Hebron Dollars & Sense
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- Created on Wednesday, 03 March 2010 08:55
The past polls have been clear (see results by using the pull down menus on the polling page.)
According to the budget presented at the March 4th BOS Meeting, the Open Space contribution has been cut by $30,000, despite the 1999 town meeting vote that 1/2 mil be annually contributed to that fund. Last year's contribution to Open Space was $130,000; this year's requested contribution is $100,000, a 23.08% reduction. That contribution, like all other aspects of the town budget, is subject to further reductions by the Board of Finance, but at this point, there is still a proposed $100,000 contribution to the Open Space Land Acquisition Fund on the table for FY 2010-11.
The Library budget is pennies, and our town library functions significantly from the efforts of the Friends of the Douglas Library.
With time running short, it's time for a new poll, and it's a tough question: The town budget is coming in a 0% increase, in line with the BOS/BOF request. Let's say the BOE comes in with a 0% increase, but still includes all-day Kindergarten, a non-required program. Will you support that budget? Vote now!
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- Created on Friday, 22 January 2010 05:31
There is a new mantra going around Hebron that all day kindergarten gives participating students in the current "lottery" system-based all day kindergarten an "advantage," as opposed to those children who don't attend all day kindergarten.
But is that really true?
Last year, a Hebron BOE board member, in a public meeting, admitted that the BOE had no measures of "success" with all day kindergarten, nor had they been collecting data ("We're currently working on developing measurements"), nor is all day Kindergarten required by the State Department of Education (despite what you may think or have been told), nor are there any standardized tests to measure the value of all day Kindergarten.
But how about considering new data, compiled the week of January 11, 2010, that has just been released regarding State of Connecticut published results???? Keep in mind that the State of Connecticut only starts testing children in the 3rd grade....
- 6 out of the top 10 3rd grade CMT math performance schools only offer half-day Kindergarten, and only 1 out of the top 10 3rd grade CMT math performance schools offer full-day Kindergarten
- 7 out of the top 10 3rd grade CMT reading performance schools only offer half-day Kindergarten, and only 2 out of the top 10 3rd grade CMT reading performance schools offer full-day Kindergarten
- 7 out of the top 10 3rd grade CMT writing performance schools only offer half-day Kindergarten, and only 2 out of the top 10 3rd grade CMT writing performance schools offer full-day Kindergarten
And how about this data from the same January 2010 data analysis?
- 8 out of the bottom 10 3rd grade CMT math performance schools offer full-day Kindergarten, and none of the bottom 10 3rd grade CMT math performance schools offer only half-day Kindergarten
- 9 out of the bottom 10 3rd grade CMT reading performance schools offer full-day Kindergarten, and none of the bottom 10 3rd grade CMT reading performance schools offer only half-day Kindergarten
- 7 out of the bottom 10 3rd grade CMT writing performance schools offer full-day Kindergarten, and only 1 of the bottom 10 3rd grade CMT writing performance schools offer only half-day Kindergarten
With this kind of information available, why would the Hebron Board of Education burden taxpayers in such a difficult year with a 4% budget increase, most of which involves the cost of adding all day kindergarten???? The Hebron Board of Selectmen and Hebron Board of Finance have already specifically requested that all departments (including RHAM) come in with a FLAT (i.e., 0%) budget increase due to the decrease in revenues?
Even if everyone plays nice and comes in with a 0% budget increase, Hebron taxpayers are still looking at a tax increase because of the decline in revenues! Think about it....
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- Created on Friday, 29 August 2008 15:07
Connecticut Faces a School Tax Revolt "As of the end of June, a record 85 of Connecticut's 169 municipalities had or were planning budget referenda; and the median approved spending increase was 3.8%, lower than the 5% last year and 5.3% in 2006.
Mike Guarco, chairman of the finance board in Granby, has formed the Connecticut Municipal Consortium for Fiscal Responsibility, a bipartisan alliance of elected officials representing 117 of the state's towns. The group fights against binding arbitration, "prevailing wage" laws for public building projects, and burdensome state mandates (such as a requirement that all student suspensions be supervised in-house). These are the three largest cost drivers of K-12 education." Lewis M. Andrews, Yankee Instititute
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- Created on Tuesday, 05 August 2008 08:44
For the first time in Connecticut’s recent history, people will be gathering in September to map out a plan to save our Constitutional rights. Not since the 1700's, when the colonists gathered together in taverns to discuss the formation and ratification of the Constitution, have citizens felt the need to gather together once again to discuss Constitutional issues. This time, they are gathering to discuss how to stop the destruction of the Constitution.
CONNECTICUT LIBERTY FORUM
Hosted by The National Home Education Legal Defense (NHELD)!
Dates: September 27 and 28, 2008
Times: Sept 27 from 8 AM to 8 PM and Sept 28 from 8 AM to 2 PM
Where: The Clarion Hotel, 42 Century Dr, Bristol, CT
Contacts: Attorney Deborah Stevenson , (860) 354-3590 or
(203) 206-4282 or contact Judy Aron at (860) 523-7257
Website: http://www.nheld.com/CTLibertyForum.htm
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Read more: A Message and Invitation from The National Home Education Legal Defense (NHELD)!