HANSON – The Select Board focused on how to use one-time funds in the effort to close the town’s budget deficit as members reviewed Town Meeting warrants at its Tuesday, April 4 meeting.
Town Administrator Lisa Green said she and her staff have spent many hours between meetings updating the draft warrants for the annual and special Town Meetings on which the board had voted to place or place and recommend articles at its March 28 meeting.
For example, several capital articles pertaining to the schools were combined into a single Article 7 with line items – including a pair of line items, for an elevator repair and a septic system repair at Hanson Middle School, which were not placed on the October special Town Meeting warrant.
Green said she was uncertain why the omission took place, when the October session did take up an emergency request from the school district for door security after they fell victim to a cyber attack over the summer
“It could have been that these were determined not to be an emergency to fall under the October special Town Meeting, and now they are coming before the May annual Town Meeting as reimbursements,” she said.
The other requests under Article 7 are one-time purchases such as technology requests, for which free cash or American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) funds could be used, Green said.
Vice Chair Joe Weeks asked how much money in ARPA funds the town has to spend on one-time expenditures.
“I think it would important for us to put out there in Town Meeting,” he said. “It’s an important revenue question to ask. … We have to start talking about next year’s budget, like now.”
Knowing how much the town has available in ARPA funds at the start and end of Town Meeting business will be important in illustrating how much money it takes to fund the town with money that officials will never have available again, Weeks argued.
Green said Hanson has $1,191,040 in ARPA funds available through Plymouth County as well as two disbursements totalling $1,294,000 through the Treasury.
“We have not touched this money,” she said except for $100,000 from ARPA for a fire station feasibility study; $85,000 for a generator for the Library/Senior Center and $200,000 for the HVAC system expended at the October special Town Meeting. However, Plymouth County had rejected both the generator and HVAC system uses because the HVAC funds must first be spent and then reimbursed by the county. The generator does not fit the accepted use parameters for COVID-related costs.
“We can certainly use the treasury money that we have in the bank, because that can be used for any general government services,” she said. “But, as of right now, we haven’t done the projects and spent any of the money.”
Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett noted the town has to “jump through major hoops” to access the ARPA funds administered by Plymouth County.
“We need to get strategic about how we’re going to spend it because we have to spend it by 2026,” she said.
Board member Ed Heal said he would like a table projected on a screen at Town Meeting showing how much was available in the funds and how much has so far been allocated “so they can actually see that their votes do something.”
Both he and FitzGerald-Kemmett had doubts about how to do that, but agreed another forum such as a Select Board meeting, or a handout at Town Meeting might be better forums in which to present that information.
The special Town Meeting articles were then approved for placement on the warrant.
In the annual warrant, the board discussed whether a $25,000 request by the Thomas Mill Committeee to replace the wheel and rebuild the stand at the historic mill. When the wheel had been removed for work, it was discovered that the stand’s wood was rotting, Green said.
FitzGerald-Kemmett asked the board for feedback, but suggested that $25,000, “when we’re in a fiscal situation … where timing is everything.”
“In my gut, I feel like this needs to be deferred to, potentially, October Town Meeting,” she said. “We are the ones who have to decide whether this is the best use of town money.”
Board member Jim Hickey said as a one-time situation, it could qualify for ARPA funding.
“This is a perfect example of one of those projects that you need to look into it before you [proceed],” he said. “But, if we don’t do it now, next May, or even October, it could be $30,000.”
“It is a community landmark,” Board member Ann Rein agreed. “It’s something that people like and I think that’s a good use for one-time money.”
Green expressed doubt that ARPA funds, which support general government services, could be properly used for the Mill wheel project.
Weeks said he is looking at finances for the year – and probably next year as well – with the point in mind that the town still does not know if the school assessment increase will come in at 3.75 percent with a $600,000 deficit or “if we’re going to be stuck paying more than that.”
“I come from the place of, under normal circumstances, my motion would normally be … to place and defer to Town Meeting,” Weeks said. “We still don’t know the dollar amount for the school. … We have to be super conservative right now.”
He said he loves the people overseeing the project and thinks they are doing a great job and should place their request before the board, but he is concerned that one-time funds may be needed to fund the town for now.
Rein suggested that a fundraising effort, such as Crowdfunding might be an alternative.
FitzGerald-Kemmett suggested reaching out to the state representatives to seek an earmark for the “very modest amount” for the iconic town landmark.
Hickey said it was the board’s duty to place the article, whether or not they voted to recommend it. The board voted to place the article to defer the issue to Town Meeting.
The board conducted a brief hearing with National Grid on utility pole locations near 201 Franklin St.
Bill Gillespie of National Grid said the utility is looking to place a pole and push-brace to hold the existing pole until it can be removed because of wires. The base of the push-brace should extend about 10 feet from the existing pole.
Hickey said he liked taking care of a problem before it becomes a problem.

WHITMAN – They say opportunity only knocks once.
Whitman resident Coryn MacPherson was a junior at the Savannah College of Art and Design, where she majored in sequential art, answered when the knock of opportunity came to her at the school in 2021.
Within that major, she specialized in comic book and graphic novel art.
“They’re a tough school, but they’re great,” the 2018 graduate of W-H Regional High said of SCAD.
“The school … had an event specifically for people wanting to get into comics,” she said. “They would bring in art directors and editors from those [publishers] and Scholastic was one of them.”
Students had the opportunity to submit their portfolios for the publishing representatives to look at and review. Two months later, she received an email with an offer from the art director.
Graphix, a graphic novel imprint of Scholastic, was looking for illustrators for its Five Nights at Freddy’s franchise, based on a video game.
Was Coryn interested?
It didn’t take her long to say, “Yes.”
Her work is featured in the last story of “Five Nights at Freddy’s: Fazbear Frights Graphic Novel Collection, Vol. 2.” That story is titled “The New Kid.”
A kid is jealous of his best friend’s new friend, makes the new kid disappear, she said of the plot line.
It was the first step on a career path which she wants to see lead to writing and illustrating her own graphic novels. MacPherson had already been working on the script for one of her own.
“It’s a fairy tale,” she said.
In a way, she’s been living one. MacPherson, who graduated magna cum laude from SCAD in June 2022, is also working from a disability, her mother Julie Ryan said.
“She can’t see out of one of her eyes, so the fact that she draws as well is pretty extraordinary,” Ryan said. “And it’s a big deal for somebody still in college to land a job like that.”
And her career is taking off since the book came out recently. MacPherson has already seen more interest in her work through social media such as LinkedIn, but the opportunity was the stuff of movie magic.
“It’s a New York Times best-seller franchise,” her mom Julie said.
Asked for details on the story line, Coryn paused and said with a laugh “It’s … um … animatronics that kill kids. It’s a really popular franchise and they’re currently filming a movie for it down in Louisiana.”
Matthew Lillard, who played “Shaggy” in the “Scooby-Doo” film is in it as well as a former member of the “Scream” cast and Josh Hutchinson from the “Hunger Games” is in it.
While MacPherson is not involved in the film project, her work on the graphic story books is keeping her busy.
She said the 10-year-old franchise is massive, with dozens of books and eight video games based on it, as well as board games, in addition to the movie.
“The books are kind of tie-ins for the games,” MacPherson said. “What’s being adapted [in the film] is the game play, whereas these are little stories that take place I the same world.”
Published for ages 12 and up and released about three weeks ago, the book is now available at area stores like Barnes & Noble, Target and Walmart. The day her book came out, MacPherson said she went to Barnes & Noble and signed nine copies.
“They all sold out in a day,’ she said.
The copies had been identified by the Barnes & Noble staff so potential buyers would know they are a signed copy.
The publisher sent her an email about when the release date was.
“We were there, looking,” Ryan said.
Having just completed her third project for the Scholastic franchise, for whom she is working almost exclusively right now and is already at work on her next project. She said she has also applied for another position in Boston, doing similar work for this year’s Anime Boston convention in April.
“The art, I don’t think anyone is going to see until the actual convention,” she said.
Like a lot of careers today – especially in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, MacPherson can work just about anywhere she can take her tablet, but she added, it’s not really a new development in her field.
“Comics are pretty much always remote, because the artists are all over the world,” she said. “The other two artists on the book I just worked on, live in Argentina.”
MacPherson herself has studied in southern France and was briefly in Osaka, Japan, where a job teaching English didn’t work out. She’s now thinking about trying life in London.
“They’re taking away so much of the arts in school now to see something like this is uplifting for kids that are interested in art,” Julie said. “You wouldn’t have football uniforms if people weren’t around to create them. You wouldn’t have a band if somebody didn’t create the music.”
“Just let kids draw,” she said.
While Julie said Coryn had done an amazing essay during her senior year at W-H on the importance of art in people’s lives, but by that time she had already been accepted at college before her senior year of high school even started.
MacPherson has also had an essay published in one of the “Chicken Soup for the Soul” books on women empowerment while she was in college.
“This is dumb luck,” she insisted.
“When it comes to her work, shows through it,” Ryan said of her daughter’s self-professed tendency toward introversion.
“I try,” she said.
MacPherson said the franchise has not yet encountered any issues with book-banning efforts around the country.
“But, honestly, with the graphicness of it, I wouldn’t be surprised if it gets affected,” she said. “It is something I worry about a little bit, because they are really graphic stories.”
Whenever she gets a new script the worry returns, she said.
“They are really violent books … but even if the book-banning wasn’t happening, I’d still be a little worried just because of the content in these and how scary they are,” she said.
Taking a point of personal privilege to leave an Easter egg in the book, MacPherson has included her former college roommates and best friends. McKenzie and Eve, as “bit players” on the last page.
“I told them, ‘You guys dealt with me when I was stressed with this, so I’m going to put you in it,” she said. “So, the three of us are on the last page.”

HANSON – The Select Board approved a policy recommendation to add employee accrued time off information to pay stubs.
“We have an opportunity to better keep track of attendance and also to help the employees keep track,” Town Administrator Lisa Green said.
The payroll company can track how much vacation, sick time, floating holidays and personal days on pay stubs.
“As they use time, it will show up on pay stubs,” she said.
Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett asked if the count begins at the start of the fiscal year and who will be inputting that data.
Green said the countdown would begin on the anniversary date of their hiring.
The payroll company would be supplied with contract start date and allotted vacation/personal time information and will calculate it from there.
The town’s assistant treasurer, who puts in payroll data, would be relied on to catch errors, that could give employees too many vacation days, Green said.
“Hopefully, the employee would come forward and say there’s an error,” she said.
Vice Chair Joe Weeks said he would hope there are policies in place that would address such an eventuality.
“I think Mr. Weeks is picking up what I was putting down,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said. “I think we need to have a very clear policy that states in no event would something that appears on a pay stub supersede what is actually in the contract about what you would otherwise be due.”
Green agreed.
Select Board member Ed Heal asked about the process involved.
“If I take a sick day, how does it get on my pay stub?” he asked.
Green said department heads submit time sheets to accounting and then to the payroll firm, who will key in the data.
She said she has already discussed it with the interim accountant and treasurer about the process, and stressed there is no cost to the town for the change.
In order to give the assistant treasurer the ability to learn the process, departments will be entered on a staggered basis, suggesting the Highway Department and Administrative Professionals union would be the first to be included.
“Then if fire and police want to join in, we would start them afterward because they have a little more of a complex system,” she said.
Weeks said he liked the idea, because tracking days owed information is often tricky.
“To me it’s an easy way of looking at it, trying to plan for the future,” he said. “This makes complete logical sense.”
He did question how the discussion was listed on the agenda as including attendance on the stubs.
“I don’t want to give people the wrong impression that we’re keeping track of when they’re clocking in and clocking out, before we roll this out,” he said. “I think before you roll this out, people need to have the policy in front of them.”
Green stressed the change refers only to accrued time off.
FitzGerald-Kemmett said there needs to be ownership of the policy, advocating that employees be asked to initial it as an indication that they have read it. Town officials overseeing the process should also be required to provide the information to department heads to verify the information entered on the payroll forms.
“If you’re concerned there might be a learning curve to it … a training on the process, would also be a smart way to avoid errors,” Weeks said.

WHITMAN – The Select Board on Tuesday, March 7 approved the revision of a job description and salary range for a new Town Administration, as well of an assistant town administrator.
Town Administrator Mary Beth Carter said the salary range now being offered is $90,000 to $100,000 for the job.
Committee member Justin Evans asked where the job opening would be posted, as it had been posted on the Mass. Municipal Association site as well as some industry organizations in the past, but the town received a “flurry of resumes” when positions were posted on Indeed.
Carter said it would definitely be posted on the MMA site and she could certainly post it on Indeed as well, and in local newspapers.
“It will definitely be put out there on several sites,” she said.
Selectman Dr. Carl Kowalski advised holding off on using Indeed until the board could gauge what interest they see from local newspapers and the MMA.
Fire chief Timothy Clancy, in his regular COVID report, said there had been only 16 positive cases of the virus in town over the previous week, out of 244 tests performed for a 6.5 percent positivity rating.
“Let’s have it be noted that’s a 50-percent decrease from the previous week and we can only hope that this trend will continue as people move back outside as we approach spring,” he said. “Also, the wastewater report has shown a gradual decrease.”

HANOVER –An update on the school’s renovation and expansion program, being funded in part by the Massachusetts School Building Association (MSBA), as well as ongoing regional agreement revision, by the South Shore Tech School Committee on Wednesday Feb. 15, also expanded – into a discussion about the future of vocational education and how the school should prepare for that.
The district was admitted to the MSBA program about a year ago.
Superintendent-Director Dr. Thomas J. Hickey had reported that the Building Committee has submitted a draft request for services document to the MSBA so that panel can hire a design firm for the project, expecting a month or so to pass before the MSBA takes action on it.
“The trajectory for 2023 is that we will probably spend from now through June going through the process of bringing the design team on board,” Hickey said. “By June … we’ll have formed our project team and the second half of 2023 will be focused on the design. We should be at the tail-end of this calendar year with first instances of models [and cost estimates for a new and/or renovated school].”
Visioning sessions with members of the school community are being eyed as a source for discovering what the district’s needs are. The models will give an idea of what this final project cost might be. An opening is eyed for 2028.
SST is anticipating that 55.16 percent of the total cost will be reimbursed by MSBA although the construction reimbursement amount has not been determined as of now.
“Towns want to come here if they don’t have vocational schools to go to, but yet there are kids who want to come to a vocational school to get an education,” Whitman representative Dan Salvucci said, pointing to Marshfield, in particular that has expressed interest in, and is negotiating to, join the SST region. “That’s the trend nowadays.”
He suggested the impact of that be considered.
“We may build a school that’s bigger … with a lot more space than we need for the students we have, but future needs…
That point was echoed by Scituate representative Jack Manning.
“I don’t know if you’ve been watching the news, but, of late, vocational ed has been getting support,” he said, holding his thumb up.
The comment came during another ancillary discussion of bills now before the state legislature on bills concerning access opportunity and capacity in vocational education. Hickey has recently sent a letter to area legislators concerning bills HD485 and SD1697.
“This bill seeks a lot of things,” he said. “But I do believe the timing is right to at least raise the issue.”
He recalled that committee members often speak of the days when regional vocational schools were opened in the 1960s and 1970s began with substantial state investment and not as much burden on the local towns.
“This bill attempts to do a few things,” Hickey said. “The most notable … is that it seeks to set up a program that puts at least $3 billion aside for brick and mortar improvements to regional vocational schools, county agricultural schools and high schools that have Chapter 74 programs.”
The funding source would be the recently passed Fair Share Amendment.
“In order for our schools to be modernized and expanded to meet state demand, capacity must be improved, and we should take an ‘all of the above’ strategy,” Hickey said, offering programs at night, programs to students who do not attend the school full time, and the school should get state funding for equipment.
The missing link is direct state funding to help taxpayers in the district offset the cost of a substantial capital project, according to Hickey.
“That’s what this bill would do,” he said. “The state’s economy benefits when it invests in its regionals and its county agriculturals, and if the state’s willing to do that, local municipalities don’t have to make that tough choice [in deciding whether to construct a new building].”
Hickey said that is why the district has to build the most modern building it can afford, while projecting honestly to themselves what the increased operating costs could be.
MSBA has agreed to subsidize a new or renovated SST with enrollments between 645-805 students with the current 8 member district, or as many as 975 students with Marshfield becoming a member. The school’s enrollment is approximately 650 students currently with a waiting list.
“Very few building projects are taking an existing school population and projecting that it’s going to increase by a third,” Hickey said, noting several such projects are being built to serve a smaller population. “We are bucking that trend and we’ll know so much more by the end of this calendar year [about feasible options].”

HANSON – The Select Board voted at its Tuesday, Feb. 21 meeting, to accept a citizen’s petition to lay out three private ways as town roads and to refer to it the Planning Board as part of the process of obtaining a Town Meeting vote.
The petition involves Alden Way, Gray Lane and Stringer Lane.
“Those three roads right now in the neighborhood are private roads,” Town Administrator Lisa Green said. “We have received a citizen’s petition for the town to accept these as public ways.”
Citizens petitions go before Town Meeting for a vote, but there is a legal process that must be followed, including that the Select Board vote its intention to lay out the roadways as public.
“Regardless of what you vote here tonight, because it’s a citizen’s petition, it still goes on the [Town Meeting] warrant,” she said. “Depending on your vote here tonight … during Town Meeting, when the citizen’s petition comes up, town counsel will speak regarding the status of the petition.”
Environmental Partners has conducted a study of the roadway conditions including drainage, and what it would cost the town to make improvements to drainage.
Town Highway Director Jamison Shave has also provided a letter outlining costs should the town accept some of the town’s private ways as public, based on a visual assessment. There will also be legal costs involved because of deed work required.
Once the Select Board votes to accept, the petition goes to the Planning Board to begin their process.
“Once that process takes place, the next process would be Town Meeting,” Green said, followed by counsel establishing easements and deeds, if necessary.
“Obviously cost is a factor,” Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett said.
“It’s hard to estimate those costs because it’s going to be based on easements, possibly acquired land, things like that,” Green said. “If necessary, we may have to have surveyors go out there just to make sure the property lines are correct, to establish the frontage on each of the roads.”
Green summarized that the three roads could represent “considerable costs,” noting that the recent taking of the Sleeper property cost the town more than $13,000 in legal fees.
“I do want to remind you that the Sleeper property is not the ‘poster child’ for costs,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said. “We had people who had died [and] we had to research their heirs.”
Green said that would represent a “worst-case scenario” to provide an idea of what the town could face.
“We don’t know what we’ll face when we look at titles,” she said.
She asked Green to seek out an estimate from town counsel.
The entire process must be completed 45 days before Town Meeting
Vice Chair Joe Weeks asked why all of that must be completed before Town Meeting.
FitzGerald-Kemmett said town counsel would argue the town had not legally followed the process for road acceptance, regardless of whether or not it is spurred by a citizen’s petition.
“You can’t circumvent what the regulations are for going from private to public [roads],” she said. “Town Meeting is going to ultimately decide, that’s how it should be. We just offer up what we think is in the best interests of the town.”
Planner Tony DeFrias said the process, is required by law and is strictly outlined.
“These aren’t formalities, but they must be followed strictly, and there’s even a court case regarding it,” he said.
Selectmen, in deciding to support the citizen’s petition must submit it to the Planning Board, which has 45 days to review it and any documents pertaining to it. They must make some kind of recommendation back to the Select Board, who would then have another meeting to move it on to Town Meeting. Within 120 days of closing the meeting, the town has to work toward getting easements, any road or easements required.
“Where I can get expensive long-term easements or second mortgages,” DeFrias said it could mean extra steps at the bank, but that must go through attorneys, but once it is accepted as a private way it gets priority for maintenance over other unaccepted roads and attains town funding for maintenance need, becoming eligible for state Chapter 90 funds.
Shave has determined the road is in “pretty good shape.”

The building timers were shutting down the lights as the Whitman-Hanson Regional School Committee wound down a four-hour meeting Wednesday, Feb. 15 by voting to reject, by a 4-5 vote, a public documents request by School Committee member Dawn Byers.
Voting in favor were: Byers, David Forth, Fred Small and Steve Bois, Voting against were: Christopher Howard, Christopher Scriven, Hillary Kniffen, Glen DiGravio and Michelle Bourgelas. Member Beth Stafford had to leave the meeting early and did not cast a vote.
Byers had sought a salary line breakdown by position – not including names – building location and funding source for all staff in the district and supporting documentation in the FY24 budget.
“Everything that [Business Director John Stanbrook] gives you is uploaded the next day to the website,” Superintendent of Schools Jeff Szymaniak. “It will be attached to the budget.”
On Thursday, Feb. 16, Byers said she had received an acknowledgement “in the affirmative” of a previous public records request, which she made Feb. 8.
“No citizen needs to give reason why they’re submitting a public records request,” she said a few times during the meeting as well as after.
During the meeting, Byers read from a prepared statement that she had not asked for her name to be put on the agenda.
“The administration has the salary totals, and should provide the context behind how they arrived at those totals,” she said. “The budget policy itself gives a directive to provide a budget that is clear and understandable; Information retrieval in order to accomplish this is not a directive to the superintendent.
“My question is simply where the money is being spent in our budget,” Byers said, noting she had filed a FOIA request on Feb. 4. “The administration has the salary totals and should provide the context behind how they arrived at those totals.”
She explained that, in her accounting background, this is standard procedure, to reconcile totals with the detailed data. Byers said she has spoken with Jim Hardy at the Mass. Association of School Committees (MASC) about her request.
“Ironically, a member of this committee just unilaterally obstructed access to public record to ascertain my question was simply where the money was […] in our budget,” she said and sent another FOIA to the state.
Hardy, in fact described the action of putting Byers’ name on the agenda as “a bit harsh,” she said. “‘The information is public, it exists, and the district has to provide it,’” he informed her.
She said, as some committee members were observed rolling their eyes, that she was far from humiliated and would not stop advocating for educational equity and proper school finance. Byers said a similar request last year was complied with without question or hesitation and asked why things were different this year.
“We’ll go through the long version, then, if that’s what we want to do,” Howard said, adding that the budget subcommittee did not see the need, but was not entirely clear about the request and clarification was sought.
“We were really trying to understand how [the Hanover budget example] would help us,” he said, adding that Szymaniak explained Business Manager John Stanbrook was “very tight on time” and that it might be necessary to have a working group look at equity.
Howard, also reading from a prepared statement, said his understanding was that Byers had called Szymaniak to ask for the same information, after the budget subcommittee had discussed it for a second time, suggesting that if he did not provide it, she would make a FOIA request.
They decided it made sense to bring the matter to the full committee and not to do anything at the time.
Howard had consulted school counsel about the manner in which the email alleging obstruction made a public records request and was told that was not the proper way to do it.
“I encouraged her, as any other citizen, to make a public records request,” he said, adding counsel had advised that the will of the committee should direct the administration’s efforts.
Budget Subcommittee Chair Forth offered his perspective, saying that Byers’ January request was mentioned by the superintendent without specifying a name, as they discussed the line items and how they might be broken apart and presented as well as how it would work for transparency, optics and use of Stanbrook’s available time.
“I wanted to get more information and try to understand that committee member’s perspective more,” Forth said. “I did not ask the superintendent or Howard who that School Committee member was, because in February 2021, Ms. Byers had made a similar recommendation when the former chairman was in charge and wanted more transparency between line items.”
He asked Byers after the recent joint budget meeting with selectmen and finance committees if she was the one making the request and requesting her to email the example so the subcommittee could review and discuss it.
Forth said he didn’t think the subcommittee could make the decision to provide the information, based in part on the time constraints facing Stanbrook and recommended it be discussed at the School Committee level and decide whether it is something that could be implemented this year, or would have to wait until next year.
Kniffen, while saying she did not believe the request was “malintended at all,” said it could place teacher salaries in public view where tenured teacher salaries are higher and expressed concern about why the information was sought and how it might be used.
Howard said there have been other requests for information left to the will of the committee.
The information Byers is seeking is aimed at determining which teacher salaries might be shifted to ESSER funds in the budget.
While Hanson prints teacher salaries in its annual report, Whitman does not.
DiGravio said he understands the idea of having the line items available to provide data for a better decision.
“I don’t see any benefit in having [teachers’] names,” he said. “Is there any way that their names helps us make a better decision?”
Byers thanked him for the point and noted the Hanover example from her first request does not provide a single staff name.
Bourgelas asked how Byers was able to obtain the same information so easily last year, including names and asked why there was a procedural change. Howard said he wasn’t certain and wondered why it went before the Budget Subcommittee twice.
He said he felt very confident that if the same people were on the Budget Subcommittee last year, they would have handled it the exact same way.
Forth also said any questions about a disparity in salaries between tenured and newer teachers could be explained by the recent cuts in positions to balance the budget.
“It’s not a matter of teachers being overpaid, but they’ve been here for X-amount of years and the teachers who aren’t get pink-slipped, so I think that’s context, too, when you’re looking at the grand scheme of things,” he said.
Szymaniak’s said he did not recall what was different this year from Byers’ request last year.
“I get a lot of requests for a lot of information,” he said. “I do the best that I can to accommodate all 10 folks on the committee. I don’t remember that last year.”
Byers said it was not Szymaniak she dealt with last year, it had been Stanbrook.
He is also concerned about the culture surrounding the budget process.
“My staff is fragile right now, and folks are talking about salaries,” Szymaniak said, noting every document that goes out is placed on the web site. “I’m a little protective of my people.”
He said the Budget Subcommittee is also new this year and he wants all information requests to funnel through there.
Whitman Finance Committee liaison Kathleen Ottina said she was one of the sources of Szymaniak’s frequent requests and thanked him for his response to her questions.
“It’s not to be snoopy, it’s to be able to answer the questions that people have,” she said. “You have a lot of major line item shifts that you’ve never had before – ESSER I, II, III, a lot of grants – a lot of moves taking place.”
She said she would advocate for the school budget, but needs information.
Kevin Kafka questioned the intent of the request.
“If you go in a data direction … then it becomes analytical, it becomes evaluative,” he said. “I just think we need to stay away from that.”
Kniffen said some teachers – such as gym teachers – are the only ones at a school.
“You don’t have to put out their names, people are going to find out,” she said. “Being a teacher right now is pretty miserable. We talked about morale last week, The public is always looking for something negative. … When we’re trying to get support for a budget, that’s not going to help at all.”
Byers had also objected to being listed on the agenda by name (simply as “Requests by Ms. Byers” with no other explanation).
“We’re at a little bit of an impasse on this one, so I didn’t want it to get in the way of the committee,” Chair Christopher Howard said, explaining that Byers had brought a concept of providing a line-item detail of every district employee’s salary to the Budget Committee a couple of times.
“I’m now putting this at, ‘What is the purview of the committee because I think we need to make clear if we’e going to create something or do something that’s going to take some time and effort.”
He did, however, defended Byers’ reaction to being specifically named on the agenda.
“I can recall two years ago where I felt unfairly targeted and harassed at times by the former chairman, who would put me on agenda items and executive sessions,” he said. “I feel like also today, in particular … more animosity in the room and I’ve seen a couple remarks I consider condescending to Ms. Byers. I don’t think that’s appropriate and anything we should be doing. We should be respectful as committee members.”
He said Byers had made a valid request.

HANSON – The Select Board discussed progress of the Regional Agreement revision, expressing support for a two-thirds vote for all measures before the School Committee.
Select Board member Jim Hickey reported on the Regional Agreement Subcommittee meetings he and Town Administrator Lisa Green attend, during the board’s meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 7.
“Last night, we just finished going over the “Big Seven, I would call them,” Hickey said of the main issues being discussed, at the meeting they attended on Feb. 6.
Those included, bus schedules, leasing and statutory assessment method, among others.
“Right now, it seems like a good round table of discussion,” he said, noting that what School Committee Chairman Christopher Howard is looking to do, is put together the language so he and Green could bring it back for the board to review.
“One of the major concerns is the number of School Committee members, where they have six and we have four,” Hickey said. “It’s been talked about to make all votes two-thirds [to pass].”
He said that he had stated at an earlier meeting that one problem is votes cast by way of how members thought their individual towns would want, instead of what is best for the district.
“I thought that was wrong,” he said.
Votes should be cast with an eye to what is best for the district and its students and faculty.
“That was my concept of the two-thirds vote,” Hickey said.
Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett said she agreed with the two-thirds vote, asking what the downside could be for Whitman.
“It sounds like there’s some disagreement, but everybody’s being cordial,” she said.
“Oh, absolutely,” Hickey said. “It’s very cordial.”
“It’s very good dialog and conversation,” Green said. “Also, pointing out the areas that could lead to confusion, especially capital costs – what’s an emergency cost and making sure language in the agreement corresponds and is in agreement with language in leases.”
Select Board member Joe Weeks, who agreed with the two-thirds vote, asked if there had been any push-back, and Hickey replied that there had been.
“I’m hoping the Whitman Selectmen will kind of look at it again,” he said.
“I think if anybody put themselves in the place of the Hanson taxpayers, they could see that it was a difficult pill to swallow,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said asking what the downside would be for Whitman. “And we have swallowed it, but we’re just looking for an acknowledgment, … and a feeling as though the playing field is level.”
She said she strongly doubts School Committee members vote solely for the interest of their town, but added the two-thirds removes any doubt“I’m not going to be diplomatic about it, but mistakes have been made in the past … but we’re trying to fix [it], for people that take our places in the future” Hickey said, adding that includes frequent review of the agreement – perhaps as often as every three years.

HANSON — The Hanson Multi-Service Senior Center sustained “extensive water damage” due to a burst pipe during last weekend’s sub-freezing cold snap, according to Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett, who has arranged an alternative site for senior programs while repairs are being made.
Senior Center Director Mary Collins, however, told FitzGerald-Kemmett they can “make do” during the month or so it might take to repair the damage.
FitzGerald-Kemmett said security cameras indicated the pipes burst at about 6:30 a.m., Sunday night
She contacted Camp Kiwanee Commission Chair Frank Milisi to obtain permission to offer use of Needles Lodge for the Senior Center. Melisi agreed, she said, noting the Kiwanee staff is there from 8 a.m. To 2 p.m., anyway, and the building is handicapped-accessible. Hanson Middle School also sustained some flooding from burst pipes, she said. There has been no damage to the Hanson Library.
Health Agent Gil Amado and Local Inspector Kerry Glass inspected the damage Monday and determined, since there are still bathrooms available in the connected library building, some programming can still be offered.
“Frank’s telling me don’t worry, he’d love them to use the [Camp Kiwanee] building,” she said she told Collins. “I left it with Mary and Frank are going to connect and talk about whether she’d be better off there, or whether she could hold some programs there and have some at the senior center.”
South Shore Tech Superintendent Dr. Thomas J. Hickey, whose carpentry and electrical shop students had just recently completed a project creating an office space where Senior Center staff can offer confidential health insurance consultations, said the school would be willing to help with repairs if they can.
“I’ll ask my off-campus projects [director] to look into it,” Hickey said. “The only thing that could possibly get in the way would be if the town has an issue with insurance, but it’s worth an ask. If we can help them out, we certainly will.”
Hickey explained an insurance company might require other measures under their coverage, that would take precedence. He confirmed on Tuesday afternoon, that insurance requirements would, indeed, prohibit his students from offering assistance.