BART Announces Three New Trustees

12:34PM / Monday, August 15, 2022Print Story | Email Story

ADAMS, Mass — Berkshire Arts & Technology (BART) Charter Public School announces three recent additions to its Board of Trustees: Tom Bernard, Alison Bost, and Yina Moore.

Bernard, the former mayor of North Adams, is currently the President and CEO of Berkshire United Way. For the past 18 years, he has worked with various cultural, higher education, and public service institutions in Berkshire County and Western Massachusetts.

Bernard has experience in development and institutional advancement, government relations, finance and administration, strategic planning, economic development, communications, K-12 education, and community philanthropy.

Bost is the former Deputy General Counsel of Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP. She has over 23 years of experience as a lawyer representing clients in various matters, including litigation, appeals, labor and employment matters and legal ethics and professional responsibility matters.

Bost also served for many years on her firm’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee, including as Vice-Chair. Alison currently also serves on the Board of Child Care of the Berkshires, Inc.

Moore is the Founder and Executive Director of Adams Theater, which is currently under development to become a multi-functional performing arts center that will play a key role in revitalizing downtown Adams, MA. She has professional experience that combines nearly two decades of work at investment banks, architectural firms, and non-profit organizations.

Yina was a Director of the Fixed Income Strategy Team at Credit Suisse in New York City before obtaining a Master of Architecture Degree from Harvard University. Working predominantly in the Berkshires, Yina is passionate about the interdisciplinary work between economic development, design, and cultural development.

They join the following in their service as BART Trustees: George Ambriz; Rhon Ernest-Jones; Milton Ferguson; Marcel Kouame; Catherine McKeen, Vice Chair; Gina Puc, Chair; Fred Puddester, Treasurer; and Steve Simon, Secretary.

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Notre Dame Church Closed Indefinitely as Diocese Assesses Structural Damage

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
05:43AM / Wednesday, September 30, 2026

ADAMS, Mass. — What began as concerns over peeling paint inside Notre Dame Church turned out to be a much larger issue, as the church is now closed indefinitely after inspections revealed structural damage, particularly in the steeple.

Notre Dame du Sacre Coeur Catholic Church, located at 21 Maple St., has been taped off and closed since last week as the Diocese of Springfield assesses water damage affecting several areas of the building.

"There are multiple issues ... but the long and short of it is that there's been a water breach in a number of locations at the church, [compromising] some of the structures. The steeple clearly has been negatively impacted by this water breach, and so they're looking at the steeple as one potential major issue," said Mark Dupont, Diocese of Springfield's director of communications.

"A lot of the other ones are not to that level, but taken as a whole, they might be problematic in the long run. This church is well over 100 years old and has served that community with great distinction over the years, but unfortunately, sometimes our past history with these churches is that they quickly become very costly when they start having issues."

The church was built around 1882 to serve the area's French-speaking residents and is one of the three churches part of the Saint John Paul II Parish, which also includes St. Mary's in Cheshire and St. Stanislaus in Adams, Dupont said.

Parish staff first noticed peeling paint inside the Notre Dame church, which can be an indication of water intrusion, and hired a structural mason to inspect the steeple and possibly do some repairs, he said.

However, the inspection revealed more extensive damage to the steeple than initially anticipated, prompting parish staff to immediately contact the Diocese of Springfield and close the church, Dupont said.

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