North Adams Schools Set Calendar, Review BudgetBy Tammy Daniels, iBerkshires Staff
05:04AM / Wednesday, April 03, 2024 | |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. —Schoolchildren will have an extra long holiday vacation next year. The School Committee approved a calendar that has students on break from the end of the school day Friday, Dec. 20, to Thursday, Jan. 2. The calendar was one of two options recommended by the teachers union. Superintendent of Schools Barbara Malkas said the only difference was the start date. The teachers preferred to begin professional development on Monday, Aug. 26, with school starting Thursday, Aug. 29. The other option was to start two days later and end the school year two days later. "I will say that this an action-packed week because you also have >> Read More |
Drury Performing Arts To Stage 'SpongeBob SquarePants the Musical' | 12:01PM / Tuesday, April 02, 2024 | |
 NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Drury Performing Arts in collaboration with the 21st Century Afterschool Program, announced their 2024 production of Kyle Jarrow's book and musical production of Tina Landau's "SpongeBob SquarePants the Musical". Performances will be held on Friday, April 5, at 7 p.m. and Saturday, April 6, at 3 and 7 p.m. All performances will take place in the Drury High School auditorium, 1130 South Church St. Tickets are $5 for students and $10 for adults. Tickets will be sold at the door. According to a press release: "Plunge into this stunning all-singing, all-dancing, dynamic stage show! When the citizens of Bikini >> Read More |
Drury High School Life Skills Class Gets Bleed TrainingBy Sabrina Damms, iBerkshires Staff
06:58AM / Saturday, March 30, 2024 | |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — If a medical emergency happens, Drury High students know how to "Stop the Bleed." Teens enrolled in the high school's life skills class learned life-saving measures this week at the Police Department. They were trained in how to effectively use tourniquets, gauzes and bandages and when to use them based on the injury and its location on the body. The class is funded by the five-year Up Street Violence Prevention Strong Communities grant for $629,000 from the Executive Officer of Health and Human Services. A Strong Communities Working Group made up of 20 members including community organizations, city >> Read More |
Teacher of the Month: Kimberly WallBy Sabrina Damms, iBerkshires Staff
05:48PM / Friday, March 29, 2024 | |
Kimberly Wall has been at Abbott since 2009 and has taught Grades 2 through 6 before deciding Grade 3 was the right fit for her. FLORIDA, Mass. — Gabriel Abbott Memorial School third-grade teacher Kimberly Wall has been selected as the March Teacher of the Month. The first season of the Teacher of the Month series runs for the next two months in partnership with Berkshire Community College. Staff, students, and parents are encouraged to nominate a distinguished teacher for the second season. Nominate a teacher here. Wall has been working in the education field since 2005, starting in high school working part time in the summer at local daycares >> Read More |
Drury High School to Host End-of-Year Showcase| 08:00AM / Thursday, March 28, 2024 | |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Drury High School is gearing up for its upcoming End-of-Year Showcase on June 7, 2024. The event will highlight student achievements and the school's learning environment. Following a mid-year Showcase in January 2024, which showcased student work and performances across various courses, the End-of-Year Showcase aims to continue celebrating student accomplishments. The showcase will feature displays and performances from project-based learning courses, Early College and Advanced Placement classes, and Drury's student-focused Crew blocks. Similar to past events, the showcase will include student work exhibitions in the >> Read More |
McCann School Committee OKs Student Opportunity Plan By Tammy Daniels, iBerkshires Staff
03:34PM / Tuesday, March 26, 2024 | |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The McCann School Committee last week approved a new three-year Student Oppurtunity Act plan that focuses positive school environments, leveraging best practices for students with disabilities and supporting curriculum communication. Principal Justin Kratz said the vocational district had received about $170,000 in extra state funding toward implementing the goals. "As part of that infusion of money into the public schools, they required all public schools to submit a plan of how this extra money will impact and benefit students," he said. "They want to know sort of generally how are these funds improving education in your >> Read More |
North Adams Schools Closing in on Budget GapBy Tammy Daniels, iBerkshires Staff
05:39AM / Tuesday, March 26, 2024 | |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The School Committee will likely dip into its school choice account to close a revenue gap for fiscal 2025. The Finance and Facilities subcommittee was presented with a tentative budget scenario on Monday morning that would pull nearly $600,000 out of the school choice account and raise the city's portion by $100,000. "We have been working very diligently to really maintain our priorities with respect to this budgeting process, which has been to maintain a high-quality, student experience and ensuring that they will still have access to things that are currently part of their educational programming, particularly the arts," said >> Read More |
NAPS Holds Forum on School Closure, New Grade Configuration By Jack Guerino, iBerkshires Staff
05:37AM / Friday, March 22, 2024 | |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Superintendent Barbara Malkas answered questions and corrected misinformation in a community forum regarding the closing of Greylock Elementary School. Malkas took the first half hour of the forum Wednesday to present some facts about the budget and financial realities moving the district toward closing Greylock. "I want to start by saying no superintendent, no school committee members, nobody wants to be in this position," she said in Brayton Elementary's Welcome Center. "This is not something we elect to do, it is something we have to do because we need to be financially responsible to our community." Malkas said the >> Read More |
MCLA Announces Tamar Sarai as 2024 Hardman Journalist in Residence| 08:02AM / Wednesday, March 20, 2024 | |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass.— Writer and journalist Tamar Sarai will deliver the Hardman Journalist in Residence Lecture on Monday, April 8, at 6 p.m., in the Feigenbaum Center for Science and Innovation Atrium. The lecture is free and open to the public. "Tamar Sarai represents a refreshing journalistic practice which our Beacon and Beacon Web News journalism students will find energizing and modern," said MCLA Professor Michael Birch. "Her writing will offer new topics and focus for their learning, as will her emphasis on the power and value of good writing in the service of exceptional storytelling. This will be an excellent learning opportunity for our >> Read More |
Geothermal System Recommended for New Greylock School By Tammy Daniels, iBerkshires Staff
05:42AM / Wednesday, March 20, 2024 | |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The new Greylock School may get a geothermal system that could significantly reduce operating costs in the years to come. Jessie Saylor of the project's designer, TSKP Studios, updated the School Building Committee on Tuesday of some of the working group's findings regarding energy efficiencies. Installing a geothermal system, which uses water heated by the earth, is estimated at $2.7 million. But, system could be largely offset by some $2.4 million in federal funding from the Inflation Reduction Act. "The IRA definition of geothermal systems is broad," said Saylor. "It includes incentives for the pumps in >> Read More |
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