Tagged: berkshire county

A campaign aimed at parents and teenagers to encourage a safe prom season kicks off today in the Berkshires and online.

The three-week Safe Prom Berkshire County campaign is a project of the Pittsfield Prevention Partnership and the Berkshire Family Focus. With information passed on to teens and parents through community businesses and partners, and an online social media strategy, the campaign hopes to encourage safe behavior and prevent automobile accidents.

A Massachusetts legislator in Berkshire County is sponsoring a bill that would require health insurers in the state to allow victims of substance abuse greater access to recovery treatment.

4th Berkshire District Representative William “Smitty” Pignatelli, a democrat, is one of four co-sponsors of the so-called healthcare parity bill. The legislation would require health insurance providers in Massachusetts to pay for the continuing treatment of individuals recovering from substance abuse.

Berkshire County, Massachusetts has one of the highest teen pregnancy rates in the state. In Pittsfield, a local organization kicked off a campaign that intends to raise awareness of this issue.

Due to the discovery of the invasive emerald ash borer in Dalton last summer, Berkshire County is now under strict orders to contain the movement of ash lumber and all hardwood firewood from outside of its borders.

Dicken Crane sells ash lumber from his Holiday Brook Farm in Dalton. He said that if the quarantine zone were not confined to Berkshire County only, he’d have an easier time getting his lumber or firewood processed, which often must be done in other parts of the state.

The search for a superintendent for Pittsfield Public schools has come to an end. Current superintendent of Lee Public Schools Jason McCandless will be taking the position in Pittsfield in the next school year. WAMC's Berkshire Bureau Chief Lucas Willard spoke with McCandless about his new job, the federal and state education budget, and closing the so-called achievement gap in Massachusetts Gateway Cities.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. (AP) — The lawyer for one of three men charged with a Berkshire County triple slaying has asked a judge to move his client's trial out of the county because "incessant" and "inflammatory" media coverage has "impaired" the ability to get a fair trial.

According to state officials in Massachusetts, the unemployment rose to 6.7% in December, and for the Berkshires, the unemployment rate is now above the state average.

Although the numbers released by the State Executive Office of Labor and Workforce development are not seasonally adjusted, the Berkshires now face an unemployment rate at 6.6% That’s up half a percentage point from October and November, and the highest it’s been since February 2012.