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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Companion Corner: Fox at Berkshire Humane Society

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — There's a sweet and energetic dog at the Berkshire Humane Society waiting for his new family.

iBerkshire's Companion Corner is a weekly series spotlighting an animal in our local shelters that is ready to find a home.

Fox is a 3-year-old Pomeranian who has been at the shelter for about a month.

Canine caregiver and adoption counselor Simone Olivieri told us about Fox. 

"He's a bundle of joy. He would love a family who's home with him a lot, because he's just, he's very social and wants to be with his people a lot. And he would be fun to bring out and about, bring a lot of places, because he's very happy to go anywhere," she said.

When Fox enters the room he is immediately a puffball of energy that goes around and around the room.

He came to the shelter after his former owner could not take care of him anymore. 

"The owner was just not able to care for him anymore. Had he came in with another dog, Wolf, and she already did find her forever home just last week," said Olivieri. "The two of them were left with a friend of the original owner, and the owner did not come back to pick them up, and the friend had too many animals in the house, and too much going on, and she just couldn't continue to look after them, so they did end up coming to us."

Fox can go home with cats and children but is not recommended to go home with other dogs as he gets too excited.

"He would love a home where people are home quite a bit to give him all the attention that he so desires. He loves kids. He absolutely adores children. So he would like a home with kids to play with. He could live with cats. We are saying that he should not live with other dogs. The only reason is that he gets very humpy, and he does not leave the other dogs alone," she said.

With his energy it is recommended he goes to a home that can keep him active whether walks or hikes and even fetch in the yard.

Fox does need to learn more about walking on a leash and has a tendency to mark in the house but he was recently neutered. Olivieri said belly bands will be sent home with whoever adopts him to help prevent marking and managing it.

"He would like an active home. He really does like to go for walks daily. He likes to run around in the yard. He does need a little work on leash walking. He sometimes gets a little tangled still under your feet, and he's learning how to walk on a leash," she said. "So, someone who's got some patience and some time to work on some training with him."

"He also is not fully potty trained, so he does know to go potty outside. However, he will still mark, urinate in the house sometimes, and he might poop here and there in the house."

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