Construction under way on tech magnet school
The city of Bridgeport broke ground on what Mayor Bill Finch says is the largest school building project in state history and the first new high school there in a half-century.
The Fairchild Wheeler Multi Magnet High School will offer 1,000 seats for Bridgeport students, with the balance open to students from Trumbull, Monroe, Easton, Fairfield, Shelton, Stratford and Milford.
Construction will take two years and will support hundreds of construction jobs.
“The curriculum ”“ focusing on aviation, science and information technology ”“ will be one of the most advanced of any high school in the state,” Finch said.
Ruckus to sell through Scholastic
Wilton-based Ruckus Media launched a joint venture with Scholastic to publish children”™s e-books through the giant”™s huge book clubs and calendar of book fairs, as well as on an e-bookstore Scholastic said it is readying.
Ruckus Media said it is aggressively acquiring rights to out-of-print backlist titles to publish in print or in e-book formats to be distributed by Scholastic under the Ruckus imprint.
The “transmedia imprint” collaboration will include interactive stories and games, with more than a dozen projects in the pipeline and first releases planned for next year.
Launched in September 2010, Ruckus has 15 children”™s animated storybooks today, including “The Velveteen Rabbit” narrated by Meryl Streep.
“Ruckus and Scholastic share the same vision ”“ to reach kids where they are, at home and in schools, and on the electronic devices they love,” said Rick Richter, Ruckus CEO, in a statement. “(Scholastic has) tremendous brand recognition ”¦ (and) distribution capability.”
Report: South Windsor studio now iffy
A $40 million film and digital media studio planned for South Windsor reportedly is in doubt, with developers yet to apply for tax credits for the project.
A South Windsor councilman told the Hartford Business Journal he is “very worried that it has tanked” and said if so the town should look at other uses for the land. The newspaper said the project”™s developers blamed the lackluster economy and complex negotiations for delays, a year after a ceremonial groundbreaking. California-based Pacifica Ventures and Halden Acquisition Group proposed the Connecticut Studios project.
Greenwich school cites first in cleansing tech
Greenwich Country Day School said it is the first school in the nation to manufacture its own cleansers using a system from EcoLogic Solutions Inc.
New York City-based EcoLogic”™s system takes normal tap water, adds salt and then passes the brine solution through low-dose electrolyzing chambers that split the liquid into a sodium hydroxide formula the company dubs eWater for all-purpose cleaning and a hypochlorous acid mixture for sanitizing and disinfecting. The school is using the electrolyzed water to replace traditional dish detergent, all purpose cleaners and sanitizers used in the kitchen, common areas and classrooms. The company says its eWater costs less than a penny per gallon to produce.