THETFORD TOWN NEWSLETTER
NO. 77 JULY 2010
THETFORD TOWN OFFICE
Summer Hours
Monday - 6:00-8:00PM
Tuesday-Thursday – 8:00AM– 4:00PM
THETFORD ACADEMY NEWS AND NOTES
*Thetford Academy is hosting weekly Fun Runs on the Woods Trail throughout the summer, at 6:00 on Tuesday evenings. The weekly runs began June 22 and continue throughout the summer. TA's cross-country coaches are organizing the events and all comers, fast or slow, are welcome. Bring your running shoes and meet at the top of the trail!
*The TA Board of Trustees will hold their monthly meeting on Thursday, July 22, at 7:00 pm in the TA Library. The public is invited to attend.
THETFORD HILL FAIR
Thetford
Hill Fair Since
1905!
Come join friends and neighbors on Saturday, July 21st 11:15AM until 6:00 PM
Town-wide rummage sale; antiques and collectables; food, pie, and bake sale; plants, games, and books
11:15am - Bike Parade
11:30am - Fair Opens
1:00pm-3:00pm - Tea Garden
4:00pm - Fair Closes
4:00-6:00pm - BBQ Dinner
Benefits the Thetford Village Improvement Society. Help keep the Green green!
Submitted by Maureen Norton-Dant
TREASURE island LAKEFEST
LAKEFEST - A fresh relaunch of an historic celebration of Lake Fairlee. The event's purpose is to draw together the three town communities (Thetford, West Fairlee, Fairlee) that share the shores of Lake Fairlee, for an old-fashioned series of activities on and along the lake.
Lakefest will take place at Treasure Island and Horizons Day Camp. Admission is free. Saturday, July 10, 10AM - 3PM*** Rain date July 11. Bring a picnic or buy a tasty lunch at either site.
Submitted by Scott and Ann O'Hearn, TI Managers
THETFORD COMMUNITY GARDEN – FREE WORKSHOPS
All
are welcome to attend the FREE Garden Workshops at the new Thetford Community
Garden on the Town Common in Thetford Center, VT. Please park at the
Thetford Center Community Center.
July 14 - Garden Guests & Pests
Learn to identify weeds and eat them. Topics include: companion
plants, deadheading and pinching back, knowing common weeds and their habits,
basic insect ID.
August 11 - Feeding the Garden
Topics include: basic soil composition, top dressing with compost and
compost tea, mulching, watering tips, practical irrigation choices, foliar
feeding, top dressing and more.
September 15 - Harvesting and Curing for Storage
Topics include: timing the harvest, how to best handle crops for
winter storage, indoor and outdoor storage tips.
Submitted by Lori Harriman
DID YOU KNOW? THETFORD HISTORY
Did you know that, until recently, the "boom" time for Thetford's population was in the 1830's and 40's? According to the census, there were 2,065 residents in 1840 (plus 13,602 sheep and 2,256 heads of cattle!). That numbered declined steadily over the ensuing decades until, by 1960, there were just 1,049 people. It wasn't until the 2000 census that Thetford again had in excess of 2,000 residents.
Submitted by Charlie Buttrey
SUMMER TUTORING
Enrichment and Remediation, Grades K-8. Flexible July/August Scheduling.
For Further info contact: Jane Friedlander 802-785-4455 or www.uppervalleytutor.com
Submitted by Jane Friedlander
LETTER FROM THETFORD SCHOOL BOARD
Dear Thetford Community,
With the arrival of summer, now is a good time to offer a recap of what Thetford’s school board has been up to recently, and our priorities for fall:
(1) In conjunction with TA, TES and the select board, we launched a Procurement/Grants Committee to help identify possible cost savings for the town, as well as new revenue sources. This effort has already generated some promising ideas.
(2) Thanks to good faith collaboration with TES employees, we recently completed negotiations for three year contracts for teachers and support staff. These contracts provide for higher percentage payments of health insurance premiums by employees, include moderate wage increases and introduce a more cost-effective, high deductible health insurance plan alternative.
(3) With assistance from community volunteers, we completed a new first grade teacher search to replace Elizabeth Auch, who resigned this spring after many years of devoted service. We are delighted that Kevin Petrone will be starting work this fall, and ask you to join us in welcoming him to TES.
(4) We initiated a comprehensive review of school board policies. We are starting this process by implementing state mandated policies, and will then review all other policies, updating them to reflect current needs and community preferences.
(5) We recently held a joint meeting with the TA trustees, as well as TA and TES administrators. This event offered an opportunity for TA and TES to learn more about each other’s goals and activities, and discuss opportunities for collaboration to benefit all Thetford students.
(6) We have selected a consultant to assist us in a preliminary investigation of the desirability of leaving the Orange East Supervisory Union (OESU) to join a different, geographically contiguous supervisory union. This would be a major decision for the school district; it would only occur after the school board had provided opportunities for community input and a town vote. Such a move would also require cooperation from the state, OESU and the receiving supervisory union. In order to assess whether we should pursue this idea, the consultant will help us analyze costs and benefits, including complicated questions related to the political environment regarding school and supervisory union consolidation, the likely financial impact and curricular considerations.
(7) Starting this fall, we will be focusing attention on updating the Strategic Plan for TES. This document serves as a guide for the TES administration and school board on elementary education priorities. In conjunction with Principal Keith Thompson, the board has already held one informal “community forum” event to begin a conversation about changes Thetford residents would like to see at TES – as well as aspects of the school that should remain unchanged. We look forward to many more such conversations, consideration of ways this new strategic plan should relate to TA’s current strategic plan, and establishment of a formal Strategic Plan Committee.
(8) Finally, a critical ongoing responsibility of the school board is management of the town’s education budget. This concern includes looking for specific cost saving opportunities (for example, via the Procurement/Grants Committee, described above) as well as considering bigger picture questions such as how accounting is handled and reported to the school board by the supervisory union. Keeping the budget in check is no small feat, especially since there are a number of critical factors outside of local control, such as education tax formulas and the state’s annual assessment of the common level of appraisal. However, we recognize our obligation to be good stewards of taxpayer money and are focused on this issue.
In closing, we would like to extend our deep thanks to the many volunteers who have contributed their time, energy, resources and skills to benefit Thetford education this past school year. Your involvement makes a big difference in the quality of our schools, and sends a great message to Thetford’s kids about how much our community values education.
Sincerely,
The Thetford School Board:
Robin Brown, Charlie Buttrey, Shannon Darrah, Lisa Swett and Elise Tillinghast
NEWSLETTER SUBMISSION INFO
The deadline for submissions is the 20th of each month. Send news including contact name and telephone number to Sheila Fifield at Sheila.fifield@aol.com. Please list Thetford Town Newsletter in subject line.