A self-described rule-follower, Deb McCarthy of Hull said it bothers her to refuse to administer the MCAS test to her fifth-grade students but the pandemic has compelled her to fight for the kids.
The reason? Refusing to administer the state s scheduled standardized test.
On Monday, McCarthy walked into school with a group of 25 other people who support her position as a conscientious objector to the state-mandated administration of the state s standardized test, Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System, or MCAS.
McCarthy said she is willing to be disciplined, including an unpaid suspension, to protest the continued administration of the standardized tests. But both this Monday and on May 21, she was given one day of paid administrative leave for expressing her views.
McCarthy said she told Hull school administrators she would refuse to administer the tests this year in a letter she sent two weeks prior.
Franklin County rises to sixth among 14 counties in annual Health Rankings Report
Courtesy photo/Creative Commons Courtesy photo/Creative Commons
Published: 5/16/2021 4:00:34 PM
Franklin Regional Council of Governments (FRCOG) Director of Community Services Phoebe Walker and others hope the 2021 Health Rankings Report the agency recently presented, showing the rise of some unhealthy behaviors and the fall of others, will spur discussion and collaboration to keep the county moving in the right direction when it comes to health and health equity.
The report shows that while adult smoking, obesity, excessive drinking, sleep deprivation, drug overdose deaths and physical inactivity increased over the period examined, other things like access to exercise opportunities, drunk-driving deaths, sexually transmitted diseases and teen births decreased. When considering the health factors and health outcomes, Walker said Franklin County rose to sixth among the 14 counties in the report as c
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Sen. Comerford looks to ‘build back better’ following pandemic
COMERFORD
Published: 4/27/2021 5:46:05 PM
What a post-pandemic Western Massachusetts might look like was the focus during a virtual town hall with state Sen. Jo Comerford on Monday, who said she’d like to see everyone work together to “build back better” while remaining committed to public health and emergency preparedness.
Comerford, D-Northampton, said she has filed bills or co-sponsored ones she believes build bridges to what’s ahead. She said she and her staff have also been working, since she took office in 2019, on health care, unemployment and eviction when it comes to individuals, while at the same time helping municipalities apply for and get grants, and work with state agencies.