Letter: Thank You for Supporting 'Get BArT Smart'

To the Editor:

On Saturday, April 6, Berkshire Arts & Technology (BART) Charter Public School hosted our annual "Get BART Smart" fundraiser — and raised $29,769 (net) for the school's college preparatory and extra-curricular programs! Over 110 people attended and participated in our signature team trivia game. A huge "thank you" to all who attended and made it a great evening!

This night would not have been possible without the support of over a hundred local organizations and businesses.

We are extremely thankful to our Salutation Sponsor, Adams Community Bank! Thank you for being the Head of the Class.

Our High Honor Roll sponsors: MountainOne Bank, Aladco Linen Services, Cord Master Engineering, Haddad Auto Group, and Nocher Realty all played an important part in the evening's success.

The list above doesn't include 90-plus additional local businesses that generously donated goods and services to the event for auction items and prizes, or supported the event at the "Sponsor" level.

BART serves over 365 students in Grades 6-12 from all over Berkshire County. Businesses from all corners of the Berkshires helped support our students through their generous sponsorships and donations.

Finally, many thanks to the trustees, faculty, staff, volunteers and others who contributed their time, money, and effort to make this event happen. Their dedication to the BART community, most importantly our students, is truly inspiring.

Sincerely,

Catherine McKeen
Williamstown, Mass. 

McKeen is a member of the school's board of trustees. 

St. Stan's Students Get Crash Course in Accident Reconstruction

By Jack GuerinoiBerkshires Staff
01:09PM / Tuesday, May 28, 2024

ADAMS, Mass. — State Troopers Kyle Cahoon and Sean Curley, members of the Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section (CARS) Unit, met with St. Stanislaus Kostka middle school students to provide an in-depth look into the process and science behind accident reconstruction.

 

On Friday, May 17, the troopers showed students how they determine the causes of vehicular crashes and identify who may be at fault. Curley said CARS is not called to every accident but only the worst of the worst that conclude in severe injury, death, or considerable property damage.

 

"If we have a real bad crash where somebody is likely not to make it, that's when we get a phone call," he said. "The officer on the road will realize that this is a very, very serious crash, and it might be outside of his scope of what he does. He'll call the State Police."

 

He added that there are four CARS units across the state, but theirs covers the largest distance in Western Mass — from Worcester to Berkshire County.

 

"So, there are response times for us that are a long time," he said. "I have driven for almost two hours with my lights and sirens on."

 

According to Cahoon, there are three common elements that contribute to a crash: the driver, the vehicle, and the environment. He emphasized that accidents are rarely caused solely by vehicles. Instead, human factors, such as driver distraction or adverse road conditions, are typically the primary causes of accidents.

 

"It's not typically just an accident," Cahoon said. "Like they might be speeding and not paying attention, they might be on their cell phone when they shouldn't be. Ninety-nine percent of crashes we investigate are not accidents."