Tuesday, October 16, 7 – 8:15 PM
Open Space Forum, Thornton Wilder Auditorium @ Miller Library
Participation of Democratic incumbent Craig Henrici and Republican challenger Ron Gambardella. Sponsors include Hamden Land Conservation Trust, League of Women Voters of Hamden, Hamden PTA Council, Watershed Fund, Farmington Canal Rail-to-Trail Association, Dunbar Hill Civic Association, Ray Andrewsen of radio station WQUN will moderate.
More info about Hamden Land Conservation Trust
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Friday, October 12, 2007
Hamden PTA Survey - Revisited
October 12, 2007
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
A recent survey of all Hamden elementary school PTAs and the middle school PTA revealed the incredible value that our PTAs bring to our school system.
Bringing families together to have fun is a core focus of our PTAs. They sponsor “family fun” events that are either free to families or charge an admission that is just enough to cover expenses. The following is a sampling of family events that will be held in the coming year by a variety of schools:
All PTAs hold fundraisers to pay for the free programs they offer to families and cultural enrichment programs for students. Hamden has recently adopted guidelines to encourage healthy lifestyles and encourages PTAs to raise money with non-food items. It turns out that wrapping paper, something we all can use that won’t tip the scale, is one of the best fundraisers for our PTAs.
Hamden PTAs work in concert with their administrators and teachers to bring curriculum enhancements to their schools. This help comes in the form of art nights and workshops, school-wide assemblies with guest teachers and performers, and visiting authors and scientific demonstrations in classrooms. Many PTAs also subsidize field trips outside their school, whether it’s a trip to the Eli Whitney Museum, a local apple orchard, a day at Holiday Hill, or a trip to Ellis Island.
NONE of the above activities could be accomplished without the dedication and support of our students’ families, both nuclear and extended. Every hour or dollar you contribute to your neighborhood PTA is appreciated and necessary. “Many hands make light work” has never been a truer sentiment when it comes to running a PTA and all the programs and services they provide.
We invite all Hamden residents, but especially parents, grand parents, aunts and uncles, to contact their student's school PTA through the school's main office (see list below) and find out where you can lend a hand. Even if it’s only an hour helping kids pick out books at the book fair, or flipping pancakes next to your kid at Applebee’s, your involvement is critical to student success.
We also extend a BIG “Thank You!!!!” to all the Hamden PTA presidents and your committees for all that you do to make Hamden schools such a great asset to our town.
Hamden PTA Council Executive Board:
Hamden PTA Council Representatives:
Bear Path School
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
A recent survey of all Hamden elementary school PTAs and the middle school PTA revealed the incredible value that our PTAs bring to our school system.
Bringing families together to have fun is a core focus of our PTAs. They sponsor “family fun” events that are either free to families or charge an admission that is just enough to cover expenses. The following is a sampling of family events that will be held in the coming year by a variety of schools:
- Welcome Back Picnics
- Ice Cream Socials - for incoming kindergarten students and their families
- Holiday Parties – Harvest Hoedown, Halloween, Valentine’s Day
- Themed Dinners & Seasonal Picnics
- Talent Shows
- School Photos
- Craft Fairs
- Sporting Events - Cutter’s Baseball Game
- Applebee's Breakfasts - students and parents are the hosts, servers and cooks
- Father/ Daughter Dances
- Family Bowling Nights
- Book Fairs
- Game Nights
- Art Showcases
- International Fairs
- Field Days
- Newsletters
- Student Handbooks/ Directories
- Yearbooks
All PTAs hold fundraisers to pay for the free programs they offer to families and cultural enrichment programs for students. Hamden has recently adopted guidelines to encourage healthy lifestyles and encourages PTAs to raise money with non-food items. It turns out that wrapping paper, something we all can use that won’t tip the scale, is one of the best fundraisers for our PTAs.
Hamden PTAs work in concert with their administrators and teachers to bring curriculum enhancements to their schools. This help comes in the form of art nights and workshops, school-wide assemblies with guest teachers and performers, and visiting authors and scientific demonstrations in classrooms. Many PTAs also subsidize field trips outside their school, whether it’s a trip to the Eli Whitney Museum, a local apple orchard, a day at Holiday Hill, or a trip to Ellis Island.
NONE of the above activities could be accomplished without the dedication and support of our students’ families, both nuclear and extended. Every hour or dollar you contribute to your neighborhood PTA is appreciated and necessary. “Many hands make light work” has never been a truer sentiment when it comes to running a PTA and all the programs and services they provide.
We invite all Hamden residents, but especially parents, grand parents, aunts and uncles, to contact their student's school PTA through the school's main office (see list below) and find out where you can lend a hand. Even if it’s only an hour helping kids pick out books at the book fair, or flipping pancakes next to your kid at Applebee’s, your involvement is critical to student success.
We also extend a BIG “Thank You!!!!” to all the Hamden PTA presidents and your committees for all that you do to make Hamden schools such a great asset to our town.
Hamden PTA Council Executive Board:
President, Marjorie Clark
Vice President, Mary Clough
Treasurer, Melissa Stasiak
Secretary, Karen Leeper
Corresponding Secretary, Cheri Brooks
Hamden PTA Council Representatives:
Bear Path School
Co-President Cathy CroweChurch St. School
Co-President, Jennifer McGarry
Council Rep, Mike Alissi
President, Cindy CardoDunbar Hill School
Co-President, Kim TreloarHelen St. School
Co-President, Karen Alexander
Council Rep, A.J. Scheetz
President, Colleen MackayRidge Hill
Co-Presidents, Terri and Lou LettieroShepherd Glen
Co-President, Tamara BoemmelsSpring Glen
Co-President, Stephanie Bezerra
Council Rep, Karen Leeper
President, Michelle HumbleWest Woods
Council Rep, Patti Klaje
Co-President, Eileen VitaWintergreen
Co-President, Cheryl Cartier
Council Rep, Cheri Brooks
President, Sue MurphyMiddle School
Council Rep, Shanta Smith
President, Jackie Downing
Council Rep, Kathy Muolo
"No School Board Left Standing"
When Howard Dean was running for President in 2003, he used this phrase to describe No Child Left Behind. It's double-speak for legislation that will undermine a public service that can only be "fixed" by contracting the service to a private company.
The intent behind the law - holding schools accountable and measuring student progress - is admirable and we've been doing it for decades. Remember the IOWA test? However, what happens to a school and its district if it doesn't meet the ever-rising criteria of "proficient," is basically "do a better job or else!" Instead of rewarding schools that improve year to year, they are threatened with "sanctions." Nurturing parents have long known that you get more flies with sugar than with vinegar; NCLB needs to be rewritten to include positive reinforcement techniques.
NCLB has been law since 2002 and Hamden is finally feeling the impact of this incredibly unfair and destructive law.
Here's the good news: since September 24, 2007, Hamden’s new Superintendent of Schools, Fran Rabinowitz, has been to every school, some more than once. At the October PTA Council meeting (October 11) she reported how impressed she was with the excellent teaching and administration in our schools. There is always room for improvement, but she reassured all present that we are not, as a district, or even as individual schools, “failing.” Hamden parents and teachers should not panic because Helen Street, Dunbar Hill and Spring Glen have been identified as “not making Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP)” under the No Child Left Behind law (NCLB).
Here's the bad news: NCLB stipulates that if one subgroup in a school (black, Hispanic, white, disabled, English-as-a second-language or free/reduced lunch) is found to not meet Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) benchmarks for two years, then the school is put on the “in need of improvement” list.
The graduated “sanctions” outlined in NCLB (busing the poorest and lowest performing students to “better” schools, a.k.a. Open Choice, tutoring students after school but not allowing the school’s teachers to do the tutoring, replacing teachers and finally, restructuring the whole school administration) are the opposite of what needs to be done to help children improve.
Unfortunately Hamden Public Schools have no choice but to comply or lose all of their Federal funding – two million dollars plus – to our district. Superintendent Rabinowitz and her staff will be giving great thought and analysis to where Open Choice students should go. Options will be based upon space available at designated schools. In addition, Superintendent Rabinowitz has offered to speak to any individual or group on the topic of NCLB and it’s implications to our school system. (Please contact her office to schedule a visit at 407-2090).
So what’s to be done?
Since 1985 Connecticut educators and superintendents have asked our State Department of Education to institute a “growth model” to chart student progress and teacher effectiveness. A growth model compares fourth graders to fifth graders, rather than this year’s fourth graders to last year’s fourth graders.
It is unlikely that anything about NCLB will change prior to the election of a new President, so here’s what we can do in the meantime:
1. Contact your state and Federal legislators and ask them to adopt a growth model that will accurately and fairly measure our students’ and schools’ true Adequate Yearly Progress and
2. Stay calm and give your children and their teachers as much support as you can. Visit www.pta.org for some great ideas.
The intent behind the law - holding schools accountable and measuring student progress - is admirable and we've been doing it for decades. Remember the IOWA test? However, what happens to a school and its district if it doesn't meet the ever-rising criteria of "proficient," is basically "do a better job or else!" Instead of rewarding schools that improve year to year, they are threatened with "sanctions." Nurturing parents have long known that you get more flies with sugar than with vinegar; NCLB needs to be rewritten to include positive reinforcement techniques.
NCLB has been law since 2002 and Hamden is finally feeling the impact of this incredibly unfair and destructive law.
Here's the good news: since September 24, 2007, Hamden’s new Superintendent of Schools, Fran Rabinowitz, has been to every school, some more than once. At the October PTA Council meeting (October 11) she reported how impressed she was with the excellent teaching and administration in our schools. There is always room for improvement, but she reassured all present that we are not, as a district, or even as individual schools, “failing.” Hamden parents and teachers should not panic because Helen Street, Dunbar Hill and Spring Glen have been identified as “not making Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP)” under the No Child Left Behind law (NCLB).
Here's the bad news: NCLB stipulates that if one subgroup in a school (black, Hispanic, white, disabled, English-as-a second-language or free/reduced lunch) is found to not meet Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) benchmarks for two years, then the school is put on the “in need of improvement” list.
The graduated “sanctions” outlined in NCLB (busing the poorest and lowest performing students to “better” schools, a.k.a. Open Choice, tutoring students after school but not allowing the school’s teachers to do the tutoring, replacing teachers and finally, restructuring the whole school administration) are the opposite of what needs to be done to help children improve.
Unfortunately Hamden Public Schools have no choice but to comply or lose all of their Federal funding – two million dollars plus – to our district. Superintendent Rabinowitz and her staff will be giving great thought and analysis to where Open Choice students should go. Options will be based upon space available at designated schools. In addition, Superintendent Rabinowitz has offered to speak to any individual or group on the topic of NCLB and it’s implications to our school system. (Please contact her office to schedule a visit at 407-2090).
So what’s to be done?
Since 1985 Connecticut educators and superintendents have asked our State Department of Education to institute a “growth model” to chart student progress and teacher effectiveness. A growth model compares fourth graders to fifth graders, rather than this year’s fourth graders to last year’s fourth graders.
It is unlikely that anything about NCLB will change prior to the election of a new President, so here’s what we can do in the meantime:
1. Contact your state and Federal legislators and ask them to adopt a growth model that will accurately and fairly measure our students’ and schools’ true Adequate Yearly Progress and
2. Stay calm and give your children and their teachers as much support as you can. Visit www.pta.org for some great ideas.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
October PTA Council Meeting at Helen Street School
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The Hamden PTA Council will hold its regular monthly meeting on Thursday, October 11 at 7 PM at Helen Street School in the Media Center. Helen Street School is located at 285 Helen St. Hamden, CT 06514.
The mission of the Hamden PTA Council is to be an advocate for all of Hamden’s school PTAs, making sure that all students receive the same high quality education. The Hamden PTA Council invites all Helen Street parents, teachers, staff, neighbors and alum to attend and share their ideas on how to achieve excellence in their school. This meeting is also open to the general public.
A recent survey of Hamden’s PTAs confirms the positive effect on a student’s learning experience when parents participate in school activities. “I’m hoping that this gathering will provide Helen Street PTA the opportunity to engage the parental involvement necessary to keep their group, and therefore their school and students, thriving,” said Hamden PTA Council President, Marjorie Clark.
Contacts:
www.HamdenPTA.org
Marjorie Clark, Hamden PTA Council President
288-6831, marjorie@littlefishstudios.com
Colleen Mackay, Helen Street School PTA President
288-9264, mackay94@aol.com
Lynette Kelleher, Helen Street School Principal
285 Helen Street, Hamden CT, 06514 407-2030, LKelleher@hamden.org
The Hamden PTA Council will hold its regular monthly meeting on Thursday, October 11 at 7 PM at Helen Street School in the Media Center. Helen Street School is located at 285 Helen St. Hamden, CT 06514.
The mission of the Hamden PTA Council is to be an advocate for all of Hamden’s school PTAs, making sure that all students receive the same high quality education. The Hamden PTA Council invites all Helen Street parents, teachers, staff, neighbors and alum to attend and share their ideas on how to achieve excellence in their school. This meeting is also open to the general public.
A recent survey of Hamden’s PTAs confirms the positive effect on a student’s learning experience when parents participate in school activities. “I’m hoping that this gathering will provide Helen Street PTA the opportunity to engage the parental involvement necessary to keep their group, and therefore their school and students, thriving,” said Hamden PTA Council President, Marjorie Clark.
Contacts:
www.HamdenPTA.org
Marjorie Clark, Hamden PTA Council President
288-6831, marjorie@littlefishstudios.com
Colleen Mackay, Helen Street School PTA President
288-9264, mackay94@aol.com
Lynette Kelleher, Helen Street School Principal
285 Helen Street, Hamden CT, 06514 407-2030, LKelleher@hamden.org
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Hamden PTA Survey
I haven't received all of the surveys from all the Hamden School PTAs, but my preliminary review tells me this: a school and students success is strongly related to parent participation in school activities, i.e., the strength and vitality of its PTA.
Well, duh!
I've always believed that you get out what you put in, but I now have some hard evidence that this is true.
In addition to the size and activity of a PTA unit, here are the other elements that are critical to a school's success:
- A good to excellent relationship between the school's administration, teachers and staff with the PTA.
- Integration of cultural arts and enrichments programs and field trips with curriculum.
It stands to reason that the PTAs that are thriving, with good participation and event turnout, are the ones where the principals, teachers and staff work in concert to let kids learn in a fun, active and exciting ways.
I've come to the conclusion that student success is not as strongly related to how much money you spend per student, but how much time and effort. Sometimes that equals money, but more often it translates to caring; not doing things right, but doing the right thing.
In light of this discovery, the Hamden PTA Council will hold its next monthly meeting, Thursday, October 11, 7 PM, at Helen Street School. Their PTA needs guidance and support and we're going to get the whole town out, or at least the entire PTA Council, to give it to them. We'll be doing our regular business and continue the discussion of the PTA survey findings with our new Superintendent, Fran Rabinowitz. I hope to see you there.
Once I have received all of the school PTA surveys, I will publish a formal report. The list of things PTAs do for schools will impress you and hopefully make you want to join the group that plays such an important role in your children's education.
Well, duh!
I've always believed that you get out what you put in, but I now have some hard evidence that this is true.
In addition to the size and activity of a PTA unit, here are the other elements that are critical to a school's success:
- A good to excellent relationship between the school's administration, teachers and staff with the PTA.
- Integration of cultural arts and enrichments programs and field trips with curriculum.
It stands to reason that the PTAs that are thriving, with good participation and event turnout, are the ones where the principals, teachers and staff work in concert to let kids learn in a fun, active and exciting ways.
I've come to the conclusion that student success is not as strongly related to how much money you spend per student, but how much time and effort. Sometimes that equals money, but more often it translates to caring; not doing things right, but doing the right thing.
In light of this discovery, the Hamden PTA Council will hold its next monthly meeting, Thursday, October 11, 7 PM, at Helen Street School. Their PTA needs guidance and support and we're going to get the whole town out, or at least the entire PTA Council, to give it to them. We'll be doing our regular business and continue the discussion of the PTA survey findings with our new Superintendent, Fran Rabinowitz. I hope to see you there.
Once I have received all of the school PTA surveys, I will publish a formal report. The list of things PTAs do for schools will impress you and hopefully make you want to join the group that plays such an important role in your children's education.
It's Happened...You've Become Your Mother
Some things we can control, but others are genetically implanted, or washed into our brain and there's no way around it. This is for all the parents who give their best every day.
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