Citizen Comment - about "punitive exclusionary consequences on disabled student"

If you listened/watched the School Committee meeting Tuesday (12/14/21), one of the parent comments was hard for me to follow but could be summarized as:

"Parent with policy issue, allowing schools to use punitive exclusionary consequences on disabled student for having symptom of a disability that they knowingly failed to support while claiming to be instituting restorative practices"

Did get a handout from the parent to share here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Ftw_dHiDqx1j4j8OgwNPLxOpYU9JiCkw/view?usp=sharing

 

Citizen Comment - about "punitive exclusionary consequences on disabled student"

Franklin Public Schools: District Newsletter - December 2021

FHS Masking Updates, District Highlights and more!

Franklin Public Schools District Newsletter December 2021 Food Services District Calendar School Committee Transportation 21-22 School Calendar There will be no school December 24th-31st. Classes will resume on January 3rd, 2022. FHS Masking Policy & District COVID-19 Dashboard The effort to lift masking for vaccinated Franklin High School students and staff only has been postponed until further notice. A mask mandate will go into effect on Friday, December 17th, 2021 at Franklin High School regardless of vaccination status. The Town of Franklin percent positivity rate is the driving factor for this decision. Please see the Letter to FHS Families sent on the evening of December 15th, 2021 below... Dear FHS Community, We have an update regarding our positivity rate within the Franklin community. We learned, through a conversation with the Franklin Health Department today, that our 14-day % positivity rate is 4.24% and we anticipate that this value is going to be reported in the MA DPH COVID dashboard tomorrow evening. As an adjustment we will be encouraging all vaccinated students and staff to wear masks tomorrow Thursday, December 16th. As you know, unvaccinated students and staff are required to wear masks. We will be returning to the school committee's policy mandate that all students and staff wear masks beginning Friday, December 17th, regardless of vaccination status. This mandate will be in place as long as our 14-day % positivity rate is above 4%. I can appreciate the varied responses to this message and would like to welcome anyone with any questions to email me directly.   Sincerely, Joshua Hanna, Principal You can access the latest supplemental informational videos, letters to FHS families and plan details here. Please note: The district weekly COVID-19 Dashboard is available on our back to school website and is updated the first day following a weekend or school break. MIAA Gymnastics Coach of the Year The Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association announced our very own Paula Lupien as the Gymnastics coach of the year! "Earning this prestigious honor does not surprise me in the least. When it comes to coaching, Coach Lupien is the total package. I attribute the success of our Gymnastics program to Coach Lupien's meticulous attention to detail, her love for her student-athletes, and overall dedication to the coaching profession." - Athletic Director, Tom Angelo Each coach will be recognized at the annual MIAA Awards Banquet in January and will be nominated for the NFHS Sectional and National Coach of the Year Award. View the full list of recipients here. Performing Arts: Upcoming Concerts Bravo to the students at FHS and ASMS who showcased their incredible talents at our concerts so far this month! Be sure to check out our upcoming performances. Upcoming Concerts 12/15 RMS Concert - 6pm at the HMMS 6pm. (snow date 12/20) 12/20 String School of Franklin Winter Concert - 6 PM at the HMMS Auditorium 1/19 FHS Jazz Concert - 7pm at the FHS Auditorium 1/20 Musical Theatre Showcase - 7pm at the FHS Auditorium For many, the winter months are a time of celebration, however, we recognize that these cold and dark months can have a negative impact on our mental health. For those in need of additional mental health support, we recommend utilizing the William James College INTERFACE Referral Service. Their website hosts a wide variety of community resources and their referral service can get you the specialized support you need without having to strain yourself looking for it. Access resources here. The FPS Inclement Weather Policy outlines the decision making process for school cancellation or delays in response to weather related incidents. Families are encouraged to review the policy as we enter the start of the winter season. View the policy here. Professional Teacher Status Ceremony 53 educators earned the honor of obtaining Professional Teachers Status over the last 2 years and the District was glad to be able to reconvene, recognize and celebrate them with a small ceremony on 12/7. These members are no longer considered "probationary" and embrace the necessary knowledge, skills, care, compassion and tenacity we look for in working with our Franklin children. We thank them and look forward to their continued success! Big thanks to our FPS Families, Faculty, Staff and Franklin Community for a great year thus far! Franklin Public Schools www.franklinps.net

Franklin Public Schools | 355 East Central Street, Franklin, MA 02038 www.franklinps.net Sent by communications@franklinps.net powered by Try email marketing for free today!

FHS masking policy reverts to "Required" as of Dec 17th as positivity rate jumps past 4%

December 15, 2021

Dear FHS Community,

We have an update regarding our positivity rate within the Franklin community.  We learned, through a conversation with the Franklin Health Department today, that our 14-day % positivity rate is 4.24% and we anticipate that this value is going to be reported in the MA DPH COVID dashboard tomorrow evening.  

As an adjustment we will be encouraging all vaccinated students and staff to wear masks tomorrow Thursday, December 16th. As you know, unvaccinated students and staff are required to wear masks. 

We will be returning to the school committee’s policy mandate that all students and staff wear masks beginning Friday, December 17th, regardless of vaccination status.  

This mandate will be in place as long as our 14-day % positivity rate is above 4%.  I can appreciate the varied responses to this message and would like to welcome anyone with any questions to email me directly.
 
Sincerely,
Joshua Hanna, Principal 

FHS masking policy reverts to "Required" as of Dec 17th as positivity rate jumps past 4%

Escape Into Fiction announces lease agreement for Main St space

Escape Into Fiction (@EscapeIntoFictn) tweeted Tue, Dec 14, 2021:

We want to spread the word! With all of the support from #franklin and success of the #popupshop in #franklinma, We have secured a lease for our new permanent #bookstore!! 

More news to come as we close out the year!! 

#shoplocal #shopsmallbusiness #franklinmassachusetts #OnMainSt https://t.co/AWIHG4HsB0

Shared from Twitter: https://twitter.com/EscapeIntoFictn/status/1470828305142235141

Escape Into Fiction announces lease agreement for Main St space

FHS Athletic Director Tom Angelo & All about FHS sports - 12/09/21 (audio)

FM #677 = This is the Franklin Matters radio show, number 677 in the series. 

This session of the radio show shares my conversation with Franklin High School Athletic Director Tom Angelo. We had our conversation in person at FHS. The office was mostly quiet although you’ll catch the bell to change classes during our session.

We talk about: 

• How Tom got to FHS in 2016

• Program insights including the development of the Unified teams

• Credit goes to the coaches, the student athletes, and the community

• Shout outs to HockomockSports.com and Franklin TV for coverage of the sports

• Special shout outs to Trainer Jen (Jen Edmunds) and Athletics Secretary Susan Jacobson

• Retirement at end of school year and how Tom will keep busy 

Links to the key references are included in the show notes. The recording runs about 47 minutes, so let’s listen to my conversation with Tom Angelo

** Audio file ->  https://franklin-ma-matters.captivate.fm/episode/fm-677-fhs-athletic-director-tom-angelo-all-about-fhs-sports-12-09-21

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FHS Athletics link ->   https://www.franklinps.net/franklin-high-school/athletics-department 

 

FHS Athletics Twitter account ->  https://twitter.com/FHSSports 

FHS sports twitter listing -> https://twitter.com/i/lists/823290154886512641 

 

HockomockSports.com web page -> https://hockomocksports.com/ 

Franklin TV - event streaming ->  https://franklintv.vod.castus.tv/vod/?nav=live%2Fch2 

--------------

We are now producing this in collaboration with Franklin.TV and Franklin Public Radio (wfpr.fm) or 102.9 on the Franklin area radio dial.  

This podcast is my public service effort for Franklin but we can't do it alone. We can always use your help.

 

How can you help?

• If you can use the information that you find here, please tell your friends and neighbors

• If you don't like something here, please let me know

Through this feedback loop we can continue to make improvements. I thank you for listening.

For additional information, please visit Franklinmatters.org/ or www.franklin.news/

If you have questions or comments you can reach me directly at shersteve @ gmail dot com

The music for the intro and exit was provided by Michael Clark and the group "East of Shirley". The piece is titled "Ernesto, manana"  c. Michael Clark & Tintype Tunes, 2008 and used with their permission.

I hope you enjoy!

------------------

You can also subscribe and listen to Franklin Matters audio on iTunes or your favorite podcast app; search in "podcasts" for "Franklin Matters"

 

FHS Athletic Director Tom Angelo & All about FHS sports

350 Mass Greater Franklin Node, Virtual Meeting and Party, December 16th

Hey, everyone,

Please open our Node Holiday Party/Node meeting invite!

Zoom link for the meeting, December 16, 7:00 pm.

Join on Zoom
https://zoom.us/j/544734092?pwd=N3hwYzZBazRYZG9ycHRsbmliVkMxZz09 

Meeting ID: 544 734 092

Password: 350ma

Dial-in +1 646 876 9923

During the "business" part, before we can party and enjoy one another's company, we'll review the legislative agenda and status of Committee hearings currently taking place at the State House (see below, "Massachusetts Action"). We'll also discuss local and national developments and opportunities for individual and organizational action. 

For related updates, see this week's Climate Weekly email, sent from 350 Mass today, December 14. If you are not receiving Climate Weekly, you can request it here. 

Please take a moment to read the rest of this email for important information.

Actions you can take BEFORE THURSDAY'S MEETING:

Massachusetts Action: The House and Senate committees are actively reviewing the many bills proposed for the current 2021-22 session. This is a critical time to support 350 Mass' top three priority bills. We are asking everyone to contact your legislators via phone or email or, preferably, with a meeting between now and early January, to encourage them to cosponsor these bills. For constituents of Rep. Jeff Roy (Democrat, Franklin, and Chairperson, Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy), the Node is working on setting up a meeting with him; if you'd like to participate, let us know by replying to this email. If you'd like to learn about all the bills that we support, you can find information sheets here.   

National Action: President Biden went ahead with the largest offshore drilling lease sale in US history, auctioning off millions of acres in the Gulf of Mexico to Big Oil, even though they were not legally required to do so. Read about it here. But there's still time to act. Call 866-834-8040 as soon as possible and demand that the Department of the Interior stop the sale!  Learn about the organized opposition here. 

Hold-The-Date for our next Node meeting, January 6, 2022.

All of 350 Mass' nodes are working hard to promote and achieve the organization's priorities, as defined in our Campaign "Bringing the Green New Deal Home" and its three components focused on Buildings, Transportation, and Energy. At our first meeting of the new year, Thursday, January 6th, 7:00 pm, we will focus on the first component, "Building the Green New Deal," that is, requiring that new buildings be efficient and non-emitting, and retrofitting existing buildings, including insulation, energy-efficient appliances, and replacing fossil-fuel heating systems with non-polluting (electric) ones. These changes will occur via legislation, individual consumer choices, and policies and programs adopted by cities and towns. This will be an all-hands-on-deck effort. We ask all of you to join the January 6th virtual meeting to learn about the campaign, share information about groups and activities in your community, and help us plan and implement this campaign. We will send out more information prior to January 6th, and we ask your help in publicizing this important meeting. Thank you.

As for this week, we hope you can join us Thursday at 7:00. We'll send a reminder Thursday afternoon.

We wish everyone a healthy and happy new year. Thank you for your commitment to the struggle for a transition to a just, equitable, and clean energy economy.

Node Co-coordinators,

Carolyn Barthel

Ralph Halpern

Ralph Halpern

ralph.halpern@comcast.net

781-784-3839 (h)

339-203-5017 (c)

350 Mass Greater Franklin Node, Virtual Meeting and Party, December 16th