Pittsfield Panel Backs School Bus Stop-Arm CamerasBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
05:20AM / Wednesday, September 24, 2025 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — City councilors are in favor of a theoretical system that flags vehicles that don't stop for school buses.
On Monday, the Ordinances and Rules subcommittee supported Ward 1 Councilor Kenneth Warren's request to accept a new statute that gives the option to install a detection system for school bus traffic violations.
Warren explained that this doesn't mean it will get implemented, but it accepts state law (MGL Chapter 40, Section 71) so that the city can look into it. Earlier this year, Gov. Maura Healey signed a bill that allows municipalities to use school bus violation detection monitoring systems.
"We're talking
>> Read More |
Pittsfield Administrator Tapped for Berkshire Hills PositionBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
05:51AM / Monday, September 22, 2025 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Assistant Superintendent for Business and Finance Kristen Behnke will leave the school district after more than 20 years.
This was disclosed during Wednesday's School Committee meeting. Interim Superintendent Latifah Phillips, who has been in the position for three months, said Behnke has been "such an asset" to her during that time.
"But I know to the district for over two decades, so it will be a tremendous loss to us, big shoes to fill, but really thankful for the time that we've had with you," Phillips said.
"And I wanted to share that before giving an update on replacing her, because it is a very
>> Read More |
Ellen Kennedy Reflects on Past, Future of BCC Before RetirementBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
12:17PM / Sunday, September 21, 2025 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — President Ellen Kennedy feels Berkshire Community College is in a good place to welcome new leadership.
She will retire at the end of the school year after more than 17 years with the college, 14 as president, and looks back on the students, faculty, and campus as a whole with pride.
"Our faculty is extraordinary. Our administrators and staff are just exceptional. Our students are so special, so committed to their own learning and their own growth as people and in pursuit of their own goals, it's just really exciting," she said recently.
"We have an excellent board of trustees. We have an excellent foundation. I mean,
>> Read More |
Stearns Not Currently Included in Pittsfield's Crosby/Conte ProposalBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
05:56AM / Friday, September 19, 2025 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Stearns Elementary School was not included in Crosby/Conte planning documents sent to the Massachusetts School Building Authority.
This was clarified on Wednesday, before the School Committee endorsed the district and MSBA’s examination of a three-zone, long-term option for reorganizing and consolidating the elementary level.
"MSBA is not moving forward at this time with a feasibility study that includes any consolidation except the possibility of merging Conte and Crosby at the new school," Chair William Cameron reported after a discussion with the funding authority.
"That said, MSBA is not averse to
>> Read More |
Pittsfield Public Schools Awarded CPPI Grant| 10:56AM / Thursday, September 18, 2025 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Pittsfield Public Schools has been awarded $250,000 through the Commonwealth Preschool Partnership Initiative (CPPI) to expand access to preschool for 3- and 4-year-olds across the city. A 2024–25 community-wide needs assessment revealed that about 25 percent of Pittsfield's preschool-aged children remain unserved and disconnected to pre-K education, despite over 1,100 available seats. More than half of incoming kindergarteners scored below readiness benchmarks and would benefit from early childhood programs. However, families cited cost, transportation, and limited full-day options as barriers to their child's enrollment in such >> Read More |
MCLA to Host Networking Session for Regional K-12 Educational Leaders | 07:42AM / Thursday, September 18, 2025 | |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) Division of Graduate & Continuing Education will host a networking and mentoring session for new K-12 leaders on Tuesday, Sept. 30, from 4-6 p.m. at the Berkshire Innovation Center in Pittsfield. The event comes at a time of significant leadership transitions across local school districts and is designed to strengthen regional educational partnerships while providing support for newly appointed administrators. "With significant leadership transitions occurring across local school districts, this gathering provides an opportunity to build relationships, offer support, and strengthen the >> Read More |
BCC Invites All to 'Explore the Electrician Trade'| 08:14AM / Tuesday, September 16, 2025 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Berkshire Community College (BCC) will hold a free, hands-on career awareness event called "Explore the Electrician Trade" on Tuesday, Sept. 23 from 4:30 – 6:30 p.m. The event will be held in the SBA Lounge on BCC's main campus, located at 1350 West Street, Pittsfield. The event will focus on the BCC Trades Academy's future electrician program. Attendees will include local electricians, young employees in the trade and facilities managers. Admission is free; registration is suggested but not required. To register, visit www.berkshirecc.edu/electrician. An overview of the program will be followed >> Read More |
Berkshire Athenaeum Hosts an Early Literacy Event | 12:49PM / Monday, September 15, 2025 | |
 PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Berkshire Athenaeum and Pittsfield Coordinated Family and Community Engagement (CFCE), based out of Berkshire County Head Start, invite children ages 6 and under and their families to a free early literacy event celebrating the children's book, "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" by Eric Carle. The event will take place on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025, from 10:30 am to noon in the auditorium of the Berkshire Athenaeum, Pittsfield's Public Library located at 1 Wendell Avenue, Pittsfield, MA 01201. This event aims to engage young learners and their families through a variety of fun, STEAM- based (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, >> Read More |
BCC President Ellen Kennedy to Retire at Conclusion of Academic Year | 09:54AM / Tuesday, September 09, 2025 | |
 PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Ellen Kennedy will retire as seventh president of Berkshire Community College at the end of the academic year. The college made the announcement on Tuesday. Kennedy has been president since 2012. In a message to the campus community, Kennedy emphasized that the decision comes after deep reflection and is guided by both professional and personal considerations. "Looking ahead, the college will soon embark on the development of a new Strategic Plan and prepare for its 2029 [New England Commission of Higher Education] NECHE Self-Study," Kennedy said in the announcement. "Both efforts represent significant opportunities >> Read More |
Plan for Merging Pittsfield's Elementary Zones TabledBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
05:25AM / Friday, September 05, 2025 | |
The current elementary zones. PITTSFIELD, Mass.— The School Committee is not ready to adopt an elementary school reorganization plan that moves Stearns students into the proposed Crosby/Conte building.
On Wednesday, it tabled a long-term, three-zone elementary plan that assumes the Stearns population will be a part of a new school on West Street as early as 2029.
The city has to determine the building's size, based on enrollments, in its quest for funding from the Massachusetts School Building Authority. Officials say the MSBA also wants to see how the consolidation of the West Side fits into larger plans for the district.
Based on the
>> Read More |
|
|
