Cheers to teachers in Regional School Unit 16 — Minot, Poland and Mechanic Falls — for agreeing to take a four-day cut in pay, saving the district an estimated $175,000 and preserving some of their fellow teachers’ jobs.
School administrators were facing a $319,500 budget shortfall and turned to teachers for help. Teachers agreed to take four furlough days, which will come from the district’s scheduled teacher workshop days, before the end of the current school year.
This action by teachers saved some of anticipated cuts to staff, which the district estimated to be close to 16 positions before the furlough days were approved by the union.
Education Commissioner Susan Gendron praised the teachers for their sacrifice, recognizing that it’s tough to take a pay cut, but it’s necessary to keep as many Maine people employed as possible.
There’s a lesson here for other teachers in Maine.
Cheers to Farmington selectmen who sent draft plans for an expansive new police station back to the architect.
The plans were fine. Too fine for the financially strapped folks of Farmington.
They requested a smaller, less fancy station for police, and selectmen obliged.
Here’s a case of taxpayers saying they can’t afford another enormous project, when also considering projects at the Mallet School and Mt. Blue High School, and selectmen responding appropriately to reduce their burden. That’s good, responsive and representative government.
Cheers to Santa Claus, who canceled a visit to the Jay Town Office Wednesday night,
making the decision Tuesday in advance of the predicted storm. On the
surface, canceling a visit because of snow sounds a little thin for the
jolly old elf, but he had good reason.
Santa’s visit was scheduled to meet with local children for keepsake
photographs, and he didn’t want the little ones and their parents
traveling to the Town Office and risking the danger of roads covered with
new-fallen snow. So, it’s not so much that Santa couldn’t fly in, but
that he was protecting the good people of Jay, safely nestled all snug
in their beds.
Thank you, Santa
He’ll be at the Town Office next Wednesday, Dec. 16, noon to 4 p.m.
Cheers to Noella Hemond and Lucille Hodsdon, fine examples of generosity
and warmth. The two women hand-knit a pair of mittens for every
kindergartner and first-grader at Minot Consolidated School. They did
more than spin out the mittens, though. The duo enlisted the help of
teachers to measure all those little hands and take notes about
favorite colors, and then custom-made each pair.
The women spent five weeks crafting these gifts, which the children were delighted to accept Tuesday.
Maine is full of people with good hearts who do tremendous things to
help their neighbors. We applaud Hemond and Hodsdon for helping teach
that neighborly spirit to Minot children.
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