Norman Rockwell Museum expands senior leadership and innovation plans
STOCKBRIDGE — Norman Rockwell Museum (NRM) recently announced the addition of new executive positions. The talent joining the existing professional Museum leadership invites the opportunity to build forward to serve audiences in new and broader ways as the Museum emerges from the ongoing pandemic.
Sue Elliott, appointed to the Museum’s newly created position of Chief Audience Officer, will oversee the newly formed Audience Engagement division. Elliott joins recently appointed staff Alyssa Blumenthal, Director of Public Operations and Visitor Engagement, and Chris Kupernik, Director of Facilities and Safety.
Organizational Growth
As the Museum strives to meet future goals, which include a strong commitment to increasing access and digital engagement, it has reorganized around serving audiences with enhanced research and data analysis. During the pandemic, participation by new audiences grew exponentially with web-based programs, reaching new audiences and expanding civic engagement. A key element to this growth is balancing resources devoted to on-site exhibitions and programming with the opportunity to engage worldwide audiences through online offerings. Elliott will work with curatorial, digital, visitor, and education teams and local, national, and international collaborators to transform the way in which the Museum creates programming.
The new Audience Engagement division will incorporate and build on the work Rich Bradway has led for six years as Director of Digital Learning & Engagement. Bradway’s role will expand to that of Digital Innovation Officer. In addition, the Museum is currently seeking to hire a Technology Coordinator.
Alyssa Blumenthal, Director of Public Operations and Visitor Engagement, has held various hospitality leadership roles in restaurants and event venues throughout Massachusetts and Connecticut.
Sue Elliott, Chief Audience Officer, joins the Museum from her current position as the inaugural director of the Tanglewood Learning Institute at the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Prior to joining the BSO in 2018, she launched and led the world’s first online professional development, certificate, and accreditation program for private music teachers around the world at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Canada.
Chris Kupernik joined the Museum in November 2021 as Director of Facilities and Safety. Kupernik was an estate manager for a large private property and also served as facilities and grounds manager at Berkshire Botanical Garden. He also held a tenure of nearly 11 years at Blantyre, assisting in the maintenance and security of the property.
Laurie Tang, Executive Assistant to the Director/CEO, joined NRM in May 2021. Prior to joining the team, Tang was the Rooms Division Manager at Blantyre.
Following the departure of Collections and Operations Director Martin Mahoney, who became the Director of the Bennington Museum in September 2021, a series of promotions were awarded including: Thomas Mesquita, Director of Collections and Exhibitions; Barbara Rundback, Registrar; Joe Tonetti, Exhibitions Manager; Maria Tucker, Curatorial Intern; and Venus Van Ness, Archivist.
—A.K.
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BRPC secures Economic Development District designation for Berkshire County
BERKSHIRE COUNTY — The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) has approved Berkshire Regional Planning Commission’s (BRPC) request for designation as an Economic Development District (EDD). District designation recognizes the region’s demonstrated enthusiasm and competence in partnering with EDA to pursue the mutually held goals of regionally collaborative economic development work and innovation-driven economic growth. It also serves as the foundation for future economic successes that will benefit both families and businesses in the region.
The interdependence of a region helps to elevate its geographic proximity to one that justifies a District designation. “On a daily basis, Berkshire residents travel throughout the County to work, learn, shop, dine, and visit friends and family,” said BRPC Executive Director Tom Matuszko. “This creates a tightly knit network of economic and personal interactions that extends over a much larger area than any single town.”
Designations are reserved for regions with an EDA-approved Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS). Berkshire Regional Planning Commission coordinates the development and updating of Berkshire County’s CEDS on a five-year cycle, in partnership with a CEDS Strategy Committee. The current approved strategy spans 2017–2022, and the 2023–2027 CEDS will be developed this year.
Support for District designation from a majority of municipalities within the region is required, along with concurrence from the state — both of which were secured at the time the designation was requested by BRPC. Districts must also be of sufficient size, usually a county or multiple counties working together, in order to be able to foster economic development on a regional scale.
Designated District Organizations are expected to engage in and support the full range of economic development goals listed in their EDA-approved CEDS. These can include coordinating and implementing economic development projects, carrying out research and planning activities, serving in an advisory capacity to project proponents, and continuing to develop and update future CEDS planning documents for the region. BRPC will now be eligible for Partnership Planning investments by the EDA on an annual basis, which will help to support Economic Development work to benefit the entire county. Partial support of their staff efforts may begin as early as July of this year.
“We already work closely with EDA staff, shepherding impactful projects through their range of funding programs,” said Laura Brennan, BRPC’s Economic Development Program Manager. “We secured a substantial CARES Act grant to support this work, even before obtaining EDD status to become an official partner of the EDA. This designation and the planning support it provides will allow us to keep offering those services well after our current grant period ends.”
Examples of projects identified in Berkshire County’s CEDS include the Berkshire Innovation Center, a 20,000-square-foot, $14 million life sciences/high technology workforce training, research, and development center in Pittsfield, and Greylock Glen, which recently announced additional state funding for the construction of the Outdoor Center to house education, dining, retail, and other services for Glen visitors. BRPC is currently working with both of these projects to pursue additional funding through the EDA.
Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic further exacerbated the effects of economic disruptions experienced by Berkshire County in recent decades, including the departure of major employers, and the impacts of the Great Recession. Other major obstacles include changing demographics, inadequate infrastructure, limited suitable land for development, and insufficient public transportation. However, the strong sense of regional identity combined with the increasingly coordinated efforts around economic development that helped lead to this designation, are positively impacting the economic landscape of the region.
—A.K.
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1Berkshire launches GoFundU crowdfunding essentials series
BERKSHIRE COUNTY — 1Berkshire, in partnership with the Berkshire Innovation Center, and with the financial support of Pittsfield Economic Revitalization Corporation (PERC) and Massachusetts Growth Capital Corporation (MGCC), launches a new workshop series, GoFundU.
GoFundU is a free, five-week intensive series of two hours per week, focused on providing the essential background, information, and guidance needed to start, grow, or create resilience for your small business through the use of crowdfunding. This series aims to pair well with emergent funding options such as the Biz-M-Power program launched by MGCC in 2021, while also offering general guidance and technical assistance to support efforts across multiple crowdfunding platforms.
Participants in the series who attend at least three of the five weeks of workshops may be eligible for up to two hours of free one-on-one technical assistance support (a $350 value) to help develop, build, and/or launch their own crowdfunding campaigns. Registration for each session is required. Sessions will be held in a hybrid format, and attendees may choose between in-person attendance at the Berkshire Innovation Center, and remote participation via Zoom.
To learn more and to register, click here.
—A.K.
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Berkshire Community Land Trust announces new board members
GREAT BARRINGTON — Berkshire Community Land Trust recently announced two additions to its Board of Trustees, Fred Clark and Jim Lawrence, and the reelection of Rob Putnam.
Professional Representative Fred Clark is a recently retired architect and a Berkshire native. He has long been involved in sustainability, focusing on innovative solutions. He was most recently involved in crafting a prototype net-zero residence hall for the State University of New York. Clark was an elected member of the Berkshire Hills Regional School Committee from 2008–2016. He is a founding member and current chair of the Great Barrington Affordable Housing Trust.
Leaseholder Representative Jim Lawrence moved to the Berkshires from California in 2002. A cadet at the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1963, Lawrence left the military to become a professional stage, film, and TV actor from 1965–1980. Later, during his 30-year career in magazine publishing as an editor, writer, and photographer, he shot more than 600 aviation covers, and wrote numerous articles, profiles, flight test reports, and photo equipment product reviews.
Community Representative Rob Putnam moved to the Berkshires in 1968. He is a retired educator who worked in the Berkshire Hills Regional School District, Central Berkshire Regional School District, and Hoosac Valley Regional School District. He has also been a professional musician for the past 50 years.
The Land Trust thanks Susan Witt, co-founder of the Community Land Trust in the Southern Berkshires and leaseholder, for her service on the Board and her years of dedication to the organization. Witt will continue to lend her expertise to the organization as an ex-officio board member.
—A.K.
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Berkshire Agricultural Ventures adds two
GREAT BARRINGTON — Berkshire Agricultural Ventures (BAV) announces the recent hire of two new staff members.
Shannon Smith joins BAV as the Director of Lending and Finance. In this role, she is responsible for managing BAV’s lending programs, supporting special projects, and overseeing finance and compliance functions. Her interest in regional food systems came from years of stewarding a community garden and being a member-owner of the Park Slope Food Coop. Prior to working with BAV, Smith held underwriting and consulting roles in institutional investments, private lending, and financial technology. She earned a Certificate of Graduate Studies in Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems from the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University, and a BA in Public Policy and Economics from Duke University.
Paul A. Stermer joins the organization as Development Director. He is responsible for raising funds from individual donors, foundations, federal agencies, and corporate partners. He also manages board relations and helps build awareness of BAV’s work throughout the region. Stermer grew up on a small farm in southwest Michigan’s Fruit Belt, where he and his family raised livestock and crops using organic and sustainable methods. After earning a degree in creative writing from Western Michigan University, he worked as a journalist, author, and editor. He later worked with non-profit food systems, helping increase food security and fresh food access for low-income families, supporting food entrepreneurs, improving school food nationwide, and providing basic workplace protections to farmworkers.
—A.K.
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MassHire Berkshire Workforce Board hires Dick Alcombright
PITTSFIELD — Heather Boulger, executive director of MassHire Berkshire Workforce Board announces the recent hire of Dick Alcombright to fill the position of Business Market Maker for Berkshire County.
In October 2020, the Baker/Polito administration announced the Partnerships for Recovery Plan. This investment was provided to support the recovery in several ways. One of them was to fund Market Maker positions that would support employer engagement activities aligning with Career Technical Initiative grants and other workforce skills needs and opportunities.
Alcombright, recently retired after 40 years with MountainOne Bank, has vast experience working with and providing solutions for business customers. As mayor of the City of North Adams for eight years, he fostered growth and development working with businesses on permitting, tax incentive programs, and the navigation of government processes. Alcombright is currently the president of Berkshire Community Action Council, a board member of Berkshire Health Systems, and serves several groups locally and statewide that provide solutions for those suffering from substance use disorder.
—A.K.
