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Pittsfield NH News

June 18, 2014

The Suncook Valley Sun News Archive is Maintained by Modern Concepts. We are NOT affliated in any way with the Suncook Valley Sun Newspaper.



 

Is it a record? Or is it not? You be the judge! Marjorie Feeny has been an Avon distributor in this area for fifty-one years. When she called in her last order, they told her that her net one would be her 1000th. It is obvious that the computer age has not pushed her out of business and she plans to continue her work with Avon as long as possible. She does her job, depending entirely on the telephone and postal service, which in  today’s world might be like “Pony Express”! Congratulations Marge, hang in there!

 


 

Loudon Center Freewill Baptist Church News 

 

A Fellowship Potluck Supper will be held Saturday, June 21st, at 6:00 P.M. followed by a country gospel concert by Don Smith of Epsom at 7:00 P.M.  The supper is free but a love offering will be taken for Don.  Please join us as this will be our last Fellowship Supper until September.  

 

And speaking of September, we are looking forward to and plans are already underway to celebrate the church’s 235th birthday. Mark your calendars for Sunday, September 14th, 12 Noon - 3:00 P.M. to gather with us for this happy occasion. Refreshments will be served and music provided. If you play an instrument or sing and would like to share your praises to the Lord with us, please contact Sam Langley, Fellowship Coordinator, 848-3724 (days) or 796-2194 (evenings) for information. Thank you.

 

The church will be also be holding its annual Craft Fair and Bake Sale on Saturday, October 25th from 8:00 A.M. - 2:00 P.M. Vendor tables, $10 each, may be reserved by contacting Lorraine Welch at 435-6510 or Gayle Doyle at 435-0496. A chili/hot dog lunch will also be served that day for a minimal fee.

 

FaceBook update - the church is in the process of updating its FaceBook page. New information should be available shortly. We would be pleased to have you “Like” us. Won’t you check it out? Thank you.

 

The church’s e-mail address is: [email protected]. The telephone number is 603-708-1185.

 

Everyone is invited to join us on Sundays at 9:30 A.M. as we gather together to worship the Lord.

 


 

Pittsfield Lyman Park.jpg

Flowers anyone?  L-R Jolene Wood, Audrey Harper, Ryan and Kira Wood and Jeff Huntington of Pleasant View. On Saturday, June 7, the Pittsfield Historical Society had it’s annual flower planting at Lyman Park.  The beautiful flowers were donated by Jeff Huntington of Pleasant View Gardens.  Helping out were Mark Riel, David, Lisa, Audrey, Ethan and Ford Harper, Cedric Dustin, Bill Provencal, Ray Webber, Fuzz Freese, Clayton, Jolene, Kira and Ryan Wood.

 


 

Pittsfield Wheeler.jpg

Members of the South Pittsfield Community Club had the pleasure of recognizing Pauline Wheeler for her service of 30 years as the club’s treasurer. Pauline assumed the office following in the footsteps of her mother Emily Barton. Thank you for all of your many years of time and dedication.

 


 

Guess Who’s Coming To Pittsfield?

 

It is sometimes said that imitation is the highest form of flattery.  If that’s the case, then the Pittsfield NH School District has much to feel flattered by in recent months.  Since the beginning of the school year, the District has been host to visitors from across the country, all of them eager to know more about Pittsfield’s work.   

 

According to Tobi Chassie, Project Manager for the Pittsfield Redesign, the phone calls started coming in before Thanksgiving.   The first inquiry came from a group of schools in northern Vermont exploring student ownership of learning, one of the hallmarks of the District’s change work. 

 

The next callers were other Nellie-Mae funded districts in northern New England. In early November, the Pittsfield team had presented to its New England colleagues at the Nellie Mae Cross-Site Learning Summit. The focus was the District’s work in the area of “position analysis,” a methodical and collaborative process for defining the role of each staff position in the organization.  The work is based on research from the field of organizational development revealing that position clarity is the number one predictor of job satisfaction and productivity.  

 

Four school districts—Portland and Sanford in Maine, and Burlington and Winooski in Vermont—inquired about coming to see a position analysis session in real-time.  Their wish was granted.   “We were glad to have them join us,” said Chassie.  “They provided us with great food for thought.”    

 

In January 2014, Governor Maggie Hassan visited Pittsfield, just in time to include PMHS in her State of the State as a school that is “innovating and working to find better ways to educate our children.”  

 

In February, Chris Sturgis, from the national website, CompetencyWorks, spent one day at PMHS.  CompetencyWorks provides resources for educational innovators to help inform their work.  Sturgis had heard about Pittsfield from New Hampshire DOE Deputy Commissioner Paul Leather.  The result of the visit was a series of three comprehensive blog posts about the Redesign: “Implementation Insights from the Pittsfield School District,” “Pittsfield Rethinks Adult Roles,” and “Hand in Hand:  Pittsfield Integrates Personalized Learning and Competency Education.”  Little did we know at the time that one of CompetencyWorks’ lead funders is the Nellie Mae Education Foundation! (The postings can be found at: http://www.competencyworks.org/2014/03/implementation-insights-from-pittsfield-school-district/)

 

With the sudden onslaught of visitors, Chassie and Co-Project Manager Susan Bradley have developed a model for introducing guests to PMHS and the Redesign.  The first step is to determine what, precisely, they are expecting to see and experience.  “Mostly, we hear one of two things,” said Chassie.  “They’d like to see a sampling of the components of student-centered learning or they’d like to understand more about competency-based learning.”  Chassie and Bradley go back and forth a couple of times with the prospective visitors to fine-tune a one, two or three-day agenda. 

 

“We’ve typically been breaking down the day into the actual periods of the school day,” said Chassie.  In the first hour they hear about advisories, Site Council and student-led conferences.  In the second hour, they learn about the Nellie Mae grant, Pittsfield’s Logic Model, and other core aspects of the Redesign. In the third hour, visitors learn about college and career readiness, dual enrollment, ELOs, and other programmatic elements at the school.  In the fourth and fifth hours, visitors observe an advisory and then meet with students.  “These kids have become so articulate and thoughtful about how they answer questions,” said Chassie.  “They are extraordinary.   Susan and I feel so much pride when we listen to kids talk about student-centered learning.”

 

After lunch, guests are introduced to integrated project-based learning through the school’s new “Learning Studios,” and to PMHS’s work on climate and culture change through PMHS’s “I.M.P.A.C.T.” team and its “Restorative Justice” program.   The visitors are then treated to another classroom observation, followed by a debriefing session of their visit. The debriefing includes a protocol to help visitors leave with a list of takeaways for planning purposes when they return home. 

 

At first, District leadership worried that teachers would experience these visits as an infringement on their time.  But that has not been the case.  Instead, the norm has been to hear such comments as, “I love doing this,” and “If these are teachers who want to change the way they do business, I want to talk to them.”    

 

Still, said Chassie, “We are very strategic about how teacher and student time is utilized during these visits because we want our school day to be as uninterrupted as possible.”  

 

More recent visitors have been three schools in Providence, Rhode Island, that are affiliated with the Highlander Institute; a dozen leaders from Springdale, Arkansas, a district of 30 schools; and a dozen visitors from the Howard-Winneshiek school district in Cresco, Iowa.  In mid-April, the Public Editor from the Education Writers Association began reporting on a multi-part series about student-centered learning.  A team of 30 people from the Chicago School District also visited PMHS as part of its move toward student-centered practices.

 

“One thing we have learned through this process is that our visitors need some team time on site, an opportunity to debrief and reflect on what they saw and heard, and an actionable plan for when they return home,” said Chassie.   

 

Up until this point, PMHS has not been charging visitors, but such visits may generate additional income for the District in the future. 

 

Chassie reflected on how far the District has come in such a short period of time.   “Now when I mention that I work in Pittsfield, heads turn and people frequently say, ‘I need to talk to you’.”  

 


 

Pittsfield, NH Crime Watch

Taking Back Our Town

 

At our June meeting that was held on June 9, 2014 at Jitters Café, we had with us acting Chief Jeff Cain and Officer John Webber. Chief Cain discussed with us in detail some of what he is looking to do until the appointment of Chief of Police is finalized.  His Agenda is, “to clean up the downtown.” To that end, he has already submitted 3 town ordinances aimed directly at fixing some of the issues the police force faces in this area. Additionally, he informed the group that the Police department intends to continue the usage of their Facebook page to disseminate information, tips, photos and any other key information that can be shared publicly. This is for the purpose of bringing more transparency to the department and to allow the community to play a larger role in helping to provide information to the Police that could help solve crimes. Finally, he discussed a grant from the Freese family for the Community Police Initiative. The intent of this grant is to increase foot patrols, bike patrols and Segway patrols. In other words, out of the patrol cars and back to face to face time with business owners and residents of Pittsfield.

 

Remember, if you see or hear anything suspicious, DO NOT attempt to intervene. Instead, call the Pittsfield Police Dispatch at 435-7211, this number is manned 24/7. Please mark your calendars for our next meeting scheduled for Monday July 21st, 6:30PM at Jitter’s Café.

 


 

Letter

FUND-RAISING OPPORTUNITY!

 

Is your community group looking for ways to raise money?

 

If you answered YES, The Suncook Valley Rotary Club, aka Pittsfield Rotary Club needs YOU!

 

Our club has been chartered since 1947 and covers Pittsfield and surrounding towns.  We meet the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of each month at the Pittsfield Community Center where our members enjoy a meal, fellowship and a guest speaker or business meeting. The meal is prepared by a local community group who is paid a set amount by the club.  Groups such as, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, High School groups, Pittsfield Youth Workshop, 4H, The Pittsfield Players and the list goes on. 

 

Groups do not have to be from Pittsfield!

 

Our mission and the Rotary mission is to help and support communities and people far and wide!  We do this by raising money and then supporting various efforts, such as, The Pittsfield Boy and Girl Scouts, School Groups, College Scholarships for local students, Clean Water, disaster relief and educational efforts...

 

Our two largest fund raisers are the Pittsfield Hot Air Balloon Rally, going strong for 31 years! And the Pittsfield Penny Sale!

 

If you are interested in more information and/or preparing a meal for us in the upcoming weeks and months, please contact me, Donna Keeley, [email protected]

 

Thank you!

Donna Keeley

Proud Suncook Valley Rotarian

 


 

Jim Adams Files For Executive Council In District 4

 

Jim Adams of Pittsfield officially filed his candidacy for Executive Council in District 4. Jim was joined by his family, campaign Co-Chair and former Executive Councilor Ray Wieczorek and fellow supporters Sheriff Scott Hilliard, Rep. Dan McGuire and Manchester State Representative candidate Joe Lachance.

 

Jim Adams was born and raised in New Hampshire, served honorably in the Navy and spent 36 years working for the U.S. Postal Service. During his time at the U.S. Postal Service, Jim helped save rate payers $14 billion dollars through responsible and efficient budgeting. Jim is now looking to bring this same common sense approach to the New Hampshire Executive Council. 

 

Jim Adams: “I’m running for Executive Council because I believe that the people of District 4 deserve an honest, transparent and efficient state government. Councilor Pappas has been a rubber-stamp for big spending and reckless government, even recently voting to approve the nomination of Bill Duncan, a known opponent of public charter schools and individual with no experience in the education field, to our State Board of Education.”

 

“The people I meet on the campaign trail want to see their taxpayer money well spent and some real accountability in Concord. Over the course of the next few months, I will share my vision of a common sense approach to government with the voters of my district and work to earn each of their votes in September.”

 


 

F.B. Argue Recreation Area

 

On Tuesday, June 24, 2014 the F.B. Argue Recreation Area will open for the 2014 summer season at 1:00. We will be asking parents to fill out contact information for their child/children if they are coming to the area without an adult. This year we will be open Monday - Friday from 12:00 - 5:00 PM and Saturday and Sunday from 1:00-5:00. Tuesday and Thursday nights during June and July we will stay open until 7:00 PM for families. We are hoping to get more families to use the pool area. Children under 11 must be accompanied by an adult during the night time hours. All children under age 8 must be accompanied by an adult during all of our hours.

 

There will be activities during the summer which will be advertised at the rec-reation area. At this point we are planning Arts and Crafts on some Mondays, Duck Hunt on Tuesday, Airhead Bingo on Wednesday from 2:30- 3:30, Game Day( card games, checkers, yatzee, mancala, Candy Land, etc) on Thursday, and Sand Castle building to be judged on Friday at 3:00.

 

The daily admission for residents is $0.75 per person or a family season pass can be bought for $40. Daily admission for non-residents is $1.00 per person. All per-sons entering the area will be expected to pay. Children under 5 years old will be admitted free with a paid adult.

 

Contact the Parks and Recreation Committee at 435-1850 or Forest B Argue Recreation Area (after June 24) at 435-7457 with questions.

 

We will be offering swimming lessons again this summer. Registration for swim-ming lessons will be held at the recreation area from 12-5 the week of June 24. We will run two 2 week sessions (a third session may be offered pending en-rollment). 

 

The lessons will run for 20 minutes to ½ hour each. The dates for the sessions are as follows: July 7 - July 18th (10:00 AM – Noon); July 21st – August 4 (5:30 – 7:00 PM).

 

The cost for the swimming lessons for residents is $10 per child, not to exceed $30 per family. The cost for nonresidents is $25 per child not to exceed $75.

 


 


 

 











 

 

 

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