MCLA Green Living Seminar to Feature Pollinator Habitat Presentation

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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) Green Living Seminar Series and the MCLA Environmental Studies Department will present Amy Meltzer of the Massachusetts Pollinator Network on April 16. Meltzer's presentation, titled "Rewilding for Pollinators: Providing Habitat for Pollinators, Birds, and Other Essential Wildlife," will focus on creating habitats for pollinators and other wildlife.
 
Meltzer will discuss the biodiversity crisis and the ecological relationships between native plants, insects, birds, and fungi. Her presentation will cover how ecological landscape practices can support these species, mitigate climate change, and create resilient environments.
 
With over a decade of experience in native plant research and cultivation, Meltzer is involved with Grow Native Massachusetts and the Research Team of Elders Climate Action. She will also discuss the Massachusetts Pollinator Network's mission and activities, as well as actions individuals and communities can take to reduce pesticide use and support pollinator health.
 
The seminar will take place on Wednesday, April 16, at 5:30 p.m. in the Feigenbaum Center for Science and Innovation (FCSI) Room 121 on the MCLA campus. The event is free and open to the public. Audio recordings of the presentations will be available online.
 
Video recordings of the lectures will be accessible on the MCLA ENVI YouTube Channel and broadcast on Northern Berkshire Community Television Channel (NBCTC) 1302 on Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays at 4 p.m., Saturdays at 3:30 p.m., Sundays at 11:30 p.m., and Mondays at 5:30 p.m.
 
Updated schedule information is available at mcla.edu/greenliving.

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Clarksburg Students Write in Support of Rural School Aid

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff

Mason Langenback calculated that Clarksburg would get almost $1 million if the $60 million was allocated equally.
CLARKSBURG, Mass. — Eighth-graders at Clarksburg School took a lesson in civic advocacy this week, researching school funding and writing letters to Beacon Hill that call for fully funding rural school aid. 
 
The students focused on the hardships for small rural schools and their importance to the community — that they struggle with limited funding and teacher shortages, but offer safe and supportive spaces for learning and are a hub for community connections.
 
"They all address the main issue, the funding for rural schools, and how there's a gap, and there's the $4 million gap this year, and then it's about the $40 million next year, and that rural schools need that equitable funding," said social studies teacher Mark Karhan.
 
A rural schools report in 2022 found smaller school districts cost from nearly 17 percent to 23 percent more to operate, and recommended "at least" $60 million be appropriated annually for rural school aid. 
 
Gov. Maura Healey has filed for more Chapter 70 school aid, but that often is little help to small rural schools with declining or static enrollment. For fiscal 2027, she's budgeted $20 million for rural schools, up from around $13 million this year but still far below the hoped for $60 million. 
 
Karhan said the class was broken into four groups and the students were provided a submission letter from Rural Schools Advocacy. The students used the first paragraph, which laid out the funding facts, and then did research and wrote their own letters. 
 
They will submit those with a school picture to the governor. 
 
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