Monthly News Notes

Seekonk Town Meeting Will be Held on June 5
Seekonk will hold its annual spring Town Meeting on Monday, June 5 at 7 p.m. at the Seekonk High School auditorium. The last day to register to vote at the town meeting is May 16 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Registration forms are available at the town clerk’s office or after 4:30 p.m. in the lobby of the public safety building. Residents can also register online at www.123voter.com.

Hurley Middle Named Spotlight School
Hurley Middle School has been named a Spotlight School by the New England League of Middle Schools (NELMS). There are currently only 36 middle schools in New England that have earned this status, according to Principal William Whalen. This year, only three schools were chosen, and Hurley Middle School was one of them. NELMS commended the school on an exemplary school climate, a clean and attractive facility, empowering teachers and students through a collaborative leadership model, having a supportive learning environment, using the Google Platform to embed technology into instruction and more. Dr. Whalen stated in a press release that he is “very proud of all of the hard work that the teachers and students at the school have put forth in order to make HMS a topnotch school. This is an environment where everyone supports each other.”

School Committee Votes to Reduce Budget/Approve Town Meeting Article to Partly Fund Full Day K
Last month the school committee cut more than $1.4 million from the proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2018. The revised budget is $25.1 million, but some of the reductions may be restored. Included in the budget is part of the cost of implementing a full-day kindergarten program next year. The remainder of the cost for the kindergarten program, $145,000, will put on a warrant article at the June 5 annual town meeting. The committee considered including fees for transportation and athletics in the budget, but decided against athletic fees after receiving a great deal of negative feedback from parents. There will be a transportation fee, but the committee reduced the amount from a proposed $360 a year to $135 a year per student. A proposal was made for a family cap on transportation, but the committee voted against it. They may reconsider the cap at a later date.

Timilty Leaving State Senate
State Sen. James Timilty, D-Walpole, announced he will be leaving the state senate to take the position of Norfolk County Treasurer. Timilty has served as state senator for the Bristol and Norfolk districts since 2004. The district includes Seekonk, Rehoboth, Foxboro, Mansfield, Norton and part of Attleboro. Timilty was appointed to take over the treasurer position from Joseph Connolly who resigned effective April 28. Timilty will start the job on May 2, according to media reports. He will have to run for election in 2018 to complete the final two years of Connolly’s term. A special election will have to be held to elect a new senator, but the date has not been set yet. In a statement, Timilty said he would “truly miss being the senator from Bristol and Norfolk.”

American Lung Association Reports Bristol County Air Quality Poor
The American Lung Association, in its 2017 “State of the Air” report, gave Bristol County a failing grade for ozone concentrations, although air quality in Massachusetts overall is improving, according to an article in the Sun Chronicle. The report analyzed air quality date for 2013 through 2015. The Boston-Worcester-Providence area ranked 37th worst out of 228 metropolitan areas for the number of days when ozone concentrations were too high. The Mass. Dept. of Environmental Protection said that outdoor air in Massachusetts remains in compliance with federal health guidelines.

Seekonk High Students Participated in Student Government Day in Boston
Two students from Seekonk High School participated in Massachusetts’ 70th Student Government Day on Friday, April 7 at the State House in Boston. Jessica-Lyn Sweet served as State Representative for the Fourth Bristol District and Joshua Lane served as her alternate. Student Government Day provides students and teachers an opportunity to learn about how state government works. Students take on the role of senators, representatives, constitutional officers and Supreme Court justices and participate in a simulated committee hearing and interact with elected officials, among other activities.

Seekonk High Students Participated in Youth Symposium at UMass Boston
A group of students and teachers visited UMass Boston one day last month to take part in a Youth to Youth Symposium hosted by the Joiner Institute for the Study of War and Social Consequences. The topic was “War and the Refugee Experience.” The Seekonk High students met refugees from Somalia, Uganda and Syria and took part in discussion groups with them.

Bob’s Store in Seekonk to Close
Eastern Outfitters, owners of Bob’s Stores and Eastern Mountain Sports, announced it will be closing 48 of its 86 stores, including the Seekonk Bob’s Store located at 150 Highland Ave/Rt. 6 in Seekonk. The closing is expected to take place before the end of June. Eastern Outfitters filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February. The company is planning to sell its assets to U.K.-based SportsDirect International.