On Wednesday, Octover 1st 2008, NAU and the North Andover/Andover League of Women Voters sponsored the forum "Do We Have a Voice in the Massachusetts Economy? Is Anyone Listening?"  We are providing the video from the event for your information.   

The overall video is broken into three parts.   Click on 'Read More...' below to see all videos.

Hint for viewing enjoyment: because these videos are large you may want to start the video (click on 'play' triangle on each video) and then click on pause ("||") and let the video stream to your system for a few minutes so you will reduce the chance of pauses while the video downloads to your system.  You do not need to wait for 100% download, 30 - 50% should be fine for high speed internet.  Then press the play button (">") to play each segment of the video. 

Part 1: Introduction, Michael Widmer presentation, Senator Bruce Tarr presentation

Will you be voting in the upcoming Massachusetts State Election?  Are you registered to vote?  Are you sure?

The Massachusetts City and Town Clerks Associations urge all residents to check their voter registration by October 15th for the Presidential Election.  You may call (978)688-9501 or e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it to verify your status.

On Thursday, October 16 the Andovers League of Women Voters are sponsoring a State Ballot question forum.

Learn about the three ballot questions that will be on the November 4 ballot:

• Repealing the state income tax
• Decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana
• Banning greyhound racing 

From the Boston Globe Op-Ed Section - 9/21
Michael Widmer is President of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Association, a respected non-partisan organization providing analysis for the residents of Massachusetts.

'IT'S TIME to send them a message. They just don't get it."

As I travel across the state speaking in opposition to Question 1, the refrain is the same. There is a palpable sense of frustration with political leaders, and unfortunately Question 1 - the proposed income tax repeal on the November ballot - has become the misguided means for expressing that frustration.

And given the economic squeeze facing individuals and families - increasing costs of food, energy, and other essentials, declining property values and retirement investments, and concerns that their jobs may be eliminated - it is not surprising that they would be tempted to vote themselves a tax cut. Though it is the wealthy who would get a tax cut and the lower-income people who would likely end up paying more.

Boston Globe Editorial - 9/28  

ECONOMIC ANXIETY caused by the crisis in the financial markets, and all its attendant uncertainty, could be enough to cause some voters to favor the question on November's ballot to eliminate the state income tax. But Question 1 will make things incalculably worse. The Globe urges every citizen, regardless of income, to Vote NO on Question 1.

The state treasurer already has said he will have to borrow at higher interest rates and tap rainy day funds in order to cover current local aid payments to the cities and towns. It's not hard to imagine how local communities would fare if the state were suddenly starved of 40 percent of its operating budget, which is what Question 1 would do. Local services from schools to police stations to senior centers would be on the chopping block. Property taxes - the most unfair and hated of all assessments - would likely rise to make up the difference. That explains why the Massachusetts Municipal Association, representing all 351 cities and towns, opposes Question 1.

On October 20 and 21st  the North Andover Middle Grades 7 & 8 and the High School will host Rachel’s Challenge, a program centering on setting positive goals, celebrating diversity, and using non-violent means to resolve differences. Rachel Scott was the first person killed at Columbine High School on April 20, 1999. Her acts of kindness and compassion coupled with the contents of her six diaries have become the foundation for one of the most life-changing school programs in America.

7th and 8th grade Middle School and High School students will attend a multimedia presentation during normal school hours.  On Tuesday evening October 21st we will host a community event at the High School starting at 7:00pm and encourage parents and all other interested community members to view the presentation. This evening session is similar to the daytime assembly program and ends with a specific challenge to parents and community leaders, showing them how they can reinforce the decisions their youth are making.

This program was first presented at the High School last fall and was well received by both students and parents that attended the evening event.  Many middle school parents that attended the community event expressed their desire to have this valuable program expanded to middle school.

If you would like to learn more about Rachel’s Challenge.

Please visit - http://www.rachelschallenge.com/

The North Andover Rotary Club  is sponsoring their fourth annual Halloween party event: Ghoul School of Rock.    Invitations are now expanded to surrounding towns as well. Geared for 4 yrs. and up, we provide entertainment, games, music, food, prizes. The biggest Halloween event in the area.

Where: North Andover High School
When:  Sunday, October, 26 - 1:30 PM - 4:00 PM

Visit www.northandoverrotary.org for more information.

1. Regardless of when the warning news was announced, or by whom, the plan of action would not have changed. Dr. Scuzzarella and her team have been working double-time to improve the North Andover High School academic experience with little to no additional funding.
   
   
2. I am relieved; it is far more reassuring to me to know that the open and honest relationship between Dr. Marini and our School Committee Chair is intact. I may have disagreed with their decision to delay release of the warning news - but the end result has not changed.
   
   
3. I am encouraged that elected officials - on both sides of our town government - are steadily learning to trust in the importance of an informed public vs. a reactionary public. Providing honest answers, upfront, breeds respect and understanding, even when the going gets rough. North Andover local government has moved light years ahead just in the past year and a half - changing the way we do business is never easy or quick - but I see us taking giant steps forward.
   

1. North Andover’s elected, appointed and employed leaders are wonderfully accessible to the general public compared to other communities. It’s no wonder that our Town received an award this year for the depth of both document info and contact info available online to citizens.
   
   
2. Many, many Massachusetts communities with really good school systems - some in the excellent category - are on NEASC warning status and have been for some time.
   
   
3. Check out the link for the Norton School Committee at http://www.nortonschoolcommittee.org/. If you read their home page statement about their accreditation warning statement, it reads as though it were written for North Andover. Warning status given for academic issues already corrected for? Sounds familiar?
   

My conclusion: "Somebody" [Eagle-Trib? Globe?] needs to do some investigative reporting. Accreditation is important - NEASC is the only national Assoc. that does the accreditation - but how many or what percentage of Massachusetts high schools are currently on warning status? If the number is significant, it dilutes the impact of the warning. If warnings are issued for cookie-cutter academic reasons that public high schools can not address with the financial resources available to them, we need to know that.

I asked our School Committee and Dr. Marini to post our NEASC warning information publicly on the schools’ website [they said it is currently available at the Stevens Memorial Library].

If accountability is what we want, Chairman Whidden and Dr. Marini met the challenge. If accreditation is what we want, we are fully accredited and the warning status is being addressed in a prompt, reasonable manner. If great schools are what we want, we’re there, and we continue to set the bar higher every day. The challenges we face are not one iota particular to just North Andover - it’s how we face them that makes the difference. I am confident we’re more than equipped to do the job right.

Sincerely,
Sandy Gleed

Discuss this in our forum

Get your ticket to ride The Polar Express.  Kick off your holiday season on Saturday, November 29, 2008 with a magical ride to the North Pole. 

Join Santa’s elves for a reading of Chris Van Allsburg’s "The Polar Express", cocoa, dessert, and visits from some special Christmas friends.  Tickets available Saturday, October 18, from 9 - 11 a.m. at Saint Michael School, 80 Maple Avenue, North Andover. Tickets are $20 per person.  Trains depart from the Newburyport MBTA station at 11:35 am, 1:15 pm, 3:15 pm and 5:30 pm.  A portion of the ticket proceeds will benefit the Cor Unum Meal Center in Lawrence, . Donations of new hats, mittens, scarves and sweaters (for all ages) will gladly be accepted at the train station, and will be distributed by Cor Unum and DCF (Department of Children and Families) to those in need.   For tickets after October 18th, call 978-686-1862 or visit www.saintmichael.com.

Transportation is the No. 1 unmet need in our community.  It is one of the most difficult services to obtain for older adults in all communities.  Volunteer drivers needed!  Northern Essex Elder Transport meets an enormous need in the community by providing transportation for those who have no other way to get to and from medical appointments.  As a NEET driver, you can request the area you prefer to drive and the day or days and times, you would be available, whether it is once a week or once a month.

We need drivers now more than ever.  If you can help please call the North Andover Senior Center at 978-688-9560.  All NEET drivers are provided with an orientation to the program, receive supplemental insurance for their vehicle, and will be reimbursed at 43 cents per mile driven.  Set your own hours for availability.

Welcome to northandover.org... home of North Andover United and the 'unofficial' community web site for North Andover, MA.

If you're just discovered this site I encourage you to please take a moment and subscribe to our email lists (click on this link ) to stay updated on important topics relating to our town.   We have received a lot of testimonials from the community thanking us for providing information that people are not able to stay updated on because of their busy lives.   

You can always automatically and instantly unsubscribe from our emails and your information (email address and name only) is never shared with anyone.

From Eagle Tribune: August 26, 2008 

NORTH ANDOVER - School leaders expect more than two dozen children to transfer out of the Thomson School, after learning yesterday the elementary school did not meet its MCAS test improvement goals for the second consecutive year.

Under the No Child Left Behind law, if a school receiving federal Title 1 funding does not meet its adequate yearly progress (AYP) two years in a row, the district must offer the choice of moving to another school.

Superintendent James Marini said he does not have any specific details from the state yet.

But he said 29 families had expressed interest over the past couple of weeks in moving their children if the school did not meet its testing benchmark.

If that happens, the school will be losing about 7 percent of its 425 students.

"We'll do our very best to make this work," Marini said.  "It's a balance for us.  We don't want to overload any other school.  It's important for us to respond positively to parents' requests to move and do this in a way that doesn't have a negative impact.

"It's a challenge," he added.

Thomson has had the lowest Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System scores of the town's five elementary schools.  The school did not meet its improvement goals for the 2006-2007 year in English language arts.

Thomson is one of two schools in North Andover that receive federal Title 1 funding, which is given to schools that have a certain number of low-income students.  Twenty-one percent of the students at Thomson last year were considered low income.

The Atkinson School is also a Title 1 school.

Now parents can request to send their children to the Atkinson, Franklin or Kittredge elementary schools.

Marini said he will try to comply with parents' first requests of schools they want to transfer their children to, but it will depend on class size.  He does not want to place students into a class where there are already 25 or more students.

"It's a balance for us," he said.  "We don't want to overload any other school."

School officials need to make sure parents who requested transfers still want to move their children out of Thomson.

Then they will spend the days leading up to the Sept. 3 school start shuffling busing schedules and classroom lists.  The district is obligated to pay for busing students to schools that are more than two miles from their homes.

Marini said he was not sure how many people would want to transfer.

"I didn't have any way of measuring the first time through," Marini said.

The superintendent sent a letter to parents yesterday afternoon about the Thomson not meeting the requirement.  School officials will meet with Thomson parents Thursday to discuss the district's next steps and answer any questions people might have.

They're waiting for specific data on how close the school came to meeting it annual yearly progress goals.

"I think Thomson will be a great school. It has terrific leadership, programs and initiatives," Marini said.

Thomson's new principal, Greg Gilligan, has said with several new programs in place, he is confident the school will meet its MCAS goals the next time around.

Besides a new summer school piloted last month, Thomson will add new reading, writing and math programs, bring in more tutors and a social worker, and start a homework club.

Gilligan is setting up common planning time for teachers, where they can look at students' work together — pinpointing where a student may be having trouble and quickly remedying the situation.

"We want to exceed the benchmark, to surpass it," Gilligan said in an interview last week. "The key thing here is there's a sense of feeling among parents and staff to push forward."

Thomson School meeting
When: Thursday, 7 p.m. (August 28)
Where: Thomson School, 266 Waverly Road

Click on this link to join in on the discussion of this topic.

Dear Friends,

I hope this message finds you enjoying some fun and relaxation during the last half of summer vacation! My own family visited the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, we spent a few days exploring Niagara Falls, and we’ve just returned from a very fun canoeing & kayaking weekend trip with several other North Andover families [who were very good sports about some very heavy rain!].

• In between some great fun, I’ve been keeping up with North Andover municipal matters: 
• I’ve attended and/or watched Finance Committee meetings, Board of Selectmen meetings, School Committee meetings; 
• I’ve met or talked with not only our own leaders, but also with elected officials from other communities interested in the way NAU is working to unite our community; 
• I’ve met with leaders of advocacy groups outside of North Andover who share philosophies and goals closely in tune with NAU objectives; and 
• I’ve kept up with your discussion postings on www.northandover.org.

If you’ve visited our website, you’ve seen the intense interest in whether Thomson Elementary School will meet the Adequate Yearly Progress goals under its MCAS scores, required by No Child Left Behind. I strongly urge parents of both Thomson School students, and students attending the other four elementary schools, to attend the School Committee meeting scheduled for Tuesday, August 19th. It is currently listed on the Town’s website with a start time of 7:00 pm at the Town Hall; watch for either a shift to a 6:00 start time or even a shift in meeting place. It is not clear whether this meeting will be televised. School Choice is on the agenda. If Thomson students are offered a choice of schools, it affects not only Thomson school, but also the receiving schools. And since practically ALL of our elementary school MCAS scores leave something to be desired... parents should be concerned, regardless of where their children attend. I know I’ll be listening for specific information on what steps will be taken to improve both leadership and instruction at Thomson, but also at the other schools too.
 
Enjoy the rest of your summer!

Sincerely,

Sandy Gleed. Pres.
North Andover United, Inc.

From the June 29th Eagle Tribune.

NORTH ANDOVER - The Thomson Elementary School has been under the watchful eye of the school district for some time because it has the lowest MCAS scores of the town's five elementary schools.

Now, the federal government is also noticing.

School officials will learn in August whether Thomson has met its improvement goals for MCAS scores for the 2007-2008 school year. If not, parents will be given a choice of sending their children to another school in town.

Click here to read the rest of the article.   Discuss this topic by clicking here.

Congratulations to Christina Morgan of North Andover.   Christina was the winner of the Wii drawing which was held at the Senior Center on June 17th, 2008.   A total of $1710.00 was raised for the capital improvement campaign from the "Wii Can Do This Together" campaign supported by North Andover United and Friends of the Senior Center.

You can still make tax deductible contributions by clicking on this link.

This year the Senior Center was appropriated $250,000 through the Capital Improvement Fund to update and improve the existing space.  The Friends of the North Andover Senior Center have embarked on an 8-week Capital Improvement Fund Raiser.  Their goal is to raise $80,000.00 in 8 weeks.  These funds are necessary to fully fund and complete the proposed renovation project. Improvements to the senior center are as follows:

• Expanding reception and waiting area for better access for handicapped adults as well as all seniors entering the building.
• Moving and improving office space for better access to staff members by handicapped adults.
• Direct accessibility to all classrooms and nutrition site.
• Improving size of existing health screening office, and computer area

During the next 8 weeks, The Friends of the North Andover Senior Center Inc. will be aggressively fundraising to generate the $80,000.00 shortfall needed for this project to move forward. We need your help to accomplish this ambitious goal. If you would like to support us, mail your donation check made payable to:

Friends of the North Andover Senior Center, Inc.
PO Box 661, North Andover, MA 01845

This donation is tax deductible, please write "Capital Improvement Fund" in the memo section on check.

Your support is greatly appreciated,

George White President of the
Friends of the North Andover Senior Center

Related stories can be read in the Eagle Tribune and North Andover Citizen.

Dear Readers,

I received an email today that posed an excellent question:  what does NAU mean by the term "Honest Questions"?  Here’s my response:

I have spent 17 years attending town meetings, and 10 years attending and/or watching way too many BOS/School Committee/Fincom/Planning/Zoning/PTO/etc. meetings where people get up and ask questions intended to stir the pot, cast aspersions on the skills or effectiveness of the boards, or to intentionally plant seeds of doubt in the minds of the townspeople.  "Honest Questions" are questions that seek accurate information, clarification of details, or call attention to an issue not previously considered.  They are questions that do not already assume an answer, and they are questions that do not attempt to color the answer with political overtones.
 
But please understand - honest questions can certainly question the status quo, and they can absolutely express disagreement with prior answers and/or the positions or decisions adopted by elected officials.  It's just that honest questions can accomplish that with respect and without causing further divisiveness, something our town just can't afford to tolerate anymore. 
 
NAU encourages you to contact us with questions like this one - we’ve got a whole discussion forum area on this website provided for any topic you’d like to discuss. 

--Sandy Gleed

It is with great pleasure that we announce Sandy Gleed as the 2008 Pristash Award winner.   The Pristash Award established in 2006 to honor David and Leanna Pristash is voted on by all the parent / teacher organizations in town.  The recipient is selected based on their selfless dedication to our public schools.  Last year's recipents were Lianne Patenaude and Paddy Duncan.  The award will be presented to Sandy on Thursday,  April 10th  2008 at the Top of The Scales from 6 - 9pm.  Tickets are $35 per person and are on sale (3/4) at B-Sporty on Chickering Road (across from Hafners).   For futher information or to place an Ad in our Best Wishes Book please contact Margaret Shaheen at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or at 978-686-6562.  All proceeds to fund the Pristash Scholarship at the High School.

Most people, when they retire, get a small severance and a hearty thank-you. But if you've spent your career in the public sector, you're likely eligible for tens of thousands of dollars worth of "unused" sick and vacation time on top of a generous pension.

Read the rest of the article on the Eagle Tribune.

An interesting article from the Boston Globe:n "It's technically neither free nor cash, but it is a tempting way to balance the budget at the end of the fiscal year. Repeatedly raiding the account, however, can have costly ramifications."

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/01/31/no_such_thing_as_free_cash?mode=PF