance of the donation of a Visual Presenter from Mr. Robert Salzberg of Resh, Inc. for the Davis Thayer Elementary School. motion to accept, passed 7-0
g. I recommend approval of the request of Ms. Leardi & Mrs. Waters of the FHS for a trip to London, England on June 25, 2010 as detailed. motion to accept, passed 7-0
h. I recommend adoption of Policy ADA – School District Goals & Objectives. motion to accept, passed 7-0
i. I recommend approval of the request of Peter Light for an additional Assistant Track coach at a cost of $1,467.00 to be funded from the Athletic Revolving Account to assist with increased student participation. motion to accept, passed 7-0
j. I recommend adoption of Policy ACE – Non-Discrimination on the basis of Disability. motion to accept, passed 7-0
a.
b. I recommend acceptance of a check for $1148.00 from the Oak St. PCC for a Gr. 2 field trip to Stony Brook in May as detailed. motion to accept, passed 7-0
c. I recommend acceptance of a check for $1000.00 from the Panther Lacrosse Association to be used towards the fitness center at FHS. motion to accept, passed 7-0
d. I recommend acceptance of a check for $500.00 from the Singleton Family Foundation for the FHS Special Education Department. motion to accept, passed 7-0
e. I recommend acceptance of a check for $3000.00 from the Davis Thayer PCC for field trips as detailed. motion to accept, passed 7-0
f. I recommend acceptance of the donation of a Visual Presenter from Mr. Robert Salzberg of Resh, Inc. for the Davis Thayer Elementary School. motion to accept, passed 7-0
g. I recommend approval of the request of Ms. Leardi & Mrs. Waters of the FHS for a trip to London, England on June 25, 2010 as detailed. motion to accept, passed 7-0
h. I recommend adoption of Policy ADA – School District Goals & Objectives. motion to accept, passed 7-0
i. I recommend approval of the request of Peter Light for an additional Assistant Track coach at a cost of $1,467.00 to be funded from the Athletic Revolving Account to assist with increased student participation. motion to accept, passed 7-0
j. I recommend adoption of Policy ACE – Non-Discrimination on the basis of Disability. motion to accept, passed 7-0
Live reporting - Discussion only items
3. Discussion Only Items
• Second Reading:
• Second Reading:
Policy ADA – School District Goals & Objectivesno further discussions needed, moving to action items
Policy ACE – Non-Discrimination on the basis of Disability
Live reporting - Q&A - Preliminary budget discussion
Glynn - what are ramifications of not going for the NEASC accreditation?
Sabolinski - we will no longer have an external evaluation of our standard educational processes
Glynn - The technologists that we cut hurt our development as a 21st Century
Sabolinski - yes, those folks would help the teachers learn and implement technology into their classrooms
Cafasso - Q on tying the numbers back to the last year budget documents
Goodman - carefully explained the difference in the numbers to tie them together
Trahan - is the wage deferment in these?
Sabolinski - no, that was last year, nothing for this year at this point.
Decision making tree
Rohrbach - I put some thoughts down (handout to be added later)
1 - District wide impact on staff/program reduction
accreditation
community priorities
Communities needs to provide some guidelines on how much we can cut and how low we can go
Roy - FY 2006 we spent more in 2 catagories, FY 2007, we only did one category, in FY 2008 we are under in all eleven categories, we expect to be under in FY 2009 numbers. The amazing thing is that we are still a high performing district despite that.
What is a broad definition for core academic areas? Should music and art get equal treatment with the other core subject matters.
It is a balance between the core and the extra-curriculars as we are trying to educate the whole child.
Starting the discussion now gets a better chance to keep to it.
Are these ranked in order of priorities? or are these just a general listing
It would be interesting to see where the principals and administration would come up with their listing and how close it would be to this
I am not a fan of going through a death by 1,000 cuts
If I can live with a program going away, if it is gone it is gone. You need to be able to live with it going away and not coming back.
You can start talking about reductions until you know what the magnitude is?
Possible Saturday working session with Principals to get to hear from them directly
Sabolinski - we will no longer have an external evaluation of our standard educational processes
Glynn - The technologists that we cut hurt our development as a 21st Century
Sabolinski - yes, those folks would help the teachers learn and implement technology into their classrooms
Cafasso - Q on tying the numbers back to the last year budget documents
Goodman - carefully explained the difference in the numbers to tie them together
Trahan - is the wage deferment in these?
Sabolinski - no, that was last year, nothing for this year at this point.
Decision making tree
Rohrbach - I put some thoughts down (handout to be added later)
1 - District wide impact on staff/program reduction
- number of students affected
- K-12 continuum - feeder program considerations
- FPS educational philosophy
- Educational policy i.e. DESE
- Financial savings
- Financial costs i.e. unemployment
- Grant funding
- School Committee guidelines i.e class size
- Space needs
- Collective bargaining
accreditation
community priorities
Communities needs to provide some guidelines on how much we can cut and how low we can go
Roy - FY 2006 we spent more in 2 catagories, FY 2007, we only did one category, in FY 2008 we are under in all eleven categories, we expect to be under in FY 2009 numbers. The amazing thing is that we are still a high performing district despite that.
What is a broad definition for core academic areas? Should music and art get equal treatment with the other core subject matters.
It is a balance between the core and the extra-curriculars as we are trying to educate the whole child.
Starting the discussion now gets a better chance to keep to it.
Are these ranked in order of priorities? or are these just a general listing
It would be interesting to see where the principals and administration would come up with their listing and how close it would be to this
I am not a fan of going through a death by 1,000 cuts
If I can live with a program going away, if it is gone it is gone. You need to be able to live with it going away and not coming back.
You can start talking about reductions until you know what the magnitude is?
Possible Saturday working session with Principals to get to hear from them directly
Live reporting - FY 2011 Preliminary Budget Discussion
Maureen Sabolinski, Sally Winslow, Miriam Goodman
The State numbers are not yet available, these factors will change over time
The goal for tonight is to provide a historical overview, where we are, and where we would like to be
teachers peaked at 517 - 2006, now down to 399 for 2010
110 FTE since FY 06
administrative 3 asst principals, 4 central office administrators
K-5 Spanish reduced to 1x a week
Elimination of French at the Middle School
K-5 health eliminated
K-5 PE reduced
Grade 4-5 instrumental eliminated
Curriculum and instructional services
Textbook line item elminiated, rely on capital to obtain books
Eliminated 10 custodial positions cut (separately from the Facilities transfer to DPW)
Pay to ride fees ass and increased
Sports fees added and increased
Per pupil expenditures $9,751 State avg $12,449
good chart comparing us to 20 other districts of similar enrollment (i.e. 5,000 to 7,000 students)
we are in the middle of the districts on school size, we are on the bottom of this set on per student spending
Special Education costs have increased from 16% in 1998 to 21% in 2010
FY 2000 to FY 2003 health increased at 13.86%, however we have done better in avoiding rising costs as much as possible. The increase was only 3.91% FY 2004 to FY 2010
saved tens of thousands of dollars in printing and ink costs by going electronic where ever possible
FHS Wireless Technology helps to allow students to bring their own systems into the school environment
Edline K-5 report cards being piloted
ConnectEd software enhanced communications to parents, reduced flyers
Food service point of sale program now more accurate and accountable
In house special education programing, slows the rate at which the budget needs to grow by servicing the students in house where possible
Chapter 70 funding - 56% in 2010, in 1998 only 28%
Potential, level service needs $53,500,000
The value of all of our homes is directly related to the school performance
The State numbers are not yet available, these factors will change over time
The goal for tonight is to provide a historical overview, where we are, and where we would like to be
teachers peaked at 517 - 2006, now down to 399 for 2010
110 FTE since FY 06
administrative 3 asst principals, 4 central office administrators
K-5 Spanish reduced to 1x a week
Elimination of French at the Middle School
K-5 health eliminated
K-5 PE reduced
Grade 4-5 instrumental eliminated
Curriculum and instructional services
Textbook line item elminiated, rely on capital to obtain books
Eliminated 10 custodial positions cut (separately from the Facilities transfer to DPW)
Pay to ride fees ass and increased
Sports fees added and increased
Per pupil expenditures $9,751 State avg $12,449
good chart comparing us to 20 other districts of similar enrollment (i.e. 5,000 to 7,000 students)
we are in the middle of the districts on school size, we are on the bottom of this set on per student spending
Special Education costs have increased from 16% in 1998 to 21% in 2010
FY 2000 to FY 2003 health increased at 13.86%, however we have done better in avoiding rising costs as much as possible. The increase was only 3.91% FY 2004 to FY 2010
saved tens of thousands of dollars in printing and ink costs by going electronic where ever possible
FHS Wireless Technology helps to allow students to bring their own systems into the school environment
Edline K-5 report cards being piloted
ConnectEd software enhanced communications to parents, reduced flyers
Food service point of sale program now more accurate and accountable
In house special education programing, slows the rate at which the budget needs to grow by servicing the students in house where possible
Chapter 70 funding - 56% in 2010, in 1998 only 28%
Potential, level service needs $53,500,000
The value of all of our homes is directly related to the school performance
Live reporting - FHS London Trip
Peter Light, Principal Franklin High School
Tina Leardi, Marushka Waters
A week in London , time at the West End theaters, chaperoned with ratio of 1-8
If 35 students from Franklin go, it will be "our" trip.
75 brochures were handed out so far.
this is on the action items later this evening.
Tina Leardi, Marushka Waters
A week in London , time at the West End theaters, chaperoned with ratio of 1-8
If 35 students from Franklin go, it will be "our" trip.
75 brochures were handed out so far.
this is on the action items later this evening.
Live reporting - Sidewalk Snow Removal Presentation
2. Guests/Presentations
a. Snow Removal / Sidewalks – Robert A (Brutus) Cantoreggi
The presentation is similar to what was shown to the Town Council reviewed earlier this month. You can view that presentation here
Roy - How are the decisions reached on school cancellations?
Sabolinski - Process starts in October, meeting with DPW to plan for the process, notifications, etc. Decisions on school closings rely on the safety officials (Police, Fire). Timeline is an issue. High school and middle school staff report at 6:45, need to make decision before 5:30 AM to alleviate unnecessary travel. Responsibilities further refined between Facilities and custodians based upon experience. In a town this size, we heard from about 10 people, considering our size, that is good.
Cantoreggi - The Facilities transfer was a good thing, we have learned along the way. The Police call us when the road conditions turn bad. We are prepared and on standby until we get the call. At night we can be ore efficient as no one is on the road, once the day starts, it gets more difficult as our trucks are in with the traffic.
Sabolinski - inclement weather notice sent out, posted on Schools website (PDF) There is a regular practice for the buses to pick up students walking along the road.
Glynn - How do you determne when to stop?
Cantoreggi - After the snow has stopped and after we have cleared the roads, we'll also do the push back to clear the road to the gutters. If another storm came along, the gutters would be blocked, we could get drainage problems. Can't have that so we clear it to the gutter.
Rohrbach - could you go into the process on the sidewalk routes?
Cantoreggi - I did not bring the map, it is on the DPW website, as is this presentation. (Note: The presentations can also be found here)
Rohrbach - You mentioned that you have vacancies, does that mean you use more contractors?
Cantoreggi - We have folks out that we have not backfilled. We do have some Franklin equipment that sits idle during a storm as we don't have manpower to run it. We do use contractors more, it is a more expensive option.
a. Snow Removal / Sidewalks – Robert A (Brutus) Cantoreggi
The presentation is similar to what was shown to the Town Council reviewed earlier this month. You can view that presentation here
Roy - How are the decisions reached on school cancellations?
Sabolinski - Process starts in October, meeting with DPW to plan for the process, notifications, etc. Decisions on school closings rely on the safety officials (Police, Fire). Timeline is an issue. High school and middle school staff report at 6:45, need to make decision before 5:30 AM to alleviate unnecessary travel. Responsibilities further refined between Facilities and custodians based upon experience. In a town this size, we heard from about 10 people, considering our size, that is good.
Cantoreggi - The Facilities transfer was a good thing, we have learned along the way. The Police call us when the road conditions turn bad. We are prepared and on standby until we get the call. At night we can be ore efficient as no one is on the road, once the day starts, it gets more difficult as our trucks are in with the traffic.
Sabolinski - inclement weather notice sent out, posted on Schools website (PDF) There is a regular practice for the buses to pick up students walking along the road.
Glynn - How do you determne when to stop?
Cantoreggi - After the snow has stopped and after we have cleared the roads, we'll also do the push back to clear the road to the gutters. If another storm came along, the gutters would be blocked, we could get drainage problems. Can't have that so we clear it to the gutter.
Rohrbach - could you go into the process on the sidewalk routes?
Cantoreggi - I did not bring the map, it is on the DPW website, as is this presentation. (Note: The presentations can also be found here)
Rohrbach - You mentioned that you have vacancies, does that mean you use more contractors?
Cantoreggi - We have folks out that we have not backfilled. We do have some Franklin equipment that sits idle during a storm as we don't have manpower to run it. We do use contractors more, it is a more expensive option.
Live reporting - School Committee
Attending: Douglas, Cafasso, Rohrbach, Mullen, Roy, Trahan, Glynn
1. Routine Business
• Citizen’s Comments - none
• Review of Agenda - add FHS London Trip to agenda
• Minutes: I recommend approval of the Open Session and Executive Session minutes from the January 12, 2010 School Committee Meeting.
correction on meeting date should be Feb 5th not 4th
page 4 - FY 2011 budget, add a sentence referencing a one page summary
page 6 - should say "fiscal review" instead of "financial audit"
motion to approve, excluding the minutes from the Executive Session, passed 7-0
• Payment of Bills - Mr. Glynn motion to approve, passed 7-0
• Payroll - Mrs. Douglas
• FHS Student Representatives
• Correspondence: none
Vision Statement
The Franklin Public Schools will foster within its students the knowledge and skills to find and achieve satisfaction in life as productive global citizens.
The Franklin Public Schools will foster within its students the knowledge and skills to find and achieve satisfaction in life as productive global citizens.
Mission Statement
The Franklin Public Schools, in collaboration with the community, will cultivate each student's intellectual, social, emotional and physical potential through rigorous academic inquiry and informed problem solving skills within a safe, nurturing and respectful environment.
The Franklin Public Schools, in collaboration with the community, will cultivate each student's intellectual, social, emotional and physical potential through rigorous academic inquiry and informed problem solving skills within a safe, nurturing and respectful environment.
1. Routine Business
• Citizen’s Comments - none
• Review of Agenda - add FHS London Trip to agenda
• Minutes: I recommend approval of the Open Session and Executive Session minutes from the January 12, 2010 School Committee Meeting.
correction on meeting date should be Feb 5th not 4th
page 4 - FY 2011 budget, add a sentence referencing a one page summary
page 6 - should say "fiscal review" instead of "financial audit"
motion to approve, excluding the minutes from the Executive Session, passed 7-0
• Payment of Bills - Mr. Glynn motion to approve, passed 7-0
• Payroll - Mrs. Douglas
• FHS Student Representatives
• Correspondence: none
Franklin, MA: Kindergarten registration
For students entering Kindergarten in September 2010, registration will occur on
http://www.franklin.ma.us/auto/schools/FPS/KInfo/default.htm
- February 2
- February 4
- February 8
http://www.franklin.ma.us/auto/schools/FPS/KInfo/default.htm
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