Cornell Indigenous Leader to Speak At MCLA

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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Wahieñhawi "Hawi" Hall, Assistant Director of Counseling and Psychological Services and Community Liaison for Indigenous Students at Cornell Health, will present "Nature, Well-Being, and Indigenous Perspectives on the Interconnectedness of People and Creation" as part of Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts' Green Living Seminar Series on Wednesday, March 4, at 5:30 p.m.
 
An Indigenous Mohawk and Cherokee woman raised within the Onondaga Nation in New York, Hall will share Haudenosaunee perspectives on nurturing relationships with the natural world through reciprocity, interdependence, and stewardship, stated a press release.
 
Her presentation will explore what the Haudenosaunee have identified as their "original instructions" regarding the role of Indigenous peoples as part of Creation, and offer insights into adopting a practice of thanksgiving.
 
Hall, a licensed clinical social worker, combines her cultural connections and lived experiences within Indigenous community with her professional expertise as a mental health provider. She is committed to promoting decolonization in systems, equity, and inclusion for historically marginalized groups, stated a press release. Central to her work is the foundational belief that our relationship to the natural world is one of reciprocity, interdependence, and stewardship.
The presentation will be delivered remotely with in-person viewing at MCLA.
 
All presentations take place Wednesdays at 5:30 p.m. in MCLA's Feigenbaum Center for Science and Innovation, Room 121 and will be recorded as podcasts available at mcla.edu/greenliving.
 
The event is free and open to the public.
 
MCLA's Green Living Seminar Series brings environmental experts to campus throughout the academic year to engage students and community members in conversations about sustainability, climate change, and ecological responsibility.
For more information, contact Dr. Elena Traister at elena.traister@mcla.edu or (413) 662-5303.

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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 fulling 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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