BCC Announces Staff Members, Title Changes

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Berkshire Community College (BCC) announced the addition of five new staff members and three title changes. 
 
New faculty/staff 
 
Meghan Bone joins BCC as Special Programs Coordinator, Bridge to College, bringing over a decade of experience leading college readiness programs for high school and first-year college students. Before joining the BCC team, she worked as the Eureka! Director at Girls Inc. of the Valley and as the STEM Starter Academy Director at Springfield Technical Community College (STCC). Outside of work, she enjoys playing ultimate frisbee, digging in her garden and making joyful drumming music. 
 
Andrew Liebenow joins BCC as HVAC Mechanic II. He holds an associate degree in Environmental Science from BCC and a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science from Broward College. Most recently, he served as a senior maintenance technician for the Florida Department of Transportation. When not working, he enjoys home improvement projects, walking/hiking, attending live concert events, playing the drums and antique car restoration. 
 
Dr. Anna Mester joins BCC as Coordinator of Instructional Design. Most recently, she served as Program Manager of Public Engagement and Research Impacts at the University of Michigan. She has also served as an instructional consultant at the Center for Research on Learning and Teaching/ Dr. Mester began her career as a faculty of Spanish and Portuguese at UMass-Boston. She holds a B.A. in Romance Languages and Cultures and Critical Social Thought from Mount Holyoke College, and a Ph.D. in Romance Languages and Literatures with an African Studies concentration from the University of Michigan. She enjoys reading, sewing, and folk embroidery and cycling. 
 
Jane Singer joins BCC as Executive Director of Human Resources. She earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from New York University and brings more than a decade of HR leadership experience across diverse industries, including hospitality, retail and multi-state operations. Most recently, she served as Director of HR Strategy for Resort Operations at Holiday Inn Club Vacations, where she led organizational redesign efforts, enhanced HR data systems and partnered closely with business leaders to strengthen engagement, retention and succession planning. A Berkshire native, Singer lives in Lenox with her husband and two children. 
 
Joshua Visser joins BCC as a Graphic Designer. Having grown up in western Canada, he moved to the United States as a teenager. He attended the State University of New York at Plattsburgh, studying Digital Media Production, Television Production, and Graphic Design. After university, Visser participated in the Disney College Program, where he drove the WDW Monorail. Following his time at Disney, he began his career in digital media — first in educational publishing, and later in the music industry. His favorite hobbies are writing songs and playing bass with his punk-rock band. 
 
 
Title Changes 
 
Dana Buxton is now Disabilities Counselor. She had been the Special Programs Coordinator- Academic Success/Disability Resource Center Coach. Buxton joined BCC in September 2022. 
 
Katherine Elliot is now Assistant Professor of Nursing. She had been Adjunct Faculty for the Nursing, Health and Wellness Division. Elliot joined BCC in May 2022. 
 
Erin Morris is now Sr. Special Program Coordinator & Mentor - EEC Career Pathways Grant. She had been Special Program Coordinator- HRSA Grant Mentor. Morris joined BCC in January 2023. 

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ADOPTED! Companion Corner: Cali and Kyzer at Berkshire Humane Society

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff

Great news, Kyzer and Cali found a home for Christmas already! Still looking for a new friend for the holidays? There are plenty of dogs and cats and small animals at Berkshire Humane who would love to go home with you.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — There's a bonded dog pair awaiting a new family at the Berkshire Humane Society.

Kyzer and Cali are both poodles. Kyzer is the male and is 7 years old, a quite a bit bigger than his sister Cali, who is a miniature of Kyzer and 8 years old.

Canine adoption counselor Rhonda Cyr introduced us to the two.

"They came from a household that couldn't hold on to them, and it sounds like they may have been abandoned by their previous owner with somebody else, and so they came to us looking for a new home," she said.

The two love to be around you and snuggle. But both are very happy dogs.

"Kyzer is 7 years old, and his personality is that he kind of wants to be in everything. He's very loving, very snuggly, as you can tell. And Callie here, she's 8 years old, and she is kind of like the life of the party," said Cyr. "She wants to tell you everything about her day, and she's a little bit of a little ham."

The two are considered seniors and really like soft treats as Cali just had a few teeth removed and Kyzer has a tooth procedure coming up.

"Currently, they really like soft treats, because they are both on the senior side of things. So they have had some dental work, so they are really in need of something softer. They are not big chewers at this age, really, their main focus right now is just really socializing and cuddling," Cyr said.

The two would love a quiet home with someone who wants to snuggle. They shouldn't go to a home with bigger dogs but if you have a dog, you can bring them in for a visitation with the poodles to see if they will get along. Cats will be fine and the preference is for older and more responsible children so that the pups don't get hurt, as they are senior citizens.

"The perfect home for them would be a quiet home that's not too active. Like I said, they're very social, so they could handle some visitors," she said. "They're very friendly, but I don't think that they would really enjoy any other dogs in the home."

Poodles need to be regularly groomed, and the prospective adopter will have to keep an eye on their health. Kyzer has a heart murmur that needs to be monitored. This doesn't mean he is in bad health, as he could live a perfectly normal life, but he will need to be checked by a veterinary specialist routinely.

"Ideally, he would go to a home that could provide further health care with a specialist in cardiac care. And you know, he could very well live out the rest of his life comfortably and happy," Cyr said. "We just don't have all that information at the moment, but I think that you know the way he's going right now. He's got a good spirit, and he seems to be pretty happy."

The shelter is hoping the to get them a home for the holidays.

"We would love to get them a home in time for the holidays. They've been here since the eighth of November, and they're really, really looking as much as the staff loves them here, we're really looking to get them into a home and somewhere nice and cozy so they can spend the rest of their life together," she said.

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