All The Democratic News Fit To Print In and Around New Britain, CT (USA)

Friday, August 24, 2007

25 August 2007

New Britain’s Dozyinki Tradition Continues Saturday and Sunday at Falcon Field

Dozyinki 2007 – the centuries-old Polish tradition of celebrating a bountiful harvest -- is being held this weekend at Falcon Field on Farmington Avenue in New Britain. The two-day event begins on Saturday, August 25th, with a procession and an 11:00 a.m. Field Mass. Leaders of the Polish American Council will preside at the opening ceremony to be held at noon. Dozyinki, one of the oldest and best known of the city's cultural and ethnic celebrations features music, dance and food from the “excellent Polish Kitchen”.

The event runs through 9:30 p.m. Saturday and from 1 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Sunday, August 26th. Parking is $2 per vehicle.


Making Schools Better: Hartford Superintendent's High School Plan Is Instructional For New Britain

In his earliest days as Hartford School Superintendent, Steven J. Adamoski was critical of the $100+ million investment that had been made in Hartford Public High School which kept the facility a big-box, comprehensive high school with too many students in one place.

One of the nation's oldest secondary schools, Hartford Public has faced years of accreditation issues and troubling measures of student performance that the physical overhaul and capital investment did not improve.

Adamoski, a former superintendent of Cincinnati, OH schools, was brought to Hartford by Mayor Eddie Perez and the Board of Education for change and reform in the capital city's troubled 25,000 pupil school system. His task is to implement a "turnaround plan." Several days ahead of the 2007-2008 school year the details of an "all-choice" plan for Hartford have emerged. According to the Hartford plan the district "will undertake a dramatic investment in the creation of new schools with the goal of bringing over 30 new, high-performing public schools into the Hartford system by 2017, with the majority of new schools up and running in the first five years."

Dismal student achievement scores have prompted a call by Adamowski for decentralization of its big high schools A story by Bob Frahm in the August 24th Hartford Courant focuses on the effort to be made over the next several years "to break the high schools up into smaller units."

"We have to redesign our [large] comprehensive high schools. We can't have these high schools continue to operate" in their current form, Adamowski told the Courant.

Like Hartford Public High, New Britain High is facing accreditation issues discussed by school board members, school officials and the public at an August 14th community meeting in New Britain. The New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) Commission on Secondary Schools report of October 2006 noted deficiencies that NBHS needs to address: "The current plant at New Britain High School is not capable of adequately housing its rapidly increasing student body." The Commission noted that the Board of Education is taking steps starting with a 9th grade academy (to open this year). But the Commission also noted that "support for student learning is inadequate" with a student to counselor ratio of 330 to 1 and two library media specialists to serve 3,200 students.

Those ratios demonstrate that NBHS is still too much of a comprehensive high school that needs smaller units of students to deliver a better learning environment -- the sort of thing Adamowski is now trying to create in Hartford.

The New Britain Democratic Town Committee's platform calls for similar action: "The opening of a freshman academy is a positive first step toward a multi-faceted strategy of ce-centralizing education and creating learning communities." Despite the inequities that are built into the current means of financing the schools, a bold plan for high-performing schools similar to that being proposed in Hartford is needed in New Britain.


Dodd Presidential Campaign Comes To Portland, CT For Sunday 8/26 Fundraiser
State Democratic leaders and elected officials are hosting a "garden luncheon" for U.S. Senator Chris Dodd in support of his campaign for President on Sunday, August 26th at Saint Clements Castle, 1931 Portland-Cobalt Road in Portland. A $250 per person host reception will be held from noon to 1 p.m. A $100 per person general reception will be held from 1-3 p.m. at the banquet facility and grounds on the Connecticut River. For more information or to RSVP, please contact Kate Urbank at (203) 569-4942 or kurbank@chrisdodd.com. www.chrisdodd.com/aug26ct


A Gathering of Friends For Jim Wyskiewicz For Mayor August 28th

Colleagues and friends of Democratic Mayoral candidates Jim Wyskiewicz will hold an after work reception on Tuesday, August 28th from 6-8 p.m. at AD's Pizza, 377 South Center Street in Windsor Locks. The Wyskiewicz for Mayor event includes appetizers and a cash bar. Make a reservation to Jim4mayor@gmail.com .





Tuesday, August 21, 2007

New Britain Democrat 22 August 2007



Trueworthy For Common Council Party Is Thursday, August 23rd, 5-7 p.m.
Majority Leader To Emphasize Downtown Development, Education Aid And Infrastructure in Re-Election Bid


A party to benefit the re-election campaign of City Council Majority Leader Michael Trueworthy will be held Thursday, August 23rd, 5-7 p.m. at the home of State Central Committeeman Ned Statchen and Liz Fitzsimmons, 196 South Mountain Street, New Britain.

Councillor At Large Trueworthy previously served as a City Councillor from Ward 2 and Chair of the Board of Assessment Appeal. Trueworthy is seeking a second term at large on the 15-member city council of which 12 members are Democrats. As majority leader Trueworthy points to his efforts to expand the Senior Property Tax exemption program -- a measure opposed by the Stewart administration and successful efforts enacting an ordinance which gives the City much more of an enforcement mechanism to go after absentee landlords and those who don’t maintain their investment properties.

Trueworthy is emphasizing several issues on the campaign trail including downtown re-development, improvement of customer service at City Hall, more equity in state education aid, infrastructure improvements and improvements to neighborhood parks.

The suggested donation for the August 23rd Trueworthy event is $50. No one will be turned away for lack of funds. For more information -- 827-8816. A Trueworthy for Council event.

Voter Registration: Dems at 15,614 (52.4%)

Three months before the November 6th municipal election voter enrollment in New Britain totaled 29,764 at the end of July with Democrats accounting for 52.45% of the electorate at 15,614. Unaffiliated voters totaled 10,363 (34.8) and Republicans, 3,600 (12.05).

Actions For Peace Coming Up August 28th In Stamford, September 9th In Hartford

Lieberman, Shays To Be Urged To Oppose The War

An "Iraq Summer Take A Stand" campaign will challenge U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman and U.S. Rep. Chris Shays to take a stand on ending the War in Iraq. On August 28th peace advocates will gather at Stamford Government Center, 888 Washington Boulevard at 6:30 p.m. for a speaking program to urge independent Lieberman and Republican Shays to oppose the ongoing war in Iraq. The event will be preceded at 4 p.m. with door-to-door canvassing in Joe Lieberman's new neighborhood (Senator Lieberman recently changed moved from New Haven to Stamford) to "welcome him back to Stamford." As September nears and the release of a report on the situation in Iraq from military leaders is due, organizers want to "send a clear message to Shays and Lieberman about ending the war now."

On Sunday, September 9th the Coalition for Peace and Justice is the major sponsor of a "Hope Out Loud" Peace and Music Festival to begin at noon at Bushnell Park in Hartford. For more information log on to www.hopeoutloud.org/index.html



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New Britain Democrats

New Britain, Connecticut, United States
New Britain Democrat is a digest of e-newsletters that present news, views and information from the New Britain Democratic Town Committee. John McNamara, the Town Chair, is the editor. Mailing Address: Post Office Box 2112 New Britain, CT 06050 John Valengavich, Treasurer