Local H.S. Seniors Honored

This in from Chris Barnett at the Secretary of State's office. Congratulations to these students!

"Honoring High School Seniors for Public Service

Students from all over Rhode Island are recognized with our 2009 High School Civic Leadership Awards.

The awards are given annually to members of the senior class who make outstanding contributions to their schools and their hometowns. The winners were honored in front of friends, family and faculty at a State House ceremony. Photos of the event.

“This award recognizes students who show an understanding of the importance public service has in a democratic society,” says Secretary of State Mollis. “These students take the principles of civics and put them into action at home and at school.”

We asked high schools around the state to nominate members of the Class of 2009 who best met the ideals of the award: public service, leadership ability and academic achievement.

Seventy-nine high schools ranging from Barrington High to Woonsocket High nominated seniors for the honor. This is the third consecutive year we have presented the awards.

"I am committed to encouraging young people to get involved. Their enthusiasm and willingness to participate in the civic life of their school and community are vital to the strength of our democracy. I hope their example inspires next year’s senior class," says Secretary Mollis.

Middletown High School: Carly Benson& Daniel A. Quintanilla

Rogers High School: Bethany Lopes & Michael Turchetti

Tiverton High School: Elizabeth McGreavy & Joshua Louis Beaupre

Flat Tax Costs to You

Here is what the flat tax costs you the local property tax payer. The % is the amount your taxes will need to go up to make-up for the proposed general fund monies no longer to be received. All this for less than 15 wealthy individuals (19 in Newport, 22 in Portsmouth)). End or freeze the flat tax & aid will be restored. Seems like a no-brainer to me. Sorry, this tax NEVER made any sense given R.I. economic position for the past several years.

Our property taxes should be going down, not constantly upward. How much longer before local residents say "No More" & place a good portion of the blame where it should be- the State Lege & the guv. Our tax system needs to be fairer and we should be eliminating breaks which have no proven positive effect to the citizenry- we, the people. Not, we the few.

Middletown: 2.185%

Newport: 2.508%

Little Compton: .951%

Tiverton: 1.753%

Portsmouth: 1.386%

Towns Lose Under New Budget

Under the House's proposed General Budget, aid to towns & cities will be deep-sixed.

% = amount of municipal budget loss

Middletown $829,818 3.8%
Newport $1,564,837 2.92%
Tiverton $547,575 3.34%
Little Compton $89,670 1.93%

Portsmouth $554,736 2.84%

This could be restored in the flat tax were frozen or eliminated. But we wouldn't want to actually help all of us with our own monies, would be?

Thanks to http://www.rifuture.org/ & Tom Sgorous for the info. Meanwhile we keep the flat tax which costs us all lost revenues for the benefit of fewer than 15 residents. How's the working out for us?

Now is the time to let your local legislators hear your scream- before budget approval.

School aid is frozen, I believe- where it has been for the past few years while their expenses have gone up. How much more of this can local property tax payers bear? The Assembly swallowed up many sources of our income while looking "cool." Not so glam, however, when we all have to make up for the local shortfalls.

Local councils should be screaming along with local legislators. Listen ...

Local Farmers' Markets

Coming soon, although you can now also buy products locally! Try Sweet Berry Farm or Chase Farms in Portsmouth on East Main (many plants also). You can also go to the Green Grocer in P'mouth on Fri. from 3-6. Haven't been there yet.

I love these things. You can buy almost anything from farm produce- both grown & meats, prepared foods to-go, plants, and whoever else shows that day. Have a hotdog or It. sandwich with Middletown's own Lou & Denise of "Lou's Hotdogs." Knishes, too!

I'm listing the closest. Right now farm products include all kinds of greens, kale, scallions, lettuce, mushrooms, asparagus, radish, rhubarb (yum), and some herbs. Too early for strawberries, sigh. Meats, eggs, milk, cream... if you can't find them, you ain't looking. I always try & puchase Rhody Fresh- no hormones! There is also a Tiverton farm which supplies local products- Arruda Dairy. And don't forget Susanna's homemade ice cream (she's always working out new combos) at Sweet Berry & Cory's Kitchen bakery products. Ahhh, why I live here- well, one reason, at least.

Local farm products- good for you and No Recalls! And ALWAYS- local honey; esp. if you or your pets have allergies!

There is a new location this yr.- the Grange! And I hadn't previously known about the Green Grocer.

Aquidneck Growers' Wednesday June 10
Wed 2:00-6:00 Memorial Blvd. along the wall

Aquidneck Growers' Saturday June 6
Sat 9:00-1:00 Middletown Newport Vineyards & Winery

Middletown / Aquidneck Grange June18
Thu 2:00-6:00 Middletown Aquidneck Grange corner of Aquidneck & E. Main Rd.

Portsmouth
Fri 3:00-6:00 May-Nov The Green Grocer E. Main Rd. (must be inside their store)

Sakonnet Growers' Market June 27
Sat 9:00-1:00 Tiverton Pardon Gray Preserve

St. Sen. DiPalma before the Middletown Town Council

**UPDATE** Darn! All that editing & hours of stuff for naught. I fixed & hopefully link will work now.

This is Sen. DiPalma giving a lege update at the Mon. Council meeting. I missed the first 3? minutes- the State is doing roadwork on W. Main, most of the Charter changes are on the guv's desk waiting to be signed, and the change giving seniors with limited incomes a local tax break is in committee.

Since it was so long (too long- 13 min.), it had to be divided. See Pt. 2.

My totally unsoliticed advice: whoa, Nellie! Stick to a script (less than 5 min.) which would help eliminate the run-on sentences during which we fall asleep wherein you also throw in so much stuff that it's like my kitchen sink and I lose track whereupon the sentence ends and I hear something I'm interested in but I'm so off-track at that point that it takes me by surprise and I'm unsure that I heard it correctly. Got it? KISS.

Butterflies Released on Sat.

MONARCH BUTTERFLY RELEASE —The Butterfly Zoo, 409 Bulgarmarsh Road, Tiverton, 1 p.m. Monarch butterflies will be released into the wild. Zoo hours are 11 a.m.­4 p.m. In the event of inclement weather, the event will be postponed to May 24. Free. (NDN today)

New B.E.P. Hearing

I'm 60 years old. I know crap when I see it, I know it when I hear it, and I definitely know it when I smell it. And this hearing for public comment by the State Board of Regents (two were present) was crap.

When school committees, parents' groups, & teachers have no time to review the plan (the download site doesn't work) & you schedule something like this with a week's notice, it begins rather smelly in my book. And I was right.

The audience consisted of appx. 25 with 7 people elected to speak, & the new proposed doc was given out. Good thing because the link on their site doesn't work.

Middletown's School Supt' Kraeger was there (spoke), along with School Committee woman Gaines. Present, but not speaking was Liana Ferreira-Fenton, Linda Savastano (ass't sup't), and Sandra Flowers (Newport Schools). There were a number of school librarians in the audience. Evidently they were the only group able to get info out regarding this meeting.

The BEP ("Basic Education Plan"- see previous article) is every school's Bible. This doc reads well, sounds good, and goes down real easily. But what the heck does it mean? You've got me.

The actual session last an hr. with 7 people electing to speak. It was announced that the Regents are "interested in [the] need for further revisions." Doubt that. Seems to me they are interested in "teaks only."

#1. Dr. Carol Herman- the most impressive speaker with 1 1/2 pages. She is a teacher-librarian & new member on the non-partisan Tiverton School Committee. She stated that we "need explicit" B.E.P. regs to prevent school committees from decimating programs in order to lower taxes. She referred to the Sat. Tiverton Town Budget meeting which cut $627,000 from schools at a poorly attended meeting. She said that these new regs would results in "the only winners [are] those who want lower property taxes. The losers are the kids." She referred to economic development necessitating good public schools and the real problem in education is not casued by the current B.E.P, but by not having a fair funding formula and a basic lack of monies from the State.

Here! Here!

#2. Helen ? spoke for School Counselors. Sorry, she spoke too quickly & with her head down, so I missed much of this. She spoke to a wording problem in the new doc.

#3. Gentleman. Sorry, he did not speak directly into the mic & I just couldn't hear him. His focus seemed to be that the doc calls for a "minimum adequate education" and he wanted it to address excellence. Good point.

$4. Barbara Ashbe of RILINK spoke to the new doc not addressing "reading" in library requirements nor does it address what a "highly effective staff" actually mean. She is also afraid that the loss of professional school librarians could results in the state dropping interlibrary loans to school. She is concerned that their is no method of challenging districts' interpretations of this doc mean.

#5. Middletown School Sup't Krager was delighted that the doc address "inputs." Of course, she has not yet had time to speak with the school committee (no one has). Her critique address very specific items- mostly concerned with definitions. She was also concerned with tech & consumer ed. Heck, just kiss them goodbye.

#6. JoEva Gaines. She is a former music teacher in Midd., was head of the Union here, and was on the Board of Regents who helped draw these old regs up. She is now on the Newport School Committee. She loved the new doc! It is "superb" and expresses "confidence in teachers." It leaves a basic education "up to each district" and speaks to "rigor & accountability."

Hmm. School Committees love this as it leaves everything up to them. Sorry. Doesn't inspire much confidence in me. The bottom line is ALWAYS $, you can't kid a kidder.

You know, it seems the Guv achieved in these appointments & this doc what he hasn't been able to do otherwise- get rid of the Caruolo Law & crush public education (and get rid of those bothersome Unions). But that's me.

#7. Deb?- A school librarian spoke to the need for professional staffing & collection developemtn. Let's face it, without a librarian- a library is just a pile of books. That's all.

#8. Stacy Lyon- Coggeshall School Librarian. This is her second career & she spoke to "research literacy" and the fact that most school librarians work "behind the scenes."

Yup, you don't love us until we're gone.

Dave Fontaine (MHS librarian was also there).

I was the only press. Big sigh here. The Bible of our public school system undergoin major change (thing of replacing the Bible with "Cliff Notes" or "Classic Comics") and few shows. When this thing passes (and it will), you'll see major changes in your schools. And not for the better, I might add.

New R.I. Budget Plan

** I've given you a few new numbers at the bottom. Not good, but the fed monies should help.**

No details yet, but here is some of the good, the bad, & the ugly. The House vote is tomorrow, unless a donnybrook ensues (and it never does). Then it's onto the Senate committee, then floor, where they had rebellion last yr. until leadership averted it- barely. Don't expect the same this year with the current Senate Finance membership.

Here is the bill's link. Blue & green mark the changes to the guv's budget. General Revenues to the District are decreased. School Aid stays the same.


Newport: $11,871,080 (Guv's proposal) New Amount- $10,327,939 From Stimulus- $665,740

Middletown: 10,497,116 (Guv's proposal), New Amount- $9,010,090 Stimulus- $597,011

Little Compton: $368,810 $218,957 $34,414

Tiverton: $4,898, $786 $ 363,307

Tiverton Teachers have Contract

Pat over at http://www.rifuture.com/ carries news that the Tiverton teachers finally have a contract. Good news!

Justin at Anchor Rising has more details if you are interested.

And if you want a REAL reporter, try Joe Baker at NDN.

"Open" Local Government

I found this from Matt's posting on open gov't in Prov. on www.RIFuture.com. I would apply it to any of our local governments- all of which have websites. It would also be interesting to apply this to our local School Committees which often have a dearth of info posted on their sites and yet all have tech departments.

"Can I find on the city's website which homeowner gets a new sidewalk and which City Council person requested it?
Can I find on the city's website which streets get plowed first or get street sweepers coming through more often?
Can I find on the city's website which properties the city owns, who bid on the properties and who each property was sold to?
Can I find on the city's website the minutes and/or audio and/or video of City Council meetings and/or all city open meetings?
Can I find on the city's website all recorded votes of the City Council and a list of introduced ordinances, which committee they are in and the status of each ordinance?
Can I find on the city's website when new employees were hired, in what department and their salary?
Can I find on the city's website all of the executive office's employees and their salaries?
Can I find on the city's website any voting information such as ward committees, polling precincts, working on election day, receiving passes for being a checker, etc.?
Can I find on the city's website all of the city's vehicles, who uses them and whether they are take home vehicles?"

”Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants…” - Justice Brandeis

Eliminating School Bus Monitors

I rec'd a note yesterday from my friend the D'Amicos regarding school bus monitors. You likely know Lou & Denise- "Lou's Hot Dogs." One of the guv's supplemental budget suggestions is to repeal the law mandating these monitors to save the local school district $ while he cuts their State aid.

Now I remember why this law was started. Kids got killed by school buses. Since this law was passed, and BTW, Middletown voluntarily started the bus monitor program, No Student has been killed by a local bus.

She was a first grader as I recall. She was getting off her bus at the end of the school day. Somehow the bus driver did not see her and started the bus to finish his route. You can figure out the rest. We planted a tree in her memory outside of Aquidneck School. It blooms in the Spring. Not much.

Since that time efforts have been made to improve school safety- those folding bumper gate have been added (much like at the Pell Bridge) along with an outside address system. You now can see and hear when busses are stopping, reminding other drivers to do the same. Monitors come out to help students safely cross, then check under the bus- front and back- before leaping back onto the bus which only THEN engages.

These monitors don't make a heckuva lot; likely not much more than minimum wage. They work odd hours, not the entire day & are out in all kinds of weather. And most importantly, not a single student has been killed by a school bus driver not seeing a little kid in their way.

So how much is that worth?

BTW, all of the following names either read or aware of this blog. Please post or send me your comments or thoughts. It can't hurt.

Here is the letter. Sophie Pendergast (her name is given as contact person) is the mother of that young student:

Dear Friends & Family,

I have a very important request.The Governor has proposed budget cuts that will eliminate school bus monitors. If passed, this will present significant danger to children who ride school buses in Rhode Island. I am attaching a letter for you to email to Governor Donald L. Carcieri, Steven M. Costantino, Chairman of the House Finance Committee, Theresa Paiva-Weed, Senate President, your local legislators and to any other members of the state legislature you choose.

This letter expresses your opposition to eliminating monitors. Please email the attached letter to each person individually. If you are unsure how to e-mail the letter, instructions are provided at the end of this e-mail.

Calling your legislators is very powerful! We implore you to consider calling after you send your e-mail.Please forward this email to all your friends and family in Rhode Island. This issue affects all of us and it will take lots of voices to be heard!

Finally, please copy FISST@cox.net when you email your legislators. This will help us track our progress.

You can look up your Senate and House of Representatives District by going to http://www.sec.state.ri.us/vic and entering your name, date of birth & zip code. I have listed the names, email addresses and phone numbers of the Newport County legislators below.

If you live outside Newport County and are unsure of who you should contact, please email: Families Insisting on Safe Student Transportation at FISST@cox.net

Or call one of us:· Sophia G. Pendergast at (401) 846-8513· Julie A. Mott at (401) 225-1791

We will happily provide any information you need very quickly. Thank you for your support of this very important issue!

Send an email to Governor Donald L. Carcieri Governor of the State of Rhode Island rigov@gov.state.ri.us 222-2080

Send an email to Representative Steven M. Costantino Chairman of the House Finance Committee rep-costantino@rilin.state.ri.us, 521-1313

Send an email to Senator Theresa Paiva-Weed Senate President Senate District 13 Newport & Jamestown 316 State House Providence, RI 02903 sen-paivaweed@rilin.state.ri.us 222-3110

AND… Send an email to your Senator and Representative

Senate District 11 Bristol & Portsmouth Senator Charles J. Levesque sen-levesque@rilin.state.ri.us 683-9194

Senate District 12 Little Compton, Middletown, Newport & Tiverton Senator Louis D. DiPalma 24 Sail CourtMiddletown, RI 02840 sen-dipalma@rilin.state.ri.us 847-8540

Representative District 69 Bristol, Portsmouth Representative Raymond E. Gallison 50 King Philip Avenue Bristol, RI 02809 rep-gallison@rilin.state.ri.us (508) 677-4235

Representative District 70 Portsmouth & Tiverton Representative John G. Edwards

rep-edwards@rilin.state.ri.us

Representative District 71 Little Compton, Portsmouth & Tiverton Representative John J. Loughlin II 105 Preservation Way Tiverton, RI 02878 rep-loughlin@rilin.state.ri.us 625-9889

Representative District 72 Portsmouth, Middletown, Newport Representative Amy Rice 438 Bramans Lane Portsmouth, RI 02871 rep-rice@rilin.state.ri.us 841-0505

Representative District 73 Middletown & Newport Representative J. Russell Jackson 10 Xavier Terrace Newport, RI 02840 rep-jackson@rilin.state.ri.us 848-7979

Representative District 74 Jamestown & Middletown Representative Deborah L. Ruggeiro rep-ruggeiro@rilin.state.ri.us

Representative District 75 Newport Representative Peter F. Martin1 ½ Willow Street Newport, RI 02840 rep-martin@rilin.state.ri.us 924-2402

The next post is the letter.

Proposed Loss to Districts

Thanks to Mike Cullen of Knowing Newport for posting the link of funding losses from ABC News, Channel 6.
These numbers are ALL MINUS.

Middletown
General Revenue Sharing: $829,818
Permanent School Fund: $65,591
Professional Development (given to schools for teacher training): $102,859

Sub Total $998,268 (minus)

Motor Vehicle: $34,883
Housing Aid: $57,755
Reducing Education Aid (for Pensions): $781,566

Grand Total: $1,756,962


Newport

General Revenue Sharing: $1,564,737
Permanent School Fund: $74,176
Professional Development (given to schools for teacher training): $106,908

Sub Total $ (minus) 1,756,821

Housing Aid: $29,897
Motor Vehicle: $97,913
Reducing Education Aid: $696,318

Grand Total: $2,569,949

Sorry, tired of switching screens & typing. Check the link for Tiverton & Little Compton until later.

The pension contribution is a LOSS. It's also a PLUS for localities since they will no longer have to pay that amount (it was a joint contribution). Got it?

More on Governor's Supplemental Budget

Providing some additional info, but not as much as I've previously mentioned, is Projo. I'm supposing the lack of info is due to the fact that all of this was released last night, making the budget look good until more actual facts are released. The response from two Middletown Councillors- Silveira (out-of-town) & VonVillas was that they needed more info. Town Admin. Brown (the low talker) will be a busy little devil working with this. You'll be hearing a LOT more from him in the coming weeks.


Remember, we're speaking on the current budget 2008-9. The R.I. budget cycle goes from July to July. The guv has taken particular aim at Unions- statewide & local. He concentrates on police, fire, teachers, and statewide retirements. By lifting some state laws, he hopes to give localities a method to reduce their budgets. Should some of these laws even be there is certainly up for debate. Before he's targeted State workers, now his aim is much broader.


Doubtless, it's going to be a lively discussion. When you've spent your last 6 yr. taking aim at publicly paid Union workers and blaming them for much of the State's problems, the broader, pointed attack now, is going to arouse much passion. Think "us" against "them" taking the money out of our pockets.


Few facts or commentary on what the Guv plans to do with whatever funding the Feds plan on sending our way. It would be interesting to hear what's in his pipeline and lend a lot more to the overall discussion, not to mention his credability.

Here are Joe Baker's numbers of how much our aid is expected to be cut:
Little Compton: $89,670; Middletown: $829,818; Newport: $1,564,737; Tiverton: $547,575.

Again, I haven't rec'd any comments from local officials apart from wanting more info. And any initial thoughts that they may have are likely unprintable.

Farewell, Sen. June Gibbs

The NDN front page above the fold proclaims: "June Gibbs got things done her way." I wasn't going to comment on it. Nope. Let it stand on it's own. Then my husband came home with the NDN which he'd read at Tim Horton's along with a sandwich. He was mad as a hornet while saying if that's how they were going to spend his tax money, he was on his way out of this state. How stupid are the voters anyway? I knew what he was talking about.

I've actually given up asking this question since I know the answer all too well- any country that could vote for Geo. Bush TWICE ain't way up on the i.q. charts.

"But she also knows how to get things done. One of her biggest achievements was a bill prohibiting new billboards. It was controversial at the time and the industry heavily lobbied Senate leaders to block the legislation. It did not look promising." She got it passed.

That's it. A 26 yr. career in the Lege & that's her accomplishment. Forget that billboards are subject to zoning. She got it done. They also pay taxes.

June, I could have given a better answer than that for you. She is, after all, a Republican liberal dinosaur. That's how she survived. She'd pick up endorsement after endorsement- Marriage Equality Rhode Island, Ocean State Action, Clean Water Action, the Sierra Club (you get my drift). Not so our current Senator-elect who is about as conservative a Democrat as you can get. Why did they give them? She'd support many of their issues & then they could pride themselves & advertise on being non-partisanship. So how did that work out for you? Shame on you. Her support likely cost you needed votes. You had the opportunity to support others but chose not to do so.

A billboard law. 1990. It restricts adding any new ones. And thanks to the NDN for repeatedly endorsing her along with any Republican who could spell their own name drunk or sober.

Her project now besides cleaning her house is eliminating the so-called party lever. We would have been better off for 26 yrs. if she'd spent more time cleaning her house. The party lever-with all the problems we've got, she choses the lever. The stupid lever which wouldn't make a darn bit of difference.

God bless you, June, a decent well-intentioned woman. You deserved better. It's not the reporter's fault. He just asked the questions. He doesn't even assign titles. We all deserved better. How stupid do they think we are? Very. How stupid are they? Same answer. We get exactly what we deserve.

I refuse to bang my head on the wall any longer. I've got laundry to do. Goes in dirty, comes out clean. Every politicans' dream. A least June was always clean & showed up. What the heck were you talking about and why? Making chocolate chip cookies good enough for the Senate Speaker or not, I'm surprised that they didn't run your recipe. When can I expect the article on former Rep. Bruce Long? Wonder if he's a baker, too?

Too bad you haven't disassociated yourself from the Republican Party unlike your hero Chafee. They didn't exactly knock themselves out trying to get you reelected. But that's because you're viewed as a dinosaur in your own Party. It will be fun watching who they get to run & take your place in the next election. It's a wide-ranging district after all.

Thanks to NDN reporter Joe Baker for this informative report. Not only is my house cleaner, but so, too, my clothes. A clear case of it being better to keep one's mouth shut & having people think that you're an idiot rather than opening your mouth & removing all doubt.

Tiverton School Committee Rejects Contract Compromise

I just rec'd a press release regarding this. Here I thought it was settled &...the School Committee changes its mind? Strange. Guess a handshake just doesn't mean much nowadays.

SCHOOL COMMITTEE REJECTS COMPROMISE

TEACHERS VOTE NO CONFIDENCE IN SUPERINTENDENT

The Tiverton School Committee last night rejected a tentative agreement entered into by the teachers union and the Schools Superintendent, William Rearick. The handshake agreement was reached on October 15th during a negotiating session with the Union and the Superintendent. The rejected compromise fell apart despite assurances from the Superintendent that he would “advocate” for the deal.

Amy Mullen, President of NEA Tiverton, the union representing the Tiverton Teachers said after the vote: “We are very disappointed in the School Committee’s decision. Every time we met with the Superintendent he told us we were getting closer and closer to closing the economic gap between us. Each time we closed the gap, they came back to the table telling us they had the numbers wrong.

The parents in Tiverton should be outraged their kids were used as pawns for someone’s re-election campaign.”Two of the current school committee members, Denise Medeiros and Sally Black, are up for re-election November 4th.

The Union and the School Committee, represented by Superintendent William Rearick and School Committee members Sally Black and Lenny Wright, met on 3 different occasions this school year in an effort to end the nearly two year long labor dispute. According to Ms. Mullen, the two sides were very close to an agreement for months. “First the Superintendent told us we were $52,000 apart. We made concessions to close that entire gap, with even some additional savings thrown in just to make sure the deal would be ratified by the school committee. Late last week the Superintendent told us that they were wrong and we were still $18,000 apart. This kind of behavior is why bad faith bargaining is illegal.”

Mullen also revealed for the first time that the members of the Union passed a no confidence resolution against Superintendent Rearick. “We first took the vote last year. But in an effort to move things forward we didn’t release the information to the press. But on October 24th, the members reaffirmed their vote of No confidence in Mr. Rearick.” According to Ms. Mullen, the vote was unanimous.

Buy "Newport Daily News" this Week

I didn't realize that campaign coverage & sample ballots began Monday. Monday was Newport, Middletown is today (Tuesday), & I'll assume Portsmouth is Wed. & Tiverton is Thursday.

It's a LONG ballot so go into the booth prepared.

Televised Candidate Forums

The Newport Dailys News, Cox, & NCTV will air on Ch. 18 (Cox Cable). Check their schedule for more days/times besides the initial, live airing before the Nov. 4 elections.


-Thursday (Oct. 2): Newport City Council at-large, 7 p.m.

-Tues. (Oct. 7): Newport School Committee, 8:30 p.m.

- Wednesday, Oct 8: Middletown Town Council, 7 p.m.

- Middletown School Committee, 8:30 p.m.

- Wednesday, Oct 15: Tiverton Town Council, 7 p.m.

Tiverton School Committee, 8:30 p.m.

- Thursday, Oct 16: Tiverton treasurer, 7 p.m.

Tiverton charter questions, 7:30 p.m.

- Wednesday, Oct 22: State House of Representatives, Districts 69, 72, 74 and 75, starting at 7 p.m. and lasting about a half-hour each.

- Thursday, Oct 23: State Senate, Districts 11, 12 and 13, starting at 7 p.m. and lasting about a half-hour each.

Newport City Council’s Third Ward, 9:15 p.m.

Readers who would like to submit a question for candidates in a particular race may send it by e-mail to Editor@NewportRI.com. Please specify the race.

Sorry, evidently they don't vote in Little Compton any longer!

Thanks to the Newport Daily News for the info.

Beach Clean-Ups- Sept. 20

The ICC program is a worldwide event and Audubon Society sponsors the event in Rhode Island. The slogan for the event is “Keep the Sea Free of Debris.” Recently, an Osprey added a piece of plastic to their nest and the entanglement resulted in the death of one of the young birds.




So pick-a-beach. Contact them by Sept. 1 & you'll likely receive a t-shirt. SO fashion-forward.


Nine a.m. till Noon on Sat., Sept. 20.



Newport: First Beach- COA'S Dave McLaughlin

Ft. Adams- Red Godin, 413-6090

King's Beach- Tom Freeman- 848-7619

Rose Island- Reada Evans- 847-4242


Middletown

Second Beach- Liz Abramek, 654-9640

Sachuest Point- Gary Paquette

Third Beach- Catherine Arning, 846-2577


Tiverton

Grinnell's Beach/Fogland Point- Diane Sunderland- 624-8207


Little Compton

Little Compton's town shoreline in various locations Sandra Farr, 635-8640



There are more locations, but I tire of typing (Jamestown, Prudence Is., Portsmouth). For more info call the main sponsor, the Audubon Soc. at 949-5454 or Fri.'s NDN.

Middletown Schools Restoring Frosh Sports

***UPDATE*** This in from the NDN's reporter Matt Shelley. As my husband said, it takes a good Irishman, Wm. A. Kelly (class of 70) to do that! Baseball is back & football may also return. "Besides donating several thousand dollars to help the program this year, Kelly is helping create a permanent fund to support freshman sports for years to come."

Kelly no longer lives here, but owns Kelly Financial Services of Braintree, Mass. What a great thing to do! You may also make donations to the "Middletown High School Freshman Sports Fund" by sending a check to MPS on 26 Oliphant La., 02842.

Now if there were just some really rich nurses out there, they could restore them to each elem. school


From Meaghan Wims of Projo:

The School Committee last night shaved roughly $78,000 from its current-year budget plan by eliminating the freshman football and baseball teams, three part-time teaching assistants and one school bus.

The schools still have $15,000 to cut for a balanced budget.

Kraeger [sup't] said it will be difficult to find the remaining money, particularly if more teachers are needed to handle unexpected growth in enrollment.

Classes sizes now are maxed out. "The school district has so far recalled only about five of the 16 positions it eliminated for this school year."

When will fingers start being pointed to those who mandate everything & provide little (State funds cover 30-40% of expenses; feds- around 7%). It's not the income tax, the sale tax, etc. It's the property tax! You know, the ones the guv "forgets" to pay (Helmsley- "We don't pay taxes. Only the little people pay taxes ..."). Hello Guv, General Assembly, Congress, Pres.

Newport, Tiverton, & Little Compton teachers are all still in contract negotiations.

Let's start to hear some chatter here!

Senior Farm Vouchers

This was certainly well publicizied-NOT! I just read about it. Councilor Santos, where were you? This comes from Middletown's Senior Center website which ain't much but at least has the current newsletter up. You can call the Dir. but don't bother with e-mail.

The Senior Farmers Market Program August 1st – October 31st 9:00am to Noon

Purpose: To provide locally grown fresh fruit and vegetables to low-income seniors.

Eligiility Criteria: Must be 60 or above and have an annual income of:
* 17,223.50 for a single individual
* $23,106.50 for married couples

Benefits: Each approved applicant will receive a voucher with three (3) $5.00 coupons to purchase at APPROVED Farmers Markets in the state. Vouchers will be available on August 1st at the Middletown Senior Center.

This works around the State, I assume. Granted, it ain't much, but it's something.