Pine Cobble School's Early Learning Center Enrolling 2 & 3-Year-Olds

03:11PM / Thursday, July 30, 2026Print Story | Email Story

The Early Learning Center at Pine Cobble School reflects the school's commitment to providing a curriculum-based early learning program where curiosity drives instruction and learning happens through exploration and discovery.

Beginning this fall, the program will welcome children into our 2-year-old classroom, creating new opportunities for families seeking a nurturing and engaging start to their child's educational journey.

The Early Learning Center combines the nurturing environment of an early childhood program with the resources of an independent school, offering young learners opportunities to build foundational academic, social, and emotional skills while experiencing the joy of discovery every day. Students learn with a team of dedicated teachers who are specialists in their fields, including early literacy and numeracy, Spanish, art, music, library, and movement and sports.

Set on Pine Cobble's beautiful 20-acre campus, The Early Learning Center embraces outdoor education as an essential part of the learning experience. Children regularly explore wooded trails, fields, gardens, and natural spaces, using the outdoors as an extension of the classroom. Through exploration and experiential learning, students develop curiosity, confidence, and a lasting connection to the natural world.

Families interested in learning more are invited to attend one on Pine Cobble's summer information sessions:

Wednesday, August 5 | 9:00–11:00 a.m. and 3:00–5:00 p.m.

Visitors will have the opportunity to tour the campus, meet teachers, and learn more about Pine Cobble's innovative approach to early childhood education.

For more information, contact Sue Gundrum – s.gundrum@pinecobble.org

Williamstown Select Board Plans Off-Camera Evaluation of Town Manager

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
05:24AM / Friday, October 09, 2026

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Select Board plans to take extraordinary measures to avoid having its discussion of the town manager's performance recorded by the town's Public, Educational and Government cameras.

At its Sept. 28 meeting, the board decided to hold a special meeting in a room not covered by WilliNet cameras to complete its annual evaluation process of Town Manager Robert Menicocci.

Chair Peter Beck said that while the evaluation is "absolutely" to be conducted in an open meeting, the board could follow a process similar to the off site, unrecorded meetings that past Select Boards have characterized as "retreats," a term not contemplated by or included in the commonwealth's Open Meeting Law.

The current board met on June 29 for what it characterized as a "planning session" where no formal votes were taken. That meeting was held outside of Town Hall, at the new fire station on Main Street, in a room equipped with audio and video recording equipment that the Select Board chose not to use.

At the Sept. 28 meeting, one board member indicated that an unrecorded meeting was preferable to discuss the annual evaluation of the one town employee supervised by the board.

"I'd like to do it without all the Willinet stuff," Stephanie Boyd said in a discussion toward the end of a two-hour meeting. "I think it's more conducive to conversation."

With the board expected to meet just once in October — its "regular" meeting date coincides with Indigenous Peoples Day on Oct. 12 — Beck suggested that the panel could find a date for a special meeting, suggesting the third Monday of the month, Oct. 19.

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