Poll question results

IF THE OVERRIDE WAS SPLIT INTO 2 SEPARATE QUESTIONS, WOULD YOU HAVE APPROVED THE SCHOOL OVERRIDE? Q1 - $2.1 MILLION FOR SCHOOLS Q2 - $900K FOR ROADS/THE TOWN

Yes - 33

No - 22

Total - 55

Franklin, MA

Carnival setting up for the 4th of July

The 4th of July is rapidly approaching but the carnival rides have already appeared on the Town Common. Some old favorites will be there for your enjoyment on the holiday weekend.

The slide!

The spinning apple!

The train ride!

And if you haven't lost your lunch yet, Twister!

The rides and food booths will open at 6:00 PM on Thursday, July 1

The full schedule of events can be found here:
http://franklinmatters.blogspot.com/2010/06/franklin-ma-4th-of-july-schedule.html

Enjoy!


Franklin, MA

Common Core Standards - open for review

“Our message all along has been clear and consistent: Massachusetts will only adopt the Common Core standards if they match or surpass our current expectations for students,” said Education Secretary Paul Reville. “Even if the Board votes to adopt, the Commonwealth would still maintain the opportunity to add to the standards, personalize them to Massachusetts and build them out in a way that will allow our educators to propel our students to the next level of learning.”

“Our goal is to provide every student in the Commonwealth with the best possible schools, teachers, curriculum and opportunities they need to be successful in school, college, careers and in life,” Chester said. “We will take the time to evaluate the Common Core Standards before making a decision, and if we ultimately find that the final product represents a decline in expectations from our state standards, we will not hesitate to walk away.”

The Common Core State Standards and survey can be viewed by clicking here

Read the full posting on the School Committee blog here:
http://franklinschoolcommittee.wordpress.com/2010/06/25/public-invited-to-review-and-comment-on-common-core-state-standards/



Franklin, MA

"needs in the context of a strategic plan"

The 495/MetroWest Development Compact is aimed at ranking infrastructure improvements for the region as a whole, rather than tackling projects piecemeal.

Greg Bialecki, the state secretary of housing and economic development, and Jeff Mullan, secretary of transportation, announced the compact at the 495/MetroWest Partnership's annual conference.

Bialecki said the compact will help create a common "strategic action plan" for all of the agencies involved to get behind, rather than "creating a laundry list of changes to infrastructure that need to be made."

Franklin would be one of the 36 communities covered by this compact.
Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here:
http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/x2071995398/Cooperation-sought-prioritizing-MetroWest-infrastructure-goals


Franklin, MA

Franklin's state aid

On June 24, 2010, the Legislature approved the Conference Committee’s version of the FY2011 budget.  The Division of Local Services has posted updated local aid estimates based on the Conference Committee budget recommendations at the link below:

http://www.mass.gov/?pageID=dorsubtopic&L=5&L0=Home&L1=Local+Officials&L2=Municipal+Data+and+Financial+Management&L3=Cherry+Sheets&L4=FY2011+Local+Aid+Proposals&sid=Ador

Though the estimates are substantially the same as previous estimates, the Conference Committee proposal relies on reimbursements from the Federal Medical Assistance Program (FMAP) to fund part of certain appropriations. 

Outside section 190 restricts the expenditure of FMAP funded appropriations until receipt of those funds is certain. 

Cherry sheet estimates for the State-owned Land, Regional School Transportation and Local Share of Racing Taxes programs reflect the portion of the appropriation funded only from the general fund. 

If the FMAP funding becomes certain by tax rate setting time, FY2011 cherry sheets will be amended.

These estimates are subject to final approval by the Governor.

Franklin, MA

Reminders

Farmers Market - today - noon to 6:00 PM on the Town Common

Office Hours - come sit and talk Franklin matters with me on the Town Common - 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM

Poll question - What does the survey say? (see the center column) - stays open until midnight tonight!



Franklin, MA

Networking Group - workshops today - Jun 25 meeting

If you are looking for work and need a good opportunity to network,  the workshop today at the Hopkinton Networking Group meeting Friday, June 11 25 is one to catch. 


Someone you may know will be facilitating two engaging, productive, and fun activities. 

If you have the time, you could not spend it any better than networking at Hopkinton today!

When: 10:00 AM - Noon
Where: St John's Evangelist Parish Center, 20 Church St, Hopkinton
Cost: $1


The details on the workshops as published to the Acton Networking Group listserv:

Hello Everyone,

The agenda for this Friday's Hopkinton Networkers Group (HNG) meeting will be featured by workshop activities.  The facilitator for this week will be Steve Sherlock.   We will devote the first hour, from 10 to 11 AM to the following agenda: Welcome, Landings, Announcements, New Member Intros, and Needs & Leads.   Please arrive early, so we can make every effort to start on time.   In the second hour, we will conduct a workshop with various activities.  Here is how it will be done:

Workshop Activities:

Discovery...Re-Discovery...and FUN:

The handout provided has a 7 x 4 matrix of boxes, i.e., 28 in all, where each box contains an open-ended statement that when completed will yield a more composite picture of the person.

Transferrable Skills:

Bring your resume.  We will break out into small groups and use the classrooms.  After the resume is reviewed, a discussion will take place to determine what transferrable skills your résumé displays.

Name Associations (if time permits):

Think of a relationship of your name with something else that others could relate with and could remember your name.  For example, the association I use is the breakfast serial Rice Krispies whereby removing the last letter "s" and replacing it with a "n" spells my last name.  You will be quite surprised how easily it will be to remember names afterwards.

Franklin, MA