Page 43 - BusinessWest August 19, 2024

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serving as a director of the Pittsfield Affordable Housing Trust and Berkshire Education and Correc- tion. He is also a national council member of Avon Old Farms School and an active supporter of Grit & Gratitude Wrestling Academy in Longmeadow.
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Polish National Credit Union (PNCU) announced
the promotion of Rachel Dionne to vice presi- dent, credit risk officer. She has been with the credit union since 2017, most recently serving as assisant vice president, credit risk officer. Dionne brings more than two decades of experience in financial analysis and credit risk management. In her new role, she will be responsible for overseeing the credit risk-management strategies and ensur- ing the credit union’s continued financial stability and growth. Her promotion is a testament to her dedication, expertise, and significant contributions to the organization. She holds a master’s degree
in nonprofit management and a bachelor’s degree in accounting, both from American International College in Springfield. Her career in finance spans
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more than two decades, including significant roles at Mont Marie Health Care Center as director of Finance and at Dielectrics Inc. as accounting super- visor. At Mont Marie, she led the accounting team, prepared annual budgets and financial reports, and presented the financial status to board members. Her tenure at Dielectrics involved preparing finan- cial reports, cost accounting, and maintaining audit papers. Beyond her professional achievements, Dionne has been an active member of the commu- nity, serving on the board of directors for Pioneer Valley Performing Arts in South Hadley and holding positions as both board member and treasurer. In addition, she recently joined the board of directors for Providence Ministries, a nonprofit organization serving the Greater Holyoke region.
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Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA)
announced that Gov. Maura Healey has appointed three new members to its board of trustees: Dar- lene Rodowicz, Yvonne Spicer, and Buffy Lord (’98), who was voted to represent the MCLA Alumni
HNE Creates $250,000 Grant Fund to Honor Dr. Mark Keroack
SPRINGFIELD — To honor Dr. Mark Keroack’s 10 years on the board of directors of Health New England, the health plan is creating a $250,000 grant-making fund to help community organiza- tions improve health equity. Keroack, president and CEO emeritus of Baystate Health, retired at the end of June. As chair of the board of Health New Eng- land, a not-for-profit health plan owned by Baystate Health, he helped form a deeper, more collaborative relationship between the entities. The Dr. Mark A. Keroack Health Equity Grant program will provide local nonprofit organizations with a one-time grant of up to $50,000 to advance health equity in health- care over a one-year period. Programs are required to promote health equity and include community collaboration resulting in improved health out- comes. Programs must target communities in Franklin, Hampden, or Hampshire counties and focus on one or more of these populations: children and youth, communities of color, individuals experi- encing poverty or with low incomes, or older adults. Nonprofit organizations can learn more or apply
for the grant by Aug. 28 at healthnewengland.org/ community/grantprogram.
AIC’s Criminal Justice Program Receives Quinn Bill Approval
SPRINGFIELD — American International College (AIC) announced that its master of science in crimi- nal justice program has been approved under the Guidelines for Criminal Justice and Law Enforce- ment Academic Programs by the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education (BHE). This approval qualifies the fully online degree for the Police Career Incentive Pay Program, also known as the Quinn Bill. The Massachusetts Legislature enacted the Quinn Bill to encourage police officers to earn degrees in law enforcement and criminal justice
by providing educational incentives for full-time officers in participating cities and towns through
Assoc. All three trustees begin their terms of ser- vice this summer. Rodowicz, president and CEO of Berkshire Health Systems, joined BHS in 1984 and has served on the system’s executive leadership team since 2005. She has played a crucial role in the evolution of BHS through her various leadership positions, including ensuring the financial strength of the organization during her 15 years as chief financial officer. A longtime educator, Spicer is cur- rently the executive director of Life Science Cares Boston and an adjunct lecturer at UMass Boston. A highly sought-after speaker on the topics of leader- ship, STEM, and diversity, equity, and inclusion, she was also the first mayor of Framingham, serving from 2018 to 2022. A practicing attorney with the North Adams-based law firm Donovan O’Connor & Dodig, LLP since 2005, Lord’s main practice area is civil litigation, but her work with the firm encom- passes multiple practice areas, including personal injury and workers’ compensation, domestic rela- tions, municipal law, and appellate work.
salary increases. This approval means that AIC’s master of science in criminal justice program meets or exceeds all quality standards established by the guidelines, making its graduates eligible for incen- tive pay increases. By participating in the Quinn Bill, students who are full-time police officers in Mas- sachusetts can receive significant salary increases upon graduation, providing a tangible return on their educational investment. This incentive not only encourages professional development, but also enhances the quality of law-enforcement services by ensuring officers are well-educated in the latest theories and practices in criminal justice.
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Notebook
ment. The LEDC empowers businesses by providing access to case-management coaching, capital, and essential connections. Its mission is to support local businesses and foster community engagement. The C3 Policing Unit’s mission is to facilitate unity of effort and criminal intelligence gathering through interagency, community, and private-enterprise cooperation. The essential goals of C3 Policing include creating a safe environment, fostering com- munity relationships, reducing gang activity and vio- lence, and establishing effective youth and parental programs. These goals are achieved through com- munity meetings, walking and bike patrols, and events like coffee with a cop, youth sports events, and community picnics. The second annual Hispan- ic Heritage Domino Tournament was held on Aug. 17 at Wisnowski Park.
MountainOne Named Among Most Charitable Companies
NORTH ADAMS — MountainOne announced it
has been named one of the Commonwealth’s top corporate charitable contributors by the Boston Business Journal. MountainOne will be honored with a Corporate Citizenship Award in Septem-
ber at the Seaport Hotel in Boston. The 2024
Top Charitable Contributors in Massachusetts list honors companies that gave $100,000 or more to Massachusetts-based charities in 2023. Collectively, the 96 companies who qualified for the distinction gave more than $362 million in cash contributions. MountainOne has a strong, long-standing history of supporting nonprofit organizations that directly and positively impact the communities it serves. Among the organizations it contributed to in 2023, notable recipients include 1Berkshire, Berkshire Running Foundation, Community Health Programs, Friendship Home, Habitat for Humanity of Greater Plymouth, Hillcrest Educational Centers, Lever Inc., MCLA, Manet Community Health, Quincy Public Schools, South Shore Health Foundation, and the Brien Center.
Outlook
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(defined as the number of births minus the number of deaths), and historically children have comprised a large segment of the immigrant population. Addition- ally, many educational construction and reconstruc- tion projects were put on hold during the pandemic with the increase in remote education, so pent-up demand will push up construction activity levels.
Eye on Reconstruction
One final consideration that will impact the con- struction outlook moving forward is the growing importance of reconstruction activity as a share of overall construction spending. Surveys conducted by the AIA have discovered that about 50% of billings at architecture firms come from work on existing build- ings, including additions to existing facilities.
The current economic environment of declining values of existing buildings, coupled with the elevated cost of building new facilities, often tilts the scales toward reconstruction over new construction. The expectation is that the reconstruction share of total construction activity will continue to increase in the years ahead. BW