A
resolution passed at the May 11th Board of Aldermen meeting suggested
the city implement a "white bike" system modeled on both Portland,
Maine and Paris-style programs where people can either rent or borrow
bikes at points throughout the cities.

"Somerville is four
square miles. It's time to make the city a model for bicycle use,"
Alderman at Large Dennis Sullivan said at the meeting.

Aldermen also voted for a resolution asking the Mayor's office to let city employees use bikes while on business.

Sullivan suggested costs could be kept down by letting employees choose from among the city's abandoned and lost bikes.

Alderman
at Large Jack Connolly passed around a Boston Globe magazine article
citing the Paris program and the progress Boston has made with the
idea.

If implemented, Connolly said locked bike racks could be
placed every 300-400 yards throughout Somerville. The T stations within
the city would serve as hubs for the system.

"We're in a
particularly dense urban area that would be tailor-made for this bike
sharing concept," Connolly said. "I don't think we want to wait for
Boston."

The three Somerville officers
played a crucial role in a rescue operation in December, 2006. Shortly
after 11:00 p.m. on December 6th, emergency 911 dispatchers reported a
fire at a century-old home on Harvard Street. Although the first
responders arrived within minutes, the wood-frame structure was totally
engulfed in flames.

Officer Derrick Dottin, who was among the
first to arrive, was told that two people were trapped inside the
blazing home. Without hesitation, he ran along the right side of the
house amidst searing flames and burning debris, as Officer Alex
Capobianco and Steve St. Hilaire entered through an adjoining yard. At
the rear of the home, all three officers heard a faint groan from
inside the house. Officers Capobianco and St. Hilaire broke windows as
Officer Dottin kicked in the rear door. More smoke and flames reduced
visibility to near zero. After several attempts to enter the building,
Officers Dottin and Capobianco made their way in, but the intense smoke
limited the time they could remain in the structure.

After
repeated trips into what had become a full-blown inferno, Officer
Dottin finally caught a glimpse of a woman's foot. He tried to pull the
victim toward him, but debris had trapped her, and she was unable to
move. Pushing even further into the disintegrating structure – and with
the assistance of Officer Capobianco, who has joined him, Officer
Dottin was able to lift the unconscious woman over his shoulder and
carry her to a rear yard. Finding her unresponsive, Officer St. Hilaire
began CPR, working feverishly until he detected a faint pulse.

Although
out of the building, the officers and the victim continued to be
showered with flaming debris. Officers Dottin and Capobianco again
carried the victim out of harm's way. Simultaneously, firefighters
arrived and were able to rescue a second victim who was still inside
the burning home. Although the home was totally destroyed, both victims
survived their injuries.

The NLEOMF, a nonprofit organization
established in 1984 to honor the service and sacrifice of America's law
enforcement officers. Presently, the names of more than 18,000 officers
who were killed in the line of duty are engraved on the walls of the
National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial.

Baldasaro was a federal fugitive last known to be residing in the Roxbury area.

U.S.
Marshal Stephen Monier stated that "this was an attack on the
reputation of the U.S. Marshals, and not something that is taken
lightly; the quick and successful arrest of Baldasaro by the U.S.
Marshals is evidence of that!"

Baldasaro is currently being
charged by the New York City Police Department as a Fugitive From
Justice based on the following outstanding warrants, but additional
charges are currently being investigated. Known allegations include
Robbery and Kidnapping (Chesterfield, NH and Cambridge, MA),
Impersonating a Police Officer (Cambridge, MA), Vehicle Theft (Lincoln
County, ME) and a Parole violation in Vermont.

The U.S. Marshals
ask the public's assistance in identifying any additional people that
may have been victimized by someone impersonating a law enforcement
officer. If you were a victim of a similar crime, please contact your
local police department and report the offense.

As for right
now, Baldasaro will go on trial in each of the above states for each
individual charge, and there is still the possibility that he will be
tried on much more serious federal charges of impersonating a U.S.
Marshal.

The ramifications are even more serious because
Baldasaro was convicted of impersonating a Deputy U.S. Marshal in 1993.
No doubt this will be used against him on trial in establishing his
character. Furthermore, this could effect sentencing if he is convicted
again.

Annually, investigations carried out by the U.S.
Marshals result in the apprehension of approximately 36,000 federal
fugitives. More federal fugitives are arrested by Marshals than all
other federal agencies combined. Last year, U.S. Marshals task forces
arrested more than 73,000 state and local fugitives on felony charges.

And as U.S. Marshal Jeffrey White said, "Mr. Baldasaro chose the wrong agency to impersonate."

I
love when the weather allows us to return to the streets, squares, bike
trails and our favorite meeting spots. We were cooped up all winter,
and when we did go out, we got wet, froze and caught colds. I was on my
way to the ATM in Teele Square Saturday to get money to pay for the
pizza at Angelina's. Across from Angie's is a bar with one of those
open window-fronts so everyone can see you hanging around in a barroom.
The bus or a car goes by and you hear. "Hey Mommy…there's Daddy! Hi
Daddy!"

Anyway, there is a huge German shepherd and I say to my
son Jimmy, "what a beautiful dog." Next thing I hear is: "I recognize
that voice – is that Jimmy?" It was my old pal and excellent former
drummer, Billy. He had a headband on and a sleeveless vest, sunglasses
and a few new tattoos, so I couldn't tell it was him right off the bat.
It was great seeing him. We chatted a bit and exchanged cell phone
numbers.

The weather is getting nicer and people are coming out
of their winter burrows. I was happy to see a few of my older friends
emerge from their hibernations. I breathed a sigh of relief when they
finally started walking places again and I actually saw them in the
flesh. I have to do a quick inventory because we are all getting up
there and I have to check to see who may not have made it through the
cruel winter. Thankfully, most of them are coming back out, one by one.

I
thought I had gone back in time last week when I was up the park with
my dog. Was it a mirage or was one of my childhood friends sitting on a
park bench with a brown paper bag with a six-pack of Budweisers?
"Jimmy!!!" Yes, it was my old pal. He was actually waiting for another
of my old friends to join him. He said: "So and so should be walking up
over the hill from Mallet Street any minute." Sure enough, there he
was! Some things never change I guess – and old habits are hard to
break. These two guys have been carrying on their ritual for the last
40 years. It was like deja-brew! We talked about other old friends like
Bolo and Boogna among other things.

I saw another old friend
last Tuesday and somehow the topic of the Bal-A-Rue roller skating rink
on Mystic Avenue came up. I know it's in Meffa and this is a Somerville
article, but so what.

When the weather got nice in the old days
we use be dropped off at the Bal-A-Rue and cap the day with some
burgers from Kemps. Don't ask me how we crossed Mystic Avenue and
lived. And remember – no skating backwards! Eventually going to Kemps
would be replaced by going to the Golden Egg after the bars closed. The
Golden Egg was Medford's answer to Kay and Chips. The Century Bank is
now on the site of the old Bal-A-Rue.

I remember one spring
evening when my band members and me were on our way back from a gig on
Revere Beach. We approached an MDC Police checkpoint near Kappy's
Liquors in our band van. The MDC cop shined a flashlight in the drivers
face and asked where we were going. The driver replied that we were
coming home from work. The cop said, oh, what do you do? The driver
said: "We're magicians." Of course he was trying to say "musicians,"
but the late hour and fatigue from a long evening of performing in a
smoky lounge (Sammy's Patio) made it come out differently. When the cop
heard him say magicians, instead of asking him to pull a rabbit out of
his hat, he asked him to pull his license and registration out of his
wallet. Happily, we all went safely on our way.

Nice weather has
a way of bringing back memories too. The smell of lilacs still reminds
me of when we lived downstairs in Lenny Scott's house on Pearson Avenue
from 1955 to 1960. I still ride by there every so often. Next time I
ride by I hope to drop in and visit Louise. I have so many great photos
and memories of her family and mine from an innocent time – long, long
ago. We spent a few very happy springs there, as well as other seasons.

Spring
is graduations too. Because I was a rabble-rouser in high school, one
of the administrators or building masters or another one of my nemeses
decided to place my diploma at the very end of the pile. So with my
entire family in the stands at Dilboy, they called the A's, the B's,
the C's and the D's – and started the E's. I swear I heard my poor
mother gasp and say: "I knew he wasn't going to graduate, Fred!"
Finally after they called John Zagami or someone else at the end, they
called James Del Ponte. I stomped up to the podium and ripped my
diploma out of the presenters hand, and gave him the dirtiest look I
could come up with. They got the last laugh (until I returned as a
substitute teacher). That's my graduation memory.

So come out,
wont you? Come out and walk your dog, ride bikes with your kids on the
bike trail or go smell some lilacs. Enjoy every second of this
transformation from shivering to shimmering

And just a quick
note to you absentee landlords. It's time to clean up your nest eggs.
Some of your yards are so overgrown with freakish looking weeds, that
it looks like something from Jurassic Park. If you need someone to
clean it up, e-mail me, I could use some extra cash. You can email
Jimmy directly at jimmydel@rcn.com.

As
the governor and the legislature grapple with what has become, in
dollar terms, the largest fiscal crisis in Massachusetts history, one
of the hottest questions is whether the state can cut its way to
solvency, or whether some new and additional revenues are necessary. My
position on this question has been loud, clear and public. I believe
that:

· Some cuts are inevitable, but you can't cut your way to success;

· Fundamental reform can lead to significant savings;

· We should approach this challenge not by shifting the blame, but by sharing the burden;

· No matter how many cuts and reforms we impose, we cannot maintain core services without some new revenue; and

·
As part of a comprehensive rebalancing of the fiscal relationship
between the state and its municipalities, cities and towns should be
given more freedom and authority to diversify revenue and to manage
costs – especially the soaring cost of health care

I hope that
is the approach that ultimately carries on the day on Beacon Hill. Here
in Somerville, we will do our best to lead by example.

On cost
management, we are taking the lead by collaborating with our police
unions on new contracts that not only include zero percent pay
increases, but also call for pay furloughs in which employees give back
one week's salary without reducing their hours. Our patrolmen's union
courageously led the way on this approach by agreeing to these
provisions in a one-year contract signed in March; our police superior
officers' union signed on to the same austerity measures in a new
three-year agreement signed on May 1st.

I am deeply grateful for
the community spirit represented by these contracts, which set an
example for other municipal unions here in Somerville and across the
state.

This week, I took the next logical step by telling our
non-union workforce (including all elected officials), that they, too,
would be looking at a continued wage freeze in FY2010 – and that they,
too, would be receiving one-week furloughs. Taken together, the
non-union and police furloughs represent a cut in the FY2010 budget of
well over $300,000.

That's a significant amount of money – but
it is even more significant as an indication of the fact that we are
all in this together. The employees covered by these furlough policies
are making a genuine sacrifice to preserve core city services at a time
of fiscal crisis.

Even though it would completely unfair to ask
city workers to bear the entire burden on their own, I wish I could say
that their sacrifice would, by itself, be sufficient to meet our
ongoing budget shortfall. The truth, of course, is that it will take
far more, both in terms of cost savings and enhanced revenues.

To
help us find the best menu of budget options, I turned in January to a
group of outside fiscal experts from both the private and the
non-profit sectors. I asked them to advise the city on a full range of
potential costs savings and revenue items – both short-term and
long-term – that could help us get past the current crisis without
reducing core services.

This week, the Financial Advisory
Committee (FAC) submitted its recommendations. (You can download a copy
from the "FY-2009-2010 Budget Development" page on the city's website.
There's a link to the budget page from our homepage at
www.somervillema.gov.)

It's an impressive, thoughtful and
provocative list. I am grateful for all of the committee's hard work,
and I will carefully review its suggestions. Some of them are entirely
within the City's choice and control, including such options as:
exploring opportunities for competitive sourcing between city employees
and private vendors; establishing higher license fees and violation
fines; or moving the entire city to residential permit parking.

It's
already clear, however, that the City of Somerville cannot implement
several of the FAC's most important recommendations unless the state
gives us the tools to do so – and/or our municipal unions lend their
assent. Nowhere are these restrictions more evident than in the area of
health care cost management.

We have been working steadily over
the past five years – and with some success – to bring employee and
retiree health insurance contributions more in line with standard
practice in the private sector (and, indeed with many other cities and
towns). I am also ready now to embrace the FAC's suggestion that we
"determine and quantify the potential benefits and costs-savings of
joining the Commonwealth's Group Insurance Commission (GIC)."

But
there are millions more in savings (with no loss in access or quality
of services) that can be had from other changes on the health care
front. Here are a few of the key FAC recommendations on health care
that require authorization or endorsement at the state level:

· "Encourage a move away from an Indemnity Plan while ensuring comparable coverage through other cost-effective options

· "Issue a Request For Proposals (RFP) for a sole health insurance provider

·
"Pursue a broad range of plan design changes with the potential of
reducing costs while maintaining coverage and quality of care

·
"Support legislative authorization for cities and towns to have the
same administrative authority to change plan design as exercised by the
Commonwealth since 1955 (plan design encompasses changes in deductibles
and co-pays)"

This week, along with our legislative delegation
and city officials from across the state, I will be helping lead the
fight on Beacon Hill for the authority we need to implement these
changes, as well as gaining more ability to diversify local revenues.

Will
we succeed? It's by no means a certainty. But here's one thing I know
for sure: Whatever the outcome, Somerville will be leading by example.
We will gather the best analysis, look at the big picture, and take on
the shared sacrifices and the hard choices – squarely and fairly.

That's all we can do – and that's all we're asking for.

Both Winter Hill and Healey
have been under this grant before, but not since June of 2008. "We are
allowed to apply for new funding for any school that's been off funding
for at least a year," says Gretchen Kinder, organizer of this meeting
and Coordinator of Research and Development in the Somerville Public
School system. This particular grant lasts five years. "Six years ago
Winter Hill and Healey were awarded this five year grant from the
Department of Education. And it ended in 08; so those two schools have
been without money the last year," Kinder tells us. So in order to help
these two Somerville schools and the hundreds of children who learn in
them, Kinder held this hour-long discussion where anyone with an
attachment to Somerville education was welcomed to join. She was quick
to say parents were most welcome in this small meeting, saying
oftentimes they know more about the children than those in the school
system.

To make the grant proposal appealing for those in the
State House there have been some changes since the last time it was
applied for. Instead of having one focus, this proposal will try to
address two types of learning in the educational system: social and
academic. On a large paper board, Kinder wrote down several possible
desired outcomes for both academic and social development within the
schools. Some of the academic ones written down were math reasoning
skills, social studies and homework ability. Some of the social ones
were public speaking, being able to work well with others, and
improvements of the after-school program. "After-school programs should
not be considered as separate from the school day; it complements the
school day," Kinder says, addressing the small assembly. In a small
interactive part of the assembly, Kinder asked all those present to put
stickers by the outcomes they see as most desirable for their students
and children. In social outcomes, most chose communication skills,
relationship with adults and peers and improvements in after-school. In
academic outcomes, most chose homework ability, science and reading
skills; no one chose social studies.

Tony Pierantozzi,
Superintendent of Somerville Public Schools had to leave this meeting
early but before doing so, he instructed those present that academic
success was his main concern. Pierantozzi sees the benefit of social
development; however he was determined to fix Somerville's academic
problems above all else, saying "We are primarily interested in direct
improvement of our academic achievement." He continued, "I'm not
talking about MCAS; I'm talking about their [a student's] ability to
express themselves through their academics.

At the time of the accident, car 187 was driven by
officer Stephen Jones. Jones and the other driver were both a bit
bruised and banged up, they were transported to an area hospital where
they were both treated and released. The cause of the accident is still
under investigation.

***************

Popular
Ward 1 School Committee member and Chairwoman – Maureen Bastardi will
be having a fundraiser this coming Tuesday night from 6 pm to 8:30 pm
at Bread & Company, located at 394 Broadway in Winter Hill. Maureen
does a great job for the residents and students throughout the ward
down in East Somerville as well as the rest of the city.

***************

Speaking
of the Bread & Company in Winter Hill, if you haven't been there at
all you should go, the food is fantastic and everyone there is super
friendly. Our favorite is the breads they make, and this week while
some of us where there for lunch, bought their Carrot Bread (Brazilian
style) one word describes it as "fantastic" – if nothing else, check
out the breads and in particular Carrot Bread (Brazilian style) – and
mention The Somerville News.

***************

Guess some
BU students don't think their graduation speaker, our own Congressman
Mike Capuano, has enough "sizzle" – they want someone else. Judging by
way he grilled the largest bank presidents on their bonuses, these
students might be in for a surprise. Then again if Mike wanted to teach
them what sizzle was all about, he could use his influence and borrow
President Obama's chief speech writer, North Reading's own Jon Favreau.
Give 'em hell Mike – make them sizzle!

***************

Have
you noticed that the Farm Team paper has lost its size and page
content? We aren't the only ones that have noticed; their boxes don't
even have their papers until sometimes on Friday and lots of papers
left over at the end of the following week. Now an article by Dan
Kennedy who is the Assistant Professor at NU School of Journalism, did
a story on the outlook of Gatehouse and that they will be announcing
major cutbacks and downsizing very soon, Gatehouse owns the Farm Team.
To bad the tradition of the Dole Family ownership fades as the days go
by.

***************

Meanwhile The Somerville News is
growing every month – since January of this year we have gone from 150
locations in Somerville to now 163 locations. We are even considering
printing more papers and by the end of the year we will easily be up to
175 locations. The Somerville News and all "real" locally own and
operated papers throughout the Boston area are in better shape then the
big out of towners.

***************

Looks like the cone
of silence is down around the DPW yard – or is that the code of
silence? Either way we heard from a reliable source that apparently
there was an accident one day last week, involving one DPW worker that
ran another DPW worker over in the city yard with a city truck that was
pulling a city trailer. But nobody is saying anything, or are they?
Stay tuned!

***************

We want to welcome Isabella
Hoske Vieira to the 'Ville. Isabella is a foreign exchange student from
Belo Horizonte, Brazil that has been studying in Kansas since September
but wants to now come visit Somerville before her long journey back
home to Brazil in June. Welcome to Somerville!

***************

At
one of the Board of Aldermen subcommittee meetings last week they were
discussing the possibility of raising the fine for public smoking of
weed, from $100.00 to $300.00. When one of the Aldermen asked how was
it going to be enforced if the police saw a minor smoking the weed. The
city treasurer Ms. Elizabeth Craveiro was heard to say that she would
have a lien placed on the parent's home to enforce. Well that might be
one way of doing it – she was then asked what if they were tenants, and
Ms. Craveiro was heard to say, same thing, place a lien on the
landlords house! Now we're not lawyers here at Newstalk, but we can't
believe that it's legal to do that, is it?

***************

For
the idiot over on the Farm Team, get your facts straight, Vinny Piro
went through 3 trials – first two no verdict and last one he was
acquitted, and by the way that was 25 years ago. He did more for the
City of Somerville in state aide and assistance then the current
legislators combined – get your facts straight. You probably didn't
even live here in 1985 – just another PDS, off the wall wacko who heard
from one person who heard it for another from his cousin who used to
live here! To some of us here at Newstalk, Vinny was a nice man who did
a lot for the everyday person here in the city. And we can say that
because some of us actually know him, personally!

***************

Somerville
Climate Action will be hosting the first-ever Living Green Festival
this Saturday, May 16th at Somerville High School from 10 am to 2 pm.
Admission will be free. The festival will showcase a wide variety of
sustainable living options, through hands-on workshops and
demonstrations. Highlights will include a sustainable cooking
demonstration by Nadine Nelson of Discerning Taste, a mock-wall
insulation demonstration by Tony Shirley of Energy All Stars, and free
basic bike adjustments by Joshua Kampa of Open Bicycle. For more
information, call Dave Madan at 617-461-9393 or email him at
livinggreenfestival@gmail.com.

***************

Joe
Squillante, a graduate of the SHS Class of 1986, died suddenly this
past week. Our condolences go out to the family, especially his wife
and their young child. He will be waked at Dello Russo's in Medford on
Wednesday night. He will be missed.

***************

The
Somerville Sunsetters for 2009 are looking for eager and excited local
students to participate, along with a number of returning members – to
get that final group of 20 performers fleshed out. They're looking for
student between the ages of 12 and 18, who will be auditioning for and
then selected by our own Jimmy Del Ponte – check out Jimmy's column
this week for details.

***************

The 2009 All City
Elementary Spring Concert will be Thursday, May 14th at 7 pm in the
Somerville High Auditorium (81 Highland Ave). This is always a terrific
show and we encourage everyone to try and make it – tickets will be
available at the door.

***************

The Executive
Office of Transportation, the City of Cambridge and City Councilor and
State Representative Tim Toomey are sponsoring a community meeting to
discuss the relocation of Lechmere Station and the Green Line Extension
Project. The meeting will feature presentations on the overall Green
Line Extension as well as specifics about the new Lechmere Station and
associated roadway changes including multiple new pedestrian crossings
of McGrath/O'Brien Highway. The meeting will be held on, Wednesday May
20th from 6 – 8 PM at the Kennedy-Longfellow School Auditorium, 158
Spring Street Cambridge.

***************

But don't tell them that – oh no.

And
who the Hell says it is too early to start railing on politicians,
political wannabes and pod people? Nomination papers are available
since this Monday, so now it will be time to separate the herd and see
what's what and who has the intestinal fortitude to step up and put
their name on a ballot – to put their rhetoric to the test and actually
do something about it, if it's really that bad here. There is at least
one person willing to go up against an incumbent this year, and from
what we hear, there will be a few more jumping into the fray.

There
is a lot of talk about who will be running for office this year, but
until those papers are pulled – and then actually handed back in and
certified – talk means nothing in this city. There will be some
candidates who will have a terrific chance to unseat an incumbent or
two – we hope – and there will be a candidate or two that will most
likely be crushed so bad, they will never ever run for office again –
we hope.

The news is not all bad for the MASC and other
advocates of educational support though. School funding for fiscal year
'09 will not see a lull, as the state has made the decision to allocate
monies from the federal stimulus package to cover the net loss from the
aforementioned state budget cuts. Even with severely weakening revenue
streams, the state of Massachusetts will be able to avoid a significant
lapse in the monetary funds that it allots to its public schools–at
least for this year.

Mary Jo Rossetti, an MASC member and the
Somerville School Committee Representative for Ward 7, knows that there
is much work still to be done to ensure the long-term vitality of
Somerville's public school system. One pertinent issue that Rossetti
points out is that the money that will now be allocated to Somerville
and other local communities is now channeled through the federal
government "We were excited when we all heard that education was
getting X amount of dollars, it was wonderful news," says Rossetti. "I
will tell you though, that since this memo came out that this was going
to happen, every other week there was a memo from the [federal]
government saying, oops we didn't think about this, or oops we didn't
think about that. So they are directing our superintendents, and our
mayors, and our governor on how that money should be expended….our
hands are tied as to how we can spend the money."

The other
issue, still to be worked out, is how these funds are to be obtained by
local municipalities. Due to federal guidelines, cities might have to
apply for money through grants and will be forced to wait and see when
and if they receive full economic support. This can make it quite
difficult to forecast a local budget for FY10, something that
Somerville is currently in the process of doing. "I am exuberant that
we are getting this money," says Rossetti, "but it is difficult because
one of our [budget] lines is assuming that we are going to get some
stimulus money, and we are crossing ours fingers and toes that that is
going to be real."

Assuming Somerville obtains full grants
dollars from the federal stimulus package, the key for 2009 will be
moderation. As Mitchell Chester, commissioner of Elementary and
Secondary Education, said at the "Day on the Hill" event, "it is going
to be a very funky ride for the next couple of years. The challenge is
that we are expending stimulus funds now; i.e. fewer funds will be left
to expend in FY10 and FY11…you need to be thinking not simply one
year at a time this time, but for the next two years."

School
boards are looking to be more creative with current school budgeting in
an effort to weather the storm for FY11 and beyond. Some ideas include
regionalization, the pooling together of resources from separate school
systems to save money, and in increase in sales tax, which is supported
by Somerville's Mayoral administration and could bring much needed
revenue to public schools and the city as a whole.

In terms of
specific cuts for the upcoming year, it is still too early to tell how
Somerville schools will be affected. One thing that Somerville
residents can hang their hat on though, is the experience and
competency of the people running our schools and the administration
that works behind the scenes. "You are not going to get a better
education than you will in the Somerville Public Schools," says Mary Jo
Rossetti. "The schools are superb, the staff is extremely dedicated."
Rossetti, who will be running for re-election this year, knows that
there is hard work to be done and difficult decisions to be made, but
is certainly up for the challenge. "I want to be a part of this team
because it makes me feel proud to see the outcome of all of these
students and what Somerville public schools have done for each of them.
No matter what the unfunded regulations are, we don't quit"

There
are crucial decisions to be made in the upcoming months in regards to
education and the impending financial concerns, and the MASC encourages
everyone to participate in the decision making process. "We need you to
work with us-and with your legislators! The governor's recently
released budget is closely tied to federal monies through the stimulus
package. How these funds will be distributed is unclear at the moment,
but your voice and outreach is critical in reminding elected officials
that public schools are our nation's most vital piece of
infrastructure."