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Kelly Rice was re-elected Monday night as treasurer/collector.

Adams Returns Incumbents; Rice Re-Elected as Treasurer

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
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Joseph Nowak, with his sister Janet Rogge, was re-elected along with Richard Blanchard to a third term on the Board of Selectmen.
ADAMS, Mass. — The annual town election saw the return of incumbents to office on Monday, including in the only race on the ballot. 
 
Treasurer/Collector Kelly Rice, who was first elected to complete a vacant term five years ago, posted an overwhelming victory over Paul Nowicki, who had held the post for nearly 20 years in the 1980s and '90s. Rice is now beginning her second three-year term.
 
Rice earned 597 votes to Nowicki's 198, garnering 67 percent of the votes. There were also a handful of blanks and write-ins. 
 
The incumbent and her sisters let out a cheer as the results were announced by Town Clerk Haley Mezcywor at the town garage polling site. 
 
"Nice," is all Rice could say as she took in the results. She'd been at the polls since 7 that morning, only taking time out for lunch. She hadn't been alone, either. "I've got a big family," she laughed. She later added, "thank you to all the voters who believed in me and voted for me, thank you."
 
Also returned to office were Richard Blanchard (593) and Joseph Nowak (693), both for their third terms on the Board of Selectmen. No one ran against them although former board member Donald Sommers had returned papers before withdrawing. 
 
Running unopposed were Myra L. Wilk for moderator (703); Lorraine Kalisz for assessor  (714); James Taylor for cemetery commissioner (689); Peter Hoyt for Board of Health (678); Virginia Phelps (694) and Karen Kettles (675) for two library trustee seats; Michael Mach for Planning Board (660); Joseph Allard (674) for McCann School Committee (Northern Berkshire Regional Vocational School District); Jennifer Gageant (665) for Adams-Cheshire Regional School Committee, and town meeting members in each of the five precincts. 
 
Election workers were going through write-in candidates, which were needed for three seats on the Housing Authority (two one-year and a five-year term) and another seat on the Adams-Cheshire Regional School Committee. Erica Girgenti, who ran a write-in campaign, was re-elected to the five-year term on the Housing Authority with 86 votes. 
 
Meczywor said she wasn't too disappointed at the turnout, which came out to 13.5 percent. Of the 5,989 registered voters, 810 cast ballots in what was fairly sleepy election with one race and no controversies. 
 
Turnout in 2018 when there was a five-way race for two Board of Selectmen seats was about 19 percent, with 1,131 ballots were cast out of 5,863 voters. 
 
Updated at 4:15 p.m. on May 7 with official tallies. 

Tags: election 2019,   town elections,   


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Hoosac Valley High School is Moving and Shaking

There have been some major shifts within the Hoosac Valley Regional School District recently, all of which have focused on enhancing the student experience to make it a place where ALL students can find their path.
 
In 2023, Hoosac Valley High School was designated an Innovation Pathway School by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) and has since restructured the Program of Studies, utilized creative scheduling, and expanded internship opportunities. Part of this transformation includes participating in a "Portrait of a Graduate" cohort alongside four other Berkshire County schools to determine a collective vision for student success, in partnership with the BARR Foundation.
 
The Innovation Pathways at HVHS are designed to give students coursework and experience in a specific high-demand industry, such as technology, engineering, healthcare, or life sciences. Currently, Biomedical Science & Healthcare and Environmental Studies have received official state IP designation. In addition to the IP designated pathways, HVHS offers programs in Engineering & Technology, Business & Entrepreneurship, Arts & Entertainment, Education, and Sports Medicine. The result is that students have an opportunity for a transformative experience – enabling them to build essential skills, gain awareness of future career opportunities, and make informed choices about post-secondary education in promising fields.
 
Principal Colleen Byrd notes, "What makes our program special is that entry into the Pathway of your choice allows a student to access Advanced Placement and dual enrollment college courses, as well as internships in the community to set them up for success after high school."
 
The Portrait of a Graduate initiative consists of a team of Hoosac educators and students who exemplify the essential skills, practices, and beliefs that define learning experiences across the district. They work to outline the competencies, values, skills, and knowledge that define our vision for student success – keeping in mind that not every student's pathway will look the same. The District's goal is to ensure that all students graduate as responsible people, prepared individuals, lifelong learners, global citizens, critical thinkers, and thoughtful communicators.
 
Another recent change district-wide in grades K-12 is the "Crew" culture. Teachers and students now have time each day to create positive connections and build authentic relationships with one another. Through Responsive Classroom at the elementary school and Crew at the middle and high schools, students and staff gather for 30 minutes each day to engage in meaningful experiences rooted in mutual and shared interests. 
The Crew block is a prioritized structure that allows staff to support all students socially, emotionally, and academically – anchoring them and promoting the Portrait of a Graduate competencies. Crew takes many forms at the high school, such as gardening, bird watching, yoga, and sports talk with visits to college games.
 
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