Date: Fri 08-Aug-1997

By STEVE BIGHAM

Published: Aug 11, 1999 12:00 am

Publication: Bee

Author: STEVEB

Quick Words:

SMART-program-art-music

Full Text:

Summer Music And Art Program Winds Up At Sandy Hook

(with photos)

Newtown's Summer Music and Art program (SMART) recently completed another

successful season down at Sandy Hook School.

The program offers young people the chance to be exposed to programs that

usually are not available during the school year. Instead of the usual courses

like English, mathematics, science and history, students from kindergarten

through seventh grade are given the chance to learn more about puppetry,

music, drama, poetry, cartooning, sculpture, pottery and more.

The two-week, two-session program, now in its sixth year, is run by Continuing

Education Director Diane Thompson and her assistant Daphne Gibney. Mrs

Thompson points out that there's just not enough time or money during the

school year to offer the kinds of experiences found in SMART.

"Students get to develop certain parts of themselves that they wouldn't

normally be able to," she explained.

Looking to extend art and music learning opportunities to students year-round,

SMART was the brainchild of Mrs Thompson, former Sandy Hook School Principal

Ron Vitarelli, and parents Colleen Swain and Janice Anderson.

With a grant from IBM, SMART was up and running in 1991. It has since become a

school-supported program. Tuition for the two-week session is $200.

Mrs Thompson said some students arrive for the first day of SMART and figure

it's going to be a lot like school except that it takes place in the summer.

"It's not at all. The SMART program is much more relaxed. It's fun learning

and there's no real curriculum to follow," she explained.

The combination of fun and learning was evident last Friday as SMART held a

"showcase" where parents and friends were invited to observe the activities

their children had been involved in during the two-week session.

In addition to a professional staff, the SMART Program uses student interns,

enabling them to enhance their skills and formulate decisions about their

career plans.

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Well that is some spin. The Democrats have a super majority on the LC and passed the Education Budget without serious consideration of if the voters could afford the multi million dollar increase. "Was the request justified?" rather than "is this needed?" and "can the voters shoulder yet another large increase?" The voters rightly sent it back. Then for some reason all the discussion around reductions to the increase seemed to be coming from the classroom, rather than administration and overhead costs. Is this a coercive tactic to manipulate parents into supporting the budget like tacit threat of cutting freshman sports was two years ago? Who believes the Democrats did not caucus privately before the meeting and came in with a number already worked out? This is the Dems budget, they own it.

Education Cuts: Who Voted For What

I think it is important that we do not villainize every black box seen around a home, business, farm, or municipal property. A black exterior station does not always mean rat poison is being used. These stations can hold a number of different products, including monitoring blocks, snap traps, non-toxic bait, anti-tick bait stations, organic salt- or cornmeal-based control products, and newer fertility-control approaches intended to reduce rodent populations without traditional poisons. The better conversation, in my opinion, is not simply “black boxes are bad,” but rather: what is inside them, who is maintaining them, and whether the rodent issue is being managed responsibly. Exclusion, sanitation, trapping, habitat reduction, and careful monitoring should all be part of a responsible IPM strategy. To be fair, on my own property I do use rodenticides, including Bromethalin and Bromadiolone, in secured bait stations. But that is a choice I make for my property, based on my circumstances and the risk I am trying to manage. I also believe property owners should understand the tradeoffs and be encouraged to use the least harmful effective method whenever possible. I support protecting Newtown’s wildlife. I also support giving residents accurate information and not assuming that every black box represents reckless or unsafe pest control. The goal should be responsible rodent management, not fear of the box itself.

Discusses Policy Against Rodenticides

Debora, thank you! I accidentally doubled the project prices by adding the bond to the appropriation. Thank you so much for catching that and pointing it out. With the corrected numbers, the voters approved a combined $1.32 million for a salt shed ($600k) and library pavement ($720k), while rejecting the $1.12 million replacement turf. Regarding the 80s, I truly respect the hurdle of 14% mortgage rates. My point is simply that the math has shifted: in 1980, while the rates were higher, the price of a home relative to earnings was significantly lower. We are facing a different, but equally crushing, financial wall. Ultimately, it is disheartening that voters who recognized safe sidewalks and parking lots as essential, dismissed a playing field in the exact same condition. The turf has passed its life cycle and is just as much of a liability as the library’s pavement, the only difference is that this safety concern affects thousands of children who, coincidentally, cannot vote. These are apples-to-apples needs. I was hopeful our community would agree that all Newtown residents deserve safe conditions, regardless of which facility they utilize. Again, I would be remiss not to mention that when 82% of residents don’t show up, we have to deal with the interests of those who did. Hopefully, the next referendum will have a bigger turnout.

The ‘Me’ Generation

Thanks for the reply. I meant the numbers you presented in your letter. I found one place where other numbers were listed: https://www.newtownbee.com/04232026/get-out-and-vote-on-the-2026-27-proposed-municipal-and-school-budgets/?q=\\\%22advisory%20questions\\\%22. In that article, the numbers were cited as: Treadwell field: $1,125,000 Library: $720,000 Salt Storage: $600,000 As one who started out in the early 80's when inflation was double digits, my 1985 mortgage rate was 14%, and child care costs were comparable (in present value), I shared your grief but never considered the voters ironic or shameful. PS. I agree college tuition is ridiculous. Thankfully, universities are offering (or considering) waiving all or most tuition for middle class families (upwards of $200,000 incomes). Hopefully, they'll also reconsider their need for those funds in the first place.

Sure! Child care costs: https://www.ffyf.org/2022/10/13/data-child-care-prices-continue-to-rise-ahead-of-midterm-elections-outpacing-inflation/ (also from 2021-2025 we had 2 children in a local daycare in Newtown and it cost us $3200 a month, so that's a number I am very familiar with) Home price / median price vs income source: https://www.jchs.harvard.edu/home-price-income-ratios Tuition increase vs inflation: https://feed.georgetown.edu/access-affordability/noting-a-decline-in-middle-class-students-colleges-provide-more-aid/ Hope this helps :)

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Date: Fri 08-Aug-1997

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