Teacher Training in STEM Fields to Expand in CT

Connecticut’s drive to improve both teacher training and the caliber of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) education being provided to students across the state received a boost with the announcement that the Connecticut Science Center would be tripling the capacity of its teacher professional development program, the result of a grant from Joyce D. and Andrew J. Mandell.

The number of teachers participating in the program will increase from 500 to 1,500 annually over the next few years, officials said, with the goal of giving educators the tools they need to meet rigorous new state and national standards for STEM education and core curricula.

Governor Dannel Malloy, State Education Commissioner Stephan Pryor, Hartford Mayor Pedro Segarra and Hartford’s 2012 Teacher of the Year Keith Sevigny, a past participant in the professional development program, were among those joining Connecticut Science Center President and CEO Matt Fleury in making the announcement.

In addition to expanding its capacity to serve more teachers, the newly named Joyce D. and Andrew J. Mandell Academy for Teachers at the Connecticut Science Center will also award graduate-level college credit through Charter Oak State College for certain programs.  Academy offerings include Student Engagement Strategies, Inquiry Teaching and Learning, STEM Education Units, Science Content Workshops, Engineering Practices, and Science Coaching. Teachers completing the covered courses can earn a total of nine credits toward their Master’s degrees over a three-year period.

Governor Malloy said the announcement made it a day of “celebration,” emphasizing that the impact “will be played out in the years to come.”  Reiterating his commitment to education and economic development, the Governor said this effort is another example of initiatives designed to “allow our state to compete.”  He  noted the BioScience Connecticut initiative and recently approved growth plans for the University of Connecticut as further indications of the state’s commitment.

Described as a “high-impact professional development program for educators,”  the Academy is “committed to supplying educators with professional development experiences that support rigorous science and curriculum standards.”   Commissioner Pryor, underscoring the challenges in education, pointed out that “15 countries do better than the U.S. in science and 24 do better in math.”  Pryor added that “we can prepare students for jobs of the future, but not if we are slipping in math and science.”

Officials pointed out that new nationally mandated benchmarks such as the Next Generation Science Standards and Common Core Education Standards will require teachers to seek training to improve the way they teach science and integrate it with the rest o f their curriculum.

“We want every child in the state to be able to compete,” said Joyce Mandell. “Teaching teachers how to connect with their students is one of the most important things we’ve ever done.  We’re very proud of our association with the Connecticut Science Center.”

Citing a story published in U.S. News, the website CT Stem Jobs, reported last month that about 20 percent of all American jobs are now in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields, with half of those open to workers who don't have a four-year college degree, according to a new report by the Brookings Institution called "The Hidden STEM Economy."

Those jobs constitute a "hidden STEM economy," the Washington, D.C.-based think tank says, because they are "prevalent in every large metropolitan area," but many people believe at least a bachelor's degree is necessary to work in careers that require STEM skills. Many of these so-called "blue-collar" stem jobs are in construction, installation, manufacturing and health care. They include registered nurses, mechanics, carpenters and electricians.

"Of the $4.3 billion spent annually by the federal government on STEM education and training, only one-fifth goes towards supporting sub-bachelor's level training, while twice as much supports bachelor's or higher level-STEM careers," the report says. "The vast majority of National Science Foundation spending ignores community colleges. In fact, STEM knowledge offers attractive wage and job opportunities to many workers with a post-secondary certificate or associate's degree."

Connecticut Ranks 17th in Beach Closings/Advisories in 2012

As the summer beach season moves into full swing, Save the Sound, a program of Connecticut Fund for the Environment, is calling attention to the number of days that Connecticut beaches had to be closed, or were under public advisories during 2012 due to environmental or related factors. The Natural Resources Defense Council’s (NRDC) annual “Testing the Waters” report, issued last week, found that Connecticut beaches were closed or under advisories for 198 days in 2012. That is down from 538 in 2011 but still more than twice the number of closings/advisories in 2010, 2009, or 2008.

The report analyzes beach closure and advisory statistics from beaches around the U.S.; Connecticut ranked 17th out of the 30 states listed.

According to the NRDC report, 22 percent of Connecticut’s closing/advisory days last year were due to monitoring that revealed elevated bacteria levels and 29 percent were preemptive due to heavy rainfall, which can overwhelm outdated stormwater systems and wash untreated sewage into rivers and the Sound. The remaining days were preemptive due to wildlife.

The beaches with the worst records for exceeding the state's daily maximum bacterial standard were Pear Tree Point Beach in Fairfield County and Seabluff Beach in New Haven County, which tested above the maximum 28 percent of the time; Oak Street B Beach in New Haven County at 20 percent; and Fairfield County’s Calf Pasture Beach, Weed Beach, and Rowayton Beach, all at 19 percent.

“When it comes to clean water, being ‘middle-of-the-pack’ is not good enough,” said Leah Schmalz, director of legislative and legal affairs for Save the Sound. “One out of every ten American citizens lives within an hour’s drive of Long Island Sound, and they deserve clean, safe beaches—even one closing because of bacteria and pollution is too many.”

“Just an inch of rain in 24 hours causes many local health departments around the Sound to shut down beaches. Drought conditions may provide the perfect beach weather—no rain means no contamination from stormwater runoff—but we can’t rely on Mother Nature to do our pollution control for us. If we want to enjoy our coastline, eat local seafood, and promote tourism along the shore, rain or shine, we have to be proactive. That means stopping pollution at the source by upgrading our sewage treatment plants, separating the combined sewer overflows that dump almost two billion gallons of untreated sewage into our waterways each year, and investing in innovative stormwater runoff solutions like drain filters and green infrastructure.”

By comparison, the same NRDC report found that Westchester County in New York lost 112 beach days in 2012, and that New York State ranked 22nd out of 30 states, up from 24th in 2011.

Two Westchester County beaches had the first- and third-worst records in the state for the number of water samples that exceeded the state bacterial standard. Bacterial levels at Shore Acres Club in Mamaroneck tested above the standard fully 50 percent of the time, and Surf Club in New Rochelle exceeded 35 percent of the time. Overall, Westchester County beach samples exceeded the standard 14 percent of the time, making Westchester the fourth-worst tested county in New York. Bronx County, which also affects water quality in the western Sound, came in at number three.

Save the Sound issues weekly Sound Swim Alerts for Connecticut and Westchester County to inform residents when beaches are open for swimming and when they are closed. The alerts can be found on Save the Sound’s blog.

Additional info on water pollution, contamination and depletion.

Local Business Extends “Fostering Hope” Program Providing Backpacks for Foster Children

In honor of National Foster Care Month, locally owned and operated advertising specialty and marketing company The Perfect Promotion collected new duffle bags, backpacks and luggage to supply to children in foster care as part of the Fostering Hope Program that they launched in 2010.

Through donations made  by the community, factory suppliers and The Perfect Promotion, hundreds of bags have been donated since the initiative was launched, including more than 200 this year. The bags were donated in May to the Rocky Hill-based Connecticut Association of Foster and Adoptive Parents, Inc. (CAFAP) and were distributed statewide to children in the care of the Connecticut Department of Children and Families (DCF).

According to the Connecticut DCF, as of February 2012, there were a total of 4,515 children in foster care.  The average age is 9-years-old.    The placement breakdown includes 1,953 children in direct foster care, 1,221 in congregate care, 996 in relative care, 131 in independent living and 30 in a trial home.

“When I first learned that children in foster care oftentimes use a trash bag to carry all of their worldly belongings when they move from placement to placement, I knew we had to do something,” said Jody Ferrer, president of The Perfect Promotion. “It is my goal that the Fostering Hope Program will provide every child in foster care in the State of Connecticut with a bag to call their own, and a dignified means to move their possessions.”

More information about foster care is available from the state Department of Children and Families in a pamphlet, “A New Beginning” which tells the stories of the impact of foster care on the children and their foster families.

In  an ABC Primetime report telecast in 2006, it was reported that “Children have on average three different foster care placements. Frequent moves in and out of the homes of strangers can be profoundly unsettling for children, and it is not uncommon to hear of children who have been in 20 or 30 different homes.”

All families providing foster care and pre-adoptive care for children in Connecticut are licensed or approved according to the regulations of the Connecticut DCF.  The first step is to attend an open house offered by one of 14 area offices around the state. At the open house, staff provide an overview of the agency’s mission, philosophy of foster care, and the licensing process and requirements. To begin this process, or to learn more, call 1-888-KID-HERO or check the Open House Schedule.

The Perfect Promotion uses a consultative approach the focus is on the needs and goals of the client. Imprinted apparel and promotional products are used as tools to help businesses and nonprofits achieve their goals and maintain a positive, top-of-mind presence. For more information, visit www.theperfectpromotion.net.

Another Bank Brings Town Name, This Time From Out-of-State

Just two months ago, Connecticut by the Numbers reported on the increasing number of banks with a Connecticut town in their name that have opened branches – and many of them - in other towns.  Now, there’s a new entry in the field, with a twist.  Massachusetts-based Westfield Bank has opened a branch in Granby, CT.  The bank reports that there are no active plans to open additional branches in the Constitution State.

Already, the list of town names doing double-duty as bank names is lengthy, with the institutions numbering two dozen:  Fairfield, New Canaan, Groton, Darien, Essex, Farmington, Greenwich, Suffield, Guilford, Jewett City, Litchfield, Milford, Naugatuck, Putnam, Rockville, Salisbury, Danbury, Simsbury, Stafford, Thomaston, Torrington, Wilton and Windsor.  And those are only the Connecticut towns, of course.

Although there are 25 out-of-state banks with a presence in Connecticut, only Rhode Island-based Newport Federal Savings Bank, with an office in Stonington, included the name of a town – until the arrival of Westfield Bank.  Other well-known names, evoking out-of-state regions, include Bank of New York, Berkshire Bank, First Niagra Bank, and Hudson Valley Bank.  And then there’s Bank of America, rather all-encompassing geographically.

To look back at the hometown bank story, click here: http://ctbythenumbers.info/2013/04/17/hometown-names-go-beyond-hometown-for-connecticut-banks/

To review the list of banking institutions in Connecticut, see the state Department of Banking list:

http://www.ct.gov/dob/cwp/view.asp?a=2228&q=296954

Yale-New Haven Hospital Ranked Among Best Employers in USA for Workers Over 50

Yale-New Haven Hospital (YNHH) in New Haven is being honored by AARP and the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) as one of the 2013 Best Employers for Workers Over 50.  YNHH, which ranked 23rd in the nationwide survey, joins a diverse group of health systems, corporations, government agencies, and non-profits from across the country on the list, announced this week by AARP and SHRM.  It is the lone Connecticut-headquartered organization on the list of the top 50.

Thirty percent of YNHH employees are age 50+ with an average tenure of 18 years. YNHH offers a number of programs and benefits that support mature workers, including tuition reimbursement and training opportunities, flexible work schedules and alternative work arrangements, free health screenings and wellness programs, financial and retirement planning and dependent care benefits.

One program of particular interest to mature employees at YNHH is the ‘School at Work Program’.  This seven month refresher educational program is for individuals who have been out of a traditional learning setting for a significant time period and prepares the employee for additional formal education or a career change.

In addition, Retiree Medical Accounts are offered for employees retiring at age 55+ with at least ten years of service.  The medical account is funded annually, starting at age 40, and the retiree can use the funds after retirement for medical expenses and insurance premiums.

Also on the national list of Best Companies, at number 27, is Cianbro a national construction engineering firm with a regional office on East Dudley Town Road in  Bloomfield, Connecticut.  Cianbro self-performs civil, structural, mechanical, electrical, instrumentation, fabrication, and coating, in twelve different markets, throughout the United States. The company has experience in Construction Management, Design-Build, and Engineer Procure Construct (EPC), in addition to Conventional Design-Bid-Build.

This year’s list of the top 50 organizations was led by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), one of the world’s premiere medical research institutions.  Scripps Health of Southern California, which headed the list in 2011, is runner-up this year.  Rounding out the top 10 are Atlantic Health System, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Mercy Health System, The YMCA of Greater Rochester, West Virginia University, Bon Secours Virginia, National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, and WellStar Health System.

Key areas of consideration include: recruiting practices; opportunities for training, education and career development; workplace accommodations; alternative work options, such as flexible scheduling, job sharing and phased retirement; employee health and retirement benefits, and retiree work opportunities. The list of 2013 winners includes employers from a variety of industry sectors, including for-profit and nonprofit, health care, universities, financial services, construction, aerospace, and federal and county government.

Among Connecticut-based organizations, Yale-New Haven Hospital was previously honored as a Best Employer for Workers Over 50 in 2005 and 2006.  Past winners from Connecticut also include CTTRANSIT, Pitney Bowes and Hartford Financial.

Announcement of the top 50 came jointly by AARP and SHRM, which is co-sponsoring the Best Employers program for the first time. SHRM is the world’s largest association devoted to human resource management.

Hands-Free Electronics Are Hazardous to Driver Safety, State Ban Proposed

For the second time in recent weeks, a major driving safety study has concluded that hands-free devices produce dangers much the same as hand-held cell phones for drivers.  The latest study comes from AAA, following a study by the Texas Transportation Institute at Texas A&M University, reported by Connecticut by the Numbers earlier this month.

Connecticut teen driving safety advocate Tim Hollister, who was a member of the Governor’s Safe Teen Driving Task Force in 2007-8 and publishes a national blog for parents of teen drivers, is calling for a ban on the use of electronic devices while driving, citing increasing evidence of the dangers of distracted driving.  His proposal, outlined in The Hartford Courant prior to the release of the AAA study:  "no driver of a vehicle in gear shall use any electronic device to text, type, read, watch a video or make a phone call."

Hollister pointed out that six leading public health and traffic safety organizations (World Health Organization, National Transportation Safety Council, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, and the Governor’s Highway Safety Association) “now agree that hands-free cellphone use is just as dangerous as hand-held.  Both cause cognitive blindness.”  The head of the National Transportation Safety Board agrees, having previously stated “we know that electronic devices that pull a driver’s attention away from his or her primary task are unsafe.”

Texting a friend verbally while behind the wheel caused a “large” amount of mental distraction compared with “moderate/significant” for holding a phone conversation or talking with a passenger and “small” when listening to music or an audio book, the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found in the latest study, released this week, Bloomberg News and other national media widely reported.

Not a single state prohibits hands-free dialing, and neither state nor federal action appears on the horizon, despite initial efforts by NTSB more than a year ago.  In fact, just the opposite is true.  Even as evidence of hazards grows, so do the range of electronic options and efforts to develop more "connected" cars.

Using voice-to-text messaging, included in systems such as Ford Motor Co.’s Sync and Toyota Motor Corp.’s Entune, is more distracting to drivers than making calls with handheld mobile phones, the AAA found. The earlier study at Texas A&M also concluded that voice-to-text is as dangerous and traditional typed texting.

Two bills that offer responses to aspects of distracted driving – although not prohibiting the popular practice - were approved in the just-concluded Connecticut General Assembly session, according to media reports.

• The first would give prosecutors the ability to seek up to $1,000 in fines, over criminal penalties, if a distracted driver hits and injures a jogger, pedestrian, horseback ride, and other lawful “vulnerable” roadway user.
• The other bill adds distracted driving to the list of moving violations that would be made available to insurance companies. Currently, if someone disobeys the state’s distracted driving law, they pay a fine and the insurer doesn’t know about it.  The bill also increases fines and creates a task force to study distracted driving prevention.  Both await approval by Gov. Malloy.

Automakers have vigorously promoted voice-based messaging as a safer alternative to taking hands off the wheel to place a call or talk on a hand-held phone. The hands-free systems have not been opposed by the U.S. Transportation Secretary, but the head of the National Transportation Safety Board has expressed serious reservations.  Writing in the Washington Post in 2011, NTSB Chair Deborah Hersman pointed out that “studies published as early as 1997 and 2005 have shown that there is little difference between hands-free technology and handheld devices when it comes to cognitive distraction.”

About 9 million infotainment systems will be shipped this year in cars sold worldwide, with that number projected to rise to more than 62 million by 2018, according to a March report by London-based ABI Research.

With the addition of a new law passed in Hawaii this month, 40 states, the District of Columbia, the Virgin Islands and Guam have banned text messaging for all drivers using hand-held devices.  Hawaii becomes just the 11th state (including Connecticut, as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands) to prohibit all drivers from using handheld cell phones while driving.

Voluntary guidelines recently issued (April 2013) by the Department’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), recommended specific criteria for electronic devices installed in vehicles at the time they are manufactured.  The guidelines include recommendations to limit the time a driver must take his eyes off the road to perform any task to two seconds at a time and twelve seconds total.

The back-to-back studies by the Texas Transportation Institute and AAA raise questions about those recently-issued recommendations.

Faces of Distracted Driving  USDOT video 

Leadership Greater Hartford Initiative Selected for National Recognition

The Association of Leadership Programs, a national organization with affiliates across the country, will present Leadership Greater Hartford with its first "Excellence in Innovation" award for the implementation and success of the Leaders on Board program.  The presentation will take place during the 2013 National Leadership Conference to be held in Arlington, Virginia later this month.

Leaders on Board is an ongoing program that strengthens nonprofit organizations by training and connecting participants with boards of directors seeking new members.  The program attracts individuals who want to serve on a board, develop their leadership skills and serve the community.

Leaders on Board has successfully matched nearly 300 individuals with more than 75 nonprofit organizations throughout the region since its inception in January 2009.  The list of organizations that have placed members on boards through the Express Match process is quite impressive – and a who’s who of community organizations.

Potential board members receive training in nonprofit organizational structure and management. They are introduced to the role and responsibilities of board members and are encouraged to explore their skills and interests.  Then nonprofit board leadership and prospective board members interview each other, and “matches” are pursued by the organizations and the individuals.

In announcing the recognition, LGH said the success of our Leaders on Board program is not only due to the hard work of the LGH staff, but also to the commitment and time that the participants and nonprofits invest in making sure the program is a success. "We are delighted to share this award with everyone who has been involved with Leaders on Board since 2009, especially the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, our funding partner. Thank you for making Leaders on Board the best it can be." Leaders on Board is a program created by Leadership Greater Hartford with support from the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving and in collaboration with the United Way of Central and Northeastern Connecticut. Corporations and businesses also participate in the program by offering board governance training to encourage their employees who are interested in serving the community.

Also during the conference in Virginia, longtime LGH president Ted Carroll will be leading a workshop for conference participants, entitled “Building Community by Transforming Local Government.” The workshop description highlights that “As Leadership Greater Hartford’s consulting and training activities have increased, our most important, and most profitable client has become our city government. This workshop will provide insights into how community leadership programs can apply their services and expertise to help municipalities develop more collaborative, participatory cultures.”

Upcoming "Leaders on Board" Express Match The next Leaders on Board “Express Match” program is scheduled to be held on Tuesday, June 11, 5:30 – 8:30 at Asylum Hill Congregational Church (814 Asylum Avenue) in Hartford.  Pre registration required, on the Leadership Greater Hartford website.

Overwhelming Support Spells Defeat for Creation of Social Benefit Businesses in CT

Despite being introduced with the backing of Governor Malloy, overwhelming support in the House of Representatives where it passed by a lopsided 128-12 on May 20, and co-sponsorship by the legislature’s four top leaders, legislation establishing the “benefit corporation” as a new type of corporate entity never came up for a vote in the State Senate.  And thus it died when the legislative session ended on Wednesday.

“Despite a great deal of effort, we lost. It is a sad day for Connecticut that we couldn't get something so unequivocally positive done. I personally find it hard not to be disheartened by the whole process, but I guess that's politics,” said Kate Emery, founder and CEO of reSET, the Social Enterprise Trust.

Similar legislation has already been passed and signed into law in California, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Vermont, and Virginia. It is pending in nine other states.

The bill (HB 6356) would have allowed businesses to legally incorporate as benefit corporations in Connecticut and was described as the most comprehensive piece of social enterprise legislation ever proposed in the United States.  It was designed to help social entrepreneurs protect their organization’s social mission, and provide a transparent, accessible, and simple mechanism for defining their business’s social goals.  Supporters said the legislation would also help drive job creation and increase the number of community-based partners committed to solving some of Connecticut’s most pressing social issues without requiring additional state funding.

Here’s how Hartford Courant business editor Dan Haar described the bill in a column the day prior to legislative adjournment:  “The bill has few if any opponents, it would make it easier for private firms to do some good in the world and it wouldn’t cost the state any money (okay $62,000, once, to reprogram the computers).

Firms organized this way, known as type-B corporations, would have a stated social goal beyond profits for the owners — public health, perhaps, or promoting the arts or restoring the environment or creating economic opportunity for disadvantaged people. It’s the kind of stuff nonprofits tend to do, but allowing for-profit companies to set up with a social purpose simply adds an avenue.”

The bill not only required benefit corporations to publicly state their social mission within the business’s articles of incorporation, but it also would have created a culture of accountability within Connecticut’s social enterprise community by requiring that those businesses publish an annual benefit report detailing the public benefit that they have actually created, and make that information publicly available on their website.

It also would have given owners of social enterprises the option of locking in their commitment to the social mission that their business is designed to serve by electing to adopt its legacy preservation clause after a waiting period of two years. This would allow shareholders to ensure that their commitment to the creation of public good is maintained, even if ownership of that company changes over time.  But it was not to be.

“We did everything we could possibly do and we had a lot of great people working very hard to make it happen,” Emery said in an email to supporters of reSET across the state.  “It was a well fought battle and sooner or later we'll get it passed but for now we will have to take heart in knowing we did all we could.”

The broad coalition of supporters – all of whom submitted testimony during a public hearing on the bill -  included AARP, the Connecticut Association of Nonprofits, the Connecticut Conference of Independent Colleges and AT&T.  As Haar noted this week, Connecticut Innovations, the state’s technology investment arm, and the state Department of Economic and Community Development both supported it actively.  The Connecticut Bar Association, which opposed a similar bill last year, also supported this year’s revised version.

Benefit Corporations are a new class of corporation that 1) creates a material positive impact on society and the environment; 2) expands fiduciary duty to require consideration of non-financial interests when making decisions; and 3) reports on its overall social and environmental performance using recognized third party standards.

In her public hearing testimony, state Economic and Community Development Commissioner Catherine Smith said Connecticut “is poised to realize many benefits” from passage of the bill, which would “leave a lasting social and financial impact on our state for years to come.”

Connecticut Well Represented in National Mental Health Dialogue

Keeping a commitment made in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary School murders last December, President Barack Obama launched a national mental health dialogue at the White House Monday aimed at increasing understanding and awareness of mental health, and Connecticut organizations are involved in the efforts from the outset.

Among the initiatives announced during the day-long conference was a new national website, www.mentalhealth.gov, and a series of public meetings to be held around the country under the “Creating Community Solutions” rubric.  Two of those community conversations will be in Connecticut – in Hartford and Norwalk – and one of the six national organizations coordinating the initiative has its headquarters in East Hartford.

The Center for Civic Engagement at the Hartford Public Library will organize the Hartford event as part of the National Dialogue on Mental Health. In response to unprecedented need for civic engagement, Hartford Public Library created the Center for Civic Engagement (CCE). The CCE aims to create a community change process, foster development of a community vision, contribute to a stronger, more successful community, and establish a civic engagement model.

The dialogue in Norwalk will be co-sponsored by the Fairfield County Community Foundation and the Southwest Regional Mental Health Board.  The Fairfield County Community Foundation promotes philanthropy to build and sustain a vital and prosperous community where all have the opportunity to participate and thrive.  The Southwest Regional Mental Health Board is dedicated to ensure a quality system of comprehensive, recovery oriented mental health and addiction services that enhances the quality of life and well being of all residents of Southwest Connecticut.

The Creating Community Solutions initiative will allow participants to learn about mental health issues - from each other and from research - and to develop plans to improve mental health in their own communities, according to officials.   The national dialogue is to include young people who have experienced mental health problems, members of the faith community, foundations, and school and business leaders.

Among the six national “deliberative democracy” organizations involved in developing the Creating Community Solutions program is East Hartford-based Everyday Democracy, according to federal officials.  Everyday Democracy helps people organize, have dialogues, and take action on issues they care about, so that they can create communities that work for everyone. Its ultimate goal is to contribute to the creation of a strong, equitable democracy that values everyone's voice and participation.    Details about Everyday Democracy's role in the initiative and how partner communities and organizations can get involved will be available on the organization’s website in the coming days.

Details regarding the date, location and registration information for the Hartford and Norwalk sessions will be available on a new website, at www.creatingcommunitysolutions.org.  The site is part of the national mental health website, which was created by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.   Thus far, community dialogues have been scheduled in New Mexico, California, Alabama, and Arizona, and an additional 29 sites – including the two in Connecticut – are making plans.   A Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/CreatingCommunitySolutions, has also been launched.

Materials to support the conversations are being developed and will shortly be available for download, including an Information Brief, Organizing Guide and Discussion Guide.  In addition to Everyday Democracy, the organizations working together to design and implement Creating Community Solutions are America Speaks, Deliberative Democracy Consortium, National Issues Forums, the National Coalition for Dialogue & Deliberation, and the National Institute for Civil Discourse.

In addition, a number of national associations are asking their members or affiliates to organize local events. These groups include the United Way, American Bar Association, National League of Cities, YWCA, National School Public Relations Association, 4-H, Grassroots Grantmakers, Alliance for Children and Families, National Physicians Alliance, Association for Rural and Small Libraries, and the International Association for Public Participation, among others.

Dangers of Distracted Driving Attract Renewed Attention; Responses Pending, Urged

There was a time when smoking was permitted in restaurants, when seat belt use was not mandatory, when children were not required to wear helmets when bike riding.  Then the science of safety interceded, and state lawmakers – in Connecticut and elsewhere - took notice.  The convenience of technology, however, may be another matter.

Writing in The Hartford Courant this week, teen driving safety advocate Tim Hollister, who was a member of the Governor’s Safe Teen Driving Task Force in 2007-8 and publishes a national blog for parents of teen drivers, called for a ban on the use of electronic devices while driving, citing increasing evidence of  the dangers of distracted driving.  And a new study by a Texas university concluded that voice-to-text is as dangerous and traditional typed texting.

Hollister points out that six leading public health and traffic safety organizations (World Health Organization, National Transportation Safety Council, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, and the Governor’s Highway Safety Association) “now agree that hands-free cellphone use is just as dangerous as hand-held.  Both cause cognitive blindness.”

With the addition of a new law passed in Hawaii last week, 40 states, the District of Columbia, the Virgin Islands and Guam have banned text messaging for all drivers using hand-held devices.  Hawaii becomes just the 11th state (including Connecticut, as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands) to prohibit all drivers from using handheld cell phones while driving.

Not a single state prohibits hands-free dialing, and neither state nor federal action appears on the horizon.  In fact, just the opposite is true.

Even as evidence of hazards grows, so do the range of electronic options.  Ford is one of a number of companies aggressively marketing electronic devices that offer more in-car options.  The company’s voice activated Sync technology, available beginning with 2012 models, includes hands-free calling, 411 business search, audible text messaging, and internet connectivity.  Hollister points out that “on tv and the internet, advertisements tout devices that enable texting by allowing drivers to attach their cellphones to the windshield so the screen is aligned with their view of the road.”

Connecticut Action Pending

Two bills that offer responses to certain aspects of distracted driving are now progressing through the Connecticut General Assembly, which adjourns on Wednesday, June 5.  The Associated Press reported that the House of Representatives voted 139-1 last week to add distracted driving to the list of moving violations that would be made available to insurance companies.  Currently, if someone disobeys the state's distracted driving law, they pay a fine and their insurer does not know about it.  The bill also increases fines and creates a task force to study distracted driving prevention. The legislation now moves to the Senate.

The Senate unanimously passed a bill establishing a fine of up to $1,000 for a motorist who "fails to exercise reasonable care on a public way" and seriously injures or causes the death of so-called vulnerable users, such as a bicyclists. The bill now moves to the House, the AP reported.

Federal Guidelines 

The dangers of technology-enabled distracted driving are so insidious – and increasing so rapidly – that the federal government has launched a website, www.distraction.gov, solely devoted to educating the public about the severe risks of distracted driving.  Among the statistics cited:

• Driving while using a cell phone reduces the amount of brain activity associated with driving by 37%. (Carnegie Mellon)
• Text messaging creates a crash risk 23 times worse than driving while not distracted. (VTTI)
• Sending or receiving a text takes a driver's eyes from the road for an average of 4.6 seconds, the equivalent-at 55 mph-of driving the length of an entire football field, blind. Headset cell phone use is not substantially safer than hand-held use. (VTTI)
• In 2011, 3,331 people were killed in crashes involving a distracted driver. An additional, 387,000 people were injured in motor vehicle crashes involving a distracted driver.
• 11% of all drivers under the age of 20 involved in fatal crashes were reported as distracted at the time of the crash. This age group has the largest proportion of drivers who were distracted.
• 40% of all American teens say they have been in a car when the driver used a cell phone in a way that put people in danger. (Pew)

A new study from the Texas Transportation Institute at Texas A&M University reveals that sending those messages using voice-to-text software is just as distracting as looking down at your phone and typing messages by hand.

Voluntary guidelines recently issued (April 2013) by the Department's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), recommended specific criteria for electronic devices installed in vehicles at the time they are manufactured.  The guidelines include recommendations to limit the time a driver must take his eyes off the road to perform any task to two seconds at a time and twelve seconds total. The guidelines also recommend disabling several operations unless the vehicle is stopped and in park, such as:

• Manual text entry for the purposes of text messaging and internet browsing;
• Video-based entertainment and communications like video phoning or video conferencing;
• Display of certain types of text, including text messages, web pages, social media content.

The department has also issued Blueprint for Ending Distracted Driving, a comprehensive plan on the subject.   The use of all cellular phones while driving a school bus is prohibited in 14 states thus far, including Connecticut, and the District of Columbia.  A federal proposal in 20ll that would have extended a ban on cell phone use – including hands-free – to all vehicles has not been enacted into law nationwide, or in any state.

The Washington Post reported 18 months ago that “Vehicles are being transformed into mobile communications centers, with cellphones, DVD players, access to Facebook and Twitter, Global Positioning System devices, and satellite radio.”

 “Unfortunately, drivers are being encouraged to do everything but drive,” Jonathan Adkins, spokesman for the Governors Highway Safety Association, told the Post. “It’s a sign of the pressures of modern-day life to do 10 things at once. However, driving is a complex task, and our message continues to be that a singular focus is needed.”