Share your lovely locks, help a woman in need

Eastern Connecticut State University’s People Helping People (PHP) student club, in collaboration with Pantene Beautiful Lengths, invites you to a hair-donation event from 2 to 4 p.m. on April 29 in the Betty R. Tipton Room in the Student Center.

Eastern Connecticut State University’s People Helping People (PHP) student club, in collaboration with Pantene Beautiful Lengths, invites you to a hair-donation event from 2 to 4 p.m. on April 29 in the Betty R. Tipton Room in the Student Center.

All donated hair will be made into wigs for cancer patients. The public is invited.

For those interested in donating, hair must be…

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Census Bureau offers embeddable ‘Pop Clock’

The population clock displays continuously updated projections of the total U.S. population, including the rate of births, deaths and net migration for the United States. Image courtesy of U.S. Census

Brenda Sullivan | HTNP News Editor

Today (April 11), the U.S. Census Bureau released an updated version of its “population clock,” one of the most widely visited features on the census.gov website.

This clock gives a quick and interactive overview of the population of the United States and the world – and now, it also can be shared, downloaded and embedded on other websites.

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UConn unveils new leaner, meaner Huskies logo

Weighing in on the new Huskies logo design, women’s basketball head coach Geno Auriemma said, “This logo is everything that a Husky is supposed to be – powerful, aggressive, determined. It is looking right through you and saying ‘Do not mess with me’. ” Image courtesy of UConn Athletics

Press Release

UConn Athletics today (April 11) unveiled a new version of the Husky logo.

UConn Athletics has been working with Nike to evaluate all parts of its brand, including word marks, logos and uniforms, for the past 14 months.

The new Husky Dog logo will be featured on uniforms for every one of UConn’s 24 athletic programs in 2013-14 and each of those uniforms will also prominently display the block UCONN word mark outlined in red.

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Watch actual installation of solar arrays at local homes

Two Solarize Mansfield-Windham installations are coming up that will give local residents an opportunity to watch how it’s done, meet the homeowners participating in Solarize Mansfield-Windham, and have your questions answered by the official solar installer, C-TEC SOLAR. Image courtesy of C-TEC Solar

Submitted by Virginia Walton | Mansfield Recycling Coordinator

Two Solarize Mansfield-Windham installations are coming up that will give local residents an opportunity to watch how it’s done, meet the homeowners participating in Solarize Mansfield-Windham, and have your questions answered by the official solar installer, C-TEC SOLAR.

C-TEC is providing lunch, as well.

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Challenges loom for Connecticut’s new gun law

Connecticut Gov. Dannel P. Malloy signs new gun law on April 4, 2013 at the State Capitol in Hartford, CT. Photo by Christine Stuart | CTNewsJunkie.com

by Hugh McQuaid | CTnewsjunkie.com

Flanked by families of some of those murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT in December 2012, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy signed into law the state’s new bipartisan, gun-violence prevention legislation at a ceremony Thursday afternoon (April 4) at the state Capitol.

The bill expands the number of firearms prohibited in Connecticut, bans the sale of ammunition magazines that carry more than 10 rounds, and imposes new eligibility requirements for purchases of all guns and ammunition. It also creates the first statewide gun offender registry.

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Puppet Project recreates works of puppeteer who inspired Henson

Fred and Cinderella hold hands in a photo of two of the original puppets used by puppeteer Dick Meyers who’s 1960s puppet shows will be lovingly recreated and presented by Connecticut Repertory Theatre April 11 – 14 in Storrs. Photo by Seth Shaffer.

Press Release

Connecticut Repertory Theatre (CRT) will present “Cinderella” and “Beauty and the Beast” as part of The Dick Meyers Project, featuring Puppet Arts graduate student Seth Shaffer. The family friendly performance will be a one-hour puppetry recreation of the Dick Meyer’s 1960’s puppet show featuring all his original puppets in the Studio Theatre in Storrs, April 11 – 14, 2013.

In the 1960s and 70s, Dick Myers toured his one-man puppet performances based on classic fairy tales throughout Europe, The Soviet Union, Japan and the U.S. Jim Henson and Frank Oz both proclaimed Dick Myers as “the genius of American Puppetry.”

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Edith Prague comes out of retirement to head CT Department on Aging

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has tapped former State Sen. Edith Prague of Columbia, CT to serve as Commissioner of the newly-formed State Department on Aging (SDA).

Press Release

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has tapped former State Sen. Edith Prague of Columbia, CT to serve as Commissioner of the newly-formed State Department on Aging (SDA).

SDA will ensure that Connecticut’s elderly population has access to the supportive services necessary to live with dignity, security and independence, and it is responsible for administering a variety of federally-funded programs under the Older Americans Act.

“Senator Prague has dedicated herself to improving the quality of life for senior citizens; with her background and expertise, she is a natural choice to lead the Department on Aging,” said Gov. Malloy. “I know she will make an immediate impact as the Commissioner on Aging and am eager to work with her to address the needs of our state’s growing senior population.”

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Sandy Hook Commission reveals controversial recommendations

Hamden CT Mayor Scott Jackson (at podium), Chair of the Sandy Hook Advisory Commission and CT Gov. Dannel P. Malloy. Christine Stuart file photo, CTNewsJunkie.com

by CTNewsjunkie Staff

After more than 40 hours of expert testimony, the Sandy Hook Advisory Commission issued an interim report that includes a controversial recommendation to ban high-capacity magazines with 10 or more bullets and guns that can shoot them.

According to the report, the commission recognized that certain sporting events may at times seek to utilize higher capacity magazines. However, the consensus of the commission was that the spirit of sportsmanship can be maintained with lower capacity magazines.

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Is new magnet school process illegal?

“With the lottery to select students for Windham‘s new Charles H. Barrows STEM Academy Magnet School about to take place, Adamowski and the Windham School System STILL HAVEN’T filed a legally-approved Operations Plan with the State Department of Education and the application form that they have been using inappropriately requests that students provide their social security number. It is a technique that effectively reduces the number of immigrants and poor who might apply for a seat in the new school.” – Jonathan Pelto

By Jonathan Pelto

You can keep Gov. Malloy’s “Special Master” Steven Adamowski, and Windham’s school administrators on the list of entities and individuals who seem unable or unwilling to follow the state’s laws and regulations.

With the lottery to select students for Windham‘s new Charles H. Barrows STEM Academy Magnet School about to take place, Adamowski and the Windham School System STILL HAVEN’T filed a legally-approved Operations Plan with the State Department of Education and the application form that they have been using inappropriately requests that students provide their social security number.

It is a technique that effectively reduces the number of immigrants and poor who might apply for a seat in the new school.

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Rescheduled Hebron Maple Fest is this weekend

The 23rd annual Hebron Maple Festival is March 16-17, 2013… rescheduled because of the snow last weekend.

Don’t forget – the Hebron Maple Fest is this weekend (March 16 and 17), moved to a new date because of the snow on the ground last weekend.

Events are from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Come prepared to eat… a lot.

The festival has its own web site – http://hebronmaplefest.com – with a downloadable (in PDF format) schedule of events.

This year’s festival includes the first-ever Farm Tractor Parade, which begins at Ted’s Supermarket on Main Street (Route 66) where the tractors will be on display beginning at 11:30 a.m. Antique and working tractors will parade through the center of town beginning at 1:30 p.m.

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