Hoosac Valley High School is Moving and Shaking

03:11PM / Friday, March 22, 2024Print Story | Email Story

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.

Anna Thurston, a tenth grade member of the Portrait of a Graduate committee for the high school, says this about her experiences in her Volleyball Crew: "Crew is the best. It's our time each day to reset, connect with other students that we might not typically socialize with, and do meaningful things outside of our usual coursework with adults that we trust."

Outside of the classroom, Hoosac Valley hosts 13 interscholastic sports programs while offering cooperative opportunities in three other sports. Athletic programs are an extension of the academic day where staff work to challenge players in a positive manner, in hopes of imparting life-long lessons to students. Participation in sports (which is voluntary) can provide student-athletes with experiences to help them be better prepared to meet and successfully handle future challenges and responsibilities. And finally, athletic programs provide students with true opportunities for self-discipline, self-sacrifice and loyalty to the school, team and community. Over the last two years, Hoosac Valley programs have competed in the MIAA State Tournaments in eight different sports, claimed sectional titles in three others, and most recently, a state title. Our students take pride in becoming Hurricanes and it shows on the field and in the classrooms. (The HVHS athletic program is governed by the rules and policies of Berkshire County Athletics as well as the MIAA.)

Another way students can get involved outside of class is through Hoosac Valley's Theater program, run by high school English teacher Rebecca Koczela. This program allows students to thrive on the stage. The school's musical productions bring together both middle and high school students for a chance to display their talents, while allowing older students to mentor younger students in an enriching, positive way.

The Hurricane Band, led by music teacher Amanda Watroba, offers high school students an opportunity to find a creative outlet through daily lessons, an opportunity to march in the Northern Berkshire Fall Foliage Parade, participate in Jazz band and in the pit band for school musicals. In the past, the Hurricane band has marched through Walt Disney World in the Magic Kingdom parade.

All of these various options provide something for every student – and all are woven together with high standards and high expectations for learning, high quality instruction, applied- and project-based learning, varied extracurricular activities and the chance everyday to connect with a mentor adult. Superintendent of the District, Aaron Dean, proudly shares that 7 out of 10 graduates from Hoosac Valley High School enroll in a four-year college. But no matter what students choose to pursue upon graduation, they will leave Hoosac Valley with a better understanding of who they are, what they want to pursue, and how to get there.

If you'd like to learn more about Hoosac Valley Regional School District, you can visit our website or email our engagement coordinator Erica Girgenti at egirgenti@hoosacvalley.org.

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Letter: Progress Means Moving on Paper Mill Cleanup

Letter to the Editor05:00PM / Wednesday, February 11, 2026

To the Editor:

Our town is facing a clear choice: move a long-abandoned industrial site toward cleanup and productive use or allow it to remain a deteriorating symbol of inaction.

The Community Development team has applied for a $4 million EPA grant to remediate the former Curtis Mill property, a site that has sat idle for more than two decades. The purpose of this funding is straightforward: address environmental concerns and prepare the property for safe commercial redevelopment that can contribute to our tax base and economic vitality.

Yet opposition has emerged based on arguments that miss the point of what this project is designed to do. We are hearing that basement vats should be preserved, that demolition might create dust, and that the plan is somehow "unimaginative" because it prioritizes cleanup and feasibility over wishful reuse of a contaminated, aging structure.

These objections ignore both the environmental realities of the site and the strict federal requirements tied to this grant funding. Given the condition of most of the site's existing buildings, our engineering firm determined it was not cost-effective to renovate. Without cleanup, no private interest will risk investment in this site now or in the future.

This is not a blank check renovation project. It is an environmental remediation effort governed by safety standards, engineering assessments, and financial constraints. Adding speculative preservation ideas or delaying action risks derailing the very funding that makes cleanup possible in the first place. Without this grant, the likely outcome is not a charming restoration, it is continued vacancy, ongoing deterioration, and zero economic benefit.

For more than 20 years, the property has remained unused. Now, when real funding is within reach to finally address the problem, we should be rallying behind a practical path forward not creating obstacles based on narrow or unrealistic preferences.

I encourage residents to review the proposal materials and understand what is truly at stake. The Adams Board of Selectmen and Community Development staff have done the hard work to put our town in position for this opportunity. That effort deserves support.

Progress sometimes requires letting go of what a building used to be so that the community can gain what it needs to become.

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