UConn plans to revive Spring Weekend

By Brenda Sullivan | HTNP News Editor

For decades, Spring Weekend – the celebration enjoyed by the Storrs UConn campus in the days between the end of the spring semester and the beginning of final exams – has been a black eye for the university.

Over the years, Spring Weekend became synonymous with binge drinking, off-campus (including out-of-state) party crashers, cars set on fire, reports of rape, and even violence resulting in death.

The problem wasn’t with the university-sanctioned events carefully organized by students. Trouble brewed in the mobs that congregated over the three days, mainly at apartment complexes on Hunting Lodge Road adjacent to UConn’s north campus (as well as within UConn’s X-Lot.) Triage units were stationed at Carriage House Apartments, for example, to deal with injuries and other emergencies, such as alcohol poisoning.

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CT Dept of Motor Vehicles closed Feb 11-12

The Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) will be closed Monday and Tuesday, Jan. 11 and 12 in observance of Lincoln’s Birthday, which is a legal State holiday.

Update – The CT Department of Motor Vehicles has cancelled road skills testing at all offices Wednesday, Feb.13 as a safety precaution, due to snow piles/snow banks that can create hazards for pedestrians and blind spots for motorists at intersections. Road tests are expected to resume Thursday, Feb. 14.

The Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) will be closed Monday and Tuesday, Jan. 11 and 12 in observance of Lincoln’s Birthday, which is a legal State holiday.

The DMV will re-open for business at 7:45 a.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 13.

Also, on Friday, Feb. 15, DMV major customer service offices will close at 12:30 p.m. to observe President Washington’s Birthday; offices will reopen Tuesday, Feb. 19 at 7:45 a.m.

Some AAA offices will be open for processing license renewals on Monday and Tuesday, including Manchester, 1500 G Pleasant Valley Road.

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Gov Malloy – Nonessential employees stay home, President approves aid request

“Getting streets clear and making them safer for everyone is a priority, so I am asking nonessential state employees to stay home tomorrow.” – CT Gov. Malloy.

By Brenda Sullivan | HTNP News Editor

In a statement issued this afternoon (Feb. 10), Gov. Dannel P. Malloy asks all nonessential State employees to stay home on Monday (Feb. 11) as the cleanup effort after Storm Charlotte continues.

However, evening and midnight shift employees should report to work as normal on Monday, Gov. Malloy said.

“Getting streets clear and making them safer for everyone is a priority, so I am asking nonessential state employees to stay home tomorrow … I understand that everyone wants to get back to normal as quickly as possible. Crews are working around the clock to accomplish that goal, but the last thing we need at this point is a typical morning rush hour commute. Traffic build-up will only delay the effort to clear our roads,” Gov. Malloy said.

Gov. Malloy also announced today that his request for a presidential emergency declaration in the wake of Friday’s historic winter storm has been approved.

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Willimantic Chocolate Fest now on Feb 16

The Chocolate Fest events include The Cupid Shuffle, The “Let Them Eat Cake” Chocolate Cake Baking Contest,
The Chocolate Chip Stroll of Willimantic’s Downtown.
Chocolate Lovers’ Soiree and Cabaret

Three feet of snow dumped on us by Storm Charlotte means Willimantic’s 9th Annual Chocolate Festival, originally scheduled for Saturday, Feb 9, 2013, has been postponed until Saturday, Feb. 16.

All originally scheduled events will take place then, including:

• The Cupid Shuffle

• The “Let Them Eat Cake” Chocolate Cake Baking Contest

• The Chocolate Chip Stroll of Willimantic’s Downtown

• Chocolate Lovers’ Soiree and Cabaret

All events will take place at their original times and everyone is welcome! Most events are free.

Please visit RomanticWillimantic.org, WillimanticDowntown.org or call event coordinator Lynn Duval 860-428-7573 for updated information.

Posted February 9, 2013

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Anne Jordan Crouse Dec. 11, 1943 – Feb. 2, 2013

Anne Devereaux Wilson Jordan Crouse, 69, of Mansfield Center, Connecticut passed away on the afternoon of Feb. 2, 2013 after battling lung cancer.

She was a graduate of the University of Michigan (B.A. and M.A) where in 1968, she received the Avery and Jule Hopwood Awards in poetry and short stories.

She is best known for founding the Children’s Literature Association in 1973; she served as its Executive Secretary/Treasurer, as well as Director of the Annual Conference in Children’s Literature until 1976.

In 1992, she was the first recipient of the “Anne Devereaux Jordan Award,” an award established in her honor and now given annually by The Children’s Literature Association for outstanding contributions to the field of children’s literature.

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Gov Malloy lifts travel ban, asks President to declare emergency

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has asked President Obama to declare an emergency in Connecticut in the wake of the blizzard that hit the Northeast Feb. 8 and 9, 2013.

By Brenda Sullivan | HTNP News Editor

Gov. Malloy has submitted a request that President Obama declare an emergency in the state of Connecticut in the wake of the blizzard that hit this state Feb. 8 and 9.

“As we continue with the recovery from this historic winter storm, I am asking the federal government to provide us assistance with this process,” said Gov. Malloy. “If granted, this declaration would provide much needed help to our state.”

An emergency declaration allows for direct federal assistance, including possible snow removal equipment and personnel, power generation, and commodities but does not provide federal disaster funding.

However, since most, if not all, counties in Connecticut are digging out from record or near record snow fall, a preliminary damage assessment will be conducted to determine which counties may be eligible for disaster funding.

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Gov Malloy – travel ban remains in effect

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, in a press conference held at 11 a.m. today (Feb. 9) advised residents that a travel ban remains in effect today, until further notice, so that roads can be cleared for emergency vehicles.

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, in a press conference held at 11 a.m. today (Feb. 9) advised residents that a travel ban remains in effect today, until further notice, so that roads can be cleared for emergency vehicles.

Many roads in the state are impassable because of stalled cars and/or record-breaking accumulations of snow.

Gov. Malloy also warned that clearing roads is likely to “go on for a number of days.”

He also warned residents about the dangers of carbon-monoxide poisoning since snowfall and snow drifts can block ventilation.

Meanwhile, weather forecasters say the blizzard warning has been lifted in the following counties: Middlesex, New London and New Haven.

However, light snow continues to fall and chilly temperatures are still a concern. The wind-chill factor means the temperatures are effectively in the single-digits to the 20s. The wind-chill temperature in Storrs-Mansfield, for example, was 6 degrees as of 11 a.m.

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CT State Police crack down on computer crimes

Troopers assigned to the Computer Crimes Investigation Unit recently made several arrests of subjects who have been the target of criminal investigations.

Troopers assigned to the Computer Crimes Investigation Unit recently made several arrests of subjects who have been the target of criminal investigations.

Troopers submitted an arrest warrant application in each separate case to Superior Court for the arrest of each of the accused listed below.

The arrest warrants were issued and the subjects were taken into custody, processed and assigned court dates.

Arresting Trooper McCord 926

Arrested: Joseph DosSantos (date of birth 11/22/71)

53 Colonial Ridge Drive

Gaylordsville (New Milford), CT

Charges: Criminal attempt at Impairing the Morals of a Minor, in violation of CGS 53a-49/53-21  (two counts); Criminal attempt at Enticement of a Minor, in violation of C.G.S. 53a-49/53a-90a

The Connecticut State Police Computer Crimes Unit concluded an investigation of a 41-year-old man they say used a fake profile on the Internet to arrange a meeting for sex with a perceived minor aged girl [actually a police investigator]. … Continue Reading

Young writers invited to enter statewide competition

The high school teachers who enter the most submissions in poetry and in prose respectively will receive $250 to the retailer of their choosing. The deadline for submissions is March 15.

The Connecticut Young Writer’s Trust announces its 16th Annual Writing Competition, the state’s longest running literary contest dedicated to encouraging youth literacy and creative expression.

The organization encourages high school teachers from around the state to submit their students’ prose and/or poetry to the annual writing competition through their online system.

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Connecticut ed reform law disregards parents

Connecticut Parents’ Union President Gwen Samuel says that if lawmakers don’t shift the balance of power back to parents, they will once again become helpless bystanders in the effort to improve education in the Constitution State. Photo source: CT DCFs media resources.

By Ben Velderman | EAGnews.org

Last month, a group of parents in California’s Adelanto school district succeeded in using that state’s Parent Trigger law to convert a chronically low-performing public school into a charter school.

It was the first Parent Trigger victory in the nation’s history, but analysts expect the number of “trigger” cases and laws to expand quickly in the wake of the Adelanto victory.

Some education reform activists are already declaring 2013 to be “The Year of Parent Empowerment.”

But that’s not how the new year is shaping up for Connecticut parents, who are in jeopardy of losing what little power they currently have in the state’s public schools – thanks to the state’s 2012 education reform law which is beginning to take effect now.

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