Pittsfield School Officials Refer PHS Report to State Records Supervisor

Mayor Peter Marchetti asks that the committee not discuss the report in executive session, as he felt it did not fall under OML exemptions.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The state now controls what can and can't be released on the Pittsfield High School investigation.

On Wednesday, the School Committee voted to refer the investigative report to Manza Arthur, supervisor of records with the secretary of state's office, and ask her to return a proper redacted report to release to the public.

The Pittsfield Public Schools have been ordered to release non-exempt parts of Bulkley Richardson & Gelinas' investigation into alleged staff wrongdoing by May 8 after community advocate Ciara Batory filed a public records request.

"Although people will say this isn't true, it is not the case that the School Committee is trying to stop anybody from knowing whether it's safe to have their kids go to school, but there is a concern about just how far that assurance has to go," Chair William Cameron said during Wednesday's meeting.

"And we'd like to be in well, in fact, we will act in accordance with the law as it's ultimately determined to be, but I don't believe that the letter we got is a satisfactory basis for our proceeding."

The School Department initially denied Batory's public records request on April 1, and following an appeal to the secretary of the commonwealth's Public Records Division, Arthur ruled on April 24 that the district failed to justify withholding the report in full and ordered that any non-exempt portions of the report be provided.

"That is not a suggestion. That is not an option. You are legally required to release the report. Yet the families affected and this entire community are still being denied the truth they deserve. Let me be very clear: withholding that report, after a direct order from the state, is not just unethical, it is unlawful. Every day you delay, every excuse you give, further destroys the public's trust in this school system," Batory said during open microphone.

"It does something else: it discredits the many teachers and staff who work hard every day to support and protect their students who care deeply, but are too afraid to speak out for fear of retaliation. Your silence sends a message that doing the right thing in this district comes at a cost. That protecting the system is more important than protecting the people in it."

She added that what happened at Pittsfield High is not just a single incident, and that "It is about whether the people in charge believe students and families deserve honesty or whether damage control comes first."

The item was scheduled to be discussed during executive session, using the Open Meeting Law's exemption "To discuss strategy with respect to collective bargaining or litigation if an open meeting may have a detrimental effect on the bargaining or litigating position of the public body and the chair so declares."

During public comment, The Berkshire Eagle's Greg Sukiennik pointed to the OML's guidance on the exemption used to justify the private session. It stipulates that:

"Discussions relating to potential litigation are not covered by this exemption unless that litigation is clearly and imminently threatened or otherwise demonstrably likely. That a person is represented by counsel and supports a position adverse to the public body's does not by itself mean that litigation is imminently threatened or likely. Nor does the fact that a newspaper reports a party has threatened to sue necessarily mean imminent litigation."

Committee member William Garrity was surprised that the secretary didn't call for an in camera review, in which documents are reviewed in private to determine if the revelation of documents in open court will be allowed.

"I feel we should explore that option with the secretary of state's office because it would give a neutral third-party opinion on what we can and cannot release in this report," he said.

"I think there is a balancing act."

Garrity said in a similar investigation that if he knew his name would be printed in the press, he would be hesitant about being interviewed out of fear of retaliation.

"And I think we need to understand that. I think some of the people who may have been interviewed don't want to be retaliated against for providing information," he said.

"Whether, for many reasons I won't get into, but I think that's something we need to figure out."

He pointed out that they will also have the executive summary, which will "hopefully avoid a lot of these problems" and be informative for the public.  

Cameron agreed, adding "In order to make a fair determination of whether these should or shouldn't be public records in whole or in part, I think whoever is making the judgement would need to see what the records actually are." He reported that the district is already on notice that "we would probably be sued by one of the parties involved here"

"We have received notice from three people who came forward of their own volition as part of the investigation against whom nothing was charged, who are insisting that what they had to say be redacted and taken out of the reports because they fear retaliation," he said.

Prospect Meadow Farm Opens New Vocational Barn

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
05:40AM / Thursday, June 18, 2026

A charcuterie board at the event displays fare from some of the regional producers.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Prospect Meadow Farm last week officially opened a new barn to sell plants and other goods it produces.

Prospect Meadow Farm Berkshires is an expansion of ServiceNet's first farm in Hatfield that has provided meaningful agricultural work, fair wages, and personal and professional growth to hundreds of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities since opening in 2011. 

The Berkshires farm opened on Crane Avenue two years ago and has now introduced a new vocational and unwinding space for the more than 25 farmhands who get paid a minimum wage.

"This is a facility for our folks who work on the farm to learn additional skills and do additional work," said Vice President of Vocational Services Shawn Robinson at the Friday event. "So we have a food packaging space, we've got a walk-in cooler space, we've got a floral design space, we've got a farm store room for staff, lunch room, and then a meditation room that we're standing in now, which is when you're having those hard moments and you need to get away from everything.

"This is going to be a peaceful place you can find and sort of find some comfort, and then hopefully get back to work."

The barn was built by funds from the state Executive Office of Economic Development and the state Department of Agricultural Resources that equated to around $600,000, with ServiceNet contributing around the same amount. The structure took over a year to build.

The state's Department of Developmental Services Commissioner Sarah Peterson spoke on how meaningful this farm and ServiceNet is to her and that this place is important to those who need it.

"Places like this are so crucial because they create opportunities for people living with disabilities that aren't plentiful," she said. "People living with developmental and intellectual disabilities have an unemployment rate over 25 percent five times the rate for people without disabilities, even more jarring is under appointment, which is at 80 percent. That means that four out of every five people with disabilities earn below market rate wages and have limited upward mobility.

"The building itself is really impressive, but what you're really seeing here is the result of vision. It's about opportunity, it's about community, and it's founded in the belief that every person deserves the chance to learn and work and contribute to thrive under the leadership of ServiceNet."

One aspect of the barn will be the market where produce from the farm and other local growers will be sold as well as keeping the tradition of Jodi's Seasonal, which previously occupied the location, alive with plant sales. The market will be open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

"Everything you see in terms of the tomatoes, the fresh produce, that's all done with the hands of our farm hands here, individuals with disabilities who get out every single morning, get in those greenhouses, put their hands in the dirt, and make all of this happen, and this is just the start," said Robinson. "This farm is a little over a year old at this point, but give it another two years, and we hope to be growing enough food to share throughout the Berkshires."

Robinson said the farm is focused on local food security, recently partnering with the Hatfield Council on Aging and planning to work toward making enough food to partner with places in the Berkshires.

He said the barn serves the Hatfield farm and what the employees here needed.

"We've been able to learn the needs of the farm hands who work there and so we have learned that they need a comfortable break space for those times where it's hard to be out in the fields, we've learned that a quiet space for when you're going through something you need to be away from people are key, and then also we have a small farm store in Hatfield, but we've seen increasing interest in retail work from our participants, so we thought it was time for a larger-scale farm store," he said.

Robinson noted that Prospect Meadow Farm has helped the individuals working there feel valued and head.