Dalton Select Board Reorganizes

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
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DALTON, Mass. — The Select Board voted Robert Bishop as chair and Dan Esko as vice chair during its meeting last week. 
 
The motion was made by Marc Strout and seconded by Bishop to nominate Esko as vice chair. 
 
Esko has been on the board for four years and has served as vice chair for one year thus far. 
 
He said later that he is feeling very positive about the future and is happy to continue serving as vice chair.
 
"Having served as chair of the Planning Board for several years previously, I am comfortable in a board leadership role and can run meetings competently and efficiently in the absence of the chair," he said in a follow-up.
 
"I am looking forward to continuing my work on the Select Board with my colleagues to address the town’s current and future needs in collaboration with the Town Manager, department heads, and other boards and committees." 
 
The motion was made by Strout and seconded by Joesph Diver to nominate Bishop for chair. The decision passed unanimously. 
 
Bishop is in his fourth three-year term on the board and was recently re-elected. He has served on the Conservation Commission for more than 30 years and had been the chair for more than 20. 
 
"I am looking forward to working with the Board on present and future items [and] projects," Bishop said in a follow-up. 
 
Strout thanked Diver for his leadership as chair over the last couple of years. "He did an excellent job leading us over the past couple of years." Esko and Bishop agreed. 
 
"We've had some challenging and difficult situations that have come before the board. Some tough decisions in [Diver’s] leadership was very instrumental in guiding us through and helping us get to this point, so thank you," Esko said. 
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Pittsfield Schools Schedule Morningside, Budget Hearings This Week

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The School Committee will hold another public hearing for the potential closure of Morningside Community School.

On Thursday, April 9, at 6 p.m., community members will have the chance to give feedback in the Reid Middle School library. Last month, the Pittsfield Public Schools announced the possible closure of Morningside, which serves elementary grades, for the 2026-2027 school year and redistribution of its students to other city schools.

In the last couple of weeks, the district has solicited input from employees and community members through meetings at the school. 

Morningside Community School was built in the mid-1970s with an open classroom concept. Morningside serves about 374 students and has a 7 percent accountability score, outperformed by 93 percent of the state.

For fiscal year 2027, the district has allocated about $5.2 million for the school. The committee has also requested a version of the proposed $87.2 million district budget with Morningside closed. 

Pittsfield has another open concept school, Conte Community School, that is planned to consolidate with Crosby Elementary School, and possibly Stearns Elementary School, in a new building on the Crosby site by 2030. The status of the project's owner's project manager will be discussed on Tuesday, April 7, at 5 p.m. at Taconic High School during the School Building Needs Commission meeting. 

That leaves the school officials wondering if Morningside students could have better educational outcomes if resources followed them to other nearby schools.  Interim Superintendent Latifah Phillips has stressed that a decision has not yet been made. 

Considerations for the school’s closure include: The feasibility of the facility to provide a conducive teaching and learning environment with an open campus design, the funding allocation needed to ensure Morningside students can have equitable learning opportunities, and declining enrollment across Pittsfield elementary schools.  

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