NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Voters will go to the polls on Tuesday in what has so far been something of a lackluster election season to elect a new City Council, a mayor and three seats on the School Committee.
The campaign between Mayor Thomas Bernard and McCann School Committee member Rachel Branch has been about as low-key as it can get. There have been no debates — Branch has stated she's not running against Bernard but rather for the office — and only a few forums.
The City Council election will focus more on who will make the cutoff for votes for the nine at-large seats.
Incumbents Keith Bona, Benjamin Lamb, Marie T. Harpin, Paul Hopkins and Wayne Wilkinson are running for re-election. Lamb and Bona have consistently been high vote-getters, taking the first and second spots in the last election. All five incumbents garnered more than 1,600 votes each to get on the council.
There are two former councilors seeking to return to council — Lisa Blackmer and Robert R. Moulton Jr. — who both left in 2017 to run for state representative and mayor, respectively.
Also in the running are Robert Cardimino, Roger J. Eurbin, Peter J. Oleskiewicz, Bryan K. Sapienza, Ronald K. Sheldon, and Jessica Sweeney. The candidates are placed in alphabetical order on the ballot.
At minimum, there will be three new or returning faces on the council come January.
For School Committee, Karen Bond and Tara Jacobs are running for re-election to four-year terms. There are three seats open on the committee and three challengers — Emily Daunis, Robert R. Moulton Jr. (also running for council), and David Sookey III. Voters will place at least one of the challengers on the committee.
There will also be a race for the McCann School Committee, the first in some time. Incumbents George Canales and William R. Diamond will face challengers Peter E. Breen and Shannon M. Santelli for the two seats up for election representing North Adams.
The polls are open from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. All wards now vote at St. Elizabeth's Parish Center. Check back with iBerkshires for election news.
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Northern Berkshire Adult Education Program Enrollment Open
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Northern Berkshire Adult Education Program is currently enrolling students for the spring semester.
All classes and services are currently being conducted remotely. When possible, in person instruction will be offered.
The Northern Berkshire Adult Education Program offers classes to prepare for the Massachusetts High School Equivalency Credential. In addition to classes to prepare for the HISET or GED tests, they offer classes to help improve academic skills to enter postsecondary education, training programs, employment readiness and basic academic skills.
The Northern Berkshire Adult Education Program will offer a course in Digital Literacy starting in February, for those individuals needing to learn digital literacy for the first time or to improve your current knowledge base. North Star Digital Literacy Curriculum will be utilized. Students who participate in this program will be eligible to take a credentialing exam to demonstrate competency in digital literacy.
All the programs of the Northern Berkshire Adult Education Program are free of charge funded by a grant from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education/Office of Adult and Community Learning Services.
For More information, please refer to our website at www.mcla.edu/abe to schedule an appointment to speak with someone about more information.
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