Free Tree Identification Walk at The Clark in Williamstown

11:59AM / Wednesday, June 25, 2025Print Story | Email Story

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — Berkshire Environmental Action Team (BEAT) will host a free tree identification walk at The Clark Art Institute's grounds and walking trails in Williamstown on Saturday, June 28, at 9:30 AM. (Rain Date: Sunday, June 29)

This walk will last approximately two hours and will feature slow-paced stops along the way. Participants will be outdoors for the entire duration of the walk, so appropriate footwear, clothing, and drinking water are recommended.

On this guided walk, participants will learn key characteristics of trees commonly found in Western Massachusetts. Led by a Berkshire naturalist and tree enthusiast, the walk will offer tips and tricks for recognizing tree species throughout the year, regardless of the presence of leaves. In addition to learning how to identify trees, participants will have the opportunity to view some of the artwork integrated into the natural landscape of The Clark.

This event is free and open to the public; however, space is limited, and registration is required. For more information or to register, email chelsey@thebeatnews.org.

This tree walk is part of a grant awarded by the Woodlands Partnership of Northwest Massachusetts to Berkshire Environmental Action Team. BEAT is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Pittsfield, MA. They work with the community to protect the environment for wildlife in support of the natural world that sustains us all. To learn more about BEAT, visit their website at www.thebeatnews.org or contact them at team@thebeatnews.org, (413) 464-9402.

iBerkshires.com Text Ads

rk MILES Blding Materials

Are You Ready to Update Your Home? Start With rk MILES. 4 Locations (800)670-7433

www.rkmiles.com

Save & Earn with Greylock

3.30% APY 6-month certificate. Click to learn more! Insured by NCUA.

www.greylock.org

If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Mount Greylock School Committee Hears 'Remarkable' MCAS Data

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
04:54AM / Tuesday, October 13, 2026

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Mount Greylock Regional School Committee on Thursday heard that students across the district showed significant growth in their performance on the commonwealth's spring 2026 round of standardized testing.

Superintendent Joe Bergeron and committee member Curtis Elfenbein offered the panel its first look at the results of the most recent Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System tests.

"One thing I do want to say is that many people can look at scores and see them in a vacuum and think the score is the thing," Elfenbein said. "But in an academic setting, there's performance and then there's growth. And over the last decade or so of my teaching career, there was a massive shift toward an increase in focus on growth."

Elfenbein explained that the "student growth percentile" in MCAS reporting measures how an individual student performs in a given year relative to students who got the same score on a given test (mathematics or English language arts) in the prior year.

"So Timmy and Joanny each get 75 percent of the questions right on the fifth grade ELA MCAS," Elfenbein said. "Then they take the sixth grade ELA MCAS, and whoever improves on their score more gets a higher student growth percentile."

An SGP of 50 percent means that a student showed typical growth relative to his or her peers.

And in that measure of growth, Elfenbein said the district's results are "remarkable."

View Full Story