Springfield residents are reminded that Christmas trees can be discarded on the curbside on their normal recycling day through Jan. 20, 2017.

SPRINGFIELD -- The city's Department of Public Works is reminding residents who have Christmas trees for disposal to place them on the curb on their normal recycling day, with the collection now under way.

The Solid Waste Division began collecting the trees starting on Tuesday, and the collection ends Jan. 20, according to a city news releases. After that time, Springfield residents can bring the trees to the Bondi Island Landfill and dispose of them at no charge.

All trees must be free of any decorative lights, ornaments, decorations and tree stands. Trees must not be placed in any bags or boxes and should be laid on their side. The trees should not be tied up with anything.

Items should be placed out for collection no later than 6 a.m. on the day of collection

For additional information on collection days residents can call 311 or 413-736-3111.

The class is open to women 16 and older but teenagers must have parental consent to attend.

CHICOPEE - The Police Department will hold its next self-defense class for women in February.

The classes will be taught by officers certified in Rape Aggression Defense. The course is free but students must commit to attending all three classes which will be held on Feb. 6, 8 and 13 from 6 to 9 p.m. and Feb 18 from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., said Michael Wilk, public information officer for Chicopee Police.

The classes are open to women who are 16 and above. Teenagers must have parental consent to attend but do not have to be accompanied by an adult at the classes, he said.

Those interested can pick up an application in the traffic bureau of the Chicopee Police Department, 110 Church St. or they can email one of the instructors at Tordiorne@chicopeepolice.com. Applications must be returned by Feb. 1.

The Bay State's biggest fans of charter schools are refusing to support the billionaire and aggressive charter school advocate President-elect Donald Trump has chosen to serve as education secretary.

The Bay State's biggest fans of charter schools are refusing to support the billionaire and aggressive charter school advocate President-elect Donald Trump has chosen to serve as U.S. education secretary.

Massachusetts Charter Public School Association made a political statement when its director Marc Kenen this week mailed U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren a letter criticizing Betsy DeVos' record on promoting quality education, the Associated Press reports.

"We're very concerned that if the federal government lowers the standards for charter schools, it would have a negative impact on Massachusetts charter schools," Kenan said, according to text quoted in The Boston Herald.

MCPSA represents 70 Bay State charters.

Numerous reports have presented the charter school system DeVos helped shape in her state, Michigan, as lax in oversight and providing sub-par education to students, according to the AP.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney wrote an editorial in The Washington Post supporting DeVos, calling the nominee "smart, dynamic, no nonsense and committed" and touting her record in Michigan. 

Representatives from both libraries have been discussing a potential consolidation of operations for more than seven years

SOUTH HADLEY -- A special town meeting Wednesday night will determine if the privately-run Gaylord Memorial Library should become part of the municipal system and merge with South Hadley Public Library.

If approved, the proposed merger would take effect in July.

The Jan. 11 meeting begins at 6 p.m. at town hall auditorium, 116 Main St.

The legislative body will officially be asked whether to approve a memorandum of understanding that has been negotiated by Gaylord trustees and town officials.

The MOU envisions transferring the direction of operations at the Gaylord to the town's public library.

The town would take over paying utility costs at the building.

However, the trustees would retain ownership of the Gaylord, and would be responsible for maintaining it.

The warrant article asks town meeting members "to endorse the Gaylord Library Memorandum of Understanding and authorize the Town Moderator to sign on behalf of Town Meeting."

Representatives from both libraries have been discussing a potential consolidation of operations for more than seven years.

President-elect Donald Trump continued take aim at U.S. intelligence officials and media outlets Wednesday over reports that Russia may have collected compromising personal information about him.

President-elect Donald Trump continued take aim at U.S. intelligence officials and media outlets Wednesday over reports that Russia may have collected compromising personal information about him.

The incoming president, in his first news conference since July, blasted CNN and Buzzfeed for publishing reports on unsubstantiated claims of Russian attempts to discredit him.

Calling such reports "fake news," Trump thanked other news outlets for not running with the information, which he offered U.S. intelligence agencies may have played a role in leaking.

"I want to thank a lot of news organizations today because they looked at that nonsense that was released by maybe the intelligence agencies -- who knows? Maybe the intelligence agencies ... which would be a tremendous blot on their records if they did that," he told reporters. "A thing like that should never have been written, had or released."

The president-elect, who would not elaborate on whether the reported dossier was included in his classified intelligence briefing, further said he believes it's "a disgrace" that such information would be made public.

"I saw the information and read it outside of the meeting, it's all fake news -- phony stuff, it didn't happen," he said, arguing that opponents released it.

Vice President-elect Mike Pence joined Trump in condemning such reports, which he attributed to "media bias and an attempt to demean" the incoming president.

CBS News reported that an addendum to the classified intelligence report on alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election contained unverified claims of possibly compromising information gathered on Trump.

U.S. intelligence officials are in the process of corroborating details of the information, which reportedly came from a former British intelligence official.

The addendum was presented to just President Barack Obama, Trump and top members of Congress, according to the news outlet.

President-elect Donald Trump remained firm Wednesday he will not release his tax returns, contending that the only ones who care about seeing the documents are reporters.

President-elect Donald Trump remained firm Wednesday he will not release his tax returns, contending that the only ones who care about seeing the documents are reporters.

Trump, in his first news conference since July, said he can't release his tax returns as they are still under audit -- reiterating his campaign trail defense for not making the information public.

When pressed by reporters, the incoming president argued that the American people do not care about seeing his tax returns.

"The only ones who care about them are the reporters," he said. "I won ... I don't think the (American people) care at all, I think you care."

Trump continued to argue that little information can be gleamed from tax returns.

The incoming president was the first major party candidate in 40 years to not disclose his federal income tax returns.

Delgado chased the victim into the bathroom and attempted to strangle her in the presence of her four-year-old son, Assistant District Attorney Keeley Rice said.

SPRINGFIELD — A Springfield man is being held on $5,000 bail after allegedly assaulting and attempting to strangle the mother of his unborn child.

Victor Delgado, 30, pleaded not guilty Monday in Springfield District Court to breaking and entering, assault and battery on a pregnant woman and attempting to strangle a pregnant woman.

Delgado allegedly broke into his ex-girlfriend's apartment on Nov. 9 and was waiting in the bedroom when she came home, Assistant District Attorney Keeley Rice said. When she told him to leave, Delgado chased her into the bathroom and attempted to strangle her in the presence of her 4-year old son. When she broke free, he threw her to the ground and left before police arrived, Rice said.

The victim, who is three months pregnant with Delgado's child, fears for her safety and has since moved from her apartment, Rice said.

Delgado, who was arrested over the weekend, has three other cases pending in district court, the prosecutor said.

He also has 36 adult arraignments and 25 convictions on charges ranging from assault and battery on a police officer to larceny and breaking and entering, Rice said.

The prosecutor asked Judge William Boyle to set bail at $2,500 in the assault case and order Delgado to stay away from the victim. At her request, Boyle set $2,500 bail in a second case involving Delgado from last year.

Defense lawyer George Kelly denounced the second bail request as excessive, and said his client would benefit from "aggressive mental health therapy."

The judge also revoked Delgado's release in an earlier case, and ordered him held for the next 90 days.

Authorities have ordered a partial evacuation of Newbury Street in Lawrence after a building collapsed late Wednesday morning.

Authorities have ordered a partial evacuation of Newbury Street in Lawrence after a building collapsed late Wednesday morning.

The building, located at 189 Newbury St., is zoned as a residential and commercial structure with three floors.

Members of the Lawrence police and fire departments are at the scene and no injuries have been reported so far, WCVB reports. 

#Breaking: 1st Aerials of building collapse #Lawrence #fox25 pic.twitter.com/vBwqBGXQ5n

-- Scott Tetreault (@BostonNewsMan) January 11, 2017

#BREAKING: No injuries after building collapse in #Lawrence. Nearby buildings evacuated. @nbcboston pic.twitter.com/ukd92VRvCu

-- Eli Rosenberg (@EliNBCBoston) January 11, 2017

The two men are accused of purchasing $10 worth of stuff with a $100 bills and then pocketing the change.

SPRINGFIELD - Police on Wednesday released photos of two men suspected of passing counterfeit $100 bills in Springfield in the hope that the public will help identify them, police said.

Police spokesman Sgt. John Delaney said the two suspects are believed to have passed fake bills at the Stop & Shop at 415 Cooley St., on Dec. 31.

The two men entered the supermarket and within a few moments made separate transactions, paying for roughly $10 in items with $100 bills, Delaney said. As a result, they left the store with at least $270 in genuine cash that they received as change.

One suspect is described by police as a 30- to 40-year-old black man, 5 feet 10 inches tall and roughly 260-280 pounds. He has black hair and a moustache.

The other suspect is a 30-40-year-old Hispanic man, 6 feet tall and weighing 225. He had a shaved head and a mustache.

Anyone with information about their identities or the investigation is asked to call Detective Eric Ganley of the Major Crimes Unit at 413-787-6355. Those who wish to remain anonymous may text a tip via a cell phone by addressing a text message to "CRIMES," or "274637," and then beginning the body of the message with the word "SOLVE."

President-elect Donald Trump stood by his pledge to build a wall along the United States' southern border Wednesday, stressing that Mexico will pay for the structure in some form.

President-elect Donald Trump stood by his pledge to build a wall along the United States' southern border Wednesday, stressing that Mexico will pay for the structure in some form.

Trump, who will take office in less than 10 days, told reporters during his first news conference since July that he doesn't feel like waiting for a deal with Mexico to begin construction on the wall.

The incoming president, however, said he will ensure that the United States doesn't end up footing the bill for the project.

"We're going to build a wall, I could wait about a year-and-a-half until we finish our negotiations with Mexico, which will start immediately after we get into office, but I don't want to wait," he said.

Trump added that Vice President-elect Mike Pence is leading an effort to get final approvals through various agencies and Congress for construction on the wall to begin.

"Mexico, in some form -- and there are many different forms -- will reimburse us and they will reimburse us for the cost of the wall -- that will happen," he said. "Whether it's a tax or whether's it's a payment -- probably less likely it's a payment, but it will happen."

Trump, who made building a wall along the U.S. southern border with Mexico and cracking down on immigration central themes to his presidential campaign, told "60 Minutes" in November that although he planned on building the structure, a fence would be acceptable in some areas.

The incoming president, however, rejected claims of building a fence Wednesday, telling news outlets that it had been "misreported." He further rejected reports suggesting that Mexico would not pay for the wall.

"Reports went out last week: 'Oh, Mexico's not going to pay for the wall because of a reimbursement,' What's the difference? I want to get the wall started," he said. "I don't want to wait a year-and-a-half until I make my deal with Mexico, and we probably will have the deal sooner than that."

The City Council approved a three-year contract with the Springfield Organization of Library Employees, granting 2 percent annual pay raises.

SPRINGFIELD -- The City Council approved a new, three-contract with a city union representing library clerks and other library workers this week, that includes 2 percent pay raises each year.

The contract was approved by unanimous vote on Monday with the Springfield Organization of Library Employees, representing approximately 42 employees.

The contract is retroactive to July 1, 2015, and will expire June 30, 2018.

The contract includes a 2 percent pay raise retroactive to July 1, 2015, and another 2 percent raise on July 1, 2016, and a 2 percent pay increase on July 1, 2017. The retroactive pay totals $40,062.

The full-time salaries, prior to the pay increases, range from $23,221 for a senior page to $45,300 for a maintenance supervisor, according to William Mahoney, the city's human resources director and labor relations director.

The union's prior contract had a residency clause, requiring newly hired employees to live in Springfield, and that clause will continue under the new contract, Mahoney sid.

There were significant changes in the disciplinary policy and a new dress code. The revised disciplinary code was amended to clearly state a number of offenses that may result in disciplinary action as well as outlining progressive disciplinary action steps, Mahoney said.

The City Council had approved the same 2 percent pay raises for a second library group in December, representing library professionals, also having a residency clause.

The city library system consists of a central library on State Street and eight branch libraries.

Massachusetts State Police and the Waltham Fire Department have been called to the southbound lanes of Interstate 95 in Waltham after a school bus rolled over on the roadway.

Massachusetts State Police and the Waltham Fire Department have been called to the southbound lanes of Interstate 95 in Waltham after a school bus rolled over a guardrail following a collision.

The bus was carrying 22 students in grades six through eight from Ephraim Curtis Middle School in Sudbury. 10 are being transported by ambulance to Boston Children's Hospital, Newton-Wellesley Hospital and St. Elizabeth's Medical Center for treatment of minor injuries, state police say. The other 12 children are being monitored by emergency medical services on scene.

Multiple fire engines and ambulances were called to Interstate 95 following the crash.

An investigation into the cause of the crash is underway, believed to involve a pickup truck also traveling south along the interstate.

All occupants have gotten off the bus.

The driver of the pickup truck remained at the scene.

The right two lanes are closed as emergency responders investigate the crash. 

Traffic backed up after bus rollover. 7News video pic.twitter.com/XpnV2LueNy

-- Waltham Newswatch (@Newswatch8) January 11, 2017

A rally is scheduled for later Wednesday at the Westfield Court Square Green. Watch video

WESTFIELD -- Demanding that mandatory minimum staffing requirements for their departments be written into their next contract, about 25 Baystate Noble Hospital nurses conducted an informational picket Wednesday in front of the Hospital on Court Street.

Baystate management says that staffing at 97-bed Noble meets or exceeds industry standards. The nurses say there are charts that show how many nurses need to be on staff for certain numbers of patients department by department.

"But chart is up to whichever manager is on at that given time," said Dennise Colson, RN, a nurse in the emergency department and a Southwick resident. "We want enforceable language in our contract."

The peaceful informational picket drew some encouraging horn honks and thumbs up from people passing by.

Later, a rally will be held from 4:30 to 6 p.m. at Park Square Green in downtown Westfield.

The Massachusetts Nurses Association has 130 members working at Baystate Noble, the union said. Those nurses have been working under an expired contract since March 2016. Negotiations have been ongoing for nearly a year as well with 17 negotiating sessions thus far.

Both sides are working with a federal mediator.

Baystate Health took over the much smaller Noble Hospital in Westfield two years ago in the summer of 2015. The current contract was signed by the former Noble Hospital and continued under a successor agreement under Baystate.

Paul Dubin of Granby, Massachusetts is an RN in the rehabilitation unit at Baystate and the bargaining unit co-chairman. Dubin said nurses agreed to wage freezes in their last two contracts in order to keep struggling Noble afloat when it was an independent hospital.

"We want to talk about wages and benefits," he said. "But that's not our primary concern. Our primary concern is safe staffing."

The average Noble Hospital nurse rate is $39 an hour, Markman said Tuesday. New hires begin at $30 an hour and the top of the union nursing pay scale is $52.05 an hour. The hourly rate scale for Noble nurses is an average of 3 percent below the market for new hires and 8 percent below the market for the top of scale, based on a comparison of Noble with other Massachusetts Nurses Association Contracts from around the state including Eastern Massachusetts where wages are generally higher.

The Massachusettts Nurses Association said Baystate Health ended 2014 and 2015 with a combined $121 million in profits, according to the state. Between 2010 and 2015, Baystate Medical Center alone made $480 million in profits.

In response, Baystate said the union was not taking into account recent financial struggles that Baystate, including Baystate Noble has endured

Baystate also said that in 2015, there was a one time savings of roughly $70 million that resulted from the freezing of the employee pension program. Had this savings not been realized, Baystate Health would have ended the year with a net loss of $10 million.

Also, Baystate managment said Noble has to stand on its own and can't look to the Baystate system for bailouts.

Dubin said the union supported Baystate's takeover.

"We have been a good partner," he said. "We were part of the reason Baystate came in. They saw Noble as a good investment."

Registered Nurse Pam Fournier, a bargaining unit co-chairwoman who works in the hospital, said patients are sicker today, and they need more attention form u]nurses who are spread too thin.

Colson said better pay would address staffing issues because it would allow Noble to retain the best talent.

"Nurses come here to get trained and then they go elsewhere to make more money," she said. "They spend a lot of money attracting and training nurses and no money retaining them."

In February of 2014, Baystate settled a contract with Massachusetts Nurses Association members at Baystate Franklin Medical Center in Greenfield that garunteed those nurses a  2.5-percent pay raise each year over three years. That contract came after two years of negotiations and a number of pickets and public demonstrations. it expired last month in December 2016.

The MNA and Baystate are in the early stages of negotiating a new deal in Greenfield. The union represents only three groups of employees in the Baystate system: Noble; Franklin Medical Center, and VNA Hospice nurses in Springfield.

The team has been put on athletic probation until the fall of 2018.

AMHERST -- Not all Amherst College cross country team members participated in the exchange of offensive emails that led the school to sanction the team -- but those members did not report the incidents to college officials, according to a statement from the college following an investigation.

The college has announced some of the team members who wrote the emails have been suspended from participating in three contests; others have been suspended for the remainder of their enrollment. 

College officials also placed the men's cross country team on athletic probation until the fall of 2018.

The college brought in Supreme Judicial Court Justice John M. Greaney to investigate following a December story in the campus magazine The Indicator, which disclosed a two-year email chain that contained misogynist, racist and homophobic messages.

According to a statement from the school, "incoming students were encouraged to participate in the exchange of offensive messages as part of their introduction to the team."

In one June 2015 message, an upperclassman sent a list of female students -- with their photographs and comments on their alleged sexual histories -- to incoming freshman members of the team. 

But the level of involvement varied. Several team members were engaged "in the most active and problematic roles, others less active, and others not active at all.

"Some stood up to teammates with objections to the content of the messages, but no one reported the problems," according to the college statement.

Director of Athletics Don Faulstick, in consultation with other officials, came up with the punishments.

All team members will be required to meet with the Dean of Student Conduct "to discuss options for redressing the harm to the individuals and groups targeted in these messages, to the broader community, and to their fellow team members."

Also, team members have to undergo "an educational process determined by the Director of Athletics in consultation with the Office of the Dean of Faculty. As a condition of returning to the team, those who are suspended must also go through this process."

All who participate in the team's indoor season -- with the exception of team members who entered in the Fall 2016 or Spring 2017 -- will forgo two meets and may not resume practice until the last week in January. The first meet is scheduled in February. 

The statement did not contain the number of students suspended. College spokeswoman Caroline Hanna declined to provide a number, saying all of the information the school would release was contained in the statement.

The story has garnered both international and national attention including USA Today college and the UK-based Daily Mail. 

In November, Harvard University canceled the soccer team's season after investigators found the team continued "to produce vulgar and explicit documents rating women on their perceived sexual appeal and physical appearance," according to the Harvard Crimson.

Donald Trump's transition team ended months of speculation Wednesday as officials announced that the president-elect will resign from all positions he holds with the Trump Organization and give control of his businesses to his sons.

Donald Trump's transition team ended months of speculation Wednesday as officials announced that the president-elect will resign from all positions he holds with the Trump Organization and give control of his businesses to his sons.

The incoming president, who has faced questions over possible conflicts of interest between his new position and his businesses, will further appoint an ethics adviser to oversee new transactions and deals, as well as donate all foreign government payments to his hotels to the U.S. Treasury, officials announced at a news conference.

Sheri Dillon, a lawyer with the firm Morgan, Lewis & Bockius who detailed Trump's arrangement to reporters, stressed that the incoming president will be focused on advancing the interests of the American people, not his own pocket.

Contending that conflicts of interest laws don't apply to the president and vice president, Dillon stressed that Trump has voluntarily decided to separate himself from his financial assets.

The president-elect, she said, will convey his Trump Organization assets to a trust prior to taking office on Jan. 20. Under the trust agreement, Don Jr. and Eric Trump, as well as longtime executive Allen Weisselberg, will manage the Trump Organization and make decisions throughout the duration of Donald Trump's presidency.

The incoming president will have no impact or influence whatsoever on those decisions, Dillon stressed.

Trump reiterated such claims, saying his sons will run the company "in a very professional manner."

"They're not going to discuss it with me," he told reporters.

Additionally, an ethics adviser will be appointed to the trust's management team. The adviser's written approval will be needed for new deals, actions and transactions that could raise ethics or possible conflicts of interest questions, Dillon said.

Trump will further resign from positions he holds with Trump Organization entities and his daughter, Ivanka, will have no management authority with the family's businesses.

Dillon said the president-elect has already disposed of his investments in publicly traded or "easily liquidated investments," adding that the trust will have two kinds of assets: liquid and business assets.

The incoming president has also moved to limit his information rights, so that information will only reflect profits or losses on the company as a whole, she said.

"In sum, all of these actions -- complete relinquishment of management, no foreign deals, ethics adviser approval of deals, sharply limited information rights -- will sever President-elect Trump's presidency from the Trump organization."

Addressing questions of why the president-elect would not divest or sell off his assets, Dillon contended that selling alone would not eliminate possible conflicts of interest and could exacerbate them as Trump would be entitled to royalties for the use of his brand.

Any price paid for such assets, she added, would be subject to criticism.

Dillon further argued that "you cannot have a totally blind trust with operating businesses" and Trump can't un-know he owns Trump Tower.

To avoid even the appearance of a conflict of interest, Dillon noted that Trump also intends address possible Constitutional bans on foreign government payments by donating any profits from foreign payments to his hotels to the U.S. Treasury.

"The approach he is taking allows Don and Eric to preserve this great company and its iconic assets and this approach is best from a conflicts and ethics standpoint," she said.

Massachusetts lawmakers have been critical of Trump's plan to transfer power of his businesses to his sons, contending that they only way to truly eliminate possible conflicts of interest would be for the president-elect to divest his financial interests and place them in a blind trust.

Elizabeth Warren, Democrats push for President-elect Donald Trump to divest his business holdings

U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and U.S. Rep. Katherine Clark, D-Melrose, have both introduced legislation that would require Trump and future presidents to resolve any conflicts of interests between their financial interests and government responsibilities.

When Hadley Senior Center Director Suzanne Travisano greeted the morning yoga class Wednesday, there were cheers. The day before voters agreed to spend $5.3 million to build a new senior center.

HADLEY -- When Hadley Senior Center Director Suzanne Travisano greeted the morning yoga class Wednesday, there were cheers.

The day before, voters agreed to spend $5.3 million to build a new senior center.

"I'm happy as a gopher in loose dirt," said Gene Palmer, a frequent user of the center.

The center now spans two floors at the former Hooker School and is difficult for people, especially those with mobility issues, to navigate, said Travisano.

"I'm thrilled for the seniors," she said. "This was truly a grass-roots effort from the beginning."

She remembers the first meeting in 2014 when townspeople and officials began to talk about what they would like to see in a new senior center. Voters approved the spending 629-490.

Travisano said the current building originally was a school and had to be adapted when it became a senior center. The new facility will have a fitness room as well as an exercise room with a floor for exercise, among other accommodations.

She said requests for proposals for architects are due Thursday. The building committee will review and interview those interested and make a recommendation to the Select Board in mid-February, she said.

The plan is to build a 9,000-square-foot center behind the current building on Middle Street. The goal is to open in the fall of 2018, Travisano said.

The center will cost about $114.50 annually, or add about 36 cents to the tax rate.

This was one of nine debt exclusion ballot questions at Tuesday's election. All were approved, including the building of a $2.9 million fire substation.

Town Meeting had approved all the spending in October, but a general vote was needed because the projects require borrowing.

With approval, the average tax bill on a home valued at $313,7000 will rise $95.

The cost of financing all the projects is $228,000 annually, but with prior debt coming off the tax bill the net hike is about $95, Assessor Daniel Zdonek has said.

Spending for all nine ballot questions adds about 72.7 cents to the current tax rate of $11.15 per $1,000 of assessed valuation, but about 42 cents is coming off from prior debt exclusion expenses. The net hike would be about 30 cents per $1,000, Zdonek said.

Taxpayers will not pay for all the projects at once, with both the senior center and substation coming on the tax bills in two years.

The closest vote was for a heating and cooling system for the schools, which passed 601-501.

Voters also approved buying a heating and cooling system for the Dennis Hukowicz Public Safety Complex for the Police and Fire departments, the installation and purchase of computers for the School Department, and vehicles and equipment for the Public Works and Police departments.

The Amherst Select Board in a unanimous vote agreed to approve an all-alcohol license for Formosa Chinese Restaurant.

AMHERST -- The Select Board in a unanimous vote agreed to approve an all-alcohol license for Formosa Chinese Restaurant.

The restaurant, formerly Amherst Chinese, reopened in October after extensive renovations over the summer. The new owner, Jenny Huang, worked for Amherst Chinese for 14 years. 

The town has 40 all-alcohol licenses. Of those, six were available prior the board granting one to Formosa Chinese.

The state Alcoholic Beverages and Control Commission must approve the license before it is issued.

Tso-Cheng Chang owned the restaurant for 40 years and sold it to Huang last summer because he said he was ready to retire.

Huang said she has brought in chefs who worked at the restaurant five years ago, and with a stable of employees from Taiwan the restaurant is serving more Taiwanese food, such as Formosa beef noodle soup.

The restaurant will still buy organic vegetables from the Chang family farm, said Huang, who said she plans to serve as much locally grown produce as possible.

Pasquariello, of Windsor, has had his own law practice in Adams since 1997.

Gov. Charlie Baker has nominated attorney Mark Pasquariello, of Windsor, to be a Pittsfield District Court judge.

Baker said in a statement that Pasquariello has experience in both criminal and civil law. "I am confident that if confirmed that he will approach the wide variety of cases that will come before him in a fair and balanced manner," Baker said.

According to a biography provided by Baker's office, Pasquariello has had his own law practice in Adams since 1997, specializing in criminal defense, guardianship and conservatorship matters, mental health litigation, real estate and probate of estates. He previously worked for Grinnell & Dubendorf in Williamstown, handling family, criminal and civil litigation.

He previously clerked for U.S. District Court Judge Frank Freedman in Springfield and Penobscot County Superior Court Judge Eugene Beaulieu in Maine, and worked as a Berkshire County assistant district attorney.

He holds a bachelor's degree in engineering from Vanderbilt University and a law degree from Vermont Law School.

Pasquariello's nomination must be confirmed by the Governor's Council. The council's newest member, Mary Hurley, of East Longmeadow, said recently that filling vacancies in Western Massachusetts courts is one of her top priorities.

Onboard video from the Peter Pan bus that sideswiped an oil delivery truck and crashed into a house on Route 116 Tuesday morning shows the driver being ejected from his seat during the initial impact with that truck. Watch video

GRANBY -- Video taken by cameras on board the Peter Pan bus that sideswiped an oil delivery truck and crashed into a house on Route 116 Tuesday morning shows the driver being ejected from his seat during that initial impact with the truck.

The bus, now with nobody behind the wheel, continues for another 300 feet or so, hitting mailboxes and trees, narrowly missing even larger trees, before crashing into the home at 664 Amherst Road.

No serious injuries were reported, however both the front end of the bus and the home were heavily damaged.

 

"He had an angel on his shoulder that particular day," Christopher Crean, vice president of safety and security at Peter Pan Bus Lines, said of the driver.

Investigators continue working to determine the cause of the crash.

Crean said, however, that mechanical failure has been ruled out "100 percent," and that there is no evidence that the driver suffered some kind of medical problem prior to his clipping of the Fuel Services tanker.

Investigators continue to look at such things as road conditions, road grade and the time of day as potential factors, Crean said.

"We continue to investigate. There are a lot of moving parts on this one," he said. "Route 116 is a dangerous road to a degree."

Granby police released the videos taken by the onboard bus cameras at the time of the crash to Western Mass News. They show six different points of view, three from outside the bus and three from inside.

The videos clearly show the bus clipping the oil truck and the driver getting ejected from his seat.

Crean said the driver, a 42-year veteran with Peter Pan, just received an award for driving 3 million miles without an accident. The driver, Crean said, was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash.

The driver remains off duty, Crean said. "The accident has shaken him and he is kind of recouping," he said.

Western Mass News is television partner to The Republican and MassLive.com.

The Williston Northampton School has retained an independent investigator after learning of that former headmaster Robert Ward may have sexually assaulted students at another prep school in the 1960s.

The Williston Northampton School has retained an independent investigator and is soliciting testimony from alumni after learning that former headmaster Robert Ward may have sexually assaulted students at another prep school in the 1960s.

On Tuesday, the Loomis Chaffee School in Connecticut released a letter to its campus community, reporting that an internal investigation had turned up credible reports that Ward had "sexually assaulted and made advances toward students" while working at the school from 1960 to 1965.

Ward would go on to serve as Dean of Students at Amherst College from 1968 to 1973 and Head of Williston Northampton School from 1972 to 1979. He died in 1986.

Williston administrators learned of Loomis Chaffee's findings yesterday, according to Director of Communications Ann Hallock, and on Wednesday sent a letter to alumni, pledging to look into any claims of misconduct during Ward's tenure at their school.

"We are deeply disturbed and saddened by these revelations," Head of School Robert Hill III and Board of Trustees Chair John Hazen White Jr. wrote in the letter. "Given Williston's enduring commitment to our alumni and to sustaining a school of which so many are justifiably proud, we have retained Sarah Worley, an experienced investigator, in case any alumni wish to contact her directly regarding the subject of this letter."

In 2015 Williston Northampton launched an investigation into sexual misconduct by faculty, after a long-time faculty member was accused of having a sexual relationship with a student in the 1970s.

The investigation found that administrators were informed of the misconduct in 1990 and 2002, but did not take corrective action and approved a promotion for the faculty member in 1992. The teacher was not identified in public statements by the school, and resigned in July of 2015 after admitting to sexual misconduct.

The investigation, which encouraged alumni to report accounts of misconduct or sexual assault, also turned up "credible first-hand accounts" of misconduct in the 1980s and early 2000s.

But no one came forward with accounts about Ward, Hill and White wrote in Wednesday's letter.

"During our investigation, we did not receive any first-hand report involving Robert Ward," the letter said.

Prep schools across New England, including some of the most prestigious names in private education, have reckoned in recent years with sexual misconduct cases that often languished for decades without serious attention from administrators.

A Boston Globe investigation found that over 90 lawsuits have been filed against New England private schools for sexual misconduct by staff since 1991, with at least 37 employees fired or forced to resign.

The claims against Ward -- which, so far, do not include allegations of misconduct at Williston itself -- tarnish the legacy of an educator whose legacy has been honored by the Williston Northampton School.

An academic and administrative office building on the school's Easthampton campus bears Ward's name. And the Robert A. Ward Medal is the school's "highest honor" for alumni, according to a Williston blog post.

The future of Ward's recognition by the school will be determined in coordination with the board of trustees, Hallock said.

For now, the Ward medal is no longer listed on Williston's alumni award page.

"I think as we take the time to make decisions with the board of trustees, we are putting those things on pause," Hallock said.

Ward died at age 52 in 1986, after a career in education and local politics. He graduated from Amherst College in 1957, worked in as a guidance counselor, English teacher and in the admissions office at Loomis Chaffee from 1960 to 1965, and returned to Amherst as Dean of Students from 1968 to 1973.

He was Williston's head of school from 1972 to 1979 and won election as first selectman in his hometown of Kent, Conn. in 1981, according to an Amherst College obituary.

Hallock said Williston is committed to supporting alumni who report sexual assault.

"What we want to do is just make sure that any alumni who have anything that they want to come forward with on this topic, or any topic, have a person they can go to who will investigate it," she said. "We sent out a letter to all our alumni. We're putting it on the website. Anyone who we don't have their email we're sending a paper letter, trying to get the word out there."