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Thursday January 8, 2009
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Region

Citgo: We Have Oil 4 Joe
Galusha Buys Green River Farm
St. Francis Prays for Appeal
Cheshire Settles for $1.2M
Readsboro Utility Damaged by Storm
State Preps for Bulge Battle
Stockbridge Opposes Pike Link
Brace of Storms Boost Ski Areas
Houses of Faith in Need of Repair

Songs From St. James (Vt.)

Obama Transition

Your Seat at the Table
Track who's meeting with the Obama transition team and what they're proposing.
Federal government has 8,000 job openings
Are you going to the inauguration? We'd like to hear from you. E-mail to info@iberkshires.com.
The president-elect's new Web site
www.change.gov
Essay Winners Will Get Inaugural Tickets
Marvel Comic Features Obama

Daily Digest

Meetings
The Drury High School Council meets Tuesday, Jan 13, at 6:30 in the conference room. Agenda items include AYP, school grant, laptop initiative and PowerSchool updates.

Steve Decker cleans up in front of BankNorth on Wednesday.
More Snow

The Berkshires received several inches of snow this morning, but not enough to close schools, unlike yesterday's sleety mess. Temperatures will drop into the 20s this afternoon. A few more snow showers are expected through the weekend.

We have reports that the roads are very slippery to take care in the evening commute.
Duff'em If You've Got'em
North Adams Regional Hospital went smoke-free Monday — so did all its sister sites, from Sweet Brook to Northern Berkshire Family Practice to the Women's Exchange. No ashtrays, no smoking: No butts about it.

Wanted: Eagle Eyes
MassWildlife's annual eagle count runs Dec. 31 to Jan. 14. Anyone sighting one of the regal birds in Massachusetts is asked to participate.

Send date, time, location and town of eagle sightings, number of birds, whether juvenile or adult and observer's contact information to Mass.wildlife@state.ma.us.
How much is heating oil this week?
How to get heating help
Need to contact iBerkshires? Here's how.
Like to Write?
iBerkshires accepts submissions about local events, news and opinion pieces. There are openings for freelance work, too, for qualified candidates. E-mail tdaniels@iberkshires.com to find out more.

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Digital TV Subsidy Program Running Out of Money
Couple Doubles B&W Twins
Mars Rovers Mark 5 Years
Spirit
and Opportunity have been trekking the red planet for half a decade. Spirit hit the 5-year mark on Sunday; Opportunity will on Jan. 24.

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High School First-Generation English Learners Spend Week at BCC

- August 19, 2008

A one-of-a-kind enrichment program for a group of first-generation English language learners from Central and South America, Africa and Asia is underway this week (8/18-8/22) at Berkshire Community College.

The students, who will be entering the 10th through 12th grades at Pittsfield and Lee High Schools next month, have come together on BCC’s main campus for an intensive summer program. Funded by the Massachusetts Educational Opportunity Program, the students’ training will continue throughout the upcoming school year.

During their week at BCC, the students are participating in various academic and social activities designed to enhance their language and math skills, and to foster team spirit and a sense of community. Central to the week’s activities and training is a technological literacy component.

Students will post their work on the program’s weblog and will continue to contribute to it during the coming school year. Blogging and working with multi-media provides the students with rich opportunities to improve their English skills by writing, speaking, listening and reading, while simultaneously gaining hands-on experience with tools essential in today’s professional world.

In addition to the academic components, students participate in workshops focusing on study skills and career planning, as well as healthful activities such as yoga and wilderness hikes. The students also attend an afternoon ropes course and a performance workshop with Gaia Roots, a popular African Drumming ensemble. Keynote speaker Carlos Saavedra from the Student Immigration Movement will offer the students a view of the world in which they can find their own voices and learn to advocate for themselves.

BCC student mentors, mostly from immigrant backgrounds themselves, work with the students from the program on a one-to-one basis and in small groups to provide support and build self-confidence. As successful college students and leaders committed to education and community service, the mentors also act as role models for their younger peers.

The mentors also receive an unprecedented learning experience of their own, not just from their association with the program students, but by working hand-in-hand with college faculty and teachers from regional schools in a nontraditional classroom environment.

In welcoming these high school students to BCC for a week of fun, learning and support, the organizers, faculty and students, in partnership with the Pittsfield and Lee district schools, hope to bring college into view as an option for a group of kids who might not have considered it otherwise.
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