Pittsfield Council Wants Promised Transparency Around PHS InvestigationBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
12:20PM / Wednesday, April 23, 2025 | |
 PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The City Council doesn't want promises of transparency around the Pittsfield High School investigation to be backtracked.
On Tuesday, it urged the School Committee to release a public summary of the findings from the independent investigation into staff misconduct at PHS. Councilors reported that they have been left in the dark along with the general public, so much so that Ward 1 Councilor Kenneth Warren submitted a public records request.
"I want to be clear that we on the council haven't received a secret briefing on what happened. We are being left in the dark, too. It's not acceptable," Ward 6 Councilor Dina Lampiasi
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Graphic Novelist James Spooner to Speak at BCC| 11:22AM / Wednesday, April 23, 2025 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Berkshire Community College (BCC) will host graphic novelist, filmmaker, and tattoo artist James Spooner for a free talk on Wednesday, April 30, at 2 p.m. The event, titled "The Ripple Effect Is Wild: How Small Projects Can Have Huge Unexpected Impacts," will be held in the Connector on BCC's main campus at 1350 West Street. Spooner's presentation will focus on the value of community engagement over social media metrics. His debut graphic novel, "The High Desert," was recognized as a top book of 2022 by Publishers Weekly, The Washington Post, and The New York Public Library. He also co-edited "Black Punk Now," an anthology of
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Pittsfield Councilor Wants Summary of PHS Investigation OutcomesBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
05:51AM / Tuesday, April 22, 2025 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A city councilor is adding pressure to release an executive summary of the Pittsfield High School misconduct investigation.
Councilor at Large Earl Persip III has submitted a petition to Tuesday's City Council meeting urging the School Committee to release a public summary of the findings from the independent investigation into staff misconduct at PHS. He said public trust needs to be restored in the school district, and transparency is vital to make that happen. The petition asks his colleagues to go on record in agreement.
"The community has been deeply affected by recent events, including the arrest of a school administrator on federal drug charges
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Town Meetings That Rejected CBRSD Agreement to Vote AgainBy Sabrina Damms, iBerkshires Staff
05:51PM / Monday, April 21, 2025 | |
 DALTON, Mass. — The three towns that failed Central Berkshire Regional School District's proposed regional agreement last year will likely see it again on this year's annual town meeting warrant. The item failed during last year's town meetings in Hinsdale and Peru, as well as Cummington's special town meeting — the regional agreement needed six out of the seven towns to vote in favor of passing. Until an updated agreement is approved, the school district will continue to operate under its current agreement and follow state law. The original agreement, created in 1958, has been amended several times and approved locally but >> Read More |
CBRSD Aims to Improve Town Meeting Attendance By Sabrina Damms, iBerkshires Staff
02:35PM / Thursday, April 17, 2025 | |
DALTON, Mass. — As town meeting season approaches, the Central Berkshire Regional School District aims to lower a barrier to residential participation caused by the lack of child care. District Assistant Superintendent Michael Henault informed the School Committee last week that the district plans to offer child care at Kittredge, Beckett-Washington and Wahconah High schools on voting nights, provided by a combination of National Honor Society students and staff volunteers. "We're organizing that right now … we're going to make it work, make it happen. A survey will go out to see the interest, but we're going to try to take away that >> Read More |
BCC Nursing Programs Integrate Mental Health First Aid Certification| 08:13AM / Thursday, April 17, 2025 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Berkshire Community College (BCC) has added Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) certification as a mandatory component for all students in their final semester of the associate degree in nursing and practical nursing programs. The requirement, based on the curriculum provided by the National Council for Mental Wellbeing, aims to equip graduating nursing students with the skills to identify and respond to individuals experiencing mental health and substance use challenges. Data from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention indicates an average of 130 daily deaths by suicide in the U.S. The National Institute of Mental Health reports that nearly one in >> Read More |
PHS Principal Stepping Down at School Year's EndBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
12:21PM / Tuesday, April 15, 2025 | |
 PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Pittsfield High School Principal Maggie Harrington-Esko will step down at the end of the year after nearly 20 years in the building.
"I feel that it is important to let you know that this is a decision that I have come to on my own," she wrote to the school community on Monday evening.
Harrington-Esko is the second administrator to resign after the school became embroiled in a staffing scandal in December. Earlier this year, Superintendent Joseph Curtis announced that he would step down from his position effective June 30.
"This is not an easy decision because PHS is a place I love deeply," she wrote.
"For the past 18 years, this
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Pittsfield School Committee Mulls Lukewarm FY26 BudgetBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
05:41AM / Monday, April 14, 2025 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — There isn't much to be said about the district's "as good as it gets" budget for fiscal year 2026.
Officials are just glad that people won't lose their jobs.
"I'm going to say something that I know is going to get me in trouble later, but I think this is as good as it gets," Mayor Peter Marchetti said.
On Wednesday, School Committee members aired their suggestions for the $87 million budget proposal with $1,238,000 in payroll reductions expected to be made through job movement, attrition, retirements, etc.
A $3,765,084 increase from FY25, it includes an $18 million city contribution and more than $68 million of
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Pittsfield School Officials Want Summary of PHS InvestigationBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
05:51PM / Thursday, April 10, 2025 | |
 PITTSFIELD, Mass. — While it is unclear how much information will be released, School Committee members want some executive summary of the Pittsfield High School investigation into alleged staff misconduct.
On Wednesday, they requested a capsulation of the process and, if possible, the findings of Bulkley Richardson & Gelinas' investigation triggered by allegations against Dean of Students Molly West and Vice Principal Alison Shepard that surfaced in December.
"Right now, the public has the seven of us sitting up here saying nothing was substantiated," said Mayor Peter Marchetti, who motioned for an executive summary.
"And quite frankly, part of the
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Pittsfield Celebrates Jazz Art Contest WinnersBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
05:39PM / Wednesday, April 09, 2025 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — For the month of April, Pittsfield High School students' jazz-inspired works bring color and design to the corridors of City Hall.
Kayleigh Capitanio secured the first-place award for the Berkshires Jazz Student Art Contest with a vibrant work depicting a guitar, piano, and music notes. The piece was created in art teacher Lisa Ostellino's classroom while listening to the music that inspired it. "I didn't think that idea was going to be good until I started drawing," Capitanio explained. "And then I think what really helped was that we were listening to jazz music and it just got me in the groove, I guess."
Each year, Berkshire
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