News

Board of Ed Unanimously Elects Katrina Parkhill as Chair, Phil Hogan as Vice Chair

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The Board of Education on Monday night elected Katrina Parkhill as chair. A Republican member of the Board since 2017 who served as chair through the COVID-19 pandemic—from late-2019 through last November—Parkhill was unanimously elected during a brief organizational meeting at the start of the BOE’s regular meeting. In nominating Parkhill, Board member Hugo Alves said, “I’d like to nominate Katrina to be chair of the board if she’d do it again.”

“Obviously it’s been an interesting time and an unfortunate one considering the circumstances, but Katrina has at least proven to me and the rest of us in town that she not only cares about the town, cares about the school system, she’s got the experience to lead and I think that whatever transition we experience over the course of the rest of the year, it would be helpful and important to have some continuity and that level of experience,” Alves said at the meeting, held in the Wagner Room at New Canaan High School. Board members Bob Naughton, Brendan Hayes, Parkhill, Erica Schwedel, Alves, Phil Hogan and Penny Rashin voted 7-0 in favor of Parkhill. Board member Julie Toal was absent.

Alicia Meyer

Board of Ed Chair To Step Away Temporarily Following Drunk-Driving Arrest

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The chair of the Board of Education said Monday night that he will step away from the elected body temporarily. Dan Bennett read out the following prepared statement at the start of the Board’s regular meeting, held in the Wagner Room at New Canaan High School, his first public comments since being arrested last week for drunk-driving:

“I wanted to make a statement to this Board and the public. After the completion of this meeting, I will be absent from Board meetings and participation in Board activities for a few weeks as I deal with a personal situation that requires my and my family’s attention. With the help of my wife and family, we will manage this situation with humility and respect. I will make no further comment on this matter, which I hope that you understand.

Government

Town Council Approves Fiscal Year 2024 Budget; 3.12% Increase over Current Spending

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New Canaan’s legislative body last week approved a budget of $166.6 million for fiscal year 2024, a 3.12% increase over current spending. The Town Council at its April 5 meeting voted 12-0 in favor of the budget, which takes effect July 1. 

Chair Steve Karl said in a town-issued press release that it’s been “a challenging year given the current backdrop of rising costs and inflationary pressure on most major budget categories.”

“The town faces many of the same challenges the private sector is experiencing, including the rising interest rates, cost of energy, healthcare, labor, and materials,” Karl said. “We managed to keep the increase raised by taxation flat over the past four years, but this year may bring a modest increase to our tax bills. On a positive note, our town departments and Board of Education have done a great job holding the line and controlling costs as much as possible without sacrificing the finished product our residents have come to expect.”

In addition to Karl, those voting in favor of the budget were Town Council Vice Chairs Mark Grzymski and Penny Young and members Robin Bates-Mason, Rita Bettino, Tom Butterworth, Luke Kaufman, Mike Mauro, Maria Naughton, Kimberly Norton, Hilary Ormond and Cristina A. Ross. The annual budget process is a months-long undertaking that starts in the fall and comes before the public at Board of Selectmen hearings in January before moving to the Board of Finance and, finally, the Town Council.

Board of Education

The Grazing Ram: The Real Problem with Making Columbus Day a Holiday 

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[Editor’s Note: This is the second installment of “The Grazing Ram,” an opinion column by New Canaan High School sophomore Leo Mikkola-Patel.]

The Board of Education last month voted not only to make Columbus Day a holiday but also to extend school by one day in the summer. This decision is detrimental to students and also demonstrates a broader issue in the Board—namely, that its members are putting personal political interests above the general interests of the student body and town. The Educational Drawback 

It’s obvious why taking away a day in October is extremely detrimental to learning. As school is starting up, having every day that we can in school is extremely important. In early October classes start to get into the rhythm and large projects, assignments and tests are assigned.

Board of Education

School Security: Board of Ed Seeks To Add 10th ‘Campus Monitor’

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Saying it will make New Canaan Public Schools even safer, the Board of Education is seeking to hire an additional “campus monitor” for next academic year. Currently, the district has nine campus monitors at the public schools—one at each elementary school and three each at Saxe Middle School and New Canaan High School. The tenth monitor would allow the “lead campus monitor,” who works in a supervisory capacity, to “go around, check protocols, check buildings, do training with staff, work more closely with the principals,” Superintendent of Schools Dr. Bryan Luizzi told the Board of Selectmen during a budget meeting, held Jan. 26 at Town Hall and via videoconference. The lead monitor would “be involved on a district level,” Luizzi said.