Flags have been ordered lowered to memorialize people who were killed in two mass shootings over the weekend.
Twenty people were killed, and dozens injured, Sat...
After a more than seven-year courageous battle with cancer, Christopher Whitman Benson, 36, born July 29, 1983, a resident of Sandy Hook, peacefully left us on ...
UPDATE (August 6, 2019): This story has been updated with additional comments from the Newtown Action Alliance.
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In Hartford, Governor Ned Lamon...
Ginny Reichardt Moseley, 59, of Ninety Six, S.C., wife of Hugh D. Moseley, Jr, died Saturday, August 3, 2019.
Born in Newtown, she was a daughter of Gail Hickma...
Selected areas of Lake Zoar are to be chemically treated this week with Reward (Diquat) and ProcellaCOR, herbicides targeting control the aquatic nuisance plant...
The hot summer days are anything but a reminder of football season, except over at Blue & Gold Stadium, where each weekday morning for several weeks leading int...
The old saying “like father, like son” has a new twist in the Thoesen household. Or, to be more accurate, on the baseball diamonds.
Ian Thoesen, head coach of t...
Carrying a balloon and wearing a wide grin was Lia Spremulo of Newtown. Written on her balloon was the message: “Welcome Back Kayla!” Lia and her mother, Cayann...
A Water Safety Week initiative is planned for August 19-22 at Newtown Community Center, 8 Simpson Street. The free children’s water safety program, open to ages...
The Atlantic hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30, with the majority of New England hurricanes striking in August and September.
Hurricanes are massive s...
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!