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Dear Parents, Guardians and Caregivers and Staff, the Time Is

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Dear Parents, Guardians and Caregivers and Staff, the Time Is February 24, 2019 Dear Parents, Guardians and Caregivers and Staff, The time is now. If you haven’t yet taken the opportunity to let our representatives in Hartford know your thoughts on forced school regionalization and Governor Lamont’s proposal to shift even more of the state’s financial obligations to Wilton and other municipalities, I strongly urge you to consider doing so next week. On Friday, March 1st the state legislature’s Committee on Education will hear testimony on three proposed regionalization bills, including Senator Martin Looney’s Senate Bill 454/738, and the Governor’s budget bill which also speaks to regionalization (SB 874). As I have written previously, while there are many important reasons to oppose the concept of forced regionalization, including potential degradation of education quality, and concerns about property values, there is no empirical evidence to validate that such a move actually leads to cost savings. In fact, research by the National Education Policy Center concluded that benefits from school district consolidation are “vastly overestimated.” Further, an article in Education Finance and Policy suggested that district consolidation may actually create negative impacts such as higher transportation costs, a “leveling up” of salaries, and more negative attitudes among staff members and parents. The same study suggests that financial benefits may be found only when consolidation of very small districts (fewer than 300 to 1000 students) occurs. Of significant concern as well is the Governor’s proposal to require municipalities to fund a portion of teacher pension costs. I am vehemently opposed to this concept because, at its heart, it is a dereliction of state responsibility. For decades our state leaders failed to adequately fund the plan they created. Local municipalities had no influence over the design or the decision to fund (or not fund) the plan. Despite the fact that this crisis has been growing for years, our leaders in Hartford have turned a blind eye. Now, standing at a fiscal cliff, the solution appears to be to shift the burden to local municipalities including Wilton, that have responsibly managed their finances. And to add insult to injury, the Governor’s plan also calls for a surcharge for towns like Wilton that pay teacher salaries that exceed the state median. The plan does not account for higher costs of living in areas such as Fairfield County, or the impact of binding arbitration, two factors beyond local control that strongly influence salary agreements. To make matters even more dire, the legislature is also contemplating a bill (SB 431) that proposes to divert motor vehicle tax revenue from municipalities to the state government. The cumulative effect of these proposals, if enacted, would be millions of dollars in additional obligations for Wilton residents. This would likely result in increased property taxes for a diminished, regionalized school system. We simply cannot let that happen. There are several ways you can add your voice to the conversation: 1) Reach out to local legislators. A brief email or phone call can have a tremendous impact in letting legislators know that residents are opposed to these proposals. Key legislators to contact include: Senator Martin Looney (SB 454/738 and SB 431 Sponsor) [email protected] (860) 240-0375 Senator Bob Duff (Senate President) [email protected] (860) 240-0414 Senator Will Haskell (Wilton) [email protected] (860) 240-0068 Representative Gail Lavielle (Wilton) [email protected] (800) 842-1423 Representative Tom O’Dea (Wilton) [email protected] Representative Robert Sanchez (Education committee chair) [email protected] (860) 240-8585 Senator Douglas McCrory (Education committee chair) (860) 240-8600 Representative Kathleen McCarty (Education committee ranking member) [email protected] Senator Eric Berthel (Education committee ranking member) [email protected] 2) Submit written testimony to the education and appropriations committees in advance of their respective public hearings. As noted above, the Education Committee is holding a public hearing next Friday beginning at 1pm. Written testimony needs to be received no later than 3:30pm Thursday, February 28th. Testimony can be in Word or PDF format attached to an email, and should include the bill number/s (SB 738 SB 457 and SB 874), your name, and your town. Include the bill number in the subject line and email testimony to [email protected]. 3) Submit testimony in person by signing up to speak next Friday beginning at 10am in the lobby of the Legislative Office Building. The hearing is scheduled to begin at 1pm. The first hour is reserved for public officials and then speakers are invited to speak, based on the order of the sign up. Since I have been a superintendent charged with developing annual school budgets, I have heard the refrain annually, “you think this year is bad, wait till next year.” “Next year” is here. We have worked collaboratively in Wilton to deliver a world class education at an affordable price. The current proposals to correct our state’s fiscal issues do nothing more than shift the financial burden to local municipalities. Please consider making your voice heard by engaging with our legislative leaders. Sincerely, Kevin J. Smith, Ph.D. Superintendent of Schools Please join us at our 2nd Annual Zero Waste Faire on Saturday, March 23 from 11-4pm at the Wilton High School Field House. The Zero Waste Faire will again feature a broad range of interactive exhibits to help Wilton and Fairfield County become more conscious about and involved in practicing Zero Waste living. There will be exhibits from museums, aquariums, and environmental organizations with many fun, educational activities for kids and adults. This year’s event will have more exhibitors demonstrating and selling products, such as reusable drinking straws, compost bins and reusable beeswax food wrap. Interested in volunteering? Email us at [email protected] Wilton High School National Merit Scholarship Finalists Congratulations to seniors Alex Li and Sylvia Zhao for advancing as Finalists in the 2019 National Merit Scholarship Program! Poetry Out Loud WHS’ Poetry Out Loud final competition was held on January 31 in the Little Theater. Classes were invited to attend the competition and show support for their peers as they recited their poems. The names of the finalists and the winners are listed below. According to English teacher Mr. Sheridan, “the students put on a spellbinding performance, delivering sophisticated poetry with such skill that it grabbed the attention of an entire theater full of teenagers. Witchcraft!!” Finalists: Melissa Arenas, Sinead Roche, Hayley Sayewitz, Lily Mikita, Solomon Wozniak, Sara Gold Key: Ceramics - Meg McNamara Schneidman, Julia Rothstein, Nicholas Furst, and Gold Key: Graphic Design - Chris Shaws Benjamin Grass Gold Medal: Fashion - Giana Zaccone 3rd place: Sara Schneidman 2nd place: Nicholas Furst 1st place (who will be representing Wilton High at Fashion Show the State Finals): Julia Rothstein Congratulations to all the contestants! The fashion class hosted their end of semester fashion show in the lower lobby on January 16. The show featured their work from the semester. Art News! Scholastic Art Show: Wilton High School won 9 medals in the Scholastic Art show. The winners are: Caroline Luciano, Maud Seymour, Julianna Russo, Meg McNamara, Davis Cote, Emma Caldwell, Zoey Araquel, Chris Shaw, and Giana Zaccone Below are the names of the award winners as well as photos of some of the winning pieces: Gold Key: Photography Gold Key and Best in Show: Ceramics Preschool Mural Memory Project The advertising class worked with the Helping Hands The drawing class worked with the Memory Project preschool to create a mural for the hallway. The (a nonprofit organization that helps cultivate global preschool students made handprints on the mural. The kindness) and created portraits for Rohingya refugee mural will be displayed outside the Helping Hands children who have faced substantial challenges, such classroom. as violence, war, extreme poverty, neglect, and loss of parents. These portraits will help these children feel valued and important, to know that many people care about their well-being, and provide them with a special childhood memory. Middlebrook Math Counts Club News Middlebrook Science Fair The Middlebrook Math Counts Club competed in Over 140 students presented their science fair the 2019 Chapter Competition at Fairfield projects to a roving audience of students, parents, University this past Saturday. The following teachers and judges on Tuesday 1/29/19. Divided students participated in the competition: Sean Meng between 6th grade and 7th & 8th Grade, students (8G), Connie Gao (8G), Gayathri Kaimal (8Y), projects covered life sciences, physical sciences Lukas Koutsoukos (8Y), Advait Maheshwari and engineering. Climate change and the (8G), Joy Ren (8Y), Alex Wang (8G), Max Li (7R), environment were favorite student topics. Projects Eric Lu (7R), and Aryan Shah (7G). included solar powered cars, heaters and ovens, the effects of acid rain and how to dispose of styrofoam While all individuals participated respectably, our in an environmentally friendlier way. Middlebrook team composed of Sean, Connie, Gayathri, and Lukas placed fourth and earned the There were exhibits based on the greenhouse right to compete in the State competition at the effect, how to melt snow without affecting the University of Hartford on Saturday, March 9th. environment and how to fight wildfires using satellite data. The enthusiasm of the students was Congratulations to all the students that participated clear to see! in this fun and challenging day! Cider Mill They are describing each family member and their Belden Hill Grade 4 Celebrations classmates are able to answer questions in French about their presentations! These past few weeks the Music Department at Cider Grade five French students are starting to learn all Mill School celebrated the Band, Orchestra and about food and how to talk about meals.
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