T O W N O F M IL T O N

udget reduction for natural gas. For electricity, we consumed 6.6% less thanthe prior year and 26.4% less than the base year of FY08. We expended$913,415 in FY10, but we expended $821,373 in FY11.School Choice:In April of 2011, Assistant Superintendent Phelan and School Choice Committeemember Meg Kasuba presented the School Committee with their assessmentof School Choice. School Choice is a state program that districts canelect to join which allows for students from outside the district to attend a localschool for a fee. A committee was formed in the fall of 2010 to research thepros and cons of this program for Milton. The committee’s recommendationwas that Milton should continue to opt out of the School Choice program becauseit would have a negative financial impact on our budget. Another reasongiven was that Milton’s enrollment has been steadily increasing and many of ourclassrooms are at a healthy capacity.Accolades:In January of 2011, the Milton Public Schools were pleased to announcethat Gracie Burke, Director of World Languages for the Milton Public Schools,was recently informed that she has been promoted from “Chevalier” to “Officier”in the Order des Palmes Academiques, a group is associated with the NationalMinistry of Education of the Republic of France. This distinguishedaward is given to those who have made a major contribution to French educationand culture. Ms. Burke has been recognized for the work that she has donepromoting the French language and culture in the United States.Erin Power, a fifth-grade teacher at Cunningham Elementary School, waschosen in May of 2011 as an Abraham Lincoln Fellow by the Horace MannInsurance Company. As part of the fellowship award, Ms. Power received oneweek, all-expense-paid trip to Springfield, Illinois, where she studied the sixteenthpresident and was given special access to many historical sites. Only oneteacher per state was chosen for this honor.In May of 2011, The 11th Annual Outstanding Teacher Awards, sponsoredby the Milton Foundation for Education, were held at the Charles C. WinchesterAuditorium at Milton High School.One teacher from each of the Milton Public Schools was honored as OutstandingTeacher during the reception and ceremony. In addition, Gracie Burke,director of World Languages, was honored with the Mary Grassa O’Neill LeadershipAward. The following teachers were this year’s recipients:Tucker: Elizabeth Spitz; Glover: Carolyn O’Connor; Cunningham: AmandaLeFort; Collicot: Anne Kelley; Pierce: David Querzoli; Milton High School:Nicholas Fitzgerald; Mary Grassa O’Neill Award: Gracie Burke.231