GCC Foundation Ensures Students Have Technology They Need to Succeed
Thanks to a generous donor community, the Greenfield Community College (GCC) Foundation is giving $100,000 to the college to ensure all students have access to critical technology to achieve their educational goals. The funds will be used to purchase laptops for GCC’s technology lending library, securing enough of the technology to provide one to any…
Healthcare Heroes Nomination Deadline Is Tomorrow
In the spring of 2017, BusinessWest and its sister publication, the Healthcare News, created a new and exciting recognition program called Healthcare Heroes. It was launched with the theory that there are heroes working all across this region’s wide, deep, and all-important healthcare sector, and that there was no shortage of fascinating stories to tell…
Bay Path University Ranked Third in Nation for Online Master’s Degree in Cybersecurity
Bay Path University has been ranked third in the nation for its online cybersecurity master’s degree program by Fortune magazine, up from last year’s position at number 11. Rankings were determined by a program’s selectivity score, which measures the undergraduate GPAs and years of work experience of its students, along with the program’s acceptance rate.…
National Fund for Workforce Solutions Awards Grants to Five Communities to Adopt Human-Centered Design Approaches to Workforce Services
The National Fund for Workforce Solutions is awarding $1 million to five communities to use Human-Centered Design to improve workforce programs and employment outcomes. The HCD approach requires a mindset that values empathy, avoids jumping to a particular solution, and embraces continuous learning. This investment from The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation will provide collaboratives…
State senate proposes $20 million in funding to help farms impacted by flooding
A historic proposal of relief money was unveiled Monday for farmers impacted by widespread flooding over the past few weeks. State senate leaders are proposing $20 million, the most financial assistance that Massachusetts Senate President Karen Spilka said she can ever recall to help local farmers who have suffered unfathomable damage in recent weeks. “We…
New board, officer to focus on making state web services more accessible
The Healey administration will create a new panel and a “chief IT accessibility officer” tasked with overseeing a government-wide transition toward better accessibility on the state’s websites and digital applications. On the 33rd anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, Gov. Maura Healey signed an executive order Wednesday standing up a Digital Accessibility and Equity…
bankESB Parent Company Wins National Top Workplaces Award
Hometown Financial Group, parent company of bankESB, announced it was named a 2023 Financial Services Industry Top Workplaces national award winner. This award is based solely on feedback from employees of participating workplaces, gathered through an anonymous, third-party survey administered by Energage LLC, a leading provider of technology-based employee-engagement tools. Industry Top Workplaces awards celebrate…
Help us Stuff the Bus!
It’s not too early to start thinking about back to school! Don’t worry, summertime is still here and we’re collecting school supplies for the United Way. Stuff the Bus is back! Thousands of children in homeless families in western Massachusetts need your help. Stuff our Western Mass News studios at 1300 Liberty Street in Springfield…
Michael Preli Turns His Woodturning Passion into a Successful Business
Michael Preli’s career has been one of constant advancement — not necessarily in title or income, but in job satisfaction. And he’s a long way from where he started, in the auto-body field. “My father is a frame technician for auto body. And I always thought that’s what I wanted to do,” Preli told BusinessWest.…
Pioneer Valley Food Tours Is a Growing Venture
Deborah Christakos has spent most of her adult life in the food business — or several businesses, to be more precise. Trained in France, she was a chef in restaurants in several major large cities, including New York, Boston, and San Francisco. Later, after moving to Northampton, starting a family, and deciding that a chef’s…
Cooley Dickinson Hospital’s new emergency department to meet increasing demand of patients
A historic day for Cooley Dickinson Hospital, as they officially announced the expansion and renovation of their new emergency department. In the 10 years since Cooley Dickinson Hospital became part of Mass General Brigham, a representative tells 22News that health quality care has improved. And an extra step in advancing the emergency room capacity will…
New Mural Captures Springfield’s History, Firsts, Character
You’ll need more than a glance to take in, and fully appreciate, the mural being created on the south-facing wall of the old Skyplex Building on Bridge Street in Springfield. You’ll probably need at least 10 minutes to fully absorb all the images on the 100-foot-long wall. There are dozens of them, large and small.…