Kids Invited to 'Get Unplugged' This April Vacation

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GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. — Berkshire Co-op Market and Berkshire South Regional Community Center are once again partnering to offer Get Unplugged, a full week of free, fun and educational programs for the upcoming school break April 20-24.

This will be the fourth year of Get Unplugged and each year the program has grown and accepted more and more presenters and participants.  Past years have included workshops on subjects like dance, art, fashion, fitness, nature and more. Highlights from last year’s programming included a fly fishing lesson, a presentation on K-9 police dogs, Boomerang demonstrations, and a workshop on tree and shrub pruning.

“We’re always looking for new and different programming.” Said Jenny Schwartz, founder of Get Unplugged and the Co-op’s Education and Outreach Coordinator. “We’re lucky to live in a community where we have so many skilled educators who are excited to share their knowledge with our youth.” And that tradition will continue in 2015 as Get Unplugged continues to thrive.

For more information about Get Unplugged, including sign up forms for workshops and schedule of events, please visit www.berkshiresouth.org.

 

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Simon's Rock Awarded Freedom to Read Grant

GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. — Bard College at Simon's Rock was awarded a Freedom to Read Grant by the Newburger Schwartz Family Foundation. 
 
The grant was awarded to support the Alumni Library and Bard Queer Leadership Project in building a more robust collection of queer scholarship, starting a Queer Book Club, and hosting Drag Story Time events in partnership with Drag Story Hour of the Berkshires.
 
According to a press release:
 
In response to current educational threats with book bans affecting schools and libraries across the country and further proposed legislation against LGBTQ+ people's access to basic rights and education, Simon's Rock is actively seeking to create inclusive and equitable spaces for queer individuals. 
 
The Bard Queer Leadership Project and Alumni Library will utilize the grant funding to expand the library's current collection of queer books in order to fully enable the longevity of the Queer Book Club and the Bard Queer Leadership Project. The Queer Book Club will be an intergenerational space, open to local middle school students through rainbow seniors and will partner with local community organizations, to discuss queer books and learn about LGBTQ+ issues and experiences. Bard Queer Leadership Project students will eventually help lead this initiative as part of their leadership project training. 
 
The Queer Book Club will host their first meeting on April 6 at 3:00 p.m. at the Alumni Library, with following meetings on April 27 and May 11. This semester, the selected books are "Obie is Man Enough" and "He/She/They," both by Schuyler Bailar, inspirational speaker and first openly transgender NCAA Division swimmer, who was a guest speaker in the inaugural Queer Leaders Vision Forum in fall 2023 at Simon's Rock. Schuyler Bailar will return to campus for a book signing and pool party at the Kilpatrick Athletic Center on April 19 at 7:00 p.m. Participants in the Queer Book Club will receive a free copy of either book of their choice. 
 
The first Drag Story Time will be on Saturday, March 30 at 2:00 p.m. at the Simon's Rock Alumni Library and is open to all LGBTQ+ affirming individuals. The event is in partnership with Drag Story Hour of the Berkshires with local drag queens JV and Poppy DaBubbly. The second Drag Story Time will be Saturday, April 27 with drag queen Poppy DaBubbly and drag king Sativo Green.
 
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