1Berkshire Adds Senior Marketing Specialist

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Elizabeth Nelson has joined 1Berkshires as the senior marketing specialist.

Nelson is working hand-in-hand with Lindsey Schmid, vice president of Tourism and Marketing for 1Berkshire, to continue to market the Berkshires as a great place to live, work and play. She will also work with the team on marketing the Berkshire Flyer and focus on a revamp of the website.

"We are thrilled to bring Elizabeth on board and add a new position to the marketing team," Schmid said. "We look forward to utilizing her considerable skills in marketing, as well as her expertise and connections with the creative economy to help promote the Berkshires - both regionally and nationally."

Nelson previously served as the marketing communications manager at Berkshire Humane Society, where she helmed the marketing strategy, redesigning the Humane Tales newsletter and helping to open a second Catwalk Boutique (the shelter's successful upscale resale shop) in Lenox. Before moving to the Berkshires, she worked for the national labor union Stage Directors and Choreographers Society, where she helped launch SDC Journal, a quarterly magazine celebrating the crafts of stage direction and choreography. She served as SDC Journal's inaugural Art Director for eight years.

Nelson is a playwright and multidisciplinary artist. Recently, her plays "Colors Inside the Body" (which she developed as a member of Berkshire Voices) and "The Golden Hour" received readings in New York City and Denver, respectively, and her 10-minute play "Fugue" has been produced worldwide. She is an outdoor enthusiast and animal welfare advocate, and lives in Pittsfield with her husband, three cats and a Puggle named Harper Lee.

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Pittsfield School Officials Want Summary of PHS Investigation

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — While it is unclear how much information will be released, School Committee members want some executive summary of the Pittsfield High School investigation into alleged staff misconduct.

On Wednesday, they requested a capsulation of the process and, if possible, the findings of Bulkley Richardson & Gelinas' investigation triggered by allegations against Dean of Students Molly West and Vice Principal Alison Shepard that surfaced in December.  

"Right now, the public has the seven of us sitting up here saying nothing was substantiated," said Mayor Peter Marchetti, who motioned for an executive summary.

"And quite frankly, part of the argument may be its cost, but how much money have we already spent and how much time have we gone down this rabbit hole to still have this black cloud hanging over our head without the public buying into anything that happened?"

As far as he is concerned, the city is "in for a penny in for a pound." The lead investigator, Judge Mary-Lou Rup, was hired at a rate of $275 per hour and paralegal services for $110 per hour.  

"And whatever legal counsel can produce, I think that we have to live with it, but to just say we're not doing it at this stage in the game I think is a mistake," he said.

Committee member William Garrity requested that discussion about the investigation's reports be put on the agenda. The district's legal counsel has reportedly advised against releasing the report even though officials pledged transparency when the scandal arose.

"I feel there is at least some balancing act that we need to figure out between protecting the privacy of the report and people being investigated and people who are part of the investigation while still maintaining the public's right to know," he said.

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