Northampton, MA – The Board of Directors of the Collaborative for Educational Services (CES) in Northampton has named Dr. Portia Bonner as the new Executive Director of the Massachusetts collaborative. Dr. Bonner will join the agency effective July 1, 2026, succeeding Interim Director Karen Reuter, who will return to her role as the CES Deputy Director. Reuter took the role of Interim in July of 2025, when Todd H. Gazda stepped down from the CES Executive Director role he had held since July, 2021. Gazda made the decision to step down from the Executive Director role in order to take the...
CES Newsroom
Education News and Updates from the Collaborative for Educational Services
All Articles
CES Stories
Local News
State/National News
Jul
2024
29
DYS Educator Develops Breakfree Project
Congratulations to DYS Educator Bill Laforme of the Kennedy School, who has had his Breakfree project chosen for October’s nationwide Breakfree competition. Bill was selected in 2023 for a Breakfree Fellowship. Fellows develop their own Breakfree content and...
Jul
2024
11
CES report outlines difficult truth about literacy issues
WINCHESTER - Last year, a report surfaced that alleged Winchester students struggled to read. In response, the district, through Superintendent Dr. Frank Hackett, reached out to the Collaborative for Educational Services, a Northampton-based non-profit, to pull...
Jun
2024
26
Workforce Development offers students opportunity and growth
The first School to Work program was offered by the Hampshire Educational Collaborative (HEC) in 1974, after being requested by area educators. This offering provided vocational instruction for high school students. Over the years, as local manufacturing...
Jun
2024
17
Setting the Stage for Future Educators
“A licensure program can set the stage for someone’s future as an educator, and we know that an excellent educator can change students’ lives for the better.” Dr. Cecelia Buckley, Former Director, CES Licensure Programs. A shortage of teachers in the early 2000s...
Jun
2024
14
Sustainability on menu: HEC Academy in Northampton recognized for garden, other ‘green’ efforts
In a small outdoor corridor wrapping around the school building of HEC Academy lies a garden, with various patches of land and small pots sprouting vegetation such as squash, pumpkins and zucchini. Around half a dozen students help maintain the garden, keeping it...
Jun
2024
12
HEC Academy in Northampton Celebrates Graduates of 2024
On Friday morning, June 7th, student graduates of HEC Academy gathered with family, friends, and teachers to celebrate their graduation from high school. The commencement ceremony was held at Union Station in Northampton, and featured comments from Pedro Gomes,...
Jun
2024
10
Mount Tom Academy awards diplomas to eleven
Eleven students were awarded diplomas Wednesday morning at Mount Tom Academy’s commencement ceremonies. Mount Tom Academy is a program of the Collaborative for Educational Services (CES), and is located on the Holyoke Community College (HCC) campus. The...
Jun
2024
7
BEACON Students Explore GCC Pathways
Nine high school students from the Collaborative for Educational Services (CES) BEACON and Mount Tom Academy programs explored Greenfield Community College's career pathways in health careers, outdoor leadership, manufacturing and HVAC, on a visit led by the GCC...
May
2024
14
Hadley Elementary School cited for STEM focus
A national nonprofit organization, Project Lead the Way, is recognizing Hadley Elementary School for a focus on making every child successful in science, technology, engineering and math. The school recently was named as a 2023-24 Project Lead The Way...
May
2024
13
Building an Innovative Community for Special Education Team Leaders
CES Curriculum and Instructional Specialist in Special Education Laurel Peltier has been part of the team leading the statewide Special Education Team Leader Institute (SETLI) in Massachusetts since 2016, funded by the MA Department of Elementary and Secondary...
Subscribe To Our Blog
Enter your email address to receive notifications of new published posts.