Community Action Programs Inter-City, Inc.
(CAPIC) is seeking a nominee for the Revere Limited Income Sector on the Board
of Directors. The successful nominee will be a Revere resident, at least 18
years of age and be committed
to represent the interests of all low income
residents. Interested residents should contact the CAPIC office, 100 Everett
Ave., Unit 14, Chelsea, to obtain a nomination form. A minimum of 25 signatures
from area residents who are at or below 175% of the poverty standard residents
is required for nomination. In the event of more than one nomination, an
election will be held by the Board to determine the successful candidate. The
Board of Directors reserves the right to accept or reject candidates. For
further information, please call CAPIC 617-884-6130, ext. 1142.
Nomination forms are due back at CAPIC by Feb. 15, 2019.
Community Action Programs Inter-City, Inc.
(CAPIC) está buscando un candidato para el sector de ingresos limitados de
Revere para la Directiva de Consejo de Administración. El candidato para
posicion deberá ser residente de Revere, y tener por lo menos 18 años de edad y
debe compromete a representar los intereses de todos los residentes de bajos
ingresos de Revere. Los candidatos interesados deben ponerse en contacto con la
oficina de la CAPIC, 100 Everett Ave., Unidad 14, Chelsea para obtener un
formulario de nominación. Se requiere un mínimo de 25 firmas de los
residentes del área que están en o por debajo del 175% del estándar de pobreza
para la nominación. En el caso de más de una nominación, la Junta directiva
hará una elección para determinar el candidato elegido. El Consejo de
Administración se reserva el derecho de aceptar o rechazar a los candidatos.
Para más información, por favor llame a CAPIC 617-884-6130, ext. 1142.
Los formularios de nominación deben ser enviados a CAPIC antes del 15 de
Febrero de 2019
Bunker Hill Community College
(BHCC) appointed Kristen P. McKenna as Dean of Workforce and Economic
Development. In this role, McKenna will oversee corporate learning and
development and community education programs at the College. The
renamed Division of Workforce and Economic Development supports area
businesses and community based agencies with career pathway building,
customized training and individualized support to grow workforce and economic
development for the greater Boston metro area.
McKenna possesses over 20
years of professional implementation, management and policy development
experience in higher education, workforce development, nonprofit and government
funded programs. She has held senior leadership positions focused on program
improvement, enrollment and the development of industry supported training for
workforce development at River Valley Community College in Lebanon, New
Hampshire, and Bristol Community College in Fall River, Massachusetts.
Working with the Rhode
Island Governor’s Workforce Board and the Institute for Labor Studies and
Research, McKenna has also implemented a number of projects designed to
accelerate credential attainment with technology-based solutions. She’ll bring
expertise to the College’s workforce development initiatives and the development
of non-credit to credit career pathways.
The Greater Boston
community has come to rely on BHCC’s community education programs for English
language instruction, test preparation, continuing education and international
learning programs. In the 2018 academic year, over 2500 students enrolled in
customized training, community education and adult basic education at the
College. With a focused commitment on workforce and economic development, BHCC
will expand access and equity with additional course development and innovative
pathways development so all community members have options and flexibility in a
supported environment.
The division is working
with partners like Facebook to offer future opportunities that will support
local entrepreneurs with workshops on social media marketing and more.
McKenna holds a Masters of Education in Adult Learning and Higher
Education Administration from Eastern Nazarene College, a Masters of Education
in Educational Leadership from Bridgewater State University and a Bachelor of
Fine Arts from Rhode Island College. To learn more about BHCC’s Workforce and
Economic Development program and to view the courses that are offered visit
bhcc.edu/ce.
On Feb. 11, at 9:01 p.m., officers
responded to the era of 111 Bellingham St. for a report of shots fired. Sources
indicated that seven shots were registered on the ShotSpotter system. There
were no reported injuries, but detectives collected ballistic evidence in the
area. Police are continuing to collect video in the area to attempt to identify
those involved.
STABBING ON SHURTLEFF
STREET
On Feb. 7, at 2:32 p.m., a 17-year-old male
was stabbed once in his arm on Shurtleff Street at the corner of Bellingham
Street. The injury was non-life threatening, and the injured victim was
released from the hospital later that day. CPD detectives investigated the
incident and secured an arrest warrant for an individual believed to be
responsible for the attack. During the event, the Williams School was
placed in a soft lockdown. That order was lifted a short time later. The search
for the individual is on-going.
ARMED ROBBERY
On Feb. 4, at 12:08 a.m., officers were
dispatched to an armed robbery at 200 Congress Ave. The victim was
delivering Chinese food for a local restaurant. While parked at the
drop off address a male approached the victim and pointed a firearm at her and
stole her money. Officers searched the area and observed subjects that matched
the description. They placed a male under arrest who had on his person a pellet
gun.
Jainie Lopez, 21, of 139 Marlborough St.;
and Mauricio Lainez, 21, of 234 Central Ave., were both charged with armed
robbery.
POLICE RETURN CUSTODIAL
KIDNAPPING VICTIM
On Feb. 5, at 8:30 a.m., Chelsea officers
along with the US Marshall service executed an arrest warrant at 49 Orange
St. The subject of the order was placed in custody without incident. The
Warrant was a full extradition warrant that was issued Dec. 4, 2018 from North
Little Rock District Court in Arkansas. The incident involved a parental
kidnapping that originated in that state, and was concluded in Chelsea.
Latricia Rucker, 34, of 49 Orange St., was
charged as being a fugitive from justice.
DRIVING DRUNK ON ESSEX
On Feb. 8, at 10:55 p.m., a CPD officer was
dispatched to Essex Street at Hawthorne Street for a report of a white pickup
truck that struck a parked motor vehicle. The operator of the white pickup
was reportedly still behind the wheel of the vehicle. Officers responded to the
scene and removed the driver from the car. Based on a conversation with the operator
and after administering a roadside assessment, the officers formed the opinion
the driver was operating under the influence of alcohol. He was placed into
custody on the scene.
German
Quinonez-Cal, 38, of 70 Hawthorne St., was charged with operating under the
influence of liquor.
The growing movement for the federal
government to take the lead in effecting policies that will negate the effects
of both economic inequality and climate change has been incorporated into what
is being referred to as the Green New Deal.
Our U.S. Sen. Edward J. Markey, is among
those who is spearheading the legislation, along with newly elected
Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York.
The key features of the Green New Deal are
both economic and environmental.
Health insurance for all Americans, job
creation, and the expansion of the safety net are among the highlights of the
economic aspect of the proposal.
On the environmental front, the goal is for
the United States to become carbon-neutral within 10 years.
Both aspects of the proposal will face
opposition in Congress from Republicans. The economic aspects will require
raising taxes on the wealthy, which essentially would repeal the tax cuts
approved by the GOP Congress last year.
The environmental goals will face a fierce
fight from the energy industry and other business groups.
The Green New Deal seeks to address what we
believe are the two great existential threats both to the American way of life
and America itself :
First, that we are becoming a plutocracy —
a government of the rich, for the rich, and by the rich.
Second, that climate change will wreak
environmental and economic havoc on our nation with catastrophic consequences
unless we take immediate steps to reverse its effects before they reach a
tipping point from which we cannot escape.
Some may call the Green New Deal a
pie-in-the-sky idea. But the reality is that unless we do something — and soon
— about the growing concentration of wealth in the hands of a few and the
imminent threat of climate change, the future of America (and the world) is
grim.
Twin sisters Eliana and Edlyn Hernandez (8) unwrap their vessel to see if their egg is still hard boiled or scrambled, and the twins find success – one intact egg. The twin sisters were just one group out of many that joined in on the Kelly School’s STEM Night Egg Drop experiment last Thursday, Jan. 31. Students used math, science and engineering lessons to create a protective cover for their egg, which was then dropped from a 30-foot crane.
With trophy in hand, Patriots Owner Bob Kraft, along with his sons Josh Kraft and Dan Kraft, are exuberant in the Super Bowl LIII victory during Tuesday’s rolling rally in the Back Bay. Meanwhile, Defensive Lineman Trey Flowers gives a parting kiss to the Super Bowl LIII trophy as players descend on City Hall Plaza in Boston.
Johanna DiCarlo (right) presents the Massachusetts Women in Athletics Distinguished Service Award to JoAnne Lee-Nieves at the 2019 Girls and Women in Sports Day program Feb. 1 at Faneuil Hall, Boston.
When the Title IX law was first enacted, leading to increased athletic opportunities for females in the mid-to-late 1970s and setting the foundation for the explosion of high school girls’ sports that exists today, there was a Chelsea woman just getting started in coaching.
She was a pioneer in every sense,
introducing the joy of organized sports participation to Boston girls, teaching
them about teamwork and sportsmanship, instilling self-confidence in her
student-athletes, and providing lessons about life that they would carry beyond
the basketball court.
JoAnne Lee-Nieves was a woman ahead of her
time, recognizing right away the importance of athletics for girls as an
extension of the classroom. Her players at Jeremiah Burke would achieve
phenomenal success on the court. Long before ESPN started bringing attention to
women’s sports, Lee-Nieves was building a program and sending her athletes on
to college.
For four decades, Lee-Nieves earned multiple
championship and coach-of-the-year awards. No one did it better in Boston than
Lee-Nieves.
Last Friday, in an impressive ceremony at
historic Faneuil Hall in the city where Lee-Nieves became a high school
coaching giant, she received one of the MIAA’s most prestigious awards.
Before a capacity crowd of female high
school athletes, athletic directors and many of her former colleagues in the
profession, Lee-Nieves accepted the Massachusetts Women in Athletics
Distinguished Service Award.
One could only imagine how very proud her
parents, the late Charles Lee and Jeanette Weiner Lee, would have been to see
JoAnne’s amazing career recognized so deservedly in such an awesome setting as
Fanueil Hall.
Councillor-at-Large Leo Robinson understands
the magnitude of his cousin JoAnne’s statewide award and the immense
contributions that she made to high school sports. His own daughter, Lucia
Robinson-Griggs, is a former high school athlete and now a women’s basketball
coach at MIT.
“JoAnne is a very outstanding individual who
has achieved a lot in teaching and coaching,” said Robinson. “This is very
special for me that she was recognized for all the hard work that she has done
throughout the years. She is a true pioneer in women’s high school sports in
Boston. It’s a tremendous honor and I congratulate Joanne. We in Chelsea are
all proud of her.”
In a tribute to JoAnne that appeared in the
Girls and Women In Sports Day souvenir booklet, Jeremiah Burke Guidance
Counselor Ron Innes said, “JoAnne was a very reliable and dedicated teacher who
was well respected by her students as well as faculty and staff. Her knowledge
about her chosen discipline (Physical Education) and ability to reach and
connect with students made her a truly exceptional teacher. These great
qualities carried over to the many sports she coached. Her teams always played the
game with great discipline and pride.”
Burke Athletic Coordinator Sean Ryan had
nominated Lee-Nieves for the award. Said Ryan, “Her ability to engage a veteran
or a newcomer to the sport make her special. We evaluate a coach by how their
team progresses during the year, and JoAnne’s team each year plays their best
toward the end of the season. She truly provides each student-athlete with a
memorable experience.”
In her acceptance speech, Lee-Nieves was
humble and gracious. She thanked the MIAA for the recognition, but focused her
remarks on encouraging the young ladies in the audience to work hard and pursue
their dreams.
As she left the stage and walked to the VIP
area where she and husband Juan Nieves were seated, you could sense that JoAnne
Lee-Nieves was touched by this lifetime-achievement recognition from the
state’s official governing organization for high school sports.
It was indeed a special day for a special
teacher, coach, and role model.
CUTLINE
Johanna DiCarlo (right) presents the Massachusetts
Women in Athletics Distinguished Service Award to JoAnne Lee-Nieves at the 2019
Girls and Women in Sports Day program Feb. 1 at Faneuil Hall, Boston.
JoAnne Lee-Nieves and her husband, Juan Nieves,
are pictured following the presentation of the Distinguished Service Award.
New Children’s Librarian Katherine Palencia said landing the position at the Library is a dream come true for her.
When new Children’s Librarian Katherine Palencia sits at her desk in the basement of the Chelsea Public Library near the Children’s Rooms, it’s a place that has been familiar to her since she was a little girl – coming to the library with her mother and experiencing a safe, learning environment.
Now she has been hired as the new full-time
librarian after having worked part-time at the library for about 10 years, and
is excited to share her love of reading with a new generation of Chelsea kids.
“I didn’t want to leave Chelsea because my
family is here and my memories are here,” she said. “I don’t want to work in
any other area. I want to help Chelsea grow and I want to be part of the
growth…This position is a dream come true for me. I worked here in high school
and came back after college and have been here since 2011. It’s a dream come
true because I believe in what the library provides – the education and the
free access to information. I enjoy seeing kids excited about reading or coming
to work on their homework. I want to help them out. It’s a dream come true
because I have always seen myself here.”
Palencia attended St. Rose School as a girl,
and then went to the Williams Middle School. She attended Chelsea High School
and graduated in 2007. She graduated from Salem State and is currently pursuing
a Master’s Degree in Library Science at Cambridge College.
Palencia said her memories of the Chelsea
Library are very comforting, and she hopes to be able to pass that on.
“I think it was the people who made it very
special,” she said. “They had great relationships with my mother coming in here
and being able to feel comfortable and to ask questions. They always quenched
the curiosity I had.”
Palencia has been spearheading the English
as a Second Language program that meets on Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m., and now she
has expanded that to working in the Children’s area.
She said her big push right now is for the
upcoming Summer Reading Program.
“I am already really excited about summer
reading,” she said. “I am looking for any local businesses wanting to
collaborate with the Chelsea Public Library to donate prizes. It could be as
simple as a free ice cream cone, or as much as a free bike – which the Knights
of Pythias donated last year.”
She said they will be bringing back the
story times soon, and will have a full range of winter and spring activities
soon as well.
“I’m a life-long Chelsea resident and also
very proud to be Latina,” she said. “I’m happy that we can bring in more
Spanish speakers. Our staff does a great job and we have so many knowledgeable
people to help accommodate everyone.”
Cutline –
New Children’s Librarian Katherine Palencia said
landing the position at the Library is a dream come true for her. Having fond
memories of attending the library as a girl, she said she is excited to pass
that on to a new generation of Chelsea kids.
Environmentalists, activists, residents and
elected officials on both sides of the Chelsea Creek are standing in solidarity
with one another in firm opposition to Eversources plan to place a substation
at the City Yards in East Boston along the Chelsea Creek.
On Tuesday night in Eastie the the state’s
Energy Facility Siting Board (EFSB) held a public meeting to discuss
Eversource’s Notice of Project Change that moves the proposed substation from
the eastern corner of the City Yards in East Eagle Square to the western
corner. The original location on the eastern portion of the city-owned parcel
was approved by the EFSB last year.
In its Notice of Project Change
Eversource seeks approval to move the
Substation 190 feet to the western side of the City Yards lot. The scope of the
upcoming meeting is limited to Eversource’s
proposed relocation of the substation from its current site on the
eastern side of the city parcel to its new proposed location.
Eversource said the two 115-kV transmission
lines that would connect to the substation would no longer be routed along
Condor and East Eagle Streets if the substation is placed in the western
portion of the parcel.
Local environmentalists from Eastie and
Chelsea have called on the EFSB explore alternatives to placing Eversource’s
proposed substation along the Chelsea Creek.
For two years local environmentalists on the
Eastie and Chelsea sides of the Creek have launched a visual, media and talking
campaign against Eversource’s plans to place the substation at the City Yards
in Eagle Square.
At Tuesday night’s meeting Chelsea City
Council President Damali Vidot attended the meeting and gave testimony in
opposition to the substation.
“I’m here tonight to express my opposition,”
said Vidot. “Although I represent Chelsea, a community of 40,000 low income,
hardworking immigrants and people of color who are always the afterthoughts of
corporate greed and irresponsible planning, I am here today as an ally with my
brothers and sisters of the Eagle Hill East Boston neighborhood whose
demographics are reminiscent of home. Planes, a salt bile, fuel and now a high
voltage electrical substation–I am tired of communities like Chelsea and East
Boston forced to bear the burden of environmental injustice at the hands of
greedy corporations. We are environmental justice communities and the civic
engagement in this neighborhood, or lack thereof, is a blatant disregard and
inconsideration of the densely populated areas of hardworking men and women
forced to bear the environmental ignorance of others for the sake of protecting
profits.”
Vidot called for an independent study to see
whether or not a substation is even needed in the area and, if so, does it need
to be placed an area susceptible to future climate change issues and sea level
rise.
U.S. Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, who
represents both East Boston and Chelsea, sent a video testimony from her office
in Washington D.C.
“I’m your sister in solidarity,” said
Pressley. “This at its best is boor urban planning and at its worst and
injustice. It is unconscionable that a community already overburdened with
environmental injustices would be put in harm’s way and have those existing
health hazards exacerbated. The community should be a part of planning and I
know when we organize we win and this is a fight like so many others we are
taking on and I stand with you.”
Last year the EFSB ruled in favor of placing
the substation at the City Yards. However, the final ruling came with some
provisos. According to the state board the EFSB vote to approve the substations
and 115 kV underground cables in Eastie, Chelsea and Everett came with some
conditions. The EFSB directed Eversource to enter into discussions with the
City of Boston regarding the possible relocation of the new substation and the
related cable on the Chelsea Creek site.
Local activist John Walkey, who lives in
Eastie and works with Greenroots Chelsea argues that the project represents an
increased risk in both communities already bearing a huge environmental burden
in the region by playing host to Logan International Airport, highways and jet
fuel storage tanks along the Chelsea Creek.
Walkey made a push for the EFSB to see a
more logical place to site the substation.
“If only there was a place in East Boston
with restricted access that would a more appropriate location. Maybe a place
that already had millions of dollars invested in raising the ground level so it
is more flood resilient. Maybe a place that already much more secure with state
police oversight and very limited access. Maybe a place that takes up over a
third of the land mass in East Boston. And just maybe a place that is going to
be a consumer of over half the electricity that goes through the substation
anyway. Obviously the (Logan) Airport is a far more logical place,” said
Walkey.
As part of its decision the EFSB directed
Eversource to provide an update to the board on the status of discussions
between the community and city before construction on the substation commences.
This has given additional time for Eversource, the City of Boston, and
residents to iron out the alternative locations for the substation.
The substation was initially slated to be built
on an Eversource-owned parcel on Bremen Street. However, under the former late
Mayor Thomas Menino Boston executed a land swap with Eversource. Eversource
have the City of Boston the Bremen Street parcel so the city could build the
new East Boston Branch Library in return for a city-owned parcel in East Eagle
Square.
Gov. Charlie Baker
brought a short smile to the face of many when he unveiled an increase in
education funding in his State Budget proposal two weeks ago, but this week
Supt. Mary Bourque said the proposal needs to go further for cities like
Chelsea.
“Although a step in the
right direction for public education and in particular gateway cities, the
Governor’s FY20 budget does not go nearly far enough,” she wrote in a letter on
Feb. 6.
Bourque said the Chelsea
Public Schools are facing another year where they will likely – as it stands
now – have to cut another $2 million from their budget. That falls upon
multiple years of cuts that have weighed cumulatively on the schools and taken
away core services from students.
One of the problems is
that salaries, health insurance and special education costs are rising so
quickly. This year, she said, they are looking at increases in those areas of
$5.2 million.
Gov. Baker’s budget
proposal steers an increase of $3.2 million to Chelsea over last year, but in
the face of rising costs, that still leaves the schools in the red.
It’s yet another year of
advocacy for the schools to fix the Foundation Formula – an exercise that has
seemingly played out without any success for at least five years.
“Once again we are facing
another year of painful budget cuts because the foundation formula used to
calculate aid to our schools is broken,” she wrote. “The formula from 1993 has
not kept up with inflation, changing demographics or increased student
needs. I am however, encouraged this year that all leaders at the State
level have acknowledged that the formula is broken, including for the first
time the Governor.”
Bourque also spelled out
the complex nature of the Chelsea Schools, including numerous factors that are
contributing to the reduction in funding.
One of the most startling
situations is that there are fewer kids, and with education funding based on
numbers of kids, that translates to even less money for the schools.
Bourque said this year
they have begun to identify a downward trend in enrollment for the first time
in years. She said fewer kids are coming in from outside the U.S. and families
are leaving Chelsea for areas with lower rents and costs of living.
“In addition to the
foundation formula undercounting critical costs, a significant portion of this
year’s $2 million dollar gap is due to student demographic shifts taking place
in our schools,” she wrote. “We are seeing a downward trend in student
enrollment…This year we have noted fewer students entering our schools from
outside the United States as well as a number of students and families moving
from Chelsea due to the high cost of living in the Boston area.”
The Chelsea Public Schools
under the City Charter have until April 1 to submit their balanced budget.
Bourque said they plan to lobby members of the House of Representatives and the
Senate in the meantime to fix the funding gaps that now exist.
Johanna DiCarlo (right) presents the Massachusetts Women in Athletics Distinguished Service Award to JoAnne Lee-Nieves at the 2019 Girls and Women in Sports Day program Feb. 1 at Faneuil Hall, Boston.
New Children’s Librarian Katherine Palencia said landing the position at the Library is a dream come true for her.
