Breifcase

Applicants Sought for Leadership Institute
EASTHAMPTON — The Women’s Fund of Western Massachusetts has created the Leadership Institute for Political Impact to develop future leaders in civic affairs. The institute is now accepting applications for the 2011-12 training cycle. The organization encourages women to think seriously about becoming more involved as civic leaders in their communities and running for office, according to Carla Oleska, CEO of the Women’s Fund. Focusing on areas such as community organizing, the legislative process and policy-making, fund-raising and campaigning, and running for office, the institute gives women the tools and confidence they need to become political leaders. At each training session, a woman working at the elected level presents her experiences. The initiative “perfectly links” the foundation’s emphasis on social change with leadership development, added Oleska in a statement. “We believe that a critical way to address the problems facing our communities is to engage the talents and the input of women at all levels and in all sectors of decision making.” The year-long commitment will begin for new members in September; however, applications are being accepted through June. Applications are available on the foundation’s Web site, www.womensfund.net.

Architect Chosen for Union Station Project
SPRINGFIELD — Boston-based HDR Architecture has been chosen to oversee designs for long-dormant Union Station, which is slated to be renovated into a multi-modal transportation center. The announcement was made at a press conference in Springfield City Hall on April 4. Donald Warner, senior vice president of the company, said construction work on the $70 million project is slated to begin in the summer of 2012 and be completed in 2015. Plans call for renovations to the 200,000-square-foot main terminal building and a refurbished passenger train platform. The existing freight building will be razed and replaced with a 23-bay bus terminal and parking garage.

Bankruptcy Filings Fall 6%
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The number of Americans filing for bankruptcy dropped 6% in the first quarter of 2011 compared to the previous year, two industry groups announced recently. Monday. The number of filings in the first three months of 2011 dropped to 340,012, down from 363,215 filings recorded in the first quarter of 2010, according to data from the American Bankruptcy Institute and the National Bankruptcy Research Center. “Though bankruptcy filings are still elevated, consumers continue to take steps to reduce debt levels and shore up their finances,”said ABI Executive Director Samuel Gerdano said in a statement. The bottom line is that the sharp increase in bankruptcy levels in recent years might be starting to level off, and perhaps even decrease. Personal bankruptcy filings had been climbing steadily since 2007, when the U.S. fell into a deep recession that left millions of Americans unemployed. In 2005 Congress amended the Bankruptcy Code, making it more difficult for Americans to file and sparking a rush to file by October 2005, when the amendments kicked in. In 2005, bankruptcy filings totaled more than 2 million.