Sandy Hook Man Takes A Spin On
The Wheel Of Fortune
By Kaaren Valenta
It may have been the fact that Tom Buonocore is a stay-at-home father of four, or perhaps ...
Ann M.           Cannon
Ann M. Cannon, 94, of Newtown, died February 27 at the River Glen Health Care Center in Southbury.
Mrs Cannon was born Septe...
NSB Helps Muscular Dystrophy
St Patrick’s Day is approaching, and Newtown Savings Bank will help paint the town green by taking part in the â€&...
Andres In Concert, March 10
SOUTHBURY — Composer and pianist Timothy Andres will perform a free concert at East Hill Woods, 611 East Hill Road, on T...
Maple Syrup Demos At Flanders
WOODBURY — Flanders Nature Center & Land Trust will continue its New England tradition of demonstrating the entire pro...
VNA Seeks To Boost Blood Donations
By Kaaren Valenta
A $200 savings bond donated by Newtown Savings Bank will be won by a lucky participant at the American Red...
Alzheimer’s Support Group Starting Up
At The Homesteads
The Homesteads At Newtown Retirement Community will be hosting an Alzheimer’s Su...
Antiques Show Returns This Weekend
Newtown Historical Society will present its 20th Annual Spring Antiques Show on Sunday, March 6, from 10 am to 4 pm, at Edmon...
Science Workshops Openings
The Discovery Science, Math, & Technology Workshops will take place Saturday, March 12, from 9 to 11 am at Newtown High School.
 Th...
Newtown schools have degraded over the 3+ decades I've lived here as the concentrated social experiment curricula driven by the state and small but loud groups. Yet we continue to dig into our pockets while we witness the downward spiral.
Unfortunately as voter turnout continues to decline the chances of it increasing also decline. The LC and BOF already know that the budget will be approved by virtue of the low turnout so why try to make smart decisions? The so-called referendum is essentially just a rubber stamp. They will continue to increase the budget by 2-5% every year because it's low enough to not cause a pushback under the cover of "inflation" and "maintaining the schools." Sending the budget to vote with 9% turnout is meaningless and a waste of resources on April 23rd.
I have seen Mr. Pisani repeatedly assert in the pages of the Bee that Newtown schools are "testing at a failing 64.9%". I'd be curious if he could elaborate on this statistic, as I have been unable to verify it independently. Which test exactly is our school system failing? How do our schools compare to other towns? How does our score compare to historical measures? It's very hard to draw conclusions from a single data point, so here are a few more data points to think about for context: Newtown is consistently ranked among the top 20 school districts in CT by the US News and World Report and Niche, which consider a range of performance metrics in their rankings; on average, Newtown students perform similar to, if not better than, students in neighboring school districts on standardized math and reading tests; the only data point on the CT Department of Education District Report Card where Newtown "fails" -- that is, falls behind the state average -- is access to art instruction. I'm glad the council member has acknowledged in this letter what taxpayers in high-performing (and high-spending) school districts like Darien, New Canaan, and Westport already know: "School funding does impact student achievement." Please keep that in mind when you vote this week!