Pine Cobble School in Williamstown names Dr. Alana Harte as head of school
Williamstown— Pine Cobble School in Williamstown has appointed Dr. Alana Harte, a longtime educator, head of school as of January 1st.
Dr. Harte joined Pine Cobble in 2020 and served, most recently, as acting head of school, and prior to that, assistant head of school, dean of students, and reading specialist. She earlier held various positions in other schools, including eleven years as a middle school English teacher, and previously served as an equity consultant and qualitative researcher. She received an EdD in Educational leadership from Southeastern Louisiana University, an MSEd in supervision and administration from Southern University and A&M College, and a BA in English language arts from Hunter College in New York City.
Dr. Harte commented, “I am honored to have been selected as the next head of school at Pine Cobble School. I am drawn in particular to the school’s commitment to strong academics, to community, and to upholding character pillars for its students, as well as its being an equitable and inclusive space. I’m looking forward to us connecting with the greater community meaningfully and frequently.”
Pine Cobble School is an all-gender independent day school for children from early childhood through eighth grade. It is an inclusive community that welcomes students from all cultures and backgrounds with open arms and prepares them to be global citizens. More information can be found at www.pinecobble.org.
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Housatonic Valley Association’s annual auction was a major success
Morris— Housatonic Valley Association (HVA) is thrilled to announce that their annual Auction for the Environment, their largest event of the year, was a huge win for the Housatonic River Valley.
The nearly sold-out event was held on November 19th at South Farms in Morris, Conn. It included a live and silent auction with exciting trips, unique experiences, local restaurants and hotspots, and more. HVA also unveiled its highly anticipated second “Follow the Forest” film, which is slated for release in January. “Follow the Forest” protects and connects forest habitat from the Hudson Valley to Canada.
Proceeds benefited HVA’s work to restore, conserve, and protect clean, cold waters and a sweeping woodland corridor across the entire Housatonic Valley in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York.
HVA Board member Christine Baranski, critically acclaimed Emmy and Tony Award-winning actress and star of CBS’s “The Good Fight” and HBO’s “The Gilded Age,” chaired the Benefit Auction Committee along with Rebecca Neary, Elyse Harney Morris, Pat Kennedy Lahoud, Pam and Jack Baker, Philippa Durant, Margo Martindale, Diane Meier, Seth and Alexi Meyers, and Anne Swift and Lee Lord.
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Bard College pledge support to expand refugee access to higher education impacting thousands of refugees and displaced youth
Annandale-On-Hudson— Bard College, representing the Open Society University Network (OSUN), led several panels at the second Global Refugee Forum in Geneva, Switzerland (December 13–15,) and has made significant pledges to support expanding access to higher education for refugees. Over the next four years, Bard has committed to supporting 425 refugee and displaced students through in-person degrees on its main and branch campuses and online degrees in partnership with Parami University in Myanmar. This pledge will be fulfilled by 2027, when the next Global Refugee Forum is scheduled to take place.
Bard is also representing OSUN in co-leading the UNHCR’s 15by30 Multistakeholder Pledge, a global initiative to galvanize concrete support for the goal of increasing refugee enrollment in higher education from 7% to 15% by 2030. Together, OSUN partners have impacted over 80,000 refugee and displaced youth since the founding of the Network.
As part of their pledge, OSUN partner institutions will support access to higher education for displaced students in Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya and other locations. Bard College is among the institutions who have signed on to fund more than 16,000 scholarships supporting a pipeline pilot program that equips students with the necessary critical, analytical, and digital literacy skills they need to advance in higher education and professional careers.
Held every four years, with the first in 2019, the Global Refugee Forum is the world’s largest international gathering on refugees. Convening heads of state, NGO actors, university networks, and other partners, the forum is an opportunity for key stakeholders to come together to advance the Global Compact on Refugees. For higher education, this means mobilizing global partners to achieve the goal of enrolling 15% of refugees in higher education by 2030, which currently sits at 7%.
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Bard College Center for Environmental Sciences and Humanities receives $44,892 EPA grant to improve air quality and public health across underserved neighborhoods
Annandale-On-Hudson— The Center for Environmental Sciences and Humanities (CESH) at Bard College has received a $44,892 sub-award through the Research Foundation for SUNY Albany as part of a federal grant with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The grant will support a project with the overarching goal of improving air quality and public health across underserved neighborhoods by establishing a community driven network platform to enhance understanding of sustainable outdoor and indoor air quality. The Principal Investigator for this grant is Dr. Aynul Bari at SUNY Albany.
Through the Community Sciences Lab within CESH, Bard will provide technical and analytical support for the project over two years for study sites in the Hudson Valley. Specifically, CESH will provide and install weather stations, with air quality and meteorology sensors and support Dr. Bari’s group in monitoring indoor and outdoor air quality in 40 homes in the Hudson Valley over the next three years—testing for a broad range of air pollutants, including black carbon, volatile organic compounds, ultrafine particles, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and ozone. Bard student involvement will include supporting monitoring efforts (indoor and out) and using the air quality data to assess air quality challenges in the Hudson Valley in classes.
M. Elias Dueker, associate professor of Environmental and Urban Studies at Bard, said “The right to breathe clean air inside and outside our homes is not something we can take for granted as we wrestle with important climate-based challenges, including increased wildfire smoke plumes from other parts of the country, flood-induced molding of our aging housing stock, and increased wood burning in our valley communities.”
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GB Community Impact Fund Committee recommends $500,000 awards to area nonprofits
Great Barrington— The town Community Impact Fund Committee has recommended the distribution of the following funds to area nonprofits:
- Railroad Street Youth Project: $162,000 for community work to educate and mentor youth in the community.
- Rural Recovery Resources: $100,000 to support the addition of a bilingual recovery coach.
- Volunteers in Medicine: $56,000 to support substance abuse counseling work, which also received CIF funding last year.
- Great Barrington Police Department: $182,000 over two years to help fund a Co-responder Program, which includes a mental health professional to accompany police to calls when needed.
Funds are received annually by the town from cannabis-related businesses, and the CIF Committee recommends how the funds are allocated, with priority for organizations addressing health-related impacts of cannabis businesses in the community. Presently five such businesses operate in town.
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Downtown Pittsfield, Inc. announces extension of the second round of ‘Pittsfield Glow Up!’ business improvement grant applications
Pittsfield— Downtown Pittsfield, Inc. (DPI) and the Pittsfield Economic Revitalization Corporation (PERC) are co-facilitating a second round of the Pittsfield Glow Up! business improvement grant program made possible by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). The program’s purpose is to provide grants of up to $10,000 to eligible businesses affected by COVID-19 within ARPA’s disproportionately impacted district of Pittsfield. The grant funds are to be used for physical improvements that will enhance the experience of foot traffic and create a visual vibrancy in the district.
To apply, you must be a for-profit business in operation since January 2021, be in good standing with the state and city, and be within ARPA’s disproportionately impacted district. A map of the district is located at https://downtownpittsfield.com/2023/11/pittsfield-glow-up-business-improvement-grants.
Businesses that received funds in the first round are not eligible to reapply, but property owners can apply for different locations. If you were not selected in the first round, you may reapply for this second round.
Rebecca Brien, Managing Director of Downtown Pittsfield, Inc. said “This program can help with that fresh coat of paint; a new, easy to see sign; or lighting in a spruced-up entryway. We want to see our city become the bright, beautiful, and vibrant district we know it can be!”
Eligible uses of grant funding include Painting (interior and exterior), Signage (building or blade), Lighting Improvements (exterior or window), Flooring Replacement, Entryway Upgrades, Windows (replacement, washing), Awnings (new or replacements), Accessibility Improvements, and Select Interior Improvements or Repairs (note that furniture, fixtures, and equipment are not eligible).
The first-round application of intent for this second round of the “Pittsfield Glow Up!” Business Improvement Grant is due by Wednesday, January 31, 2024 at 11:59 pm. To view the full criteria and access the online application, visit https://downtownpittsfield.com/2023/11/pittsfield-glow-up-business-improvement-grants. Paper copies of the application are available at the Downtown Pittsfield, Inc. office at 33 Dunham Mall. Any grant-related questions may be directed to Rebecca Brien, Managing Director of Downtown Pittsfield, Inc., at 413-443-6501 or businessdevelopment@downtownpittsfield.com.
