Happy New Year From Bus 30
To the Editor:
I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their generous and thoughtful gifts. I appreciate everythi...
Bat Program At Kellogg Center
DERBY — The Naugatuck Valley Audubon Society, in cooperation with the Department of Environmental Protectionâ€&#x...
Girls’ Basketball—
Nighthawks Beat Abbot Tech, Brookfield To Win Holiday Hoops Classic
By Steve Bigham
The NHS girls’ basket...
Police Seek To Return Found Items To Owners
Police are holding for safekeeping a variety of found items which they are seeking to return to their owners.
In re...
EEOC Allows Health Benefits Shift At 65
WASHINGTON, D.C. (AP) — Employers can reduce their health insurance expenses for retired workers once they t...
Field Notes—
Snow Buntings:
A Little Light On The Darkest Day
By Curtiss Clark
Watching the great commercial apparatus of the Christmas holiday col...
High School Theft
Police report they charged a 15-year-old male student at Newtown High School with sixth-degree larceny on the afternoon of December 20, a...
State’s Top Court Rejects DaimlerChrysler Claim On ‘Lemons’
HARTFORD — On December 11, Attorney General Richard ...
It’s A Dog’s Life
The Older Dog
I am quite sure he thinks that I am God —
Since he is God on whom each one depends
For life ...
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!