1. Bit of rain
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PHOTOS BY BEN GARVER — THE BERKSHIRE EAGLE
Prospective Berkshire Community College Student Jessica Twing registers Monday at BCC.
BCC President Ellen Kennedy announces the awarding of
a federal grant Monday that will help BCC students from
registration to graduation.
By Dick Lindsay
rlindsay@berkshireeagle.com
@BE_DLindsay on Twitter
PITTSFIELD » Over the next
five years, Berkshire Com-
munity College plans to
spend nearly $2 million in
federal funds to boost sag-
ging enrollment, improve
student retention in the
classroom and see more
graduates on the stage at
Tanglewood each May.
The U.S. Department
of Education has awarded
BCC a $1.98 million Title III
Strengthening Institutions
grant.
“I didn’t think we had
a prayer to get this grant,”
said BCC President Ellen
Kennedy during Monday’s
announcement on the West
Street campus.
Divineinterventionaside,
U.S. Rep. Richard Neal cited
thewell-writtengrant appli-
cation by the BCC staff for
securing the federal dollars.
He noted the grant will en-
sure the cost and conve-
nienceofcommunitycollege
translates into students re-
ceiving diplomas.
“Equal opportunity
doesn’tmeanequalsuccess,”
he said.
Since 2010, BCC has seen
the student population, cur-
rently at 2,230, drop 25 per-
cent, officials said. In addi-
tion, student retention rate
ofwhattheylearnfromyear
to year is hovering around
56 percent and the gradua-
tion rate has been off by 19
percent.
“Too many students fail
to meet their goals,” said
Michael Bullock, BCC’s vice
president for student affairs
and enrollment services.
“But we know we can im-
prove success with Title III
resources.”
“This grant is a big deal,”
he said.
Bullock outlined the
three-pronged approach to
enhance student success at
BCC:
• Create a one-stop cen-
ter to meet all the informa-
tion needs of new enrolles,
redesign student orienta-
tion programs and better
track struggling students to
allow for early intervention.
BERKSHIRE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
STUDENT LIFELINEFederal grant: Money goes to 3-pronged approach to enhance student success
The U.S. Department of Education
has awarded BCC a $1.98 million
Title III Strengthening Institutions
grant.
By Steve Leblanc
The Associated Press
BOSTON » Political leaders from across New Eng-
land met with business leaders Monday to dis-
cuss ways to combat New England’s deadly opioid
addiction problem, including tightening regula-
tions around prescription pain-
killers.
Also Monday, Massachusetts’
top medical schools said they’ve
reached an agreement with the
state to better teach their stu-
dents how to recognize, prevent
and manage prescription opioid
abuse.
Massachusetts Gov. Charlie
Baker, a Republican, and New
Hampshire Gov. Maggie Hassan, a Democrat,
were among the speakers at the event sponsored
by The New England Council.
Baker said one area where New England states
are working together is sharing information from
their prescription monitoring programs.
Baker said the goal is to “get to the point where
all of us are in the position where our data is
crossing borders so that people won’t be able to
basically drug shop from state to state.”
Massachusetts had 1,089 opioid overdose
deaths in 2014, a 63 percent increase over 2012.
Hassan said the opioid crisis has also hit New
Hampshire hard, claiming 258 lives so far this
year in a state with one-fifth the population of
Massachusetts. She also called for a more efficient
prescription drug monitoring process.
PRESCRIPTION OPIOID ABUSE
State
leaders
seek
solutionsBaker says goal is to share
data, prevent people from drug
shopping from state to state
By Jim Therrien
jtherrien@berkshireeagle.com
@BE_therrien on Twitter
PITTSFIELD » Approxi-
mately 150 student ath-
letes, parents, coaches and
local officials gathered on
the Berkshire Community
College campus Monday
night to rally for an em-
battled artificial turf field
planned for the site off
West Street.
Standing in brisk tem-
peratures on the BCC soc-
cer field — many hold-
ing signs that read “Save
Our Turf” — those pres-
ent cheered on speakers
supporting the $2.1 mil-
lion project, which had
been planned for a ground-
breaking in the spring but
is now delayed.
Permits for the all-
weather field, with
lighting, seating, a con-
cession area and other
features, are being chal-
lenged through the state
Department of Environ-
mental Protection’s ad-
ministrative appeals pro-
cess, with a hearing on
the appeal by a group of
12 residents set for late
February.
“I want to hear from
you,” state Rep. Tricia Far-
ley-Bouvier, D-Pittsfield
said, drawing cheers and
shouts of support.
PITTSFIELD
Supporters rally for BCC turf field
BEN GARVER — THE BERKSHIRE EAGLE
Supporters of a turf field at Berkshire Community College rally
in support of the project Monday.
By Jim Therrien
jtherrien@berkshireeagle.com
@BE_therrien on Twitter
PITTSFIELD » Mayor-elect Linda Tyer said Mon-
day she will step down from her role as clerk of
the City Council during its meetings, beginning
with a scheduled 7 p.m. session today.
Tyer,thecityclerksince2009,waselectedNov.3to
become Pittsfield’s next mayor, defeating incumbent
MayorDanielL.Bianchi.ShewillbesworninonJan.4.
In order to avoid any possible conflicts during
council meetings through the rest of the year, Tyer
saidshehasaskedtwostaffmembers,AssistantCity
Clerk Malia Windrow-Carlotto and Senior Clerk
Catherine VanBramer, to take over as council clerk.
Tyer said she is paid a stipend to record meet-
ing minutes and perform other tasks for the
council, which she will forfeit for the rest of the
term. In addition to a meeting Tuesday, the coun-
cil has scheduled meetings on Nov. 24 and Dec.
8, along with a special meeting Nov. 18 to estab-
lish the tax classification rates.
PITTSFIELD CITY COUNCIL
Tyer stepping
down from
meeting role
OPIOID » PAGE 3
TYER » PAGE 2
Baker
GRANT » PAGE 3
TURF » PAGE 3
Dec 1,2015
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2. BEN GARVER — THE BERKSHIRE EAGLE
Supporters of a turf field at Berkshire Community College rally in support of the project
Monday.
BEN GARVER — THE BERKSHIRE EAGLE
State Sen. Ben Downing, state Reps. William “Smitty” Pignatelli, Gailanne Carriddi, Tricia
Farley-Bouvier and U.S. Rep. Richard Neal at Berkshire Community College Monday, as
BCC President Ellen Kennedy announces the awarding of aw federal grant Monday that
will help BCC students from registration to graduation.
Hassan also pointed to
efforts in Massachusetts to
crack down on the powerful
narcotic fentanyl, which can
be mixed with heroin or co-
caine — sometimes without
the user’s knowledge.
“We know that we need
to bring the laws and pen-
alties in New Hampshire for
the distribution and sale of
fentanyl in line with those
for heroin,” Hassan said.
U.S. Sen. Edward Markey
also spoke at the event.
Markey said the country
needs a national strategy
to stop the over-prescrip-
tion of pain medication and
guarantee that doctors and
other medical professionals
are educated in responsible
prescribing practices.
“The prescription drug
and heroin crisis is wearing
families down to the bone,”
Markey said. “We need to
give them hope.”
Also Monday U.S. Rep.
Katherine Clark, a Massa-
chusetts Democrat, urged
the federal Drug Enforce-
ment Administration to per-
mit the partial filling of opi-
oid prescriptions, which she
said would reduce surpluses
of opioid medication.
Massachusetts recently
launched a public education
campaign driving home the
point that addiction is an ill-
ness, not a moral failure.
Medical schools said
standards unveiled Monday
were developed by the state
public health commissioner,
the Massachusetts Medical
Society, and the medical
schools at the University of
Massachusetts, Boston Uni-
versity, Tufts University, and
Harvard University, which
have about 3,000 students
combined.
Under the 10 “core com-
petencies,” students will
learn how to evaluate the
risk of opioid addiction, to
treat patients at risk of sub-
stance abuse before they be-
come addicted, and manage
addiction as a chronic dis-
ease.
Each school will tailor
the standards to comple-
ment existing curricula to
ensure they are delivered
to all students.
Also Monday, a group of
sheriffs met with Baker to
express support for his opi-
oid bill.
Baker’s bill would restrict
patients to a three-day sup-
ply of painkillers the first
time they are prescribed an
opioid drug, or when they
receive a prescription from
a new doctor. Patients could
seek refills after the three-
day period and exceptions
would be made for certain
chronic conditions.
Top legislative leaders
have said they’re not sold
yet on another of Baker’s
proposal which would let
doctors commit a person in-
voluntarily to a drug treat-
ment facility for up to 72
hours if they’re considered
an immediate danger to
themselves or others.
Opioid
FROM PAGE 1
By Colin A. Young
State House News Service
BOSTON » More than half of
the state’s sheriffs on Mon-
day threw their support be-
hind Gov. Charlie Baker’s
substance abuse prevention
legislation, saying that what
they see at their correctional
facilities proves the state’s
ongoing opioid epidemic is
an issue that “desperately
needs attention.”
“Wearenotdoingenough
to deal with the issues of
opiates,” Middlesex County
Sheriff Peter Koutoujian
said. “These go from the
tony communities to the
poorer communities, to the
ruraltotheurbancommuni-
ties, to white and black and
Latino to everything. It hits
us all. This is something we
need to do now.”
After meeting privately
with Baker and Lt. Gov.
Karyn Polito, sheriffs from
Barnstable, Bristol, Essex,
Franklin, Hampshire, Nor-
folk, Middlesex and Plym-
outh counties said they
wholeheartedly support the
governor’s bill.
“The problem is so obvi-
ous, so many people are dy-
ing. Everybody has to do ev-
erything they can and we
havetostartdoingitnow.We
don’t need to wait any lon-
ger, let’s get going on this,”
Barnstable County Sheriff
James Cummings said. “To
be honest with you, I’m get-
ting tired of talking about it
and would like to start do-
ing something about it, and
I think this governor’s legis-
lationisafirststepingetting
something done.”
ThelegislationBakerfiled
last month proposes to limit
first-time opioid prescrip-
tions to a 72-hour supply
and to give doctors the au-
thoritytohospitalizeaddicts
againsttheirwillforupto72
hoursiftheypresentariskto
themselves or others.
Both ideas quickly en-
counteredresistance,butthe
sheriffs who met with Baker
onMondaywereunanimous
intheirsupportforbothpro-
visions.
“One thing we find very
clearly when people come
into the house of correction
is(they’re)addictedtoPerco-
cets, Vicodin and it’s a gate-
waydrugtheygetprescribed
to them to get to heroin,” Es-
sex County Sheriff Frank
Cousins said. “There’s no
question that there has to
be limitations on those pre-
scription medications.”
On the governor’s civil
commitment proposal, Kou-
toujiansaid,“Wedon’t think
it’s controversial. It’s neces-
sary.”
The governor defended
his proposal Monday, re-
counting a conversation he
said he had last week in
which he explained the in-
tent of the involuntary com-
mitment proposal to an
emergency room doctor.
“I think this one is not as
complicated as some people
mightthinkitis,”Bakersaid.
“All we’re talking about here
is giving emergency room
doctors the ability, based on
best clinical judgement, to
makethesame calltheycur-
rently make with respect to
mental health around some-
bodywhoisdealingwithad-
diction.”
Already, 11 county prose-
cutors from the Massachu-
setts District Attorneys As-
sociationhavesignaledtheir
support for the governor’s
bill, as have other law en-
forcement officials.
Also Monday, follow-
ing up on a similar meet-
ing Baker had in Septem-
ber with the leaders of the
state’s medical schools, Bak-
er’s office announced that
the medical schools and the
MassachusettsMedicalSoci-
ety have developed a set of
principles to teach their stu-
dents about pain manage-
ment and safe prescribing
of opioids.
The 10 “core competen-
cies” — which will be tai-
loredbyeachmedicalschool
to compliment their exist-
ing curriculum — will en-
sure that the 3,000 enrolled
medical school students in
the state are trained in pre-
scription drug misuse pre-
vention strategies, the gov-
ernor’s office said.
“These educational stan-
dards represent an innova-
tive and forward-thinking
contribution to the state’s
multi-faceted strategy to
curb the opioid epidemic,”
Baker said in a statement.
“Massachusetts is again set-
ting a new standard by pro-
viding our medical students
with a strong foundation
in treating those with sub-
stance use disorders.”
Baker’s opioid bill is
slated to be the only legis-
lation considered before the
Joint Committee on Men-
tal Health and Substance
Abuse on Monday, Nov. 16,
at 10 a.m.
The Senate approved leg-
islation this year targeting
substance abuse prevention
and education, while the
House is taking additional
time to review all the op-
tions.HouseSpeakerRobert
DeLeo has said it’s unlikely
the House will consider the
Senate’s or governor’s bill
until sometime in 2016.
BOSTON
Sheriffs back governor’s opioid bill
• Provide structured path-
ways to graduation via aca-
demics and first-year experi-
ence opportunities.
• Use engaged learning
and faculty online assistance
to ensure students graduate.
The Title III grant pro-
gram is intended to help in-
stitutions of higher learning
become self-sufficient and
expand their capacity to
serve students of all socio-
economic and ethnic back-
grounds through a quality
education, stronger admin-
istrative management and
fiscal stability.
Gladys Garcia-Rijos, a stu-
dent representative on the
BCC board of trustees, be-
lieves the grant will benefit
all who attend the commu-
nity college.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re
right out of high school or
going back to school later [in
life], the college process can
be challenging,” she said.
In recent years, BCC has
spent roughly $34 million
in state capital funds to ren-
ovate the Hoffmann Envi-
ronmental Center, the gym
floor and lighting at Pater-
son Field House, upgrade
the Hawthorne and Melville
building and soon begin im-
proving the roadways and
parking lots on campus.
The Title III grant is seen
as the first step to focus on
the betterment of what goes
on inside those buildings,
according college, city offi-
cials and the Berkshire del-
egation to the state Legisla-
ture.
Pittsfield Mayor Daniel
L. Bianchi highlighted how
the local business commu-
nity has and will continue
to work closely with the col-
lege to create a more highly
skilled workforce.
And Berkshire state Sen.
Benjamin B. Downing views
the federal funds as possible
leverage to help bolster state
investment in higher educa-
tion, especially BCC.
“This will underline the
community in community
college,” he said.
Contact Dick Lindsay at
413 496-6233.
Grant
FROM PAGE 1
Officials in Boston now
considering the permit ap-
peal need to hear from the
community that the field
has solid support, she said.
“Don’t be quiet about this;
let people know.”
Farley-Bouvier said the
project was developed over
the past several years as a
cooperative effort between
BCC, the city and a com-
munity group interested in
bringing to Pittsfield a turf
field for public school youth
and college sports.
“We worked really hard
on this,” the lawmaker said,
referring to collaborative ef-
forts to address concerns
about wetlands protection
and to correct environmen-
tal issues caused when the
current grass field was cre-
ated.
“This is a good thing for
our environment, and don’t
let anybody out there make
you think it isn’t, because
it is,” she said, prompting a
loud cheer.
High school athletes who
spoke described muddy, wet
conditions on existing lo-
cal fields that often cause
delays, postponements or
venue changes, as well as
the disadvantage they feel
when they play elsewhere in
the state on turf fields.
“It’s really hard to com-
pete with teams from
Springfield or other places
in Mass.,” said Pittsfield
High athlete Shawn Mor-
gan. “Playing on a turf field
really is different and it’s
foreign to us. ... A turf field
will really help us grow as
athletes.”
Jill Scussel, of Taconic
High, said many times lo-
cal players are at a dis-
advantage having never
played on a turf field. The
ball bounces differently, she
said.
Jake McNiece, of Taconic,
said he believes the BCC lo-
cation would be a much bet-
ter location for many rea-
sons.
Jim Abel, athletic direc-
tor in Pittsfield schools, said
the turf field represents “an
enhanced athletic experi-
ence” that would be avail-
able to public school teams.
The Berkshires now “lacks a
quality athletic facility that
is accessible to our commu-
nity,” he said.
Abel praised members of
the large crowd for turning
out to show support on a
chilly night, adding, “This
is something I don’t believe
we can afford to pass up.”
Through the efforts of
local state lawmakers, the
project secured a $1 million
environmental bond ear-
mark, and the city chipped
in $200,000 in funding. The
community group is rais-
ing the remaining amount
through ongoing fundrais-
ing efforts.
Opponents have ques-
tioned the potential health
risks from the controversial
“rubber crumb” used as in-
fill on the fields, which is
made from used vehicle
tires. However, the DEP ap-
peal is focused on possi-
ble stormwater runoff into
nearby wetlands areas and
on delineation of the sensi-
tive areas.
Supporters contend there
is no conclusive evidence of
a health risk from the rub-
ber materials and that the
wetlands protections de-
signed into the project are
more than adequate and an
improvement over the cur-
rent situation.
Football coach Gary Bi-
anchi remembered when
the field was first conceived
about five years ago during
a period of wet weather
that had disrupted scho-
lastic sports schedules. “It
was one of those years when
the weather was horrible,”
Bianchi said.
But a number of volun-
teers soon got onboard with
the idea for a turf field, he
said, and BCC President El-
len Kennedy and college
staff members were imme-
diately supportive.
Referring to the recent
Taconic High-Pittsfield
High football game at Wah-
conah Park, Bianchi asked
the crowd to considered
what playing that game on
a turf field on the BCC cam-
pus would have been like.
“Think of how much
more fun it would have
been out here, with the
lights, a bigger crowd,” he
said. “That’s what you guys
deserve.”
Bianchi also noted that
many school tournament
games must be played at
venues elsewhere for the
lack of an available turf
field in the county.
“We are doing this you,”
said Ward 6 City Councilor
John Krol.
A turf field, he said,
would be “a piece of” what
will make Pittsfield a more
attractive community for
young families to raise
children. The field would
be “making sure that you
know we care about athlet-
ics for our young people,” he said.
The appeal has become
a long process but support-
ers are committed to see-
ing it to a successful con-
clusion, Krol said, adding
that the planning has been
thorough and collaborative.
“This is the way you are
supposed to do a project,”
he said.
“We are going to be per-
sistent,” Krol said, “and we
are going to get to that goal
line and get this done.”
John Law, vice presi-
dent for administration
and finance at BCC, said he
knows from personal expe-
rience, with a son who has
played soccer at different
levels for 15 years that “it [a
turf field] is essential for the
growth of our athletes.”
Contact Jim Therrien at
413-496-6247.
Turf
FROM PAGE 1
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