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In a victory for public school students, East Hampton teachers’ efforts paid off yesterday when voters turned out on a hot July day to pass the education budget.

The East Hampton Education Association and community supporters had been organizing and rallying for months, strongly objecting to cuts that the Town Council and Board of Finance tried to make to the education budget. They successfully rallied the community to vote “no, too low” in a budget referendum in May, resoundingly defeating a budget that would have eliminated a number of teaching positions, increasing class sizes.

“Because the education budget passed, we can now move forward to the next school year without the district laying off any teachers,” says East Hampton Education Association President and middle school music teacher Neil Shilansky. “We’re very pleased that student class sizes, especially at Memorial Elementary School, will remain at a favorable level.”

Shilansky says that EHEA, with the help of CEA, mobilized teachers and members of the East Hampton community in many ways. EHEA members attended Board of Education, Board of Finance, and Town Council meetings, and members that live in town spoke during public comment. On school days when there were important Board of Finance or Town Council meetings, EHEA mobilized teachers to wear their Red for Ed shirts as a reminder to attend that evening’s meeting. CEA Communications created signs for EHEA members to hold at busy intersections in town, reminding the community to attend meetings and vote in referendums, while CEA Government Relations staff supported EHEA with sending out emails and texts at crucial moments to all CEA members who live in town.

EHEA members were also proactive in communicating with the East Hampton Board of Education and with district administrators in planning how to pass a budget that retained staff and resources.

“EHEA and parents in the community stood side by side holding signs before the initial referendum vote in May, encouraging residents to vote ‘no, too low,'” Shilansky says.

“Passing this budget means that the students of East Hampton will not have their ability to learn affected by larger class sizes or fewer course offerings,” says EHEA Vice President Richard Storrs, a social studies teacher. “It also demonstrates what can happen when a teachers’ union works with its town citizens to ensure that an underfunded budget proposal that does not serve students’ needs is defeated and a budget that restores funding is successfully passed.”

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CROMWELL — Basketball questions, please.

The East Hampton girls basketball team on Friday night preferred to accentuate the positive things that have transpired on the court in 2023. Totally understandable for a program sideswiped by the benching of its head coach.

The Bellringers have won almost every time out in the six-plus weeks since Shaun Russell was placed on administrative leave for shoving one of his own players during a game. Russell’s return to the sideline this season appears more and more unlikely with each passing day.

Yet East Hampton basketball and Russell are so intertwined that the players couldn’t talk hoops after Friday’s win over Cromwell without mentioning Russell, who first drew up a winning culture 26 seasons and 400-odd wins ago.

This was the scenario after East Hampton improved to 17-1 with a 44-37 victory over the Panthers. The win locked in the Bellringers as the top seed in the upcoming Shoreline Conference tournament. With wins in their final two games, they also would clinch the top seed in the CIAC Class M tournament.

Beating the Panthers on their home floor evened things up between the rivals. Shortly after Russell was barred from coaching pending an investigation, East Hampton struggled at home in a 38-29 loss to their chief rival.

“That was our first game really without him,” said junior guard Jackie Russell (no relation).

“We were just like a mess without him. No one was in the right head space that day,” she said. “We weren’t playing our East Hampton Bellringer basketball. We kind of just fell apart and weren’t executing, we weren’t playing as a team. This was a big game for us to redeem ourselves.”

“We’re doing this for him,” sophomore point guard Liana Salamone said.

In Russell’s absence, East Hampton has found just the right caretaker in Allyson Smith, who played for him from 2001-2005 and has steadied this latest talented, cohesive group of Bellringers.

“She truly volunteered and stepped up to help out our girls in a difficult situation,” East Hampton principal Eric Verner said. “We’re both pleased and lucky to have her.”

In a stellar four-year career as a Bellringer, Smith scored 1,444 points, accumulated 300-plus steals and earned All-Shoreline and All-State distinction. Seven years ago, she was inducted into East Hampton’s hall of fame.

“At the end of the day, the East Hampton program is my life,” she said. “This is my family. It’s an opportunity to support what matters to me. I just stepped in and offered my help.”

Smith went on to play at Southern Connecticut. She was on the roster as a freshman when the Owls won the NCAA Division II national championship in 2007 and averaged double figures in scoring as a junior and eventual senior captain.

Friday’s game in front of a full, loud house at Jake Salafia Gymnasium stirred the nostalgia of her playing days. She’s been totally comfortable in the role, too. Until recently, she was the head coach at Rocky Hill for eight seasons.

“There was a lot to this win,” said Smith, who is in the early stages of a successful career in marketing. “This was a big one. Cromwell-East Hampton is a long-time rivalry back to when I played. Cromwell is an incredible program. You don’t have to get up to play this type of game in this type of environment, which is incredible.”

The Bellringers held leads of 16-7 after one quarter and 25-12 at halftime. Jackie Russell drained four 3-pointers (two set up by Salamone) and scored 15 points in the first half. She finished with five 3’s and a game-high 20 points, while Salamone put up 14 points, nine rebounds and four assists.

Cromwell trailed by seven entering the fourth quarter and was within two possessions of tying the game with 47 seconds left, but East Hampton pulled the ball out and the Panthers couldn’t score again.

Having won 12 straight, the Bellringers are clearly in a comfort zone under Smith. With the postseason ahead, they’re also a bit restless. The program is 90-6 in the regular season since 2018-19 but hasn’t won a state title.

“Unfinished business, I agree,” Smith said. “Hey, it’s one day at a time. Coach Russell has built an incredible program and we’re hoping to (at least) get back to where we were last year.”

This was the semifinal round in Class M, where the Bellringers lost to Bacon Academy 30-26. The two could meet again — Bacon just finished its season at 17-3 and is in the running for the No. 2 seed.

“We want to win the whole thing,” Salamone said.

Anthony DeFilio, an assistant coach with the Coginchaug /East Hampton/Hale-Ray football program for the last six seasons, was named head coach on Thursday.

Coginchaug has churned through head coaches – DeFilio is now the fifth since 2015 – and needs to make this work. Mike Eagle coached the Blue Devils in 2021 and 2022 but stepped down after a 1-9 season to focus on his family.

Maybe the best thing about DeFilio’s hiring is his 14-year involvement with the youth program, which incorporates three towns. A strong connection and that type of continuity is crucial toward building a successful program at Coginchaug.

“There aren’t many people with the passion of Anthony DeFilio,” Coginchaug athletic director Todd Petronio said. “He’s a champion of all kids.”

In a statement, DeFilio said he envisions “a culture of football from the youth level through the high school level that promotes a unified understanding of fair play, fundamental football skills and team camaraderie.”

From the week gone by in high school basketball:

** Middletown junior guard Shalyn Smith scored 22 points and senior Jada Bryant had 11 to power the Blue Dragons to a 56-36 win at Maloney. Middletown is 10-9 and finishes the regular season on Monday at Berlin ahead of the CIAC Class LL tournament.

** It’s just a given that senior Anthony Parker will lead Xavier in scoring. On Friday, he had 30 points and Aidan Driscoll scored 23 as the Falcons (13-4) walloped Career 87-40. Parker was coming off a 28-point game in Xavier’s 82-65 upset of Wilbur Cross. Xavier’s final home game of the regular season is Friday against West Haven.

** Portland put up 84 points — 33 from 3-point range — in its Friday win over Westbrook. Harrison Collins led the Highlanders with 24 points, while Austin Vess and Joe Rusczyk added 16 apiece. Portland is 13-4 with three games left and aiming for the No. 1 or 2 seed in the Shoreline tournament. Brandon Naccarato scored 30 points for Westbrook.

** Andrew Crayton had 22 points and eight rebounds and Haddam-Killingworth teammate Blake Kamoen put 11 points and 12 rebounds in the Cougars’ 57-48 home win over Valley Regional. The Cougars were 17 of 20 from the free-throw line.

** Liana Salamone had another 30-point game for East Hampton, scoring 32 as the Bellringers beat Morgan 57-26.

** Brady Lynch led East Hampton with 19 points and the Bellringers outscored Morgan 21-9 in the fourth quarter to pull out a 61-59 victory.

** Mia Poturnicki scored 15 points in Coginchaug’s 50-27 win over Old Saybrook. The Blue Devils look like a lock for the No. 4 seed in the Shoreline tournament.

** Kenzie Purdell of Hale-Ray scored a season-high 23 points in the Noises’ 54-38 win over Old Lyme.

** Kylie Lake had a 29-point night for Old Saybrook in its 52-26 win over Old Lyme.

** Under first-year coach Michael Brady, Coginchaug qualified for state tournament play for the first time since the 2018-19 season with a 61-49 win over Hale-Ray. Jayson Penney posted his second triple-double in as many weeks: 18 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists. Preston Mennone added 17 points. The Blue Devils could finish .500 with wins at Old Lyme (Tuesday) and home versus East Windsor (Friday).

Paul Augeri is a freelance writer for the Middletown Press.

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MIDDLETOWN — A Superior Court judge on Wednesday dismissed animal cruelty charges against an East Hampton horse trainer after the prosecutor admitted there wasn't enough evidence to take the case to trial.

Middletown prosecutor Jennifer Cooper told the judge that Alexis Wall had "maintained her innocence all along."

"The arrest warrant was replete with allegations that can't be proven beyond a reasonable doubt," Cooper said.

Wall, 30, had pleaded not guilty to 20 counts of animal cruelty, including nine counts of torture, seven counts of mutilating or cruelly beating or unjustifiably injuring an animal, two counts of failing to provide proper drink and two counts of overworking.

The horse trainer was arrested in July 2022 following an investigation by the state Animal Control Division into the alleged mistreatment of several horses while Wall was working as a trainer at the now-defunct White Birch Farm in Portland.

During the proceeding, Wall's attorney Robert Pickering chided the press and animal rights advocates for keeping his client's arrest in the news. Wall stood silently next to her attorney as Cooper announced her decision to end her prosecution of the case.

"No horse was victimized, no owner was victimized, how could a victim be standing before this court?" Pickering asked when Judge Julia Dewey heard from a horse owner who claimed her animal was abused by Wall. "My client has bee ostracized by the horse community," Pickering said before adding that the press blew the arrest "way out of proportion."

Reilly was upset with the outcome. She told Dewey that a video shows her horse Ocho breathing heavily and in obvious distress while tightly tethered so his head couldn't move as a method of Wall's training. "The video does not show a horse trainer but rather the defendant enjoying inflicting cruelty on Ocho," Reilly said during the proceedings.

Wall's arrest and court proceedings had been closely watched by animal rights activists who were concerned when a judge didn't order her to refrain from working with animals while the case was pending.

It was unclear whether Wall is still employed as a horse trainer, but court officials hadn't limited her ability to work with animals as a condition of her release. Pickering said the allegations and arrest, even though it was dismissed, would make it hard for her to be hired as a trainer.

According to an incident report by the Animal Control Division, Wall said she began working at White Birch Farm in November 2021, around the same time that an arrest warrant alleges she began abusing horses there.

At the center of the allegations were the controversial techniques that the warrant said she used on the horses she trained. According to the warrant, Wall’s methods were grounded in a philosophy that focused on inflicting pain.

Under Wall’s training, horses would be tied up for hours, deprived of food and water, overworked and sometimes maliciously whipped or beaten to the point of injury, the warrant stated.

Wall was described in the warrant as having used a training philosophy that focused on inflicting pain, and she encouraged her students to adopt a similar approach.

“Pain is an important part of training — that horses listen to pain and the pain must be great enough to make a lasting impression,” she allegedly told one witness, according to the affidavit.

During one training class, Wall allegedly repeated the sentiment that “horses listen to pain,” and proceeded to “hit horses in the face with lead ropes and encouraged everyone attending to do the same,” according to the affidavit.

The alleged abuse first came to light when Portland Animal Control received an anonymous letter in May, the warrant stated. Authorities from the state Animal Control Unit also received a complaint about a week later, the warrant stated.

After receiving the complaint, Animal Control Officer Tanya Wescovich wrote in the affidavit that she spoke with one witness who said she had boarded her horse at White Birch Farm.

The witness told Wescovich that “under the instruction and training of Alexis Wall, several horses have been subjected to cruel punishments, such as withholding food and water, tying for long periods of time, excessive use of spurs and being ridden hard for long periods of time,” the warrant stated.

Another witness, whom Wescovich encountered while at the farm, said in the affidavit that she observed “more than one horse bleeding from the mouth after being ridden or having their head tied tightly to the saddle, and horses whipped excessively.”

During the state's investigation, Wall told an animal control officer that, "I do not abuse horses. ... I have seen people abuse horses and I do not abuse them," the report stated.

EAST HAMPTON, Conn. — East Hampton schools could soon see nearly $800,000 in budget cuts, leaving some teachers with their jobs on the line.

"To be told that we’re just gonna cut $800,000 and get rid of the people? That’s how a school works. You can’t. I don’t know what they were thinking and I don’t know how," said Barbara Dupuis, a kindergarten teacher.

Dozens of people filled a town council meeting Tuesday evening, speaking out against those cuts.

"Our teachers care and if you do too you will not approve these budget cuts," said one resident.

"It’s unacceptable to cut the budget and let these teachers go," another resident said.

East Hampton schools superintendent Paul Smith, said the budget the board of education presented did ask for more money but accounted for rising costs.

Instead, the town’s board of finance proposed $792,000 in cuts.

"I feel it’s my responsibility to advocate for the children and I feel like I presented a very responsible budget," Smith said.

Teachers, parents, and students shared several concerns about what these cuts would mean.

"We already don’t have room in our classrooms as it is, if anything we need more teachers not less," Noelle Lavender of East Hampton said.

"In a time when there are so many more demands, mental health crisis, we need as many teachers as we can get I mean teachers should not be cut at this point," said Kelly Snyder a kindergarten teacher.

Their hope was that the town council would send the budget back to the board of finance to make changes to its proposal.

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"I have sat on this town council for 10 years and I have never seen this many people," said town councilman Kevin Reich.

However, the council did end up voting against that. Nothing is final though, the town council chairman said discussions over the budget will continue and changes can still be made.

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Gaby Molina is a reporter and anchor at FOX61 News. She can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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EAST HAMPTON, CT (WFSB) - An East Hampton High School basketball coach remains on suspension after an incident during a game last month.

Shaun Russell is the girls head basketball coach at East Hampton and he’s on leave for pushing a student athlete during a game on December 20.

Russell won’t coach the Lady Bellringers Tuesday night and it’s not known when or if he will again.

The school district, led by Superintendent Paul K. Smith, is investigating the incident.

The video, shot by Valley Regional High’s Student TV channel and posted to YouTube, shows Russell pushing one of his student athletes from one spot on the floor toward a different spot.

The player is not being identified because she is a minor.

Russell’s suspension came swiftly after the game.

“Regardless of the excitement of an athletic contest we expect our coaches to temper their behavior to represent the high ideals of East Hampton Public Schools” from Superintendent Smith.

The suspension is for basketball coaching only. Russell is still at his daily job at East Hampton High as the Athletic Director and that isn’t sitting well with some, including a fellow high school coaches.

“If it didn’t make it to the news, I’m sure this would have been swept under the floor, it raises questions about what has gone on in the past, what haven’t we seen. This was caught on camera in front of a bunch of people. I can only imagine that more has happened at practice or behind closed doors,” said Jason Mangini, Ski Coach for Wamogo / Litchfield High School.

“It was a bit much he didn’t have to do that, you could have just had her go over, cause the push, he fully pushed her. He didn’t have to do that,” said Avery Doyle, of East Hampton.

The completed investigation will be brought to the East Hampton Board of Education as soon as possible. In the meantime, those on the outside are left wondering, what the permanent result of this incident will be.

East Hampton will host Cromwell in a home game Tuesday night.

The assistant coaches will run the team.

East Hampton is off to a start 5-0 start to the season.

East Hampton coach suspended after shoving player

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