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Halifax tax bills to rise almost 5%

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The sole remaining member of the Halifax Board of Selectmen, Jonathan Selig, conducted an in-person meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 13. Selig was left manning the helm following the sudden resignations of Ashley DiSesa and Alex Meade as well as the newly hired Town Administrator Marty Golightly. Town Accountant Sandy Nolan was named as acting Town Administrator until a new one can be hired. A special town election will be held on November 8 to elect two new Selectmen.

Tax Classification Hearing

A tax classification hearing was held during the meeting. Selig said it was “for the purpose of allocating the local tax levy for the five property classes for the fiscal year 2023.” He introduced Holly Berry with the Assessor’s Office. Berry said there were five property types in Halifax. “Residential makes up 91, almost 92 percent of our tax base,” Berry explained. She further said that Halifax doesn’t have open space. Commercial property makes up nearly 5 percent of the tax base, industrial property makes up a little over 2 percent, and personal property makes up almost 1 percent. Given that commercial and industrial make up less than ten percent of the tax base, Berry said that she was not recommending a split rate. Selig voted to adopt a residential factor of 1 without a split rate.

“The real estate and personal property total value is based on 100 percent of the fair market value,” Berry said. She said the average single-family assessment for fiscal year 2023 will be $458,202, up 11 percent from the previous year. “The average tax bill for fiscal 23 will be $6,859.92, up nearly 4.10 percent from last year,” she explained. Berry also said that the average condo assessment was approximately $280,000, up 18 percent over the previous year. The average tax bill for condos will be $4,192. The top taxpayers in Halifax are Halifax Mobile Home Estates, Walmart, WJG Realty and Trust (Stop and Shop), Massachusetts Electric Company, and Halifax Solar.

Screening Committee for New TA

Selig said, “we are in the works of starting a Screening Committee for our new Town Administrator; it will be a 7-person committee.” He said that Town Clerk Sue Lawless will serve as the point person and the rest of the Committee will consist of acting, interim Town Administrator Sandy Nolan, the Halifax Police Chief, the Halifax Fire Chief, and three citizens at- large. “I’m making the call out here… if there’s anybody out there that would like to be considered… send the Board of Selectmen an email,” Selig said. He also said that they hope to have the Committee in place by the next Selectmen’s meeting. The consultant recommended having the position open for a month. “Ideally if everything goes well, we could be looking at a new Town Administrator… around the beginning of the year,” Selig said. He also noted that the final decision will be made once the Board of Selectmen is full again.

Town Green Request

Selig read a request from the Halifax Congregational Church asking for permission to use the Town Green on Sept. 25 from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. for the annual blessing of the pets service. Selig approved the request. The rain date will be Oct. 2.

Building Department Update

Scott Materna was in attendance to give a monthly status report for the Building Department. Among the updates were the ongoing installation of an EV charging station which is being paid for through a grant as well as the completion of the concrete sidewalk outside the Town Hall. Materna also provided updates on a number of projects that fall under the Green Communities initiative including new heat pumps at the Fire Station and Water Department as well as new insulation for the Fire Station attic. He said it totaled nearly $200,000 in improvements.

Pine St. Bridge Update

Selig began his update on the Pine St. bridge project by calling it great news. Selig said of the project, “it’s been a little bit of an issue for a while,” before turning it over to Highway Surveyor Steve Hayward. Hayward shared photos of the project with the Selectmen and Nolan. Hayward went through all the obstacles faced by the project including exorbitant cost and Covid delays. He said that the nearly $200,000 cost for police details would be eliminated since “Pine St. is going to be closed during the whole construction.” Hayward said that the project would be going out to bid soon. The current cost stands at $1.3 million, down from $1.5 million. He noted that they hoped to come in even lower.

Talent Bank Forms and Resignations

Selig said that a talent bank form had been received for Christina Palmer. Palmer expressed interest in serving on the Beautification Committee as well as the Library Trustees. Selig said he would share her information with those Committees. Someone in the public asked Selig if he talked to town counsel about appointing people to committees while the Board is short two thirds of the Selectmen. “If it’s a necessity they said we can. If it’s a board that we can hold off on, I guess it depends on how your board is functioning right now and if you think it can function until the interim, until November, they want us to try and sit tight,” Selig explained.

Jeanne Kling resigned from the Beautification Committee. Selig said, “I would like to personally thank her, I know she’s been a driving force of that Committee and a big asset to the town… she will be missed.” The Veteran’s Agent Wilford Corey also resigned calling Halifax “a great town” and adding, “I have been honored to serve as the Veterans Service Officer for the past decade. All the people I have worked with have been helpful and professional.” Selig said, “Again, a big loss for Halifax… we wish Will the best.” Steve Littlefield will be serving as Acting Veteran’s Agent. Littlefield was previously Corey’s assistant.

Public Health Grant

Halifax Health Agent Bob Valery was in attendance to speak on the Public Health Excellence Grant which Selig called “excellent news.” “Boards of Health, and ours in particular, are always about continuous  improvement; if there’s one thing, positive thing, that Covid showed us over the last two years is the need and the importance of the Public Health Department. Also, the impact that underfunding has had,” Valery said. He added, “Prevention is the best medicine.” He said that the Halifax Board of Health was chosen to be a host community for a new grant fund. “Their mission is to enhance the existing capabilities and to achieve the mutual goals of public health,” Valery said.

Several other local communities would be joining Halifax to better manage public health.  He said that it would be “zero cost to our town.” Valery said that they would be hiring a Health Inspector for the five towns participating that would be paid for entirely out of the grant money. “The first and primary goal of anything that we’re going to try and accomplish is to make sure that everybody gets fair and equal services whether you’re making a million dollars, or you don’t have enough to put food on your table,” Valery explained of the initiative. “Bob, you should be proud because the fact that Halifax is serving as kind of the central hub for this is a feather in your cap – in your Department’s cap,” Selig said. “I’m happy to, it’s my passion,” Valery replied.

First book about First Haircut

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Darren Shea has been a barber at John & Son’s Barber Shop in Halifax for the last 27 years. His father, John, has been working in the town for 54 years and is celebrating 60 years since going to barber school this October. Shea’s nephew and cousin also work in the shop which Shea says his father built from the ground up.

Shea recently completed work on a children’s book about getting your first haircut and the main character is none other than his own father. The book, John’s Crew: My First Haircut, will be available next month. It will be for sale at John & Son’s as well as other online and brick and mortar locations. A website johnscrew.com, which will be live in October, will have purchasing and other information on it.

Asked if writing a children’s book was something he always wanted to do, Shea said it actually wasn’t. Shea called himself “the perfect example of ADHD” saying that it enables him to think outside the box and come up with creative outlets for his ideas.

“I thought about the idea during Covid when we weren’t working… it just kind of popped into my head,” he explained.

Shea said he loosely based the idea on the children’s show, Bob the Builder. He explained, “Why don’t we make a barber version of Bob the Builder and have his tools be the ones that talk and teach kids lessons and make them not scared of haircuts.” Shea said that the character of the barber pole is loosely based on himself. He laughed saying, “he’s always spinning, he’s always excited; he’s right in the window and he sees the people come in.”

Shea explained that while on the surface the book is about a child receiving their first haircut, it is really about generations.

Shea explained that he drew inspiration from nearly thirty years of cutting hair, especially those first ones that mark a milestone in any young child’s life. “This first book is pretty much based on real life experience. We have a horse chair in the barber shop and this book has a horse chair in it.”

He continued, “It’s pretty much based on this kid has to go in for a haircut and the father got a haircut from the same barber, so it’s all about generations; if you went there as a kid, then your kid goes there, then your kid’s kid.” Shea has big plans for future books in what he hopes will eventually become a series. He said he would like for them to follow the child in the first book as he grows and eventually has his own child who will then need his first haircut.

Shea credits his father John with creating the kind of shop that has served multiple generations. “Even the people that don’t come in anymore they still walk in to say hi; it becomes a family,” Shea explained.

Despite a close personal and working relationship with his father, Shea managed to keep the book a secret from him for two years. Over Labor Day weekend, he planned a party with family where he unveiled the book to his father.

The book is being published by Kate Conway of Bourne and it is illustrated by Dan Bigelow of Fall River. Shea said that he came up with the concepts for the drawings and Bigelow brought them to life. He sang Bigelow’s praises, saying he truly has an eye for creating illustrations that will appeal to the desired demographic.

Shea will be doing readings and book signings in local libraries and schools in the coming months. It will be $24.95 plus tax, and he will be accepting Venmo, credit card, or cash.

Holmes Library Book Sale

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Special to The Express
by Linda Redding

The Friends of the Holmes Public Library held their annual book sale on Saturday, Sept. 17.    

Those who were unable to attend can still purchase books left over from the Book Sale on sale inside the library

The book sale is a major fundraiser for the Friends to help with group’s mission of supporting library activities.   

In addition to the annual book sale, the Friends of the Holmes Public Library also sponsor an ongoing book sale at the Library. Some of the activities they have funded  include summer reading, supporting book clubs, and museum passes.

The Friends of the Holmes Public Library meets the fourth  Wednesday of the month at 6 a.m. in the community room of the Holmes Public Library.

Welcome aboard, Fire Chief Witham

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The Town of Halifax would like to welcome our new Fire Chief Mike Witham to the Halifax community. Mike brings 30 plus years of experience in fire service and most recently had been serving as a Captain for the Town of Pembroke. Mike is very familiar with Halifax and its fire crew as he has assisted out on countless mutual aid calls here in town over the years.

We would also like to take this time to thank Halifax Captain Jeff Cuozzo for stepping up and serving in the role of acting chief until Mike was brought onboard. Mike’s first day at the station was Thursday, Sept. 1, 2022. Feel free to stop by and say hello.

We’re excited to have you, Mike. Welcome aboard!

Beer Garden at Corn Maze?

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The Plympton Board of Selectmen met via ZOOM on Monday, Sept. 12. Selectman Mark Russo led a discussion on traffic and speeding enforcement as well as next steps the town might take to address the issues. Russo explained, “Kind of a long history of some speeding issues particularly two intersections in town… over the last year or two we’ve tried a bunch of things, we’ve declared a speed zone 20 mph… not much help there.” He said they have also tried painting the roads as well as most recently, installing flashing speed limit signs which were approved at this year’s town meeting. “Maybe there’s been a little improvement, but we continue to hear from concerned citizens,” he said. Russo suggested that the next step might be an increased police presence.

Resident Keith Sexton spoke up saying that he has seen an increase in car crashes on Center St. He noted that one recently resulted in personal injury. Sexton also noted that cars routinely come out of Franklin St. in Halifax going 70 mph despite a speed limit of 30 mph.  Sexton made suggestions including community edits to Waze to keep people from cutting through as well as the use of police dummy cars. He also said, “Quincy and Foxboro have leaned on the tech companies to keep traffic out of the towns.”

Resident Howard Randall, who has been outspoken on the issue, said of when he grew up, “it really was an attitude that you don’t speed through Plympton.” He continued, “I would like to reflect on that we had a history in the past of you don’t do these things in Plympton and if you do, you’re going to be bagged.” “I would love nothing more than if we got back to that sort of thing,” Russo said of more frequent ticketing for speeding. Randall, who lives on what has been deemed one of the worst intersections in town, said that his wall has been hit and he has even had motorcycles end up on his lawn. He noted that his next-door neighbor is leaving because “they can’t take the racetrack that has been created by their house by paving the road.”

Selectman Christine Joy said that the issue needed its own meeting, noting the very full agenda that evening. “This is a far-reaching issue; it’s not getting better, it’s getting worse. I agree with everything that everyone has said,” she said. She continued, saying they would do their due diligence before getting back together to discuss what other options are available to the town.

Public Hearing Cornerstone Energy

There was a public hearing regarding an application from Cornerstone Energy Services for new transmission lines that will cross above Spring Street and its intersection with Route 44 and Brook Street and its intersection with Old Farm Road. Town Administrator Liz Dennehy called it “routine maintenance” and noted it was part of a larger project. Randall expressed some concern to which Selectman John Traynor said he wasn’t sure the town had any legal standing regarding street crossings. “The bulk of the project will be underground wires,” Michelle Ruxton said of her understanding of the project. She did note that there would be some overhead wires involved as well, however. Randall said that he felt it all came back down to accommodating solar saying, “I hate to be so negative, but I’ve learned in my eighty years not to trust these people.” He continued, “they would love you to believe you have no rights, but you do,” he said to Traynor. The Selectmen agreed to continue the hearing until a representative from the applicant could be present to speak to the concerns. They agreed to set the continuation for 6 p.m. on October 17.

1-Day Brewery 44 Liquor Licenses

Michael Johnson of Brewery 44 spoke to the Board about hosting a small beer and liquor garden in conjunction with Sauchuk Farm. “Basically, what we are looking to do is a controlled space where we are serving our pumpkin beers and seltzers to adults,” he said. Johnson said they have a $1 million insurance policy. He was looking for 16, 1-day liquor licenses, covering eight weekends of the Sauchuk Farms season.

There was some question about the need for a police detail. Johnson asked if it was possible to do a review after the first weekend to determine if a police detail is necessary. He said that it becomes cost prohibitive for them. An abutter spoke saying that he felt that the police detail was necessary calling the event “a nightmare” for them. “Quite frankly, I think the police detail is needed,” Traynor said. The Board granted the 16, 1-day liquor licenses with the stipulation that a 4-hour police detail is required and that in two weeks, they would revisit whether the remaining weekends would also need a police detail.

Special Town Meeting

A special town meeting was scheduled for Nov. 30 at 7 p.m. at Dennett Elementary School. The warrant was opened that evening and will be closing on Oct. 3 at 8 p.m.

Debate on Change from Board of Selectmen

Traynor led a discussion on changing the title of the Board from the Board of Selectmen to the Select Board. He called the issue “near and dear to my heart.” Joy said she wasn’t interested in making the change noting, “I just don’t feel like its really necessary for us to do this… I like our seal; I like our history.” Joy also said that the gendered term “selectmen” doesn’t bother her. Russo said he prefers the current title as it links to a 300-year history. Russo said that he felt that they could pursue gender equality in other ways. Traynor said he appreciated where they were coming from but noted that he would still like to pursue the change.

Old Schoolhouse

Russo said that a resident who has an old schoolhouse on his property wanted to see if the Community Preservation Committee would be interested in the building. Russo noted that it would be quite expensive to move. Of the project he said, “it really would require a champion and a site – neither of which we have right now.” Randall asked Russo to contact him saying, “there may be an angel out there that I know of.” Russo said, “Okay, I’ll be in touch.”

Appointments

Jessica Lau and Jonathan Mulcahy were named to the Board of Library Trustees until the next election. Their terms will expire on May 20, 2023. The Selectmen thanked them for their service to the town.

Selectmen’s Rants and Raves

Russo said he was thrilled about the Community Impact Grant application. “I think with the really talented people we have now, that could be really powerful for us,” he said. He also raved for the recent flower show calling it a “totally Plymptonian thing” and said the town should be proud of the event. Traynor raved for responder therapy dogs across the United States and Plympton Police Captain Cheryl Davis and her K9, who just became a certified team. Joy gave a rave for Linda Leddy and her work with the CPC as well as another rave for all the members of the public that showed up that evening to discuss the traffic issues in town.

Lowering the flag on 9/11

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As many first responder units across the country, Plympton’s fire and police departments gathered together on Sunday, September 11, to commemorate those lost as the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City came down.

The ceremonial lowering of the flag to half-staff was at 9:30 a.m. to a small, solemn audience.

Plympton Fire Chief Stephen G. Silva spoke to the assembly, noting the pain and sacrifice that continue to this day.  These are his words:

“Blue skies, crisp air, perfect early fall day in New England, a perfect morning so quickly changed.

“In less than 2 1/2 hours more than 2,977 people were killed, 25,000 injured. 343 firefighters killed, 71 police officers perished, many whose remains have never been recovered; they simply disintegrated.  Twenty-one years later the toll continues to rise.  More then 1,400 rescue workers who spent tireless hours, weeks and months on the “pile” have died of WTC (World Trade Center) related cancer, and there will surely be more. The FBI has stated that the outliers of the related deaths will go on for years; the full impact of carnage may never be known.

“Who died? We all did to some degree. There was no separation of white collar to blue collar, there was no separation by where we came from, there was no separation of White, Black, Asian, Hispanic, they were just people who started their day as they always did, awaken, breakfast, get ready for their day, get kids off to school, kiss a love one good-bye as they left for work never knowing they would disappear.

“The days and weeks after America was gripped first in fear – maybe that is the wrong word, vigilance perhaps – we waited for the next attack. Thankfully it did not come. Our rage and fear quickly turned to patriotism. We were attacked. Our brothers and sisters died and for what? For freedom.   Freedom we take so easily for granted. Freedom to raise a family. Freedom to live. Freedom of live liberty. Freedom.

“Flags were flown; people came together, crime rates actually dropped. The terrorists underestimated the resolve of Americans. There was no looting, no riots, no shootings; there was pride, resolve, yes there was anger but that anger was channeled for good.

“God forbid something like 9/11 would happen today.  Truthfully it has; the war between good and evil continues as it always does. We see it every day. No not to the scale of 9/11 but in increments.  It is our response that has changed. Today we blame each other. There is so little discourse. It seems if your opinion is different than someone else’s you risk offending and then your own cancelation.

“James Madison, a founding father, warned us in 1788 at the Continental Congress in Virginia, “I believe there are more instances of the abridgment of the freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations.”

“What has happened? Where is the pride?  Where is the vision?  Where is America?

“Let us never forget 9/11, and equally important let us never forget what we are … we are AMERICANS.  That is not something to shy from, it is something to be thankful for.

I will leave you with this from President Harry Truman:

“America was not built on fear. America was built on courage, on imagination and on unbeatable determination to do the job at hand.”

Remember 9/11, remember those who died, remember this day, we shall never forget.”

Stephen G.  Silva, Chief

Plympton

Fire Department

Silver Lake boys cross country beats Scituate Sailors

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The Silver Lake High boys’ cross country team had no issue taking down the Scituate Sailors in their opener last week.

The Lakers faced off against Scituate on Thursday, Sept. 8, and won in a dominant fashion. They beat their foe 19-39 to improve to 1-0 on the season. The Lakers had a number of strong performances from their runners.

Spencer Cook (14:00) came in first place in the race. Meanwhile, the team took four of the top five slots. Alex Risio earned a third-place finish, Gavin McCarthy came in fourth, and Frankie Cuozzo had a fifth-place finish. And with his eighth-place finish, Jack Maloney helped the Lakers secure the win.

The girls also raced against Scituate on the same day but fell 16-43. Erin Flaherty had the top performance for the Lakers in that one; she had a fifth-place finish.

The next contest for both the boys and the girls will take place on Tuesday, Sept. 20 on the road against the Whitman-Hanson Panthers (4 p.m. start time).

Plympton’s first Flower Show blooms

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Saturday was a beautiful day for the first Plympton Flower Show held on the town Green.  About a hundred selections were entered into the adult categories of Species, Arrangement, or Produce, with children’s categories in Produce and Fairy Garden.

Gabby Falconieri and Stephanie Teran, of the Friends of the Plympton Garden Club, spearheaded the event that ran from registration from 9 to 10 a.m., then judging from 10 to 11 a.m., followed by audience appreciation from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Children were happy to see their Fairy Houses, many of which were made earlier in the week as a special project at the Plympton Library.   Fashioned out of various bits of vegetation and forest litter, the unlikely elements were transformed into cozy cottages for tiny fairies.   One little guy even added a twig ladder to his, “… because they’re very small and the ladder will help them get in,” he explained to the photographer.

Waiting for the judges, children also got to play with the bubble machine, color and coloring books, and photo-op with flower cutouts.

Floral arrangements were judged by well-known South Shore horticulturalist and designer George Stanchfield; gardener and chef of Just Right Farm fame Kimberly Russo; and Elise Freda, flower farmer extraordinaire from Crooked Barn Flowers in Kingston.

The upbeat tunes of Plympton’s Old Time Jam gave a country feel to the event as the group got together to perform on the Gazebo.  Barry Decristofano played his mandolin, while others played their mandolins, guitar, and fiddle.   Plympton Old Time Jam gets together twice a month and is open to anyone who likes to “play our kind of music.”  What’s the difference between a fiddle and a violin?  “Attitude!” was the answer.

Acting as Master of Ceremonies was Plympton’s own Mike Lemieux of “Houses with History” fame.

Awarded the prize for Best in Show was Dave Alberti whose pumpkin was a real show stopper!  The cucurbitacae, a French strain with light peach skin draped with a veil of beige netting here and there, definitely had an attitude!  The judges appreciated it and awarded Dave the grand prize.   

All the children were awarded Participation ribbons.

The often-heard sentiment throughout the crowd was “I hope they do this again next year!”

Proceeds from the event will be used for the Plympton Garden Club.

Halifax Elementary School Committee divided on curriculum

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The Halifax Elementary School Committee met on Monday, Aug. 30. They began by assigning liaisons to various subcommittees. James Keegan was named to Youth and Recreation, Karyn Townsend was named to PTO, and School Committee Chair Summer Schmaling remained on Bylaw though she noted that they had not met in her eight years on the School Committee.

Schmaling then brought up her wish to create a Curriculum Development subcommittee. She described the intent behind the subcommittee saying, “just keeping eyes on what’s happening in our classroom… just personally, I would like to keep closer eyes on what’s coming down from the State.” Committee member Lauren Laws asked Schmaling what kind of authority she saw the subcommittee having. Laws further said that she trusted Curriculum Director Melissa Farrell and felt that she should be involved in the subcommittee. “I don’t personally have education credentials, so I don’t suppose to have the expertise,” Laws said.

The topic turned into a heated debate with Keegan and Schmaling on one side and Laws and Townsend on the other. Laws said that she felt that the idea of the subcommittee seemed a bit redundant while Townsend said that an email had already been sent out on Parent Square with links to curriculum resources.

Schmaling said, “Curriculum is changing rapidly and a lot of times what’s presented to us is very surface as opposed to what is actually happening.” Townsend asked Schmaling for an example. “Perfect example is I had several concerned parents reach out to me last year and tell me that their child was told to write an essay about Christopher Columbus and why we should be canceling Columbus Day – that was a concern for me.” She also cited changes to the social and emotional learning curriculum. Laws said she didn’t hear any of those concerns last year and Schmaling noted that certain people would be more comfortable coming to her about those types of concerns as herself and Laws fall “on opposite sides of the spectrum.”

Superintendent Jill Proulx said, “We do have policies related to curriculum so we would want to make sure that whatever the objectives of the Committee, they do not violate the policies that are already in place and the authority of the educators and the State of Massachusetts.” “I’m not trying to change any curriculum,” Schmaling said. Laws pointed out that the curriculum framework comes down from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) saying, “our schools are some of the best in the nation.”

Townsend continued to press Schmaling for what exactly she saw the purpose of the subcommittee to be to which she responded, “The purpose is to examine and digest the curriculum and the changes that are ever flowing through it.” Townsend said she wasn’t clear on how something like that would be addressed within the subcommittee and pointed out that there is a process in place at the Middle School if parents were to express concern over the appropriateness of a book. Proulx rsponded, “we do have a reconsideration of materials policy.” “I have a lot of concern with what’s happening in our schools right now and I’ll tell you something right now, in neighboring communities they are much further down this hole than we are and I would like to prevent Halifax from going down that hole. I had a mom in Pembroke call me in tears because her sixth grader…” she then said to other committee members, “don’t smile at me like that,” before proceeding saying, “her sixth grader had to write an essay about abortion. That is disgusting in my opinion, and I want to make sure that that doesn’t happen in Halifax Elementary School.”

Laws said, “But what is stopping parents from talking to the teachers about their concerns? This is a problem in our society – we jump to conclusions, we go to the person we know is going to help us and then instead of having a conversation at the level where it should happen – with the teacher…” She was then cut off by Schmaling who said, “Right, so our job would be to guide that person.”

Schmaling argued for a limited committee of two while Townsend argued for a larger subcommittee of five. Keegan asked, in what appeared to be sarcasm, why don’t they just change all subcommittees to include all five members of the larger School Committee.

Jessica Page, Schmaling, and Keegan voted in favor of the formation of the subcommittee. Schmaling then named herself and Page to the subcommittee. When questioned by Townsend as to whether she could participate Schmaling said, “Nope. I as the Chair will appoint two people to the subcommittee.” Townsend was named as the alternate.

Asst. Superintendent Ryan Lynch read from some updates to school policies including a wellness policy update that stipulated that taking away physical activity should not be utilized as a punishment. He explained, “There’s a lot of research coming out of educational circles that says children need to move and exert physical energy that are having a hard time in the classroom; it is not recommended that making the student sort of like miss recess would be a good technique to use to help that student improve their behavior.”

Halifax Elementary School Principal Kayne Beaudry told the Committee that enrollment currently stands at 574 students. He also said that new faculty included a few new special education teachers and a long-term substitute for the adjustment counselor who is on maternity leave until December. Beaudry said that while the summer felt short, he was excited for the upcoming year.

Proulx began her update by introducing David Turcotte, the new Director of Human Resources. “He’s been doing a wonderful job; we really appreciate having him and some of the things he’s been doing to really streamline our processes,” Proulx said. She noted that the start of the school year tends to have a lot of “HR pieces to it.”

Proulx also told the Committee that universal free meals were extended through the 2022-2023 school year. She said that the Department of Education and Department of Public Health issued a joint statement regarding COVID guidelines for the new school year. She said, “the Commonwealth is not recommending universal masking requirements, surveillance and testing of asymptomatic individuals, contact tracing, or testing to stay/testing in schools.” She said that only the school health office would have a masking requirement. Proulx further said that those that continue to choose to mask will be supported in that choice.

Regarding District goals, Proulx said that the goal for all the schools is to have at least 70 percent of students meeting or exceeding MCAS standards. She called it a “challenging but realistic goal.” Currently the percentages for 2021 for all schools are 59 percent for ELA, 45 percent for math, and 52 percent for science. She acknowledged that testing is not the only measure of student success.

Proulx also said they are currently working on website updates to ensure that outdated information is discarded, and new information is added.

Before adjourning, Schmaling provided some dates to remember including that September 29 will be an early release. She noted that students will be provided lunches on half days this year.

Voters cast ballots in primary

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Come November, voters will be choosing between Democrat Maura Healey — currently the commonwealth’s attorney general — and Republican Geoff Diehl — former state representative from Whitman.

Pundits cast the race pitting Diehl against an historic all-female ticket lead by the out LGBTQ Healey, as a “referendum on Trumpism” in Massachusetts.

Healey focused on her past bipartisan approach to the attorney general’s office and saluted the leadership of Gov. Charlie Baker, thanking him for his service to the state.

“Gov. Baker has led with respect and worked with both parties,” she told supporters during her victory speech Tuesday night. “He’s refused to engage in the politics of division and destruction that we’ve seen across this country.”

She said her campaign would be about making the state more affordable, growing the economy toward opportunity for all and protection of reproductive freedom.

Diehl focused on the state’s population loss and the focus on big government over individual freedom, calling Healey “the people’s worst nightmare” leading the state down a path of higher taxes and radical legislation.

“With this campaign we are going to be redefining politics as usual here in Massachusetts,” Diehl said, noting he appreciated opponent Chris Doughty’s call conceding the race, and pledging to “work together to defeat a radical attorney general who wants to be our governor.”

Diehl pledged “for the first time” to run a campaign toward November focused on “we the people — our freedoms, our rights and our prosperity.” He also pledged support for empowering parents to keep Healey’s “political agenda out of the classroom.”

Diehl has been endorsed by Donald Trump, who said in his remarks to Diehl’s supporters Monday that Diehl would “rule your state with an iron fist.”

Turnout was 23 per cent of Plympton’s 2356 registered voters,  Halifax brought in 926 votes or 15 percent of that town’s  6,174 voters to mark their choices.  Kingston’s unofficial votes were not available as of press time.

Locally, Healey won Halifax by 533 votes to Sonia Chang-Diaz’s 66 votes, while Diehl carried Halifax with 477 votes to Chris Doughty’s 176. In Plympton Healy garnered 229 votes to Chang-Diaz’s25 and Diehl won with 199 votes to Doughty’s 85.

In her victory speech, Healy saluted outgoing Gov. Charlie Baker’s leadership on behalf of Massachusetts.