CTCapitolReport has provided a link to the Waterbury Rep-Am full article on the status of former Congressman Gary Franks and lets just say that the darling of the Republicans in the 90s is a disgrace.

Gary Franks was a real estate millionaire and Connecticut’s first black Republican in the U.S. House.

Yet, few knew he was quietly living on the Treasure Coast until October.

Now, Franks can’t be found.

After losing a Senate bid in 1998, Franks withdrew from his hometown of Waterbury, Conn., leaving a discreet trail of foreclosures, betrayed friends and debts exceeding $100,000 in three states.

Some of these debts are quite personal, such as a $35,000 loan from his childhood friend, or medical bills from the hospital that he credits with saving his life.

His debtors have tried to track him down, but public records show he and his wife, Donna, use variations of their legal names that make it almost impossible to follow his paper trail.

[...]

The Waterbury Republican-American has repeatedly attempted to talk with Franks, often through intermediaries such as family, friends and lawyers, but Franks has not responded.

Shortly after the newspaper tried to contact Franks in Port St. Lucie, the family announced it was leaving town, pulling Gary Jr. out of school in the middle of a semester.

[...]

Franks pulled Donna and their three children — Azia, Jessica and Gary Jr. — out of Waterbury shortly after losing his 1998 effort to unseat Sen. Christopher J. Dodd.

Their home sold in foreclosure to settle some of his outstanding debts.

He walked away from the properties owned by Rudo Group, the now defunct club of young black professionals he headed that had snapped up multi-family homes around the city.

Over the years, those properties, including his family’s house, have gone on the city’s auction block, sold for back taxes.

[...]

At the time he left, Franks owed a number of people money that he had called his dear friends, including childhood friend Rick Genua.

Franks still owes $35,500 to Genua, whom he called his best friend in his memoirs, and who eventually became his congressional chief of staff.

Court records show Genua mortgaged his home to help Franks in 1992. According to court records, Franks didn’t repay his debt beyond a single payment of $500.

A judge ruled in Genua’s favor in 1999, and put a lien on the Franks’ house, but it was sold in foreclosure to pay Franks’ other debts before Genua could collect, documents show.

WAIT…there’s more!

The Franks racked up other debts, too. Their $1 million Maryland house, a swanky 4,000-square-foot spread with a pool — listed under one of Donna’s names — was sold at auction for unpaid tax debt. They were able to pay the tax debt and regain the house before title was transferred.

Court records show they have $70,000 in Maryland and federal tax debt outstanding.

In addition to Johns Hopkins, the hospital where Franks initially drove himself after the heart attack also is looking for him to collect unpaid bills, according to court records. Several retail companies are trying to find them, claiming in court they have unpaid bills.

[...]

Most former congressmen are easily found, turning political influence into work as a lobbyist, a lecturer or a hometown elder statesmen. They seem to miss the attention. Franks is different.

Frequent name changes make it difficult to follow him.

Sometimes, Franks goes by G.A. Franks. As a lobbyist, he used Gary Alvin. In Florida, he was often Alvin Franks. His wife uses a maiden name, Williams, or ex-husband’s name, Forrest.

Franks isn’t a member of the Former Members of Congress Association. Neither a successor, Rep. Christopher S. Murphy, nor his predecessor, Gov. John G. Rowland, know where he is.

“He’s gone, gone, gone,” Rowland said.

Like I said, Franks is a disgrace.

Cross post from HatCityBLOG

This afternoon, Congressman Chris Murphy paid a visit to Danbury and Waterbury to speak out against Gov Rell’s proposal to eliminate of the Metro-North rail service. The recommendation to eliminate the service in Danbury and Waterbury was one of several spending cut proposals Rell suggested to state lawmakers last week.

From this afternoon in Waterbury, here’s highlights of Congressman Murphy’s presser.

Press Release:

“We are pumping federal and state resources into the state’s branch lines right now, so Governor Rell’s proposal to cancel service on these lines now would be a foolish mistake. On top of the federal grants we’ve already secured for commuter rail in Connecticut, there may be more to come, ushering in a new era in commuter rail in parts of the state that desperately need it. We can’t give up now – too much is riding on commuter rail,”

Murphy has long been a supporter of the rail branch lines, holding riding meetings on the Waterbury and Danbury lines to discuss how to expand service and increase ridership. He firmly believes that accessible, affordable commuter rail service is essential to Connecticut’s future economic development, and he, along with the rest of the Congressional delegation, have been fighting for and winning federal funding for commuter rail in the state.

In Danbury, the line is currently undergoing a signaling system update funded by federal stimulus dollars and state resources. The state has committed $10 million to make a variety of capital improvements to stations along the MetroNorth New Haven line, including the branch lines. The 27-mile Waterbury branch is the longest of the three New Haven branch lines, and is poised to be a major commuter resource if upgraded. Meanwhile, the Connecticut Department of Transportation is nearing the completion of multi-year feasibility scoping studies to examine cost-effective alternatives for increasing ridership on the Danbury, Waterbury, and New Canaan branch lines. Yet last week, Governor Rell sent a letter to the Connecticut General Assembly outlining ways to cut state spending, including eliminating service on the state’s three branch lines.

“Put simply, Governor Rell’s proposal to eliminate service on these branch lines would be a disaster for Connecticut commuters at a time when we are working diligently to secure additional federal support for their expansion and improvement,” said Murphy.

Seems like the former Republican Congressman has a problem when it comes to paying his debt.

Gary Franks’ rise was meteoric, from a three-family house on Camp Terrace to a real estate millionaire, from naive local alderman to Connecticut’s first black Republican in the U.S. House.

Today, Franks cannot be found.

After losing a Senate bid in 1998, this charming hometown hero withdrew from Waterbury, leaving a discreet trail of foreclosures, betrayed friends and debts exceeding $100,000 in three states. Those who knew him say there is much more private debt that can’t be documented.

Given Frank’s shady past, and reputation of being a no-show, his latest problem is not a surprise…

Today the Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now (ConnCAN) commented on the latest data from the U.S. Department of Education that shows Connecticut high schools having the largest achievement gap in the nation.

For the first time, the U.S Department of Education released the state-specific math and reading results of twelfth graders on its “National Assessment of Educational Progress” (NAEP) last week. Connecticut was one of 11 states to voluntarily participate in this pilot project.

ConnCAN’s analysis of the previously released NAEP results for 4th and 8th grade showed that Connecticut has the largest achievement gap in elementary and middle school. Analysis of this new NAEP data shows that Connecticut’s high school achievement gap is also the largest in the nation. In reading and math, the high school performance gap between Connecticut’s low-income and minority students and their white, middle-class peers is larger than that of all other participating states. Connecticut’s minority and low-income twelfth grade students score up to three and a half grade levels behind their white and middle-class peers in both reading and math.

Specifically:

• The average gap between poor and non-poor twelfth grade students is 2.8 grade levels in reading and 3.1 grade levels in math.
• African-American twelfth grade students scored 3.6 grade levels behind their white peers in reading and 3.3 grade levels behind in math.
• Hispanic twelfth grade students scored 2.7 grade levels behind their white peers in reading and 3.2 grade levels behind their white peers in math.

“It is once again disappointing to see how far Connecticut has to go to make good on its promise to provide an adequate public education to all students,” said Alex Johnston, ConnCAN’s CEO. “This information is even more dismaying when you consider that these massive gaps only reflect the performance of students that make it to the twelfth grade; too many of our low-income and minority students do not even make it this far.”

In 2009, only 66% of African-American students, 58% of Hispanic students, and 60% of low-income students graduated from high school in Connecticut. Of all students who graduate and choose to attend college at Connecticut State universities or community colleges, 65-72% require remedial or developmental math or English.

Cross post from HatCityBLOG

The chickens have come home to roost…

Danbury Patch:

Danbury faces a quadruple whammy in the coming budget season, Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton told the department heads Thursday.

The state is cutting aid. Federal stimulus money that reached almost $4 million last year for the city and schools combined will be gone next year, and negotiated employee benefits and pay raises may cost the city another $3 million. That could lead to layoffs in the budget that starts July 1, 2011.

Boughton said next year’s revenues will be down nearly $8 million and it’s expenses if every department budget comes in flat will rise almost $3 million. That is a bad scenario, but it is possible, Boughton said.

[...]

“The state is talking about cutting services and shared pain,” Boughton said. “Just tell us straight. What that translates into is they’re doing less and they’re giving us less money.”

He said for Danbury, that means there are no sacred cows in the budget

“Everything is on the table. You’ll see layoffs,” Boughton said.

And I bet he still thinks not hiring a FULL-TIME Economic Director was a good idea…and lets not started on:

• the decline in tax revenue due to the number of large companies (i.e. JOBS) that left Danbury in the last four years, or
• the fact that BRT is STILL raking in the $$$ from Boughton’s sweetheart tax giveaways while leaving Kennedy Park as an undeveloped eye-sore, or
• the empty promises made regarding the transfer station, or
• the out of control bonding, or
• the number of legal settlements and lawsuits the city currently face.

It’s not like people didn’t warn residents about Boughton’s voodoo economics before…

Apr 2007:

May 2008:

May 2009:

This is what you get when you have a part-time mayor who has been more interested in raising his state-wide name recognition for the last year.

Cross post from HatCityBLOG

As a followup to my previous post regarding The Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now’s (ConnCAN) report on Danbury High School, here’s a breakdown of ConnCAN’s report card on the city’s elementary and secondary schools.

Here’s the breakdown of ConnCAN’s methodology:

Each year, Connecticut administers two standardized tests, the Connecticut Mastery Test (CMT) and the Connecticut Academic Performance Test (CAPT). These tests are designed to measure how well students are achieving on grade-level academic subjects. Both tests are designed and administered by the State Department of Education.

The CONNECTICUT MASTERY TEST (CMT) is administered each spring to all public school students in grades three through eight. The CMT measures how student achievement in the areas of mathematics, reading, and writing compared to the expectations for their grade level. In fifth and eighth grades, science is also tested.

The CONNECTICUT ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE TEST (CAPT) is administered each spring to all public school students in tenth grade. The CAPT measures student achievement in the areas of mathematics, reading, writing, and science compared to the expectations for high school students.

The skills tested on the CMT and CAPT are identified in the Connecticut curriculum framework, and each student’s achievement is compared to a set of established standards for his or her grade in each subject area. There is no “passing” grade on the CMT or the CAPT. Instead, the State of Department of Education sets a “goal” level score for each subject area in every grade tested. The State Department of Education gives each student a raw score (ranging from 100-400 points) and assigns score cut points for each of five levels: Advanced, At Goal, Proficient, Basic, or Below Basic. The State Department of Education reports scores for schools and districts as the percentage of students scoring at one of these levels. According to the State Department of Education, a student scoring at the “Goal” level has the knowledge, skills, and critical thinking abilities that are “reasonable to expect of students” within their grade level.

ConnCAN uses the Goal standard to set the bar for rating schools since it is the state’s best estimate of students meeting or exceeding grade-level expectations. The State Department of Education reports on the percentage of students “At Goal” in the subjects tested (math, reading, writing and science) for schools in which at least 20 students in any given grade completed the CMT or CAPT.

How we calculate achievement scores

ConnCAN’s report cards provide a single score to help readers compare schools and subgroups within those schools. To do so, we calculate a single “Students At or Above Goal Range” by taking that average percentage of students at or above goal across all subject areas on CMT and CAPT. We calculate this score for elementary schools using the results from the fifth-grade test (with fourth-grade results used when an elementary school does not have a fifth grade). For middle schools, we use the results from the eighth-grade test (with the seventh-grade results used when a middle school does not have an eighth grade). For high schools, we use the results from the CAPT, which tests tenth grade students only. These scores provide a straightforward, easy-to-use yardstick on how well schools, on average, meet the needs of students across key subject areas.

How we assign grades

To provide families and communities with a clear benchmark for how their child’s school or district performs, we use achievement scores to assign the school a letter grade from A to F. For each school and district we also show how scores compare to district and state averages.

We assign each school and district letter grades in four categories: Performance Gains, Overall Student Performance, Student Subgroup Performance, and Achievement Gap.

In short, a review of ConnCAN’s report for this year compared to last year’s write-up provides mixed reviews for the city’s elementary and secondary schools with some showing improvement (Pembroke School, Mill Ridge Inter, Stadley Rough) while others show a nominal to moderate decrease in student performance (Shelter Rock, Park Ave, Hayestown).

Danbury High School:
RANKED: 125 out of 164

OVERALL STUDENT PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 30 percent or F
YEAR 2009: 32 percent or D-

STUDENT SUBGROUP PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of low-income, African-American, and Hispanic students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 14 percent or F
YEAR 2009: 17 percent or F

---

Shelter Rock School
RANKED: 271 out of 396

OVERALL STUDENT PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 50 percent or C- (State avg: 63)
YEAR 2009: 55 percent or C

STUDENT SUBGROUP PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of low-income, African-American, and Hispanic students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 43 percent or D+ (State avg: 37)
YEAR 2009: 47 percent or D+

---

Pembroke School
RANKED: 236 out of 396

OVERALL STUDENT PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 57 percent or C (State avg: 63)
YEAR 2009: 47 percent or D+

STUDENT SUBGROUP PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of low-income, African-American, and Hispanic students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 20 percent or F (State avg: 37)
YEAR 2009: N/A

---

Broadview Middle School
RANKED: 166 out of 299

OVERALL STUDENT PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 63 percent or C+ (State avg: 63)
YEAR 2009: 61 percent or C+

STUDENT SUBGROUP PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of low-income, African-American, and Hispanic students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 44 percent or D+ (State avg: 37)
YEAR 2009: 44 percent or D+

---

Roger’s Park Middle School
RANKED: 211 out of 299

OVERALL STUDENT PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 50 percent or C- (State avg: 63)
YEAR 2009: 50 percent or C-

STUDENT SUBGROUP PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of low-income, African-American, and Hispanic students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 38 percent or D (State avg: 37)
YEAR 2009: 36 percent or D

---

Mill Ridge Intermediate School
RANKED: 215 out of 396

OVERALL STUDENT PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 61 percent or C+ (State avg: 63)
YEAR 2009: 54 percent or C

STUDENT SUBGROUP PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of low-income, African-American, and Hispanic students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 45 percent or D+ (State avg: 37)
YEAR 2009: 27 percent or F

---

Park Avenue School
RANKED: 263 out of 396

OVERALL STUDENT PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 51 percent or C- (State avg: 63)
YEAR 2009: 54 percent or C

STUDENT SUBGROUP PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of low-income, African-American, and Hispanic students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 43 percent or D+ (State avg: 37)
YEAR 2009: 40 percent or D

---

Hayestown Avenue School
RANKED: 277 out of 396

OVERALL STUDENT PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 49 percent or C- (State avg: 63)
YEAR 2009: 53 percent or C-

STUDENT SUBGROUP PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of low-income, African-American, and Hispanic students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 44 percent or D+ (State avg: 37)
YEAR 2009: 36 percent or D

---

Morris Street School
RANKED: 290 out of 396

OVERALL STUDENT PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 46 percent or D+ (State avg: 63)
YEAR 2009: 46 percent or D+

STUDENT SUBGROUP PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of low-income, African-American, and Hispanic students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 35 percent or D- (State avg: 37)
YEAR 2009: 41 percent or D

---

Stadley Rough School
RANKED: 268 out of 396

OVERALL STUDENT PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 50 percent or D+ (State avg: 63)
YEAR 2009: 45 percent or D+

STUDENT SUBGROUP PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of low-income, African-American, and Hispanic students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 27 percent or F (State avg: 37)
YEAR 2009: 27 percent or F

---

Roberts Avenue School
RANKED: 248 out of 396

OVERALL STUDENT PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 54 percent or C (State avg: 63)
YEAR 2009: 58 percent or C

STUDENT SUBGROUP PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of low-income, African-American, and Hispanic students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 48 percent or C (State avg: 37)
YEAR 2009: 54 percent or C

---

Western CT Academy for International Studies (Magnet School)

RANKED: 118 out of 396

OVERALL STUDENT PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 76 percent or B+ (State avg: 63)
YEAR 2009: 79 percent or B+

STUDENT SUBGROUP PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of low-income, African-American, and Hispanic students meeting state goals across all subjects:
N/A

---

King Street Intermediate School
RANKED: 154 out of 396

OVERALL STUDENT PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 70 percent or B- (State avg: 63)
YEAR 2009: 71 percent or B-

STUDENT SUBGROUP PERFORMANCE
Average percentage of low-income, African-American, and Hispanic students meeting state goals across all subjects:
YEAR 2010: 51 percent or C- (State avg: 37)
YEAR 2009: 42 percent or D+

If you’re a parent and want a more detailed analysis of your child’s school, go to the ConnCAN website.

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RELATED POSTS:

DEC 2009: ConnCAN gives Danbury failing grade.

Nov 19 2010: ConnCAN gives Danbury High a failing grade.

Cross post from HatCityBLOG

UPDATE 1:30PM: A friend writes that ConnCAN’s ranking of Danbury HIgh School is lower than first thought:

The rank number is messed up, too. When there’s a tie, they don’t skip a number. So the rank might go 50, 51, 52, 52 (tie), then they go to 53, 54, etc. Should skip the 53. So Danbury shows a 125th rank, but is actually 145th on the list. Just data nitpicking.

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Yesterday, the The Connecticut Coalition for Achievement Now (ConnCAN) released their 2010 School Rankings and when it comes to High School performance, the City of Danbury is an embarrassment.

Out of the 164 high schools in the state of Connecticut, ConnCAN ranks Danbury High 125 with only 30 percent of the students meeting state goals across all subjects (a drop of 2 percent from 2009).

When ConnCAN breaks down DHS’ performance into categories, the news is even harder to swallow.

Here’s how ConnCAN came up with their results:

Each year, Connecticut administers two standardized tests, the Connecticut Mastery Test (CMT) and the Connecticut Academic Performance Test (CAPT). These tests are designed to measure how well students are achieving on grade-level academic subjects. Both tests are designed and administered by the State Department of Education.

The CONNECTICUT MASTERY TEST (CMT) is administered each spring to all public school students in grades three through eight. The CMT measures how student achievement in the areas of mathematics, reading, and writing compared to the expectations for their grade level. In fifth and eighth grades, science is also tested.

The CONNECTICUT ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE TEST (CAPT) is administered each spring to all public school students in tenth grade. The CAPT measures student achievement in the areas of mathematics, reading, writing, and science compared to the expectations for high school students.

The skills tested on the CMT and CAPT are identified in the Connecticut curriculum framework, and each student’s achievement is compared to a set of established standards for his or her grade in each subject area. There is no “passing” grade on the CMT or the CAPT. Instead, the State of Department of Education sets a “goal” level score for each subject area in every grade tested. The State Department of Education gives each student a raw score (ranging from 100-400 points) and assigns score cut points for each of five levels: Advanced, At Goal, Proficient, Basic, or Below Basic. The State Department of Education reports scores for schools and districts as the percentage of students scoring at one of these levels. According to the State Department of Education, a student scoring at the “Goal” level has the knowledge, skills, and critical thinking abilities that are “reasonable to expect of students” within their grade level.

ConnCAN uses the Goal standard to set the bar for rating schools since it is the state’s best estimate of students meeting or exceeding grade-level expectations. The State Department of Education reports on the percentage of students “At Goal” in the subjects tested (math, reading, writing and science) for schools in which at least 20 students in any given grade completed the CMT or CAPT.

Given that the education spending takes up the majority of the city’s budget, parents should expect more bang for their buck. Based on these results, if I had a child attending DHS, I’d be rather upset.

Makes you wonder about that so-called English teacher at DHS who arrogantly spends her class time NOT teaching English huh?

For detailed information on ConnCAN’s report, click here. I’ll break down ConnCAN’s report on Danbury’s elementary and secondary schools later.

Yesterday, the Bethel Board of Selectmen voted unanimously to send a revised road repair project to the board of finance for approval. The original 8.5 million dollar proposal was rejected by the Board of Finance last week.

Under the new proposal, funding for the repairs to the roads will be done in increments with the first two million going towards phase one of the project. WIth the Board of Selectmen’s vote, the proposal now goes to the Board of Finance for final approval this Thursday before public referendum.

While the selectmen agree that the conditions of the road are unacceptable and need to be addressed, the Democrats and Republicans have different views on how best to fund the project. While expressing their displeasure with the Board of Finance’s rejection of the original proposal, Democratic First Selectman Matt Knickerbocker and Selectman Richard Straiton supported the idea of paying for the multi-year project with one bond as opposed to multiple bonds over a series of years. Sympathizing with the concerns raised by the Board of Finance, Republican Selectman Paul Szatkowski stated that funding the project with a series of short term bonds is a better approach in light of the current state of the economy and the uncertainties with level of state funding for next year’s budget.

From last night, here’s video footage of the Board of Selectmen meeting.

Residents of Bethel are frustrated with the amount of time it has taken for the local government to address the road repair problem…and rightfully so. Accusations of obstruction and dirty politics have been tossed around (which is par for the course in Bethel). Whether the accusations are warranted or over the top is irrelevant…what’s relevant is that the roads in the town are an embarrassment. Hopefully, with yesterday’s vote, the residents of Bethel are one step closer to having at least a portion of the town’s roads repaved.