Health New England awards $100K to local nonprofits

SPRINGFIELD — Health New England has awarded nearly $100,000 in grants to nonprofits that address mental health and the opioid epidemic in western Massachusetts.

The company’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) grants went to 18 organizations in Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden, Hampshire and Worcester counties. The DEIB grants were designed to fund nonprofits that focus on health equity and engage around at least one social determinant of health, which are conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age that affect health, quality of life and life expectancy. Social determinants of health may include socioeconomic status, food insecurity, education, access to health care, safe housing, discrimination, violence and trauma.

Health New England focused this year’s DEIB grants on mental health and the opioid epidemic after its Community Health Needs Assessment demonstrated that, among public health officials in Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden and Hampshire counties surveyed in 2021 for the assessment, 36% of respondents overall listed mental health and substance use as the most pressing health issues in their communities. It was the top ranked issue in Hampden and Hampshire counties.

The Franklin County winners of Health New England’s DEIB grants and the projects the grants are funding are: Community Action Pioneer Valley’s Youth Council; LifePath’s elder mental health and well-being services; and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Franklin County’s community-based mentoring.

12 Franklin County students make STCC dean’s list

SPRINGFIELD — Springfield Technical Community College has announced that 784 students were named to its fall dean’s list, including 12 students from Franklin County.

The dean’s list is published each semester to recognize excellence in academic performance. To be considered, degree-seeking students must achieve a minimum 3.3 grade point average while taking a minimum number of credits.

The Franklin County students on the dean’s list are: Sage Spitzer of Ashfield; Lachlan Higgins of Conway; Ashleigh Hutton, Cody Guild, Hailey Jackson, Isabelle Senn, Julie Moser, Mickaelah Simpson and Scott Russell, all of Greenfield; and Alina Smiarowski, Cole Royer and Tyler Champigny, all of Sunderland.

Kate Lorenz Memorial Community Fund supports two Franklin County organizations

The Shea Theater Arts Center in Turners Falls and Sunderland Elementary School are among the Massachusetts and Vermont organizations to receive grants from the Kate Lorenz Memorial Community Fund.

Lorenz, a Belchertown resident who died in 2022 at the age of 42, was a member of the local band Rusty Belle, which included her brother Matt Lorenz of The Suitcase Junket and Zak Trojano. She contributed to various other projects throughout the Pioneer Valley, including recording with Chris Smither and fronting her band, The Constellations. When she wasn’t busy making music, the Vermont native worked as a preschool teacher.

Following her death, the Kate Lorenz Memorial Community Fund was created to financially support the causes and ideas that Lorenz held dear — children and early literacy, women’s rights, the visual and performing arts, nonviolence, environmental education, poetry and music. More information about the fund can be found at katelorenzmusic.com.

To donate, checks written out to the Kate Lorenz Memorial Community Fund can be mailed to Kate Lorenz Memorial Community Fund, P.O. Box 418, Chester, Vermont 05143.

Commission on the Status of Women launches scholarship program

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women has launched a new scholarship program to support emerging leaders in continuing their education.

“This new program seeks to provide funding for women students, who may not be able to access scholarship and grant funding typically available to more traditional students, to continue their education and path to economic success,” State Commissioner Denella Clark, who chairs the new Scholarship Committee, said in a statement.

The Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women will award five individuals with a scholarship of $5,000 each for the 2024-2025 academic year. Applicants must complete the online application and submit supporting materials no later than March 1, 2024.

Applicants must currently be enrolled in an accredited degree or certificate program in Massachusetts and have completed at least one year toward their degree. The funds from this scholarship can go toward tuition, fees, books and related supplies or equipment.

For more information, visit masscsw.org/scholarships.