Board of Ed to present Town Council with 'two school' building option

The Board of Education will go before the Town Council Monday night [May 24] to officially announce its endorsement of a proposed two-school building project. School board members are scheduled to present the proposal at 6 p.m. in the Audrey P. Beck Municipal Building before the council’s regular meeting.

Board members finalized their selection at their May 13 board of education meeting.

Their decision differs from the school building committee, which has endorsed consolidating the town’s elementary schools into one building.

Board of Education Chair Mark LaPlaca said the two schools would maintain the small, community feel that many town residents have said they want preserved, but it would also hit the “sweet spot” in terms of student enrollment.

Between 310 and 315 pupils would be enrolled at each school, a range that research indicates is the best size for elementary schools, said LaPlaca.

With the two-school building project, all three existing elementary schools in Mansfield would close and be replaced with two newer, larger elementary schools.

Currently, pupils in Mansfield attend one of three elementary schools and then go to Mansfield Middle School once they become fifth-graders.

Elementary schools in Mansfield include Southeast Elementary School, Dorothy C. Goodwin Elementary School and Annie E. Vinton Elementary School.

The two-school option would cost $59.58 million, including proposed renovations at Mansfield Middle School. Local taxpayers would fund $26.9 million of the total and the rest would come from state reimbursements which is estimated as 54.9 percent for school building construction.

Previous discussions have focused on building the new schools on the Southeast and Vinton sites, but location remain open to debate, said Celeste Griffin, Superintendent Fred Baruzzi’s administrative assistant.

“The sites would be determined (later),” she said.

Baruzzi could not be reached for comment.

According to LaPlaca, board members would like to have one school on the south end of town and another on the north end of town.

However, they will ask the Town Council to fully evaluate all land options in town, said LaPlaca.

Mansfield Director of Planning Gregory Padick has said there are few sites on which to build new school because of  wetlands and other limitations.

The discussion about new schools, renovated schools and a consolidated school has been going on for a few years, now. At one time, four potential options were discussed, including not taking action now and delaying repairs at the four schools.

The proposal endorsed by board of education members is a fifth option that was added in April in response to negative feedback from many community members who opposed one, large consolidated school.

During several forums in the past six months, residents have expressed a desire to keep the smaller neighborhood-style schools in town rather than constructing larger schools, but LaPlaca said he thinks people will be able to support the two-school proposal.

“I think it’ll have a good amount of support,” he said this morning.

With the goal of a November 2 referendum, the Town Council will need to review the proposal and make a decision soon.

A public hearing is tentatively scheduled for June 14, and the Town Council is expected to take action on the proposal June 28.

Posted May 20, 2010

Push is on to recruit more women in science fields

High-speed rail is one area where women could find new careers. Photo courtesy of Baltek Inc.

To help counter an anticipated shortage of skilled transportation workers, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today [May 20] signed an agreement with the Women’s Transportation Seminar International to encourage women to complete undergraduate and graduate degrees in science, technology, engineering and math – while pursuing careers in transportation.

“There’s tremendous opportunity out there for women interested in transportation-related careers,” said Secretary LaHood. “We need to do more to prepare, train and educate young women about the possibilities.”

Secretary LaHood said the need for environmental engineers and technicians is expected to rise by 30 percent over the next decade.

The Department of Labor reported in 2008 that less than 6 percent of employed women worked in transportation, and only 10 percent of all civil engineers in the U.S. are women.

The Memorandum of Cooperation signed today supports the following key goals:

* understanding where gaps exist in the attraction and retention of women in transportation-oriented technical fields such as engineering and logistics;

* developing a tool-kit of best practices in the areas of mentoring, promoting women entrepreneurs and attracting students in technical fields into transportation;

* developing more effective professional development opportunities for women across the lifecycle of a career;

* developing ideas and partnerships to encourage girls (13-18 years) to consider careers in transportation; and

* engaging the WTS community in a broad-based policy initiative that supports the advancement of women in U.S. transportation.

The joint initiative will support the advancement of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) through a strategic partnership between the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Women’s Transportation Seminar International (WTS).

“WTS is excited to launch this strategic partnership with DOT and to help develop a transportation workforce of the future” said Elaine Dezenski, WTS International President.

Taking advantage of its network of 45 chapters and more than 4,000 transportation professionals, WTS will work with the DOT to organize a series of outreach sessions in 2010 and 2011 throughout the U.S.

Sessions will focus on workforce development as it relates to STEM, with specific attention given to attracting and retaining a highly qualified, diverse and technically advanced workforce for the future.

Posted May 20, 2010

Admission free to state parks and forests May 22-23

Harkness Memorial State Park

Declaring Connecticut’s state parks and forests “a very real and a very important part of our state’s history and heritage,” Gov. M. Jodi Rell has announced special activities at these locations as part of the celebration of Connecticut’s 375th anniversary.

At a ceremony at Heublein Tower in Talcott Mountain State Park, Simsbury, Gov. Rell said, “To encourage families to celebrate our state’s anniversary by spending time together in the ‘great outdoors,’ we will open the gates – free of charge – next weekend at all state parks.  We are also placing a commemorative 375^th anniversary stamp in letterboxes at state forest locations that are part of the state’s letterboxing program.”

Fees will be waived for the weekend of May 22-23 at the state parks where pre-season parking fees are now being charged. This includes Hammonasset Beach State Park, Madison; Sherwood Island State Park, Westport; Rocky Neck State Park, East Lyme; and Harkness Memorial State Park, Waterford.  Admission will also be free at the Dinosaur State Park exhibit center, Rocky Hill.

The special 375^th anniversary stamp is being placed at 28 letterbox locations within the state’s 32 state forests. Clues to finding the location of these letterboxes can be found at www.ct.gov/dep/forestry.  The anniversary stamps were provided by Hartford Stamp and Office Works.

“Connecticut has an extraordinary network of 107 state parks and 32 state forests for all of us – and future generations to enjoy.  These parks and forests allow everyone to experience and appreciate the diversity of natural resources, terrain and wildlife – as well as the fascinating history – with which our state is blessed,” Gov. Rell said.

The state forest system dates back to 1903 and the purchase of the first piece of Meshomasic State Forest, Portland.

The state park system traces its history back to 1913 with the formation of a State Park Commission and the purchase of Sherwood Island, Connecticut’s first state park

The parks and forests, which range from the hills of the northwest corner to the shores of southeastern Connecticut – offering hiking, swimming, picnicking, camping and more – capture much of the history of the state, including:

• A unique reminder of prehistoric times at Dinosaur State Park in Rocky Hill, where dinosaur tracks were discovered in 1966 and protected with a distinctive geodesic dome that opened in 1978.
• The preservation of Revolutionary War history at Fort Griswold State Park, Groton; Ft. Trumbull, New London; Putnam Memorial State Park, Bethel/Redding; and Nathan Hale State Forest, Coventry/Andover.
• The remains of Connecticut’s old railways with Air Line State Park Trail in Eastern Connecticut and the Valley Railroad State Park, Essex.
• Evidence of the state’s early iron industry at Beckley Furnace, North Canaan and Old Furnace State Parks, Killingly.
• A look at the work of the Depression-era Civilian Conservation Corps preserved at the CCC Museum, Shenipsit State Forest, Stafford.
• The Heublein Tower, which looks like a German castle at Talcott Mountain State Park, Simsbury and a castle, Gillette Castle State Park, in East Haddam, built by an actor who was famous for his portrayal of Sherlock Holmes.

Gov. Rell and other dignitaries kicked off the 375^th Anniversary on February 17, 2010 at the State Library, which houses the fundamental orders and State Constitution.

Historians say 1635 was the critical year in Connecticut history, because that year marked the settlement of the three river towns – Windsor, Wethersfield and Hartford – that initially established the colony.

Visit www.CT375.com for more information. Other related links are:

• http://twitter.com/Connecticut375
• http://www.facebook.com/pages/Hartford-CT/Connecticuts-375thAnniversary/10150113573780463?ref=ts
• http://www.youtube.com/user/ct375

Posted May 20, 2010