OLLI at BCC Announces March Cultural Tours at Clark Art, MASS MoCA

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Berkshire Community College (OLLI at BCC) will hold two educational events at regional museums on March 24 and 25.
 
The first event, "Music in Art at the Clark," takes place Tuesday, March 24, from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown. Laura Dankner, a Clark docent and Associate Professor Emerita at Loyola University, will lead an exploration of works linked to music and musicians.
 
The tour will cover the biographical and historical backgrounds of pieces such as Alma-Tadema’s "Model D Pianoforte and Stools" and Gemito’s "Portrait of Giuseppe Verdi." Dankner, who holds graduate degrees in voice and librarianship, will use musical examples to supplement the viewing experience. Participants will receive a discography at the conclusion of the tour.
 
On Wednesday, March 25, the institute will host a "MASS MoCA Building Tour" from 2 to 3:30 p.m. Led by historian Nancy Seasholes, the 90-minute walking tour focuses on the construction and occupancy history of the museum's buildings. Seasholes is the author of "The Atlas of Boston History" and has previously taught at Harvard Extension.
 
The MASS MoCA tour is conducted on one level, though it requires standing and walking for the duration. The museum provides small stools for borrow.
 
Registration is required for both events through the OLLI at BCC website or by phone at (413) 236-2190. The Clark Art Institute event is $15 for members and guests. The MASS MoCA tour is $15 for members who already hold a museum membership and $37 for those requiring an entrance ticket.

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MCLA STEM Week Brings Hands-On Science to Berkshire Students

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — From exploring the night sky in an inflatable planetarium to measuring the copper content of pennies in a college chemistry lab, students from across Berkshire County visited MCLA for a hands-on opportunity to explore science, technology, engineering and mathematics concepts
 
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts welcomed elementary, middle and high school students throughout the week of Oct. 19 through 23 as part of the state's STEM week. 
 
The college serves as the regional center for the Berkshire STEM Network, a state-funded partnership that aims to broaden efforts to expand science education through partnerships with local schools, museums and community organizations, said Ann Billetz, Berkshire STEM network coordinator and MCLA biology teacher. 
 
The week's activities benefited both local students and the college community by providing hands-on learning experiences for younger students while giving MCLA students opportunities to apply their classroom knowledge by interacting with them, Billetz said. 
 
Throughout the week, MCLA welcomed students from Abbott Memorial Elementary School in the town of Florida and Clarksburg Elementary School, and from Hoosac Valley Middle School in Cheshire for hands-on activities exploring astronomy, biology, chemistry and marine science, along with opportunities to interact with college students. 
 
The excitement among younger students was evident throughout the week, Billetz said, recalling a seventh-grade physics activity in which a student correctly identified Galileo during a discussion of Newton's work and later excitedly shared the moment with her teacher.
 
"To see them excited about what they're doing, to have them be able to go home and talk about the experience they had at MCLA is phenomenal," Billetz said. 
 
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