Another School Year!

Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:

Another School Year!

via Lifelong Learning by Pandora Carlucci on 9/1/11

The 2011 - 2012 school year has experienced a delayed start due to power outages associated with Tropical Storm Irene. That said, teachers, staff and administrators throughout the district have worked diligently to re-shape the start of the new school year.

Adult Education: Tracy Cheney is returning to offer three courses for Child Care Providers that are timely and provide needed continuing education points. The classes for this term include: The Ten P's of Partnering with Parents, Transition Magician, and Creating a Classroom that is Inclusive.

Other classes that support careers include: Social Media - Learning how to effectively use social media tools to support your business; Tips on Writing and Publishing your Book; and, the Virtual Assistant -- What is it?

Adult Education also offers classes in Belly Dancing, Bollywood Dancing, Line Dancing, a Thriller Dance Workshop for Adults, and a Father/Daughter Valentine's Dance.

Check our website for additional courses in Yoga, Zumba, Tai Chi, Self Defense for Women, Fitness for Women, Basketball, Volleyball, art, cooking, photography and more!

www.franklin.k12.ma.us select Lifelong from the top banner.

We hope to see you soon!

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Towns may get delay on river fix

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Towns may get delay on river fix

via Boston Globe -- Globe West by Jose Martinez, Globe Correspondent on 8/31/11

The next step in cleaning up the water flowing in the Charles River appears to be so costly that federal regulators are considering more than doubling the length of time given the test communities of Milford, Franklin, and Bellingham to reduce the amount of phosphorus pouring into the river from their shores.

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Final Prep for Job Search Jam Sessions

Friday is almost here. Have you registered for Job Search Jam Sessions? If you are looking for work, or know someone who is, this is the event to participate in. This will be your time to find out what others know, get your questions answered from those who can answer them, and get to network with others to build your listing of valuable connections.

How should I prepare?
Come to the event prepared to share something you have learned along the way. Come prepared for learn. Come prepared to network (bring business cards).

How should I dress?
Dress as you would for any other networking event, business casual or business comfortable. You still want to make a good first impression but a suit or tux is not required.

What does the facility look like?
Check out the brief video of the facility recorded during May 2010:
http://jobsearchjamsessions.blogspot.com/2010/05/video-tour-of-job-search-jam-session.html

What will the schedule be?
Check out the overall schedule here:
http://jobsearchjamsessions.blogspot.com/p/schedule.html

When do the doors open?
The registration/welcome desk will be open at 8:30 AM.
You can check in, pay at the door (if you elected to do that), and make a name tag.

Beginning at 9:00 AM (or thereabouts) we'll provide an overview of an unconference using the open space technology.

If you want to read up on the unconference format, you can find info here
http://www.openspaceworld.org/cgi/wiki.cgi?AboutOpenSpace
here
http://www.openspaceworld.org/cgi/wiki.cgi?WorkingInOpenSpace
and here:
http://podcamp.pbworks.com/ scroll down the page to view the section on how to "host a podcamp"

What is the registration fee being used for?
1 - We intentionally don't want to make money, we are all looking for work and recognize that funds are tight.
2 - We did want to charge something to ensure a reasonable headcount for planning purposes.

Hence, the $8 charge seems reasonable and allows us to plan a good event and to make a contribution to the church for the use of the facility.

Your registration fee ($8.00) paid via Eventbrite nets the organizing team approx. $6.50 (Eventbrite has a charge for processing the credit card).

From the $6.50 times however many people show up, we will plan for refreshments, lunch and will purchase accordingly.

All surplus funds will be donated to the St John the Evangelist Parish. The church has graciously allowed us use of the facility for free. A full accounting of the receipts and expenses will be provided to the attendees.

You can still talk about the event with your friends, neighbors and networked connections. Registrations will be taken at the door on Friday. You can share the event website http://jobsearchjamsessions.blogspot.com/

or have them go directly to the registration page http://jobsearchjamsessions2.eventbrite.com/


Thank you. See you soon!

The Job Search Jam Sessions organizing committee

"a lack of electricity four days after"

In Franklin, about 1,300 people were still without power as of noon yesterday, which is down from about 4,200 on Tuesday. 

Franklin Town Administrator Jeffrey Nutting said National Grid told officials in a meeting on Tuesday that power was supposed to be restored at the Municipal Center yesterday by 11 a.m., but wasn't. 

"The only people that dropped the ball are National Grid," said Nutting, praising town public safety departments and the DPW for their work during and after the storm. 

"We still have about 1,300 folks out of power. If you're one of those 1,300, it's getting a little thin after three days." 

Read more: http://www.milforddailynews.com/archive/x227166423/Many-still-without-power-across-region#ixzz1Wgy4h0dG

Updated Fiscal Fallout Report & Updated Budget Browser

Explore our onlinebudget database Is our research helpful to you? Support our work Contact Info   Noah Berger   President   nberger@massbudget.org   (617) 426-1228 x102 Updates to Fiscal Fallout Report and MassBudget Budget Browser August 31, 2011    MassBudget has published an updated report Fiscal Fallout: The Great Recession, Policy Choices, and State Budget Cuts 2009-2012 (updated), examining state budget cuts since the onset of the current economic downturn.  The report builds on our prior edition published in April (which included cuts up through the Governor's FY 2012 budget proposal) and compares changes in major categories of state spending between FY 2009 and FY 2012.  The full report is available here and at www.massbudget.org.      In addition, MassBudget's interactive Budget Browser has been updated to include the FY 2012 budget and updated inflation data.  The Browser allows you to see historic spending amounts and trends by budget category and subcategory when you Compare Past Year Budgets; you can Compare Current Budget Proposals and you can Compare Current vs. Past Budgets.  In addition, you can drill down further in your search by choosing Search Line Items & Categories to compare spending levels for a single line item or group of line items from FY 2001 to present.    MassBudget provides independent research and analysis of state budget and tax policies, as well as economic issues, with particular attention to the effects on low- and moderate-income people.

Forward email This email was sent to shersteve@gmail.com by info@massbudget.org |   Update Profile/Email Address | Instant removal with SafeUnsubscribe™ | Privacy Policy. Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center | 15 Court Square | Suite 700 | Boston | MA | 02108

YMCA - September Membership Promotion

The Hockomock Area YMCA announces their Fall Membership specials. Details are contained in the flyer here:


Flyer- Fall 2011 Promo


Note: email subscribers will need to click through to Franklin Matters to view the document

New partnership with Greater Boston Food Bank

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New partnership with Greater Boston Food Bank provides a way to reduce ‘food insecurity’ for families in the area

via Commonwealth Conversations: Health and Human Services by Paulette Song on 8/29/11

By DTA Commissioner Julia Kehoe
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly food stamps) is the first line of defense against hunger and currently serves one in eight Massachusetts residents .  But what happens to individuals and families who don't qualify for SNAP and are struggling to put food on their tables?  If a household's income is more than twice the federal poverty level (currently $22,350 per year for a family of four), they are not eligible for SNAP, but are likely in need of additional resources to make ends meet.  
I'm pleased to announce a new, innovative collaboration between the Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA) and the Greater Boston Food Bank (GBFB) to distribute food to households who don't qualify for government benefits.
This exciting initiative involves two key components that are currently being piloted at our Dudley Square and Newmarket Square offices in Boston:

• First, DTA identifies households who are ineligible for SNAP but still at-risk of hunger.  We give them a voucher that allows them to pick up a box of produce and frozen meats at GBFB on designated distribution days.  These packages also include information about food pantries and community meal programs, food safety information, and recipes.

• Second, GBFB will supply boxes of dry, shelf-stable foods to create mini-pantries at DTA offices.  We will then provide these packages to SNAP applicants who have no other resources to tide them over until their benefits are approved.  We hope to have our mini-pantries up and running sometime this fall.

Our first food distribution day at GBFB was Saturday, August 20^th, and it was very successful.  Of the 25 families who were issued vouchers, 18 came to GBFB to pick up their food boxes.  Each family received 40 pounds of food including fruit, vegetables, milk, yogurt, frozen beef and chicken.  Families were encouraged to utilize the local food pantry network as a way to reduce their 'food insecurity,' or  inadequate food supply.   
DTA and GBFB will continue to evaluate this initiative and may expand it to include more DTA offices in the future.
The next food distribution day will take place on Saturday, September 10^th at the Greater Boston Food Bank. 

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