Club NewFit Women’s Basketball
Results of Club NewFit Women’s Basketball League action from Tuesday night:
Team Two defeated Team Four 5...
Voting Is Essential
To the Editor:
According to a study published by Carleton Kendruck EdM, LCSW, the United States ranks 35th in voter turnout when compared to...
New Tenant Brings ‘Impact’ To Local Office Park
Impact Business Technology, a leading provider of computer networking and technical supp...
Cole Van Orden Patrick and Silas Jacob Klimczak
Newtown Galerie Van-Os’ owners Ann and John Osborn welcomed two new grandsons this July and Aug...
NUMC Planning For Its Annual Autumn Fair
Newtown United Methodist Church will sponsor its Annual Fall Arts & Crafts Fair on Saturday, October 17.
The fair will ...
Nourishments—
Autumn Gourds A Feast For The Eyes
By Nancy K. Crevier
Sometimes it is necessary to nourish the eye as well as the tummy. That is wher...
Douglas Hensal & Sarah Lynch
Announcement is made of the engagement between Sarah Marie Lynch of Sandy Hook and Douglas Roderick Hensal of Danbury.
Sarah i...
Leadership?
To the Editor:
Just when you thought a new low level of personal attack could not be set by the leadership of the IPN, they exceed our expectations....
Memorial Exhibit At Booth Library
Will Honor Arthur A. Anderson
A special exhibit displaying the photographic genius of Arthur A. Anderson, MNEC, will be prese...
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!