Pittsfield Deputy Superintendent Earns Doctorate

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Barbara Malka
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Barbara Malkas, deputy superintendent of the Pittsfield Public Schools, was awarded the degree of doctorate in educational leadership from the Sage Colleges of Albany at a commencement ceremony held on Saturday, May 12, at the RPI Field House in Troy, N.Y.

Malkas will be leaving her current position to become the superintendent of the Webster Public Schools in Central Massachusetts, effective July 1, 2012.

She began her educational career as a science teacher in Brooklyn, N.Y., in 1982 after receiving her bachelor's in chemistry from St. Joseph's College in Brooklyn. She then received her master's in education from St. John's University in Queens, N.Y., in 1986.

Upon relocating to the Berkshires, Malkas has served public education in a variety of positions, ranging from chairman of Taconic High School's science department (1998-2002) to coaching the implementation of an integrated curriculum of technology and engineering with science in the Northern Berkshire Vocational School District (2002-2004). In 2004, she became assistant principal of C.H. McCann Technical School in North Adams.

In 2006, Dr. Malkas returned to Pittsfield to become the coordinator of mathematics, science, health and physical education for the Pittsfield Public Schools.

She was appointed assistant superintendent of personnel and negotiations in the Pittsfield Public Schools in 2007 and was promoted to her current position of deputy superintendent of curriculum and instruction in 2008.

Malkas resides in Clarksburg with her husband, John Euchler, and has two grown children. Her son, Eric Euchler, is studying electronic game design and Chaplain College in Burlington, Vt., and her daughter,
Kristin Euchler, is a cadet at U.S. Coast Guard Academy, majoring in mechanical engineering.

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Dalton Counter Sues Berkshire Concrete

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
DALTON, Mass. — The dispute between Berkshire Concrete and the town has taken another turn as the town pursues a countersuit against the excavation company.
 
On April 13, Berkshire Concrete Corp., a subsidiary of Petricca Industries, launched legal action against the town, seeking damages, the overturning of the Planning Board's denial of its special permit, and additional proposed orders of a court. 
 
The town has responded with a countersuit of its own, seeking a preliminary injunction requiring Berkshire Concrete to fully restore Lot 105-16 and a permanent injunction mandating an effective dust mitigation plan. 
 
The suit also requests that Berkshire Concrete pay all fines assessed against them, along with the town’s legal costs and attorney's fees, and other relief deemed by the court. 
 
The claim explains the timeline of events dating back to 2024 when Berkshire Concrete started mining without town approval on parcel 105-16, clearing trees and vegetation that abuttors claimed acted as a natural barrier. 
 
The removal of this vegetation resulted in the creation of a corridor for wind to carry dust from the lot and onto residential properties in the abutting neighborhood, the suit claims. 
 
Almost a year ago, both the Select Board and Planning Board expressed that they wanted parcel No. 105-16 fully mitigated to abide by the town's bylaws.
 
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