Dear Franklin Citizens,
As I write this, I am trying to clear my head after a very long day at the polls yesterday.
Nearly 40-percent of our registered voters exercised their constitutional right to vote in a special election that asked voters to approve a $3 million tax override. The question failed.
Several members of the Town Council, School Committee, Finance Committee, as well as many private citizens, worked very hard over the past month in an attempt to present the facts behind the need for this extra money. We held a public forum, spoke to PCC’s and met with folks in their homes. Many of us used vacation time from work, sacrificed time with families, and postponed personal plans to provide this service. We did this willingly and with enthusiasm for a cause we truly believe in – the Town of Franklin.
Along the way, we met people who welcomed us into their homes, invited their friends to hear us, and were genuinely concerned with the troubles our community faces.
We also met and heard from citizens who don’t believe in what we are doing. We were told that Franklin overspends, that Franklin must live within it’s means; that because private businesses are not providing raises to it’s workers, Franklin too, must continue to cut personnel and services. In some cases, we as the town government were blamed for problems at the state and federal level. Some of these citizens engaged us in polite, civil conversation, and some, unfortunately, made their feelings known in less mature ways.
Franklin has always benefited from a below-average tax rate and above-average services. Our employees work very hard with very limited resources. It is my deepest hope that despite these next round of cuts, they can somehow continue to do so. We enjoy great “bang for the buck” in this town. Unfortunately, seeing the cuts that have been made over the years, the effects on our schools and municipal infrastructure, I know that we are in for a very rocky road.
I want to thank the folks that gave so much of their time to fight for this cause, and I want to thank everyone who took the time to vote, either for or against the override. Let’s never forget the thousands of men and women who sacrificed their lives to preserve our freedom. Democracy works.
Perhaps the best aspect of Proposition 2 1/2, is that it gives citizens the opportunity to determine the destiny of their community. This was played out in Franklin yesterday, and was and will be played out in many cities and towns in Massachusetts this spring. We as a Town Council will work with what we have as we have always done, and I as the Council Chairman will continue to do my best to represent the best interests of all our citizens.
Sincerely,
Scott Mason
Town Council Chairman
Franklin, MA
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
School Committee - 06/08/10
Notes from the School Committee meeting conducted on June 8th can be found here:
These notes were reported on from the video archive as I was at the high school for the election results.
http://view.liveindexer.com/ViewIndexSessionSL.aspx?indexPointSKU=CMrOAys1pDEl0YEVhOcHuA%3d%3d
Franklin, MA
- School Committee - closing items
- School Committee - discussion only items (part 2)
- School Committee - discussion only items (part 1)
- School Committee - building committee update
- School Committee - Maggie Streeter
- School Committee - community service
- School Committee - Retirees
- School Committee - routine business
http://view.liveindexer.com/ViewIndexSessionSL.aspx?indexPointSKU=CMrOAys1pDEl0YEVhOcHuA%3d%3d
Franklin, MA
School Committee - closing items
4. Action Items
a. I recommend adoption of the Facilities MOU as detailed.
Motion to approve, passed 6-0
5. Information Matters
Superintendent’s Report
a. Foreign Language
b. Enrollment Comparison
School Committee Sub-Committee Reports
Cafasso - advertising moving to the field, local businesses are expressing interest
School Committee Liaison Reports - none
6. New Business
To discuss future business that may be brought before the School Committee.
thanks to the community for another successful All night party
thanks to the DPW custodial staff for a wonderful job preparing the buildings for the graduation, the all night party, etc.
7. Executive Session
Contractual Negotiations
motion to enter Executive session, no intention to return to open meeting
approved, 6-0 via roll call
Franklin, MA
a. I recommend adoption of the Facilities MOU as detailed.
Motion to approve, passed 6-0
5. Information Matters
Superintendent’s Report
a. Foreign Language
b. Enrollment Comparison
School Committee Sub-Committee Reports
Cafasso - advertising moving to the field, local businesses are expressing interest
School Committee Liaison Reports - none
6. New Business
To discuss future business that may be brought before the School Committee.
thanks to the community for another successful All night party
thanks to the DPW custodial staff for a wonderful job preparing the buildings for the graduation, the all night party, etc.
7. Executive Session
Contractual Negotiations
motion to enter Executive session, no intention to return to open meeting
approved, 6-0 via roll call
Franklin, MA
School Committee - discussion only items - part 2
- Data Assessment & Resource Tool (DART)
- MSBA Architect Selection Representative (already covered)
viewable from the DESE website
select the district
DESE selects 10 comparable districts automatically (exactly how they did so, is not yet defined)
scroll down, to chose other districts
schools working with the new data to determine the updates to their strategic planning process
data and fields still in process of updating
changes almost daily, if you download, check back for updates
Franklin, MA
School Committee - discussion only items - part 1
3. Discussion Only Items
covers the agreement for the Town providing the maintenance of the school buildings and grounds
only significant change is term of agreement, proposing to go out five years
still maintains a yearly review with an option for either side to come back and re-do the agreement
Foreign Language
exploring changes to the program
Elementary (K-5) has been cut each year since 2005
eliminate K-5 Spanish and replace with additional programs on health/wellness
students would have PE/Health twice a week
pilot programs with YMCA on food and nutritional items
i.e. addressing the bullying and increase the physical activities
data from MetroWest Foundation reports show need for more foundational work in this area
The "Let's Be Honest" programs held this year were well received
teaching kids about good decision making
start small and gradually develop a full K-5 program
Open Circle would still continue, it is a reactive program, a problem resolution system
we would be adding an instructional piece to enhance that
Yes, we are loosing something. What we are putting back is not what we had sometime ago
It saddens us to make these choices
The Kennedy students who came earlier and showed what they were doing with food, that is a result from the grant work with the Y
We used to say "we are really proud of the Spanish program", now it is all gone
I didn't feel it was responsible for us to take data without providing some guidance to the students on the choices they can make
Middle School foreign language
proposing to eliminate Latin as a foreign language
we have struggled to find certified and qualified teachers in this area
we have had 8 teachers in 4 years, we have looked at different areas to bring the best qualified teachers
maybe this is the time to focus on the high school Latin program and just have Spanish at the middle schools
we tried to work it with one Latin teacher across the Middle schools and the schedule just doesn't work
of the nine applications we found, only three we would bring in for interviews
elementary Spanish teachers would transfer into other positions in the elementary schools
This is a slippery slope that we have been going down with the foreign language programs
The top 10 percent of students were the ones qualifying for the Level 2
It was not a great situation for anyone involved
Maybe an after school or summer school but trying to do it piecemeal wouldn't get real gains from it
I think we need a meeting on the foreign language program as there are pieces flying away
Maybe the meeting wouldn't help us, it is a big change and deserves more attention
We had dropped French to put Latin because it helped in other areas
There is difficulty in finding qualified and certified Latin teachers especially in the middle school area
We would still prefer to have Latin but we can find the right folks to provide the service
230 Latin students in 6th and 7th grade would go into next year as a first year in Spanish?
How to handle them remains to be detailed.
Franklin, MA
- Facilities MOU
- Foreign Language
covers the agreement for the Town providing the maintenance of the school buildings and grounds
only significant change is term of agreement, proposing to go out five years
still maintains a yearly review with an option for either side to come back and re-do the agreement
Foreign Language
exploring changes to the program
Elementary (K-5) has been cut each year since 2005
eliminate K-5 Spanish and replace with additional programs on health/wellness
students would have PE/Health twice a week
pilot programs with YMCA on food and nutritional items
i.e. addressing the bullying and increase the physical activities
data from MetroWest Foundation reports show need for more foundational work in this area
The "Let's Be Honest" programs held this year were well received
teaching kids about good decision making
start small and gradually develop a full K-5 program
Open Circle would still continue, it is a reactive program, a problem resolution system
we would be adding an instructional piece to enhance that
Yes, we are loosing something. What we are putting back is not what we had sometime ago
It saddens us to make these choices
The Kennedy students who came earlier and showed what they were doing with food, that is a result from the grant work with the Y
We used to say "we are really proud of the Spanish program", now it is all gone
I didn't feel it was responsible for us to take data without providing some guidance to the students on the choices they can make
Middle School foreign language
proposing to eliminate Latin as a foreign language
we have struggled to find certified and qualified teachers in this area
we have had 8 teachers in 4 years, we have looked at different areas to bring the best qualified teachers
maybe this is the time to focus on the high school Latin program and just have Spanish at the middle schools
we tried to work it with one Latin teacher across the Middle schools and the schedule just doesn't work
of the nine applications we found, only three we would bring in for interviews
elementary Spanish teachers would transfer into other positions in the elementary schools
This is a slippery slope that we have been going down with the foreign language programs
The top 10 percent of students were the ones qualifying for the Level 2
It was not a great situation for anyone involved
Maybe an after school or summer school but trying to do it piecemeal wouldn't get real gains from it
I think we need a meeting on the foreign language program as there are pieces flying away
Maybe the meeting wouldn't help us, it is a big change and deserves more attention
We had dropped French to put Latin because it helped in other areas
There is difficulty in finding qualified and certified Latin teachers especially in the middle school area
We would still prefer to have Latin but we can find the right folks to provide the service
230 Latin students in 6th and 7th grade would go into next year as a first year in Spanish?
How to handle them remains to be detailed.
Franklin, MA
School Committee - building committee update
d. FHS Building Update
Tom Mercer, Sean Fennel
Daedelus worked on the Annie Sullivan School, Fire Station, Senior Center and Horace Mann projects. Have now been selected to work on the FHS renovation project.
22 firms showed up for a walk through of the high school
9 submitted proposals for the first phase of the project
Projected timeline, best guess at this point
midway through architect selection
July 13th going before the MSBA board (target date)
Town will have option to interview firms at that meeting, interviews would be scheduled later
Coming out of the interviews would be a leading firm and contract negotiations by mid-August
MSBA Board needs to vote on the feasibility study, which is targeted for March 2011
Schematic design approval is required and targeted in Sept/Oct 2011
Then within 120 days of the MSBA approval, the Franklin voters need to approve their portion (i.e. Nov 2011 vote for the debt exclusion as mentioned earlier)
MSBA Board and three designated representatives to chose the architect
One each from the School Dept, Town, and School Committee
This group would be the ones to conduct the interviews and make the final decision on the architect
Q - when and where would the interviews be?
Interviews would be held two weeks later (after the July 13th meeting), in Boston, in the same room
All meetings are public
Q - are you reviewing the proposals now?
Yes, they are being reviewed. The Board is responsible for the decision on the proposals. The MSBA Board has 12 members plus the 3 designated reps as outlined above.
Q - when would be the debt exclusion?
According to the timeline, likely Nov 2011
Q - when would the construction be completed?
Too early to tell, we don't know what the work will be at this point
Franklin, MA
Tom Mercer, Sean Fennel
Daedelus worked on the Annie Sullivan School, Fire Station, Senior Center and Horace Mann projects. Have now been selected to work on the FHS renovation project.
22 firms showed up for a walk through of the high school
9 submitted proposals for the first phase of the project
Projected timeline, best guess at this point
midway through architect selection
July 13th going before the MSBA board (target date)
Town will have option to interview firms at that meeting, interviews would be scheduled later
Coming out of the interviews would be a leading firm and contract negotiations by mid-August
MSBA Board needs to vote on the feasibility study, which is targeted for March 2011
Schematic design approval is required and targeted in Sept/Oct 2011
Then within 120 days of the MSBA approval, the Franklin voters need to approve their portion (i.e. Nov 2011 vote for the debt exclusion as mentioned earlier)
MSBA Board and three designated representatives to chose the architect
One each from the School Dept, Town, and School Committee
This group would be the ones to conduct the interviews and make the final decision on the architect
Q - when and where would the interviews be?
Interviews would be held two weeks later (after the July 13th meeting), in Boston, in the same room
All meetings are public
Q - are you reviewing the proposals now?
Yes, they are being reviewed. The Board is responsible for the decision on the proposals. The MSBA Board has 12 members plus the 3 designated reps as outlined above.
Q - when would be the debt exclusion?
According to the timeline, likely Nov 2011
Q - when would the construction be completed?
Too early to tell, we don't know what the work will be at this point
Franklin, MA
School Committee - Maggie Streeter
c. Maggie Streeter (Annie Sullivan Middle School) John F. Kennedy Make A Difference Award
recognized for work on the Best Buddies program
Franklin, MA
recognized for work on the Best Buddies program
Franklin, MA
School Committee - community service
b. Annie Sullivan Middle School (ASMS) Communiteen Club
Pennies for Patients
Raised over $5,000 for Leukemia Research among other projects.
Franklin, MA
Pennies for Patients
Raised over $5,000 for Leukemia Research among other projects.
Franklin, MA
School Committee - Retirees
2. Guests/Presentations
a. Retirees
Franklin, MA
a. Retirees
- Anne Bergen, HMMS Principal
- Judi Bassignani, Parmenter Elementary Principal
- Joyce Bardol – ASMS Teacher
- Unable to attend: Linda Chelman, Jane Sveden, Elizabeth LaPlaca
Franklin, MA
School Committee - routine business
Present: Douglas, Cafasso, Rohrbach, Mullen, Roy, Trahan
Absent: Glynn
1. Routine Business
Citizen’s Comments - none
Review of Agenda - noneMinutes: I recommend approval of the minutes from the May 25, 2010 School Committee Meeting and the Executive Session minutes from the June 1, 2010 Negotiations Strategy Session.
motion to approve, passed 6-0
Payment of Bills - Mr. Glynn (next time)
Payroll - Mrs. Douglas
FHS Student Representatives
Correspondence:
Franklin, MA
Absent: Glynn
1. Routine Business
Citizen’s Comments - none
Review of Agenda - noneMinutes: I recommend approval of the minutes from the May 25, 2010 School Committee Meeting and the Executive Session minutes from the June 1, 2010 Negotiations Strategy Session.
motion to approve, passed 6-0
Payment of Bills - Mr. Glynn (next time)
Payroll - Mrs. Douglas
FHS Student Representatives
Correspondence:
1. Letter from Mary Fallon
2. Letter from Mrs. Hildman
3. Budget to Actual
4. Letter from Mrs. Mitchell
Franklin, MA
Franklin, MA: Town Council - Budget Hearing 6/9/10
The Town Council meets on Wednesday (6/9/10) and Thursday (6/10/10) to finalize the budget for fiscal year 2011. The Finance Committee has already held their budget hearings to prepare for these meetings. The decision to hold an override vote to help balance the budget given the shortfall projected and real had been made. The vote was held on June 8th and there won't be additional tax revenue from the residents to work with for FY 2011.
The budget hearings will finalize the budget cutting personnel and services.
The budget hearing document for Wednesday can be found here (PDF)
http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/Pages/FranklinMA_CouncilAgendas/2010tc/06092010budgethearing.pdf
The Budget hearing document for Thursday can be found here (PDF)
http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/Pages/FranklinMA_CouncilAgendas/2010tc/06102010budgethearing.pdf
For reference the Finance Committee budget hearings can be found here:
May 4th http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/05/finance-committee-050410.html
May 6th http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/05/finance-committee-050610.html
May 10th http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/05/finance-committee-051010.html
The Budget Workshop held on January 25, 2010 can be found here
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/01/budget-workshop-collection-12510.html
Franklin, MA
The budget hearings will finalize the budget cutting personnel and services.
The budget hearing document for Wednesday can be found here (PDF)
http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/Pages/FranklinMA_CouncilAgendas/2010tc/06092010budgethearing.pdf
The Budget hearing document for Thursday can be found here (PDF)
http://franklinma.virtualtownhall.net/Pages/FranklinMA_CouncilAgendas/2010tc/06102010budgethearing.pdf
For reference the Finance Committee budget hearings can be found here:
May 4th http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/05/finance-committee-050410.html
May 6th http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/05/finance-committee-050610.html
May 10th http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/05/finance-committee-051010.html
The Budget Workshop held on January 25, 2010 can be found here
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/01/budget-workshop-collection-12510.html
Franklin, MA
Now what?
Good question.
The numbers are in, the majority has ruled and as a result town services will continue to deteriorate.
For those that voted "No', this appears to be just fine for them. Calling for an emergency may get you an answering machine. One less ambulance will be available for that life critical support. Children in school will get challenged by higher class sizes and less teacher attention to prepare for the MCAS tests that will make or break their future.
For those that voted "Yes", the same results will apply equally.
40% turnout is the issue for me. With over 19,000 voters, only 7,966 bothered to vote (297 by absentee ballot).
Where were the other 11,000?
These are the folks for whom the issues (town services) apparently don't matter.
What's in it for me? is the major question most folks ask. From the comments on the Milford Daily News, there is an angry anti-tax group. That is no surprise given the override history in Franklin. The "Invest in Franklin" message did gain some traction in that there was an increase in overall votes from 2008 and mostly amongst the "Yes" crowd, but it wasn't enough.
The 11,000 must go about their life without any significant town services. They may not have children in schools (otherwise they should care). The conditions of the roads they travel on don't matter to them. They may see the quarterly tax bill (or maybe their mortgage company pays it for them) and it doesn't matter much. They get their trash picked up on the curbside weekly and that may be about the only town service they directly get on a regular basis. (Which is paid for from the solid waste/'trash' enterprise account and not the operational budget.)
How do I reach out to the 11,000? That is my challenge.
How do I get to their attention?
How do I let them know that trend of deteriorating services in Franklin should matter?
Maybe that is the answer.
Maybe the real and continued deterioration of services will eventually strike them enough so that they'll get informed to take action and vote.
Franklin, MA
The numbers are in, the majority has ruled and as a result town services will continue to deteriorate.
For those that voted "No', this appears to be just fine for them. Calling for an emergency may get you an answering machine. One less ambulance will be available for that life critical support. Children in school will get challenged by higher class sizes and less teacher attention to prepare for the MCAS tests that will make or break their future.
For those that voted "Yes", the same results will apply equally.
40% turnout is the issue for me. With over 19,000 voters, only 7,966 bothered to vote (297 by absentee ballot).
Where were the other 11,000?
These are the folks for whom the issues (town services) apparently don't matter.
What's in it for me? is the major question most folks ask. From the comments on the Milford Daily News, there is an angry anti-tax group. That is no surprise given the override history in Franklin. The "Invest in Franklin" message did gain some traction in that there was an increase in overall votes from 2008 and mostly amongst the "Yes" crowd, but it wasn't enough.
The 11,000 must go about their life without any significant town services. They may not have children in schools (otherwise they should care). The conditions of the roads they travel on don't matter to them. They may see the quarterly tax bill (or maybe their mortgage company pays it for them) and it doesn't matter much. They get their trash picked up on the curbside weekly and that may be about the only town service they directly get on a regular basis. (Which is paid for from the solid waste/'trash' enterprise account and not the operational budget.)
How do I reach out to the 11,000? That is my challenge.
How do I get to their attention?
How do I let them know that trend of deteriorating services in Franklin should matter?
Maybe that is the answer.
Maybe the real and continued deterioration of services will eventually strike them enough so that they'll get informed to take action and vote.
Franklin, MA
In the Globe - election results
"Our option is to carry out the mandate of the voters, which was to preserve the lowest possible tax rate and accept eroding services," said Stephen Whalen, vice chairman of Franklin's Town Council, of the 4143 to 3820 vote defeating the tax hike. About 40 percent of local voters turned out to cast ballots, he said.
Whalen said, among other cuts, his town would likely slash teaching jobs, be reduced to a single ambulance crew, and be forced to raise high school athletic fees "significantly," a move that worried him.
" I think the mark of a great community is that every kid has access to top-notch public education, and raising fees like that turns us into a town of haves and have-nots," he said.Read the full article in the Boston Globe here
http://www.boston.com/yourtown/budgetblues/2010/06/concord_upton_voters_approve_o.html
Franklin, MA
In the News - election results
"I'm surprised it didn't pass, and I'm surprised the turnout wasn't higher," Feeley said. "... There is no waste, and cuts will be made."
He said claims that children of override opponents were mistreated at school are false and insulting to teachers.
"If it (were true), someone needs to step forward," Feeley said.
Read the full article here:
http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/x1932553637/Franklin-voters-say-no-to-override
Franklin, MA
Creative Commons explained
This neat little video explains copyright and the creative commons license.
My work here is for non-commercial use, share-alike, modification with attribution.
Thanks to FreeTech4Teachers for the pointer to this video.
Franklin, MA
My work here is for non-commercial use, share-alike, modification with attribution.
Thanks to FreeTech4Teachers for the pointer to this video.
Franklin, MA
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