CBNA Hosts 2015 Special Olympics Seacoast Area Winter Games

Teams gather in front of CBNA’S Smith Hall for Opening Ceremonies

On Saturday, February 7th, Coe-Brown Northwood Academy hosted the 2015 Special Olympics of New Hampshire Seacoast Area Winter Games. A proud tradition for about a decade, these games were finally held again after three years of cancellation due to lack of snow and poor field conditions. About 200 Special Olympics athletes from many teams around the state competed in cross-country ski and snowshoe events ranging from 10 to 7,500 meters in length. Event coordinator and faculty member Shawn White and Special Olympics Field Coordinator Miranda Morse would like to thank the many Coe-Brown faculty, staff, and student volunteers whose efforts both ensured and enhanced the success of this event. They would also like to thank the Northwood Crankpullers Association for helping to pack down snow on the race tracks, and Bryana Clark of Exeter, our current Miss New Hampshire Teen National, for joining us. We look forward to next year’s games.

Letter

To all voting Northwood residents,

I would like to take a moment of your time to introduce myself as a running candidate for Northwood Road Agent in the March 10th  elections. My name is Michael (Mike) Lockard and I have had the pleasure of living in Northwood for the past 8 years with my wife and children. I am employed as a part time highway department employee here in town. I was previously employed at the State of NH DOT bringing with me the experience and schooling dedicated to being an effective new road agent for our small town.  I strongly encourage all  town residents to contact me with any questions or concerns they might have before the upcoming elections. I can be reached at my home at 942-6435 and look forward to speaking to anyone that takes the chance to speak to me on a more personal note! Thank you to all and I look forward to seeing you all at the polls- (March 10th) don’t forget!

Thank you ,

Mike Lockard

Your eager candidate for road agent!

Letter To The Editor

The Shrinking Middle Class

On March 10th Northwood residents will decide whether to add some $1,300,000 to the property tax bill. Maybe we should look at some other developments first:

1. Gas prices are again on the rise. “A former top oil executive says the price of gas at the pump could double by year’s end,” reports CNBC.

2. Auto registration fees would rise 35% under Governor Hassan’s proposed budget.

3. Gas taxes would rise 12 cents a gallon nationally, under the Murphy-Corker bill introduced in the US Senate.

4. New Hampshire had the “highest per-month per-employee [health-care] premium cost in the country” for state employees, according to a recent report from the Pew Charitable Trusts and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation

5. “Local taxpayers could face a large tax increase” when Obamacare’s so-called Cadillac Tax starts raising town and school health insurance costs, according to the Washington Policy Center.

6. NH taxpayers “will likely be facing a hike in county property taxes,” says the Keene Sentinel, because Governor Hassan has proposed cutting nursing home reimbursement, downshifting costs from the state to the counties.

7. Utilities “across New England have been warning customers to expect sharp price increases,” reports the NY Times, even though “New England already pays the highest electricity rates of any region” in the country.

8. A NH college graduate’s average debt was the “highest in the nation” in 2013, reports New Hampshire Public Radio. In 2014, we were 2nd highest.

9. Although foreclosure rates are declining, about 5,000 NH families have lost their homes in the last 2 years..

Voting is March 10th from 7 AM to 7 PM at St. Joseph’s Church.

Michael Faiella

Northwod

Lions Outing For The Blind

Saddleback Mountain Lions Club once again hosted its annual “winter” outing for the sight impaired of New Hampshire. Over 50 attended the event at Lake Shore Farm on Jenness Pond in Northwood. Our guests were treated to snowshoeing and snowmobile rides. At noon, everyone enjoyed pizza from Cooper Hill Pizzaria and dessert prepared by Coe-Brown students.

Lion Chairman Dave Linden & assistant, Bill Lounsbury could not have accomplished this event without the help of many volunteers and would like to thank the following students from Coe Brown Academy for their assistance: Deborah Peabody, Austin Anderson, Meraya Knight, Nick Lounsbury, Ally Jones, Jolene Levesque, Nichole Hodgdon, Lexi Arsenault, Julia Cormier, Kayla Williamson, Ashley Reiff and Sidney Fisher. The adult volunteers Lions were: Marie Tarlton & Dot Chasse from the Somersworth Lions Club; Judy & Dick Gibson from the Epsom-Chichester Lions Club; Bill Hanlon and Corey Davidson from the Sandown Lions Club. Special “thanks” to Marlene Graham and Bob Sawyer who gave snowmobile rides.

We would also like to thank the Epsom Dunkin’ Donut folks for providing donuts and coffee which brought many a smile to those who may have missed breakfast.

Our guests traveled from all parts of the granite state to enjoy a fun-filled day.

Once again, thanks to all who helped to “make a difference” for those who truly appreciated a wonderful “winter outing.”

Fruit Pruning Demonstration - Strafford

On Saturday, March 21, 2015 from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm UNH Cooperative Extension will conduct a home gardening demonstration on pruning techniques for apple, peach and pear trees as well as raspberries and blueberries.  UNH Cooperative Extension Fruit Specialist Emeritus, Bill Lord will demonstrate pruning techniques as well as speak on various topics including fertilizing your fruit trees and managing deer and voles.

Strafford County Food & Agriculture Field Specialist Kelly McAdam will also be on hand to provide resources for the upcoming growing season.

This workshop is hosted by Lars & Jennifer Szatko at their residence at 4 Leighton Corner Road in Strafford NH.   Please be sure to come dressed for the weather as this workshop will be held rain/snow or shine.

Pre-registration for this free workshop is not required.  For more information, or if you require special accommodations, please call UNHCE Strafford County at (603) 516-8110 or e-mail [email protected].

CBNA Theatre To Present In A Grove: Four Japanese Ghost Stories March 6 & 7

The Oni chorus in In a Grove rehearses a scene entitled The Oni Dilemma.

CBNA Theatre will present In a Grove: Four Japanese Ghost Stories by Eric Coble on March 6, 2015 at 7 pm and on March 7, 2015 at 12 pm and 3 pm in the Gerrish Gym on the Coe-Brown Northwood Academy campus.

The story begins with Obosan, a traditional Japanese priest, who steps forward from the darkness. He explains that where we now see a grove of trees, bushes, and grassy hills, was once the village of Kogisu, and Obosan was once the village priest. Where did all the people go? What happened to the homes and shops and pathways? Obosan promises to answer all of these questions in four tales as he takes us back in time hundreds of years to watch the supernatural history - and ultimate destruction - of an entire village.

Leading the cast is sophomore Cassandra Barnhart as Obosan. The rest of the cast includes seniors Olivia Anatone, Kyle Bousquet, Sophia Chartier, Rachel Dallaire, Hannah Grady, Dylan Groves, Lizzie MacEachern, Jordan Roach, Colton Rush, and Alec Schleich; juniors Janais Axelrod, David Coe, Jessica Cooper, Isaac Guzofski, Damian May, Jared Neal, Stosh Szatko, Emily Therrien, and Ryan Wadleigh; sophomores  Sierra Brady, Lauren Burrows, Camryn Chick, Joe Guptill, Arianna Jones, and Kelsey Wallace; and freshmen Sandra Black, Erin Boodey, Zachary Helm, Nina Laramee, Cailinn Monahan, Kayla Pollak, Allison Rose, and Courtney Snow. The production is directed by faculty member Elizabeth Lent with assistance from faculty member Kolby Hume.

Reserved tickets are $8 for adults and $6 for students and seniors and are available after March 2 by calling 942-5531 ext. 237, by email - [email protected] or at the CBNA main office. Tickets will also be available at the door.

Letter To The Editor

All-Day K vs. Half-Day?

Some people are having trouble accepting that kindergartners can do more and learn more in 6 Hrs. than they can in 2 Hrs. 45 Mins.  Fortunately, as I mentioned in a previous letter, the Town of Bow is considering All-day K and established a Study Committee to research various aspects of the initiative.  You can find their report at: www.bownet.org/.../KindergartenReview/

Kindergarten_Presentation_October_2014.pdf

The research they referenced concluded:

1. Teachers and parents indicate that they prefer All-Day K because it also provides children more time for creative activities and development of individual interests within a more relaxed atmosphere.

2. All-day kindergarteners exhibit more independent learning, classroom involvement, productivity in work with peers and reflectiveness than half-day kindergartners.

3. Children in All-day kindergarten classrooms spend more time in self-initiated activities and teacher-directed individual work and less time in large group interaction.

4. All-day K allows a more consistent schedule for children and reduces the ratio of transition time to class time, reducing stress for children.

5. Research clearly indicates that All-day K is highly successful at significantly reducing dissimilarities in academic readiness as children enter the crucial two years of Grades 1 and 2.

6. In a longitudinal study of students from K through Grade 8, students in All-day K performed better on every category of The Comprehensive Test of Basic Skills in Grades 3, 5 and 7.

7. All-day K students earned higher GPAs than their half-day peers in Grades 6 – 8.

8. Parents of children in All-day K report higher levels of satisfaction with their children’s schedule and curriculum and the program’s support for working families. 

More than 87 school districts in NH now offer All-Day K, up from 59 five years ago.  It’s time we did the best thing for our children, too.

Tom Chase

Chesley Memorial Library News

Elder Law Attorney Edward “Ted” Beasley will hold a free legal seminar to discuss how to protect your house and lifetime of savings from a prolonged nursing-home stay, how to avoid probate, plus strategies for passing assets safely and efficiently. Attorney Beasley, former chairman of the American Bar Association Elder Law Committee, presents this lively and engaging seminar in everyday language, and there will be plenty of time for questions. Chuck Stephen of Glenwood Investment Group will offer his top financial-planning tips. Join us Tuesday, March 3rd from 1-3 p.m. at the Chesley Memorial Library. Please call 1-800-370-5010 to register for this FREE program.

Letter To The Editor

Northwood Deserves All-Day Kindergarten

Did you know that 76% of kindergarteners attend full-day programs in America? Did you also know that there are over 80 districts in New Hampshire that already offer all-day kindergarten? It’s time for Northwood to do what’s right for the students and give them the same opportunities.

Chloe R. Gibbs at the University of Virginia completed the first-of-its-kind randomized trial of full-day vs. half-day kindergarten and it shows sizable learning advantages for full-day students at the end of the kindergarten year. All prior research on full-day K has been sparse and contained non-experimental studies, making them less reliable. Those against all-day K cite studies that find no advantage long-term because the students tend to “fade-out” and catch up to their peers by 3rd grade. What they fail to mention is that these studies also show better adult outcomes in these students as far as higher earnings and better health, etc. Full-day K wins here. 

Did you know that with better schools comes higher property values? Research shows, holding all else constant, homes in high-performing districts sell for higher prices than homes in low-performing districts. The impact can measure in the thousands and increase home values as much as 14%. It’s well known Coe-Brown is a top-notch high school, ranking 16th in the state on niche.com. Many people move here for the great high school. Northwood School was only ranked 127/227 elementary schools in NH on schooldigger.com. If we want to keep attracting people to Northwood, we need to do everything we can to improve our schools. All-day kindergarten is an investment in our students and our community.

Please vote to pass the petition warrant article on March 10th for all-day Kindergarten.  If you support us, please like and share our Facebook page-Northwood Parents for All-Day Kindergarten. 

Thank you,

Amy Hanavan

Letter To The Editor

Vote NO on Full-day Kindergarten

Much of the research does suggest that a full-day kindergarten program, if planned and implemented properly, would be beneficial to the student. However, in Northwood this program is being introduced prematurely as a petitioned warrant article by a citizen. At their January 26 meeting our school board, not surprisingly, voted not to recommend supporting this full-time program.

Before this program is implemented, the school district must include a plan which focuses on the full alignment of kindergarten standards, curricula, and services. That plan is missing in Northwood and until such time as the school board supports a full-day program it should be defeated by voters.

In 2013 a comprehensive special education study (audit) was conducted for the three towns in SAU# 44 at a cost of about $35,000. That study made 55 recommendations for improvement to control costs and to increase student achievement. Over $783,000 was identified as potential special education savings.

According to a memo issued in December 2013 by the SAU#44 special education director to stakeholders on this study, their plan is to “use the recommendations to improve our schools and the outcomes for our students over the next few years.”  Given the comprehensiveness of this study, the school board should be focusing their efforts to ensure that a majority of the recommendations get implemented, especially those that provide the most cost-effective benefits.

Following this, the school board can then devote time to the proper development of a full-day kindergarten program in the year 2018. That will allow them the time necessary to also include a component for conducting a systematic, ongoing, longitudinal evaluation of the academic, social, and behavioral effects of attendance in a full-day kindergarten program.

Throwing money at a new program without proper planning is not good public policy.

Jim Hadley

Northwood

Letter To The Editor

To the Editor,

I want to thank the Friends of the Library for putting on Candidates Night. You did a great job and we appreciate it. Thanks also to Robbie for moderating.

I’m still rankling over the discussion about two employees who will not even be on the ballot. It happens often but still surprises me when small people blame the lowest people on the food chain when things go wrong. For instance, those two people (who are not on the ballot) did not make the incredibly stupid, asinine, moronic decision to buy a mower and mow lawns all spring and summer allowing ditching, trimming, pot hole filling and the like go wanting. Somebody else did.

Think about this: not one employee in our entire town has had a performance review in at least four years. Not even our Town Administrator. It is hard for me to even contemplate! How about this: at least six town owned vehicles are going home at night regularly. Some are being used as personal transportation having dropped kids off at school, and being seen all over this state doing non-Northwood business. Policies are routinely ignored and abused; I could go on and on.

Northwood has been on auto-pilot for some time now. No one has been at the helm. Thanks to some very, very dedicated Northwood employees, who have had our back, we are not in bad shape. Auto-pilot only works for so long though.

What happened to the “buck stops here” philosophy. You need to go up the food chain and find the common denominator when applying blame. You need to think about that when you are in the voting booth on March 10th.

Tim Jandebeur

Northwood

Letter To The Editor

I am Joseph McCaffrey,  running for planning board again in Northwood.  

Here’s a hypothetical.  Imagine yourself in an audience. You are asked to stand up, if you own any property in town?  And if you consider it your private property?  (Are you still standing?)  You get to pay the mortgage on it, the taxes on it, likely the insurance it, BUT do you really own it?

There are folks in town who really don’t think so in their heart of hearts.  Now mind you, they don’t want to pay your taxes. As a matter of fact, they often have plans for your taxes which have a way of growing. 

Do you have the right to use your property as you see fit, essentially as generations before did?  Maybe.  No you can’t infringe on the same rights of  your neighbor making use of his/her own property.  And yes, certain parts of town may be designated by residents’ common agreement  for particular use to help organize the function of the town, but this must be in constant regard for the individual owners’ rights, not in the special interests of small groups claiming it is for “the community.”

My opponent thinks it’s more important that the “community” has greater rights to your property than  you do as she said in objecting to my emphasizing respect for each resident’s private property.  My effort has been to respect each applicant before the  planning board equally and fairly with regard to our ordinances which are meant to respect property rights, which in turn protect our particular natural resources’, most notably our lakes.

The “community” does not pay taxes, and the “community” only works  when individual property owners feel they are not being unfairly imposed upon by whatever boards or committees.  If you agree, vote for me.

Joseph McCaffrey

Northwood

Letter

Dear Town of Northwood,

On March 10, 2015, exercise your vote!

Stan & Kathy Somers