This past weekend, the youngest came home from his first year of college. I’ve been making my peace with the empty nest as best I can, but it’s no secret that I am overjoyed to have him back in the house, even if it is just for this one summer. I’ve been planning our time […]
Forecaster Opinion
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Life Unwound: A room of one’s own inspires creativity
People create – whether works of art, simple meals or woodpiles chopped and stacked. In these special places that also provide comfort, we receive intuitive messages and birth our imagination. Writers sit at desks to write. Woodworkers bustle around their shops. Crafters lean over their workbenches. Composers delight at their pianos. We enter our meaning-making […]
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Posted inForecaster Opinion
Portland Superintendent’s Notebook: Class of 2022 met challenges presented by COVID
High school graduation season is my favorite time of year. From their first day of preschool, our goal as educators is to ensure students succeed as learners. Seeing them graduate from high school is as gratifying to us as it is to them. I will be particularly proud to see the Portland Public Schools Class […]
Posted inForecaster Opinion
Forum: No time for complacency when it comes to U.S. politics
For many of its citizens, America does not really deliver on its promises and potential for opportunities. For over 40 years, I have witnessed the public being told almost daily that everything this country offers and produces is the best and greatest in the world. This indoctrination, combined with blind patriotism, can create a false […]
Posted inForecaster Opinion
RSU 5 Superintendent’s Notebook: Time to say goodbye as one chapter ends, another begins
“Often when you think you’re at the end of something, you’re at the beginning of something else.” – Fred Rogers I never planned on a specific age of when to retire. As I began this school year, it seemed like it just might be the right year for it to be my last. And it […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Through My Lens: Thanks to refugees, Somalia on the cusp of political change
A presidential election takes place in Somalia May 15, when more than 270 members of the Somali parliament who were voted into office last week will choose the new president by indirect elections. More than half of these members of parliament are former refugees who dared to return to Somalia despite the constant threats against […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Mainewhile: School crisis merits deployment of National Guard
This past winter, as our hospitals began to buckle under the strain of COVID, Gov. Janet Mills took a bold step and activated the National Guard to help. Guard members were deployed to hospitals across the state, temporarily taking over nonmedical duties to allow medical staff to focus their efforts, ensuring that communities continued to […]
Posted inForecaster Opinion
Brunswick Superintendent’s Notebook: Helping students navigate the war in Ukraine
As the war in Ukraine continues and the 24-hour media cycle brings an endless barrage of distressing information and shocking graphics to our students, their comprehension of the conditions and their fears weigh heavily on my mind. As much as we want to shelter and protect our children – especially those at a young age […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Forum: History of Mother’s Day rooted in war
During this tragic time of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s devastating attack upon Ukraine, it seems appropriate to be reminded that Mother’s Day was first established to promote peace. Julia Ward Howe (1819-1910), abolitionist, poet and suffragette, is now chiefly remembered as the author of “Battle Hymn of the Republic.” Accompanying her husband, Samuel Gridley Howe, […]
Posted inAmerican Journal, Forecaster Opinion, Lakes Region Weekly
Life Unwound: New perceptions can lead us in new directions
Have you heard the story of the man who glanced at a coiled rope, assumed it was a snake and jumped back in a panic? Or the tale of a monk who lived for decades in a cave and, for years, created a picture of a floor-to-ceiling tiger with bold stripes and wiry whiskers on […]