Education

Stay in School

Dora Robinson from United Way Pioneer Valley and Patricia Spradley from the Springfield School District talk about Springfield’s Stay-in-School. The city has traditionally had the highest number of drop outs or non-graduation rates in the state. The Stay-in-School...

Commissioner of Higher Education

Richard Freeland, Massachusetts’ Commissioner of Higher Education, was in Springfield Wednesday for a meeting with local business leaders. He also sat down with Jim Madigan to discuss the investigation into financial practices at Westfield State University under...

Freedom Writers

In 1994, Erin Gruwell began teaching at Woodrow Wilson High School in Long Beach, California. Like many first year teachers, Erin was assigned the unmotivated, unnoticed, and “un-teachable” students. Erin strongly believed that education could overcome even the worst...

The Montague Bookmill

“Books you don’t need in a place you can’t find” is the slogan of the Montague Bookmill. Described by owner Susan Shilliday as “an unusual place”, the cozy used bookstore is housed inside an old gristmill on the banks of the Sawmill River. Producer Marla Zippay &...

Gerena Teacher Round Table

Connecting Point’s Carolee McGrath sits down with Burt Freedman, Enrique “Henry” Figueredo and Ursula Hogan at Gerena School to talk about their memories as teachers when the school was known as New North Community School. They describe the school as being state...

Gerena Community Agencies

Community leaders share their thoughts for the Gerena School tunnel and discuss the importance of the various agencies that once occupied that space. Many of them have played a vital role in coordinating programs inside the community space and share their thoughts....

Gerena Community Voices

Since opening in 1975, the Gerena School has truly been a resource for the North End. It was designed to be a multi-purpose structure, providing not only a school for the children, but a community space for residents to enjoy. Producer Zydalis Zayas shares stories...

Gerena Success Stories

Connecting Points Carolee McGrath spends the day at Gerena with Principal Diane Gagnon and teacher Solivette Santiago. They tour the school and get an inside look at the classrooms, the students and the teachers. They highlight the academic progress the students have...

Divided We Stand: A Street in Our School

The Gerena School’s unique design allows for residents to use a tunnel system to travel from one side of the community to the other safely. Today with limited accessibility to that tunnel, residents unfortunately sometimes cross active rail lines or walk through...

Teacher of the Year

Springfield Central High School 9th Grade English Language Arts teacher Anne Marie Bettencourt discusses her recent selection as Massachusetts Teacher of the...