MountainOne Fund to Support North Adams Educators in Obtaining Permanent Licenses

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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) announced a partnership with MountainOne to support students, teachers and the education system in North Adams in obtaining permanent teaching licensure.  
 
The focus of the MountainOne Scholarship Fund will be to support current North Adams Public Schools (NAPS) teachers who are teaching under an emergency license they obtained during the pandemic. The Scholarship Fund is the first of several significant contributions that MountainOne has committed to MCLA over the next five years, or totaling $500,000. 
 
"As two enduring pillars of North Adams, we are honored to support MCLA with this donation," said President and CEO of MountainOne Robert Fraser. "Our shared commitment to drive economic growth and invest in our community's future inspires this contribution. We look forward to seeing how our donation will enrich student experiences and strengthen our community." 
 
A scholarship of up to $5,000 per teacher provided by the MountainOne Fund is an incentive to have these teachers enroll in a graduate program at MCLA to get licensed. The goal is to provide 8 teachers with scholarships over the next two years.  Thus far, six educators have been awarded funds ranging from $1,200 to $5,000 per person based on course load needs. 
 
"The MountainOne scholarship provides much-needed assistance for our teachers working under emergency licensure,” said Assistant Superintendent of the North Adams Public SchoolsTimothy Callahan. "These are dedicated new educators who are working hard in the classroom and in their own studies so they can attain full licensure and pursue their master's degree. With teacher shortages across the country, we are grateful to MountainOne for helping develop local educators who are already filling vital positions within our schools." 
 
The emergency license allowed those with a bachelor's degree to start teaching and move on to a provisional license in the future. Earlier this year, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) in Massachusetts established four regional centers across the state to facilitate the transition of emergency license holders to initial licensure.  
 
The MCLA Education Department, in collaboration with Westfield State University, serves as Western Massachusetts's Regional Center for Emergency License Holders to provide essential support to emergency license holders within Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden and Hampshire County public school districts. This includes Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure (MTEL) registration and preparation support, coaching, mentoring and access to resources such as classwork, and field experience opportunities. 
 
"This fund is centralized and localized. I think the combination of MountainOne, North Adams Public Schools, and MCLA is an example of how our local community can work together through innovative partnerships to come up with a solution that will support children and families in addition to individualized teachers,” said MCLA Associate Professor and Chair of the Education Department Margaret Clark. 

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Berkshire County Homes Celebrating Holiday Cheer

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff

There's holiday cheer throughout the Berkshires this winter.

Many homeowners are showing their holiday spirit by decorating their houses. We asked for submissions so those in the community can check out these fanciful lights and decor when they're out.

We asked the homeowners questions on their decorations and why they like to light up their houses.

In Great Barrington, Matt Pevzner has decorated his house with many lights and even has a Facebook page dedicated to making sure others can see the holiday joy.

Located at 93 Brush Hill Road, there's more than 61,000 lights strewn across the yard decorating trees and reindeer and even a polar bear. 

The Pevzner family started decorating in September by testing their hundreds of boxes of lights. He builds all of his own decorations like the star 10-foot star that shines done from 80-feet up, 10 10-foot trees, nine 5-foot trees, and even the sleigh, and more that he also uses a lift to make sure are perfect each year.

"I always decorated but I went big during COVID. I felt that people needed something positive and to bring joy and happiness to everyone," he wrote. "I strive to bring as much joy and happiness as I can during the holidays. I love it when I get a message about how much people enjoy it. I've received cards thanking me how much they enjoyed it and made them smile. That means a lot."

Pevzner starts thinking about next year's display immediately after they take it down after New Year's. He gets his ideas by asking on his Facebook page for people's favorite decorations. The Pevzner family encourages you to take a drive and see their decorations, which are lighted every night from 5 to 10.

In North Adams, the Wilson family decorates their house with fun inflatables and even a big Santa waving to those who pass by.

The Wilsons start decorating before Thanksgiving and started decorating once their daughter was born and have grown their decorations each year as she has grown. They love to decorate as they used to drive around to look at decorations when they were younger and hope to spread the same joy.

"I have always loved driving around looking at Christmas lights and decorations. It's incredible what people can achieve these days with their displays," they wrote.

They are hoping their display carries on the tradition of the Arnold Family Christmas Lights Display that retired in 2022.

The Wilsons' invite you to come and look at their display at 432 Church St. that's lit from 4:30 to 10:30 every night, though if it's really windy, the inflatables might not be up as the weather will be too harsh.

In Pittsfield, Travis and Shannon Dozier decorated their house for the first time this Christmas as they recently purchased their home on Faucett Lane. The two started decorating in November, and hope to bring joy to the community.

"If we put a smile on one child's face driving by, then our mission was accomplished," they said. 

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