Thank you for your donation. We appreciate your support of award-winning, independent, online local news and hope you will continue to read LymeLine.com every day. If you haven’t already signed up to receive our e-newsletter, then please consider doing so at this link.
Thank you again for your support.
Olwen Logan,
Publisher/Editor
Lyme-Old Lyme High School. (File photo.)
LYME/OLD LYME — UPDATED 12pm, 1pm & 2pm (updates in red): Lyme-Old Lyme (LOL) Schools will hold their District Budget Hearing this evening as a virtual meeting starting at 6:30 p.m.
Lyme-Old Lyme Schools Superintendent Ian Neviaser noted that the proposed budget has been reduced by a further $156,410 over the figure of $35,066,107 quoted in the recently published Focus on Education since, “We were able to reduce it [the total budget request] further due to a reduction in healthcare costs for next year. “
The revised 2020-21 proposed budget of $34,909,697 now reflects a 0.5 percent decrease over the 2019-20 budget of $35,084,758 in contrast to the 0.05 percent decrease quoted in Focus on Education.
Neviaser said, “We are very pleased to be able to deliver the lowest budget on record for the Lyme-Old Lyme Schools.”
Members of the public can participate in tonight’s meeting live by registering at the link below.
Register in advance for this meeting: https://us04web.zoom.us/meeting/register/v50qdO-hqTMuenqqS1nGDs4x4hg4-ZTE5Q
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Neviaser explained to us this morning that pre-registration is being required is, “To avoid Zoom Bombers and to follow our normal protocol where we ask for the public to state their name and town of residence prior to speaking.”
The Lyme-Old Lyme Board of Education has approved the proposed 2020-21 budget, which is $175,061 less than the current (2019-20) budget, but cuts neither programming nor staff in the district.
The respective numbers used for students and staff in the 2019-20 budget (which were projected fall 2018) were 1,214 students, 150 certified staff and 133.13 non-certified staff while those used for the 2020-21 budget (which were projected in October 2019) were 1,241 students, 150.7 certified staff and 135.06 non-certified staff. Neviaser noted that the projected numbers for the 2020-21 budget are “already way too low.”
The decrease is due primarily to refinancing the remaining bonds being used to paying for school renovation projects and thus achieving a significant drop in debt service.
According to the recent edition of the LOL Schools publication Focus in Education, “In addition, … health insurance rates continue to grow at a pace that is far lower than the state average.”
Focus on Education also notes that, “two major capital projects; the renovation of the Lyme School gymnasium [$435,000] and the completion of the high school tennis court replacement [$225,000],” are included in the proposed budget. The latter project is scheduled to begin in June.
Other enhancements mentioned in Focus on Education that are included in the budget are to replace SmartBoards with digital display boards and purchase new musical instruments to replace some older pieces. Also included are costs associated with continuing to grow the curriculum around the Next Generation Science Standards and adding to the District’s existing social/emotional learning programs.
There will not be a district-wide referendum on the budget this year as a result of the Governor’s Executive Order permitting town and school district budgets to be passed by a majority vote of the appropriate town finance or school board. This change has been implemented for this year only due to the impact of the COVID-19 crisis.
The LOL Schools Board of Education will vote on the proposed 2020-21 budget at their Wednesday, May 6 meeting.
Photo by CDC on Unsplash
OLD LYME — Old Lyme First Selectman Tim Griswold informed us this morning in a text message that there are now four confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Old Lyme. They are a 64-year-old female, a 21-year-old female a 27-year-old male and a 53-year-old female. The latter case listed is the most recently confirmed case, having been identified after Griswold had sent out his update yesterday to town residents stating there were three cases.
Griswold noted that the 21-year-old female was tested in Florida, but used an Old Lyme address although she does not live here. Because she gave the Old Lyme address, Griswold said that Ledge Light Health District must report her as an Old Lyme resident.
Photo by Linda Waters.
LYME — Audubon Connecticut, the Town of Lyme, Lyme Land Trust, and partners are offering an opportunity Saturday morning (April 4) for landowners (and volunteers) in the Lyme Forest Block to participate in a free forest habitat assessment.
Join a free webinar (hosted on Zoom) from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. for an overview of the assessment process.
A forest habitat assessment is an inventory of songbird and forest habitat conditions. Audubon-trained volunteers conduct the assessment, and then the assessment and accompanying report become a resource for landowners who want to manage their woodlands with birds in mind.
Landowners are under no obligation to implement recommendations.
Visit this link for more information.
An RSVP is requested. For questions, more information, and to RSVP, contact Kelly Morgan at kelly.morgan@audubon.org or 860-234-7630.
The “Teacher Parade” comprising 35 vehicles winds its way through the streets of Lyme.
LYME — Describing it as “one of the most heart-lifting events that I’ve ever been a part of,” Lyme Consolidated School music teacher Melissa Rostkoski explained that the inspiration for the 35-strong car parade that wound through the streets of Lyme on Tuesday afternoon lay in social media.
She had seen a video-clip of a motivational car parade being held “nowhere round here” shortly after Lyme-Old Lyme Schools were closed March 13 due to the COVID-19 crisis and it started her thinking about trying to do the same thing in Lyme.
Rostkoski said she shared the video with her colleague and friend, Lyme School’s Physical Education teacher Bonnie Ambruso, and together they rapidly agreed, “We should do this.”
From there, the two teachers set out to enlist broad parental and faculty support for the idea and gain all the necessary approvals from the Lyme-Old Lyme Schools, Police and Fire Departments. Rostkoski noted that after, “lots of back and forth,” a date was set and then the detailed planning really started.
Emily Reynolds, who has two girls at the school and also runs Lyme School’s Facebook page, was soon involved. She said, “I looked at all the Lyme School bus routes and developed a master route,” adding with a smile that it turned out to be an exercise that, “required a PhD in logistics!”
Another parent, Adam McEwen was soon on board and, in Reynolds’ words, “He tested the route,” and moreover, “… it worked!”
Stacey Leonardo, who is president of Lyme School’s Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) and also a Region 18 Board of Education member, joined the effort and Reynolds described how Leonardo, “Put her graphic designs skills to work and developed a flier which we posted to the Lyme PTO pages and shared to all room parents to disseminate to the families.”
Fourth grader Lillian Reynolds expressed one of her concerns regarding the current school closure situation!
Reynolds said that, at that point, the parade concept had “really created a movement within the town.”
A few days prior to the event, Reynolds said, “Old Lyme Fire Department member Jarrod Flagg, who has children at Lyme School, reached out and wanted to help coordinate fire department support.
The Lyme and Old Lyme Fire Departments then went to work, and got drivers and firetrucks ready for the event.” She noted, “Jarrod was really committed to making this a special event for the kids.”
Keeping things in the family, so as to speak, the Lyme firetruck driver was Lyme School alumnus Will Firgelewski, pictured above, who graduated from Lyme-Old Lyme High School in 2005.
Finally, in the true spirit of community, the Old Lyme Resident Trooper contacted Rostkoski March 30 and said he too “wanted to be part of it” and would help take care of the safety aspects of the parade.
And so it came to pass that all the Lyme School teachers, Instructional Assistants and nurse, along with Principal Jim Cavalieri gathered in the Rogers Lake parking lot a little before 4 p.m. last Tuesday in preparation for the parade. The route had taken McEwen around a little over an hour when he tested it — this time it took more than twice that length of time.
The streets were filled — but always at a safe social distance — with children and parents holding wonderful, often amusing homemade signs, waving and cheering as the parade of cars filled with their teachers and support staff drove past. In many cases, the cars were bedecked with balloons and the drivers regularly blew their horns.
Rostkoski said, “It made everyone incredibly happy. There were definitely some tears. It was very therapeutic for everyone. We wanted the kids to know that we miss them terribly and would much rather be in a building with them than driving by them.”
Reynolds added, “The turnout was extraordinary. The goal [of the parade] was really to remind all of these young people that even though we are all apart, the amazing teachers of Lyme School are here for them, care about them and will support them through this challenging time. It’s all about connection – we are wired to be connected and this parade achieved that; it made everyone feel part of this special community.”
Cavalieri commented, “My staff wanted to bring a little “normal” back into the students lives. Hopefully this was accomplished as we drove by the smiling faces of the students and parents. We wanted to give them hope during this time of uncertainty. All of the students want to be back in school with their teachers and friends. They just want life to be back to normal.”
Rostkoski was anxious to express her thanks to, “Everyone that made the parade flow so beautifully and kept it safe.” Cavalieri similarly wanted to give, “A big thank you to the Lyme and Old Lyme Fire and Police for their support and guidance in making this parade so fabulous,” concluding, “We all want to be safe and remain healthy, but we all want to get back to what we do best … being in our classrooms and teaching the kids.”
Editor’s Note: We apologize that we do not know the names of all the students, teachers and parents in these photos. Please send us those details if you wish us to add them. And we received so many wonderful photos from the parade that, contrary to our normal policy of only publishing a limited number of photos with an article, we have published almost all of them!
