Panther Magazine - Episode 2 (video)

Produced by Ms. Moreau's TV2 class, Spring 2018

MassBudget: Undercount of Massachusetts Children Could Affect Federally Funded Supports

KIDS COUNT 2018 Data Book released

June 27, 2018 Undercount of Massachusetts Children Could Affect Federally Funded Supports 2018 KIDS COUNT® Data Book shows how a 2020 census undercount could harm childhood health, education, economic well-being, and family stability. As the nation heads toward the 2020 census, new estimates show that 104,000 (29 percent) of the state's youngest children live in neighborhoods where the census has historically had difficulty achieving an accurate count. Counting all people in the state accurately plays an important role in determining federal funding for communities. While Massachusetts is ranked second in the nation on child well-being, according to the 2018 KIDS COUNT® Data Book released today by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, an undercount of Massachusetts children could adversely impact the programs and supports that have aided the state's progress and allowed children to thrive. MassBudget is the KIDS COUNT®  organization for Massachusetts. An undercount could affect the services that help the families make ends meet. In Fiscal Year 2015, the federal government supported Massachusetts children in a variety of ways, such as through $280.9 million for special education services, $146.9 for the Head Start program, and $76.3 million for affordable child care. The annual KIDS COUNT® Data Book uses 16 indicators to rank each state across four domains - health, education, economic well-being, and family and community - as an assessment of child well-being. Massachusetts ranks second overall. According to the Data Book, Massachusetts leads the nation in health measures, reading levels and mathematic achievement, but the share of children living in poverty is the same as it was in 2010 - 14 percent. Within each domain, Massachusetts ranks: 11th in economic well-being. The share of Massachusetts children living in families where no parent has full-time, year-round employment decreased by 10 percent since 2010. Second in education. Massachusetts children remain first in mathematic achievement (with 50 percent of eighth-graders scoring at or above proficient level) and reading level (with 51 percent of fourth-graders scoring at or above proficient level). The number of 3- and 4-year olds attending school has stayed essentially the same since 2009-2011. First in health. The state remains first in the nation in ensuring children have health insurance and has seen a slight decrease since 2010 in the percent of babies born with a low birthweight. Ninth in family and community domain. The state has seen a 47 percent drop in teen birth rates since 2010, and has seen a slight decrease in the number of children living in high-poverty neighborhoods. In 2016, about 8 percent of children lived in high-poverty neighborhoods. Massachusetts' rankings on economic well-being and in the family and community domain indicate that raising the incomes of low- to middle-income families and improving employment opportunities remain important challenges for the Commonwealth. Getting an accurate scope of the challenges, however, requires an accurate census count. The 2018 KIDS COUNT® Data Book is available at www.aecf.org/databook, See also the Kids Count Data Center for national, state, and local data on hundreds of indicators of child well-being. Readers may also be interested in a discussion of policies affecting child well-being as well as state and local data in MassBudget's recent report Obstacles on the Road to Opportunity: Finding a Way Forward. The Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center (MassBudget) produces policy research, analysis, and data-driven recommendations focused on improving the lives of low- and middle-income children and adults, strengthening our state's economy, and enhancing the quality of life in Massachusetts. MASSACHUSETTS BUDGET AND POLICY CENTER 15 COURT SQUARE, SUITE 700 BOSTON, MA 02108

Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center, 15 Court Square, Suite 700, Boston, MA 02108 Sent by nberger@massbudget.org in collaboration with Try it free today

Franklin 4th of July - Schedule of Events - 2018

The schedule of the 4th of July celebration for Franklin begins Friday, June 29 and runs through Wednesday, July 4, 2018.

View the full schedule or download a copy (PDF) here
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ruYRILk6bmkiq32hDsndMPOiQSA6vJbL/view?usp=sharing

Visit the 4th of July website for updates  https://www.franklin4th.com/

Magic Maze set up on Town Common in 2017

Highlight video of the 2018 FHS baseball season

Highlight video of the 2018 FHS baseball season on the road to the Super 8.

2018 Franklin High School Varsity Baseball - Franklin Panthers Baseball Vido Production... Road to "Super 8" Champions. The Video Shown at Baseball Banquet with exciting video moments of the 2018 FHS Baseball Season! https://t.co/rHgPyTKWSO via @YouTube @FHSCoachZBrown

— Judy Luttazi (@jluttazi816) June 25, 2018

In the News: Union St ready for the 4th; gender neutral bill filled

From the Milford Daily News, articles of interest for Franklin:

"Decorating for the Fourth of July isn’t quite like putting up lights for the holidays, but to a row of Union Street houses across from the Franklin Common, it’s important to brandish their nation’s colors. 

Heidi Mahr and her husband bought their home at 17 Union St. from her mother-in-law in April, making this the first time they’re taking part in the decorative tradition. 

“My husband used to hang the decorations for my mother-in-law,” she said. “She also used to pay somebody to come and hang them up for her.”

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20180627/franklins-union-street-festive-for-fourth

"When teenagers finally reach the age to apply for a driver’s permit and license, it represents their first step toward individual freedom. 

This milestone, however, stifles some of the excitement for teenagers and adults who are told they must identify as a gender on their license, although they do not identify with either option provided. 

This was the case for Ella, a young adult who was nearing the time to apply for their license. As a proud teenager who is nonbinary - someone who does not identify as either male or female - Ella did not understand why someone should have to choose between putting male or female on their permit and license. 

Ella wrote to state senator, Karen Spilka, D-Ashland, to find out if that could be changed."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20180626/constituent-of-state-sen-spilka-inspires-gender-x-bill

Franklin's 4th of July Celebration road races - Saturday, June 30

5K Road Race

Saturday, June 30 2018 11:00 AM

Franklin Town Common

Adult Road Race: The race will kick off at 11:00 AM. Adult Road Race will start at the Town Common (200 Main Street). Mile splits will be given at 1st and 2nd miles. A water station will be available at the 2-mile mark. Make sure you look for the orange arrows along the route. Please be extra careful of cars along Maple Street.

Register online for the Adult Road Race at RaceWire  https://my.racewire.com/event/5719

Register online for the Adult Road Race at RaceWire

5K Course Map  http://www.franklinma.gov/recreation-department/files/5k-course-map

Children's Road Race

Saturday, June 30, 2018 11:45 AM

Franklin Town Common

The Children’s Road Race is a fun 1.2 mile road race designed to let boys and girls ages 6-12 years old participate in running. This road race has been a tradition for over 30 years, held on the Saturday that Franklin celebrates the 4th of July Celebration. For years the Franklin Recreation Department has coordinated this event free of charge to all runners.

This year the road race will take place on Saturday, June 30, 11 AM. Registration for the event 10:45 AM or online, and the race will kick off at 11:45 AM.

The participants will begin the race by meeting at the gazebo for a race orientation to review safety precautions, and race details. Racers will run, walk, or jog up Crescent, take a right onto Martin Ave., right onto School Street, right onto Main Street. At the St. Mary’s Church, participants will turn left and follow around the Common, take a left onto High Street, left at the corner of High Street and Main Street back down to the finish at the center of the Common.

Children's Fun Run Course Map  http://www.franklinma.gov/recreation-department/files/childrens-fun-run-course-map

This was shared from the Town of Franklin Recreation page
http://www.franklinma.gov/recreation-department/news/4th-july-road-race

For the full schedule of Franklin 4th of July Celebration visit https://www.franklin4th.com/

Tri-County Regional Vocational Director Retires After 38 Years

Jean George, the Vocational Director at Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School, has been an icon at the school for the past 38 years. Jean first started teaching in Early Education at the school in 1980. She taught Early Education until 2006 when she became the school’s Vocational Director.

“Suddenly I was all my peers’ boss,” said Jean. “I had to motivate and manage the people I worked with every day.” Jean states, “Becoming the Vocational Director has allowed me the best of both worlds. Having been a vocational teacher myself, I could help the other teachers in supporting their growth and development while being able to grow the vocational programs for the school.” In fact, during her tenure Jean has created four new Chapter 74 Vocational Programs to serve the students and the community: Construction Craft Laborers, Dental Assisting, Engineering, and Legal and Protective Services.

Jean George

Jean says her passion as both an educator and a Vocational Director has been supporting every student to help them gain the skills and knowledge needed to make informed decisions about their future, whatever they decide to do, whether it’s college, post-secondary, working, or the military.

Jean believes throughout history, children haven’t changed. They still have the same attributes and qualities. She finds students to be authentic, honest, fun to work with and similar in nature in regards to their feelings and emotions. She says “Their issues may be different in today’s world with all the new technology, but underneath it all, students are basically the same and have the same core needs.”

Her philosophy in teaching has always been that each student has their own individual and unique qualities and attributes. Each student has his or her own story. Once we know their story, we can serve the student both academically and emotionally. Every student is a valuable asset to this school and contributes to the culture of this school.

“I’ve loved my years at Tri-County,” reflects Jean. “I had students that I’ve taught in preschool and was able to see them again in the high school and then as a parent of a preschooler. You could say I’ve seen the whole cycle of a preschooler.” She laughs and remembers fondly, “It’s been like a second home where children grow, leave, come back and tell me all about their lives.”

In addition to her experience as an Early Education teacher and a Vocational Director at Tri-County, Jean has also taught as an adjunct professor at Dean College in Franklin MA.

Now Jean is ready to leave behind the history of her professional life and delve into the unknown future. She looks forward to spending more time with her grandchildren, traveling, playing golf with friends, and of course, keeping abreast of education and trends.

Always an educator, Jean will continue to serve on the Advisory Committee for Early Education and Special Education students at Regis College and will remain in her role as a liaison to facilitate OSHA training for teachers at the Massachusetts Association of Vocational Administrators (MAVA).

Stephen Dockray, Superintendent, states “Jean has impacted thousands of lives through her work as an Early Education teacher and Vocational Director. Throughout her career, Jean has always put the students first. It is that approach, along with her compassionate and caring nature, that has enabled her to enjoy such a long and impactful career working with students in our community. She has demonstrated her unwavering leadership and commitment, and we thank her for her years of service here at Tri-County.”

Tri-County RVTHS, located at 147 Pond Street in Franklin, is a recipient of the High Schools That Work Gold Achievement Award and serves the communities of Franklin, Medfield, Medway, Millis, Norfolk, North Attleboro, Plainville, Seekonk, Sherborn, Walpole, and Wrentham.