Franklin in Focus: Candidate Query (video)

The Candidate Query hosted by Franklin in Focus on Tuesday, Oct 22, 2019 at the Franklin Senior Center. 

Recorded and edited by Franklin TV. 

Candidates for Constable, Town Council, and School Committee in the Town of Franklin biennial election were invited to participate.





The audio or podcast version is also available
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2019/10/franklin-in-focus-candidate-query-oct.html

Franklin Candidate Interview: Mary Jane Scofield

This interview with Mary Jane Scofield, candidate for Franklin School Committee in 2019, was collaborated on via email. We reviewed the following questions, some of them were ‘crowd sourced.’ Some of you may remember the call for input solicited in August 2019 for this election. Thank you for your contributions.

Hopefully, the information provided here, and in the other interviews, will enable the Franklin voters to make a good choice among the candidates for each position.

For the following FM presents the question. MJS represents Mart Jane’s response.

FM = There are and have been many opportunities to volunteer with community groups in Franklin. Have you taken advantage of any of these? Which ones, and why did you choose that/those? 

MJS = When I arrived in Franklin in 1989 I started out by attending PCC meetings at Horace Mann when Mr. Colace was the Principal. The people that I met were fabulous! This led to participating in activities at Oak Street, when it occupied a couple of wings at FHS. When redistricting took place, I and others took ourselves to Davis-Thayer, back to Horace Mann, and FHS for the second or third time for many of us. Through the years I’ve participated in Scouts, taught CCD, and helped with the Fourth of July. 

I participated in the activities of the Franklin Youth Soccer Association, being on the Board of Directors for many years, serving as President for two. With FYSA I coached many teams, from Instructional to Travel, most years without having a child on a team. It was heartbreaking to me a couple of years when I couldn’t coach due to personal circumstances. However, I continue to volunteer my time to be involved with soccer by being the Secretary of the BAYS (Boston Area Youth Soccer) Board of Directors. There is nothing like taking part in any organization that promotes the sport, and the building of relationships that may last forever. 

In 1997 I was elected to the School Committee, and for ten years I was the Chair of the Policy Subcommittee, served on several contract negotiation teams, and was the School Committee representative to the Keller-Sullivan Building Committee. I also had the opportunity to be a member of the Mass Association of School Committees (MASC) Student Assessment Committee, Athletic Advisory Committee, Game Officials Committee, and the MIAA State Soccer Committee.

FM = Where do you get your news about Franklin?

MJS = Franklin Matters, of course! The Gazette is a must read each week. The Milford Daily News could do a better job of reporting what goes on in town. Email alerts from the Town are also helpful.

FM = The possibility of a change in school start times was a recent controversial topic taken up by the School Committee. Where do you stand on the issue of school start times in Franklin and what actions do you plan to take around this issue during the next term of the School Committee?

MJS = I was a member of the School Start Time Advisory Committee, and was one of two that voted against sending the final proposal to the School Committee. While it appears that the research shows that a later start time would be beneficial for MS/HS students, there wasn’t much consideration for the elementary students. I think that the decision to pause on implementation is the right way to go.

FM = While the current School Committee has attempted to reach the community through various forms of communication including coffee chats, email newsletters, attending events such as the farmers market, etc., they have been generally unsuccessful at increasing the engagement with important issues related to the schools. What actions will you take to increase citizen engagement with the School Committee?

MJS = I wouldn’t say that the methods of communication have been unsuccessful. These methods didn’t exist a few years ago. As volunteers, School Committee members have demonstrated that they are available to the public at events in town. The events were well publicized, and it’s unfortunate that some see the lack of participation by citizens as a failure. I would encourage School Committee members to continue to participate in local events, and schedule educational events related to topics of high interest/concern. I commend the School Committee for their efforts thus far.

FM = The Town Administrator has suggested that the School Committee investigate the possibility of closing Davis Thayer Elementary as a possible cost-saving mechanism for the town in these tight economic times. Where do you stand on this issue and what actions will you take to support your stance?

MJS = The independent study that was authorized by the School Committee, and funded by the Town is the right thing to do. This is not a new topic. When the study is complete the School Committee will have to make a tough decision, with input from all stakeholders.

FM = Why should I vote for you?

For the past four years it has truly been an honor to serve the citizens of Franklin. My stepchildren and my son are beneficiaries of an excellent educational system. It is my hope to continue to serve on the School Committee to ensure that all students leave the system with the foundation to be curious, confident, and productive citizens. 

Find the election and candidate information gathered in one place on the Election Collection
https://www.franklinmatters.org/2019/07/franklin-election-collection-2019.html

 

Franklin Candidate Interview: Mary Jane Scofield

FHS football win 14-0, advance in playoffs to play Brockton

Josh Perry, Managing Editor of HockomockSports.com, provides the recap for the FHS football win over Attleboro 14-0 on Friday.

"Franklin has made a name for itself this season with a high-powered offense that is capable of a big play at any time, but in Friday’s Div. 1 South quarterfinal at Pisini Stadium the Panthers showed that there is another side to their game as well.

The Franklin defense only allowed Attleboro to cross midfield once all night, allowing the Panthers to grind out a 14-0 victory on a pair of second half touchdowns and book a second straight appearance in the sectional semifinal.

“What I told the kids at halftime is this is going to be a character test,” said Franklin coach Eian Bain. “We’re going to define out character right here and you have to win these types of games this time of year.”

He added, “We needed to call a better game and get our guys in better positions, but I think once we went into the half we felt more comfortable with what they were in so we felt better about the calls we were making and had a better idea of how to attack them.”

Continue reading the game recap
https://hockomocksports.com/franklin-football-defense-grinds-out-win-against-attleboro/

For a photo gallery from this game
https://hockomocksports.smugmug.com/2019-2020/Fall-2019/Franklin-Attleboro-Football-11-1-19/

Jake Davis (23) and the Franklin offense struggled to get going against Attleboro but managed to score twice in the second half to secure a 14-0 win. (Josh Perry/HockomockSports.com)

The MIAA football bracket info  http://miaa.statebrackets.com/tmenu.cfm?tid=5348

MIAA - D1 South football bracket

FHS soccer teams slated to play first round games away on Monday, Nov 4

D1 South
#9 Franklin (12-4-1) will travel to #8 Oliver Ames (13-4-1) Monday, 11/4 at 2:30 PM

D1 South
#11 Franklin (8-6-4) will travel to #6 Natick (8-2-6) Monday, 11/4 at 3:45 PM


For other seeds posted by HockomockSports.com:

• Girls

https://hockomocksports.com/hockomock-girls-soccer-playoff-seeds-matchups-2019/

• Boys

https://hockomocksports.com/hockomock-boys-soccer-playoff-seeds-matchups-2019/


For the MIAA bracket 

for girls D1 South  http://miaa.statebrackets.com/tmenu.cfm?tid=5413

for boys D1 South  http://miaa.statebrackets.com/tmenu.cfm?tid=5412
 

D1 South Boys Fall 2019

D1 South Girls Fall 2019

Business Roundtable - November 14

Good Morning: As you hopefully already know, the Town of Franklin has scheduled a Business Roundtable for November 14th at Dean College. (See embedded file below.) The workshop is in support of an economic development study focused on three of Franklin's older commercial areas:

• The Downtown Franklin Commercial District;
• The Crossing, a smaller commercial village near Union and Cottage Streets; and
• The Mixed Business Innovation District (Hayward & Fisher Streets Priority Development Area), an industrial neighborhood recently rezoned to increase the number and type businesses.

I hope you are able to attend. It doesn't matter if your business is in one of the three commercial districts mentioned above. Among other things, we'll be discussing how the Town can better support and grow local businesses, so any business owner or manager, property owner, organization, or individual interested in Franklin's economic future are invited to attend. If you can think of an individual or business that should be at the event please contact them directly or let me know and I'll send an invite.

If you know for sure you'll be attending please RSVP by email to me (btaberner@franklinma.gov), or Raul Gonzalez of MAPC (RGonzalez@mapc.org). I'm trying to get a rough number of probable attendees for planning purposes. Whether you RSVP or not I hope to see you at the Business Roundtable. Let me know if you have questions. 

Thank you. 
Bryan.

Bryan W. Taberner, AICP
Director of Planning and Community Development
355 East Central Street
Franklin, MA 02038-1352

Phone: 508-520-4907
Fax: 508-520-4906
Email: btaberner@franklinma.gov

Business Roundtable - November 14

Get your copy of the flyer shown here as a reminder
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B0wjbnXDBhczQjJTaDBtZlNrTG84RWJEbzFrTTBCQVVuWTRR/view?usp=sharing

Peter Willis Photography - show and items for sale - Nov 3

Need to get Gifts for The Holidays? The Vendor Fair this Sunday, Nov 3 can help.

Sponsored by The Lions Club Franklin MA
Raffle Basket and Vendors from 10 AM to 3 PM

$5 Entry Fee, Children under 12 Free

The 2020 calendar is available for purchase, $20 dollars for the calendar. Notecards and coasters are also available too

Can’t make it to the event, you can still chat with Peter and place your order at https://www.peterwillisphotography.com anytime and get you favorite image delivered to your door.

Thank you in advance for your support!!!! 😃📸

The address for the VFW
1034 Pond St
Franklin, MA 02038

Peter Willis Photography
https://www.peterwillisphotography.com/

 Peter Willis Photography  - show and items for sale - Nov 3

"we allow our signs to share our message"

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

"As the 2020 presidential election year nears, Democrats in Franklin and those who share their views are continuing to mount demonstrations in protest of the Trump administration. And they’re not the only ones, as like-minded people in neighboring Medway have begun to speak up, too.

Members of the Franklin Democratic Town Committee began occasionally holding peaceful protests earlier this year, and are planning their next gathering on Nov. 16. The effort has now been taken up by the Medway Democratic Town Committee, which held its first demonstration on Oct. 6 and is organizing a second from 10 a.m. to noon on Sunday on the sidewalk in front of the Medway Place shopping plaza.

“It looks as if our protest efforts are becoming contagious,” said Sue Cass, a member of the Franklin Democrats who has been a lead organizer of the Franklin efforts."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
https://www.milforddailynews.com/news/20191101/franklin-medway-democrats-speaking-out-in-protest-of-trump-administration