Cheshire Picks Alibozek as New Police Chief

By Brian RhodesiBerkshires Staff
01:16PM / Thursday, June 16, 2022Print Story | Email Story

CHESHIRE, Mass. — The Board of Selectmen voted on Tuesday to pick Sgt. Michael Alibozek to replace the retiring Timothy Garner as the town's new police chief, beginning July 1.

Alibozek has served full time with the Police Department for the last five years after previously working part time in both Cheshire and Lanesborough. Alibozek's familiarity with the department and the town led the selectmen to pick him for the position.

"For the record, though, both candidates offered extremely close skill levels. And I think, within the board, the decision was tough," said Selectman Raymond Killeen. "But the current employee provided slightly more benefits. Not necessarily skill-level benefits, but his association within the community."

Alibozek was one of two finalists interviewed earlier this month. The other was Joshua Dufresne, assistant director of public safety at Mount Holyoke College. Selectman Ronald DeAngelis highlighted Alibozek's emergency medical technician experience as another reason he stood out over other candidates.

"I think that, besides being the police chief, he is going to be available for a lot more emergencies for people than we had in the past," he said.

Board Chair Michelle Francesconi expects Alibozek to continue the strong-chief format as it was when Garner ran the department. She agreed that his experience in the medical field should be helpful as chief if there are delays in other emergency services.

"Having that medical background is going to be essential. And he was a paramedic," she said.

The decision to officially promote Alibozek came on Tuesday, just a day after Garner was honored at the annual town meeting. Garner announced his intentions last year to retire as police chief after working in the department for nearly four decades.

Alibozek's contract will be negotiated and finalized in the coming weeks.

Tags: police chief,

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Hoosac Valley Hears Educational Study Process, Timeline

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
11:50AM / Tuesday, August 25, 2026

CHESHIRE, Mass. — The Hoosac Valley School Committee got an update Monday on the North Berkshire Education Sustainability Study, now two months into its yearlong process.

This was the first school committee presentation, with the second planned for the North Adams School Committee on Tuesday. The Steering Committee will meet publicly at Mount Greylock Regional School on Wednesday at 5 p.m.

The study is investigating the state of secondary education in North Berkshire, its challenges and potential restructuring. It covers Hoosac Valley, North Adams Public Schools, Mount Greylock and the Northern Berkshire School Union.

Jake Eberwein, project lead with consultant Berk12, explained that baseline data would gathered over the next several months including through community forums to be held in late fall.

"We're not here to audit or evaluate," said Eberwein. "Our goal is to collect, curate and share it. Of course, there's always a process where, as a researcher, you have to decide how to share it and organize it, and that can certainly have a bias in itself. We're going to do our best and work with the subcommittees."

The data will include New Ashford and Hancock because even though they are not participating in the study, they tuition their students to North Berkshire schools, but not Rowe because it sends its high school students to Mohawk Trail Regional School.

"The charge really is to evaluate sort of the long-term sustainability option for the four districts that are involved in the project," Eberwein said. "It's really mostly about how do we provide the best quality, highest quality education for students in Northern Berkshire County, in light of the fact that there are some pressures: shifting enrollments, demographic shifts, and ongoing fiscal pressures."

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