Mount Holyoke Tops MCLA Volleyball

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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. -- The MCLA volleyball team dropped its home opener to Mount Holyoke Tuesday evening, 3-0.
 
The Lyons (3-0) took the match by scores of 25-15, 25-19, and 25-17 to earn the win.
 
MHC was led by Sarah Caggiano who notched eight kills in the win.  She added 9 digs for the Lyons. Sasha Simine also had a solid night collecting 6 kills on just 9 attacks. Brayden Walden and Joy Maran had 12 and 10 digs respectively to lead the defense.
 
Mount Holyoke took advantage of 34 errors by the Trailblazers (0-5).  
 
The Lyons broke open a close first set and pulled away to earn the convincing win. In the second set, they lead 24-11 before MCLA rattled off eight straight points, but ultimately fell 25-19 after an error ended the set. In the closing set, the Lyons clinched the win on an ace, their eighth of the night, to earn their third straight win.
 
MCLA is back in action on Saturday with a tri match at Bay Path with Castleton. Mount Holyoke also has a tri match scheduled on Saturday with Elms and Simmons.
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North Adams School Finance Panel Reviews Fiscal 2026 Spending Plan

By Tammy Daniels iBerkshires Staff
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Finance & Facilities Committee took a deeper dive this week into next year's school spending plan.
 
The draft proposal for fiscal 2026 is $21,636,220, up 3.36 percent that will be offset with $940,008 in school choice funds, bringing the total to $20,696,212, or a 2.17 percent increase. 
 
Business and Finance Director Nancy Rauscher said the district's school choice account would be in relatively good shape at the end of fiscal 2026. 
 
As a practice, the district has been to trying not to exceed the prior year's revenue and to maintain a 5 percent surplus for unexpected special education expenses. However, this year's revenue would be about $500,000 so the amount used would be significantly more. 
 
"But given our current balance, we could absorb that in the net result of what we're anticipating in the way of revenue next year," Rauscher said. "Relative to committing $940,000 to school choice spending next year, that would leave us with a projected balance at the end of FY 26 of a little over $1.2 million, and that's about 6 percent of our operating budget."
 
But committee members expressed concerns about drawing down school choice funds that are projected to decrease in coming years. 
 
"I think mostly we're going to go through this and we're going to see things that this just can't be cut, right? It's just, it is what it is, and if we want to provide, what we can provide," said Richard Alcombright. "How do we prepare for this, this revenue shortfall?"
 
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