Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Maypo Duck#4

It's May, things are greening up nicely, Osama Bin Laden is at the bottom of the Arabian Sea, and May 17 is exactly 2 weeks away.  What's on your mind?

23 comments:

Cinco de Mayo said...

Coming this Thursday.

May 5, 2011
7-8pm
Squirrels Nest Cafe, 826 W. Bridge St, Morrisville
Desserts and Coffee with the Candidates!

wanda said...

I hear some darn awesome strawberry shortcake is on the agenda too! Meet Your candidates...no other candidates in town are as accessible as those on morrisville matters ticket

morrisvillematters said...

The Candidates of Morrisville Matters---Kartal, Parker, Miller and Stoneburner Invite you to a Picnic with The Candidates.

Free Hotdogs and sides
Dessert Bake Sale
Raffle ticket FINAL Sale before the big drawing at 7pm.
...
Enjoy Oldies and Motown music by the Delaware.

This is your last full visit with the candidates before the Primary. Get informed, ASk questions, Discuss hot topics or just stop by to say Hi.

The Morrisville Carnival will be winding down that night so what a great way to have family fun in one local spot in the borough.

Tell Your Friends, Tell Your Neighbors, Share it on Facebook, Tweet it out and Text it out as well.

Wanda Kartal, Ted Parker, Damon Miller and Dave Stoneburner want to meet you, talk to you and get to know what YOUR hot topics are.
We are YOUR parent candidates for School Board!

Questions/Donations etc email us at morrisvillematters@yahoo.com. Or Call us at 267-798-6916 or Message us on Facebook.

Do not miss a great day at the Williamson Park Picnic Pavilion and a Great Carnival to boot!

Anonymous said...

Superintendent refuses salary increase By CHRIS ENGLISH staff writer Calkins Media, Inc. | 0 comments

As Bristol Township School District officials await word on whether 864 employees will accept a pay freeze for 2011-12, at least one employee - the very top one - knows for sure he won't be getting a raise.

Superintendent Samuel Lee has told the school board he will not accept his contractual pay increase for next school year. His salary will remain at $137,500.


Lee, who succeeded Ellen Budman in September, said he will stay with his pay freeze commitment regardless of what other employees end up doing. He said he would not feel right accepting a raise in a district that is facing a projected $9.7 million budget deficit for 2011-12 and might be forced to lay off up to 91 employees.

Under his three-year contract, Lee is entitled to 3 percent raises in each of the next two years if his performance is judged satisfactory by the school board, and 5 percent raises both years if the school board deems his performance exceptional.

"I think it's practical and just makes sense," Lee said of his voluntary pay freeze. "We've asked people to make sacrifices and it only makes sense that I make a sacrifice as well."

Lee said letters have been sent to four employee unions and an informal association asking all of them to accept a salary freeze for 2011-12. He said discussions are ongoing and none of the groups has yet made a decision.

The 515-member Bristol Township Education Association includes teachers, nurses, guidance counselors, librarians and school psychologists. They are scheduled for a 3 percent raise and also step increases for the next school year, but Lee said a freeze would include both the percentage and step increases.

This year, teachers and others included in their contract have starting annual salaries of $43,291 and a maximum salary of $96,501.

The 96-member Office and Professional Employees International Union includes secretaries and cafeteria workers. They are being asked to forego their 2.5 percent raise for next school year.

The 106-member Transport Workers Union includes maintenance workers and custodians, and they would forgo a 2.5 percent increase for 2011-12.

The 109-member Bristol Township Educational Support Association includes teaching assistants, hall monitors and inclusion specialists. Their contract expires on Aug. 31 and negotiations for a new one include a requested pay freeze for 2011-12, school district officials said.

Also being asked to take a freeze is the 38-member Bristol Township Education Administrators Association, which includes principals, assistant principals and other district administrators, but not Lee. The BTEAA is not a union, but a "discussion group" according to school district officials. The members are scheduled for a 3 percent raise in 2011-12.

If all the groups accept the pay freeze, it would save $2.5 million, district officials said. However, there would still have to be layoffs, though not as many, said Lee, who added he couldn't be more specific.

"We can't afford to keep all our personnel even with a pay freeze," said Lee. "It's a matter of the economy. None of these decisions are in line with our educational mission, nor are they good for kids. Unfortunately, they are predicated on the challenge of the economy."

Lee's annual salary is well below that of superintendents in other large school districts in Lower Bucks County.

Centennial Superintendent Jennifer Foight-Cressman, who is newer to that position than Lee, makes $155,000 a year. Her contract calls for no raise in the next school year, according to the school district.

Council Rock's Mark Klein is making $188,600 a year; Pennsbury CEO Paul Long $179,000; Neshaminy's Louis Muenker $175,100; and Bensalem's William Gretzula $159,500.

Anonymous said...

THE REST ------

Long's title is Pennsbury's equivalent of a superintendent. He is retiring at the end of the school year and a successor has not been chosen, said district spokeswoman Ann Langtry.

Lee's predecessor was making $162,000 a year when she retired.

In Morrisville, which is much smaller than the other districts, acting Superintendent Bill Ferrara makes $120,000 a year. No decision has been made on a permanent superintendent for next school year, said district spokeswoman Pat Wandling. If Ferrara gets the permanent job, he has already said he would agree to a pay freeze for 2011-12, Wandling added.

The newspaper was unsuccessful in efforts to get information on 2011-12 pay raises for other superintendents in Lower Bucks.

The Bristol Township school board is scheduled to vote on a preliminary 2011-12 budget at its meeting at 7:30 p.m. Monday in the administration building, 6401 Mill Creek Road.

Jon said...

Good posts.

Question: does anyone know the status of Morrisville's Superintendent hiring process?

The Board was set to vote on hiring Bill Ferrara at the Jan. 26, 2011 meeting, then tabled the vote when it found out that, by law, it couldn't just bestow the job upon him.

So I thought there would be a process by which Ferrara and other candidates would be interviewed, etc.

Is that happening?

Ferrara's term is up June 30, 2011, I believe. Not much time left.

wanda said...

January posting on Morrisvillesfutureblog....

from the bcct:
Board to vote on hiring Ferrara

By: GEMA MARIA DUARTE
Bucks County Courier Times
MORRISVILLE SCHOOLS

The Morrisville school board is looking into permanently hiring William Ferrara as the district's superintendent.

School directors are expected to vote on it at the Jan. 26 school board meeting.

After Wednesday's school board work session, Ferrara said the school directors have 150 days before June 30 to decide who will fill the position. His contract as acting superintendent runs until the end of the school year in June.

Ferrara has been acting superintendent since October. The board voted for him to look after the district following the abrupt departure of then-superintendent Elizabeth Yonson, who officially resigned in September, but had not attended district meetings since the start of the school year.

Before taking the $120,000 post, Ferrara was the principal at Morrisville High School. Donald Harm of Pennsbury School District replaced Ferrara in October for the remainder of the school year.

In other Morrisville school news, officials will look into the possibility of installing additional security cameras at Grandview Elementary. Cost details still need to be researched, officials said.

Gema Maria Duarte can be reached at 215-949-4195 or gduarte@phillyburbs.com. Follow her on Twitter at twitter.com/deadlineduarte.

January 20, 2011 02:06 AM

wanda said...

FROM JANUARY 28 POST: NOTICE THE JOB POSTING REQUIREMENT FOR SUPER JOB (IS IT POSTED SOMEWHERE ELSE? ITS NOT ON MV.ORG) AND THE EVALUATION DUE IN MAY FOR BILL...AND THE 'PREDICTION' BY MARLIS THAT THE BUDGET WOULD HAVE NO DEFICIT...Could we have an overinflated budget??? QUITE A PREDICTION DON'T YOU THINK

from the bcct:
$2M shortfall in early budget

By: GEMA MARIA DUARTE
Bucks County Courier Times
MORRISVILLE SCHOOLS

Increases in salary and benefits are responsible for the shortfall. One board member vowed there would be no tax hike.

The preliminary 2011-12 budget for the Morrisville School District has a shortfall of more than $2 million, though officials said that doesn't mean there will be a tax increase.

School director Marlys Mihok said Wednesday night she wasn't alarmed at the task of trimming the $19.7 million proposal.

"I guarantee you there won't be a tax increase," Mihok said after Wednesday's school board meeting. "Not on my watch."

Increases in salary and benefits are responsible for the shortfall, officials said.

"Our expenses are constantly increasing due mainly to generous salaries and benefits but our revenues are shrinking from the state - primarily because they also have a huge deficit - and other sources such as interest income, real estate transfer taxes, etc. due primarily to our national recession," school board President Bill Hellmann said Thursday.

"I also expect revenues from our federal government will shrink due to their unsustainable deficit. This deficit is preliminary only and our school board will work with the administration to narrow the cap in the upcoming months."


Because of the state's Act 1 law, the Morrisville school board isn't permitted to raise taxes by more than 1.4 percent without a voter referendum.

When the final budget is approved, Mihok predicted that it will be pared to $17.9 million so there will be no deficit.

The school director wouldn't disclose how she proposes to trim the budget, but she stuck to her vow to not increase taxes.

The only other business discussed Wednesday was a permanent superintendent.

Board members were expected to give the job to William Ferrara at Wednesday's meeting.

Ferrara has been the acting superintendent for the district since September. But state law requires that the district open up the position to other applicants before filling the job.

Ferrara's contract requires him to go through a performance evaluation in May.

Ferrara said after the meeting that he would rather go through with the evaluation process than just be given the job.

The school board moved the rest of Wednesday's meeting agenda to Feb. 16 due to the storm.

Gema Maria Duarte can be reached at 215-949-4195 or gduarte@phillyburbs.com. Follow her at Twitter.com/deadlineduarte.

January 28, 2011 02:07 AM

Jon said...

Yes, quite a prediction by Mihok on the budget. It's like she already knew the outcome 3 months ago.

Thanks for posting this stuff, Wanda.

So 3+ months have passed since the Super. job was to be posted, candidates interviewed, etc. Ferrara's job performance review mtg. is supposed to happen before the end of May, and his job term currently ends June 30. I don't think I've heard a peep about the status of this. Has anyone else? This is the kind of thing, like M.R. Reiter, the Grandview Trailers, and many other key issues, that I think the Board does a bad job communicating (or a good job not communicating, depending on how you want to look at it).

Don't read too much into this - I'm neither endorsing nor denouncing Mr. Ferrara. I'm not looking for Exec. Session details, I'm just asking in general about if there's a process going, and how's it going?

Jon said...

In terms of mystery, this one is right up there with UFOs, the Bermuda Triangle, and the Lost City of Atlantis:

What's up with those $30,000 in doors that were installed at Grandview but that weren't authorized to be installed?

morrisvillematters said...

Great Flier Blitz today on Grandview Ave...Morrisville Matters!!!!

Anonymous said...

Sorry about the late notice on this, I just found out this morning.

The Trentonian Live will be at Ben's Deli this morning from 6am - 11am.

They will be conducting a live web cast with streaming video and a live chat that will be hosted on Trentonian.com.

People can participate online by logging into the chat on their web site or through Twitter, sending messages including the hashtag #TrentonianLive and your tweets will be flooded into the chat stream. You can also participate by going to Ben's Deli. The reporter will be talking to the restaurant's owners, staff and customers.

To anyone who might be participating in this event, please be respectfully of the town and it's people.

For more info you can go to
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=151949454871399
or
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=151949454871399#!/pages/Morrisville-Borough-PA/156974577671011

Have a great day!
- Janet

morrisvillematters said...

Thanks for the post above, Morrisville Matters was able to say hello to Joe and chat a bit. Great for our town for them to visit our businesses

morrisvillematters said...

Thank You to All who came out to Support Morrisville Matters at tonights Meet and Greet at the Squirrels Nest! We so look forward to working with the community! Next Event May 12th, 2011 All You Can Eat Spaghetti Dinner from 5-8pm at the Italian American Social Club, Harrison Avenue, Morrisville.

Pass it on, share it, tweet it, text it...This is a great event for $5.00 per person spaghetti dinner with meatballs, garlic bread. Dessert Bake Sale and Raffle Tickets for sale!

check out our website for full event info www.morrisvillematters.com. Emails us at morrisvillematters@yahoo.com.

Peter said...

Saw signs today for Graeme Thompson. Apparently he's taking another swing, this time running for Council. Anyone know if he is on the ballot as a Democrat or Republican?

morrisvillematters said...

Morrisville Carnival running through 5/14/11, Everyone come to visit, its a great event for our borough!!!

Morrisville Matters candidates will be holding picnic on 5/14/11 5-7pm, Free hotdogs, sides, Dessert Bake Sale, Raffle Drawing etc.

Visit the Carnival, Visit the Candidates!!!!

Go Blue and Gold

morrisvillematters said...

Per Elaine J Miller of Morrisville....

their 7lb Yorkie named Carlos is missing...He was last seen last nite around midnite in Morrisville,PA around Crown street...He is 5yo quiet 7lb male. very timid, doesn't bark or bite is upto date on his shots and is chipped w/ Home again! He is wearing his red harness.He may show up on a door step or garage. very friendly. Please contact her if you find him. She is on Facebook.

morrisvillematters said...

the Softball Hall Of Fame Game is at 630pm tonight at Williamson Park... Being inducted is Francine Jones Bresnen, Bree Skitsko, Michele Fournier Hale, Yogi Wiedenhaefer, & Brian Chambers. The Carnival will be there and DJ Scott!!! Fun night in Morrisville Borough

Jon said...

Peter, below is an excerpt from a 3/16/11 BucksLocalNews article:

MORRISVILLE BOROUGH:

In the Ward 2 race, Democrats Nancy Sherlock, Jeffrey Johnson and Graeme Thomson are running for two, 4-year seats on council.

Jon said...

I spent the day yesterday with the Grandview 3rd graders on their field trip to Summerseat.

First off, thank you Summerseat for putting on this program for free. Special thanks to Mr. & Mrs. Slotterbeck who were the 2 informative tour guides.

Second, I love those kids, but every time I'm a chaperone for events like this, I come away with a deeper appreciation for the energy, patience, and dedication it takes to be a teacher, day-in and day-out.

Anonymous said...

The LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS CANDIDATE GUIDE is now available online at:
http://palwv.org/bucksco/voters_guide_page.htm

wanda said...

May12th, Pasta Dinner Fundraiser, Ital. Amer. Club, Harrison Ave, 5-8pm, $5.00/pp, Tix at door, bring friends!

wanda said...

Crisis in Education:funding our Future...This forum will be presented tonight at the Tech school auditorium to educate parents on the governors budget proposals and information will be given to you to contact your state legislators immediately. Fight for the kids, fight for their education, go to this meeting, get informed and get your voice out there to those who work for you.