Williamstown
Williams names its new president
Williams College on Tuesday named Maud S. Mandel, dean of the college and professor of history and Judaic studies at Brown University, as its 18th president. Mandel will take over for interim president Protik Majumder, who had been named to the post following the resignation in June of Adam Falk, who left to becoame president of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. Mandel starts in her new position on July 1. The chairman of the Williams trustees said Mandel was selected because she ‘‘embodies the values at our core and will provide exceptional leadership as we continue to pursue our shared aspirations.’’ At Brown, Mandel was involved in the university’s efforts to advance diversity and inclusion, including promoting programs to foster retention for historically underrepresented students in STEM fields. (AP)
Westfield
Low enrollment forces Catholic school to close
A small Roman Catholic high school in western Massachusetts is shutting its doors because too few students have signed up to be members of its incoming freshman class. The Springfield Republican reports that St. Mary’s High School in Westfield will be shut down at the end of the current school year. The announcement was made Monday by the Rev. Frank Lawlor, pastor of St. Mary’s parish. Lawlor said that the school had only nine students enrolled in next year’s freshman class, and that it would have needed 40 to stay open. The school board’s president, Erin Carrier, said the Diocese of Springfield declined to provide $300,000 to help keep the school afloat. Lawlor said Pope Francis High School in Springfield has offered to accommodate students from St. Mary's. St. Mary’s Elementary School will remain open. (AP)
Auburn, Maine
IHOP apologizes to teens asked to prepay
IHOP’s president is speaking out after a server asked a group of black teen-agers to pay upfront for their meal at a restaurant in Maine.President Darren Rebelez said Tuesday that International House of Pancakes and its franchises have ‘‘zero tolerance for actions that are or allude to discrimination of any type.’’ He called the episode in Auburn an ‘‘isolated incident’’ and reiterated that the restaurant is reaching out to the teenagers to apologize to them. He also said that ‘‘appropriate disciplinary actions’’ will be taken. The Auburn restaurant will be closed Thursday for training. Local Manager Melvin Escobar said that the restaurant had problems with teenagers walking out without paying, but that the waitress’s actions were wrong. “This is the first time it happened, and that will be the last time,’’ Escobar said. (AP)
Burlington, Vt.
UVM recovers stolen rhino horn
The University of Vermont has recovered a black rhinoceros horn with a potential street value of more than $100,000 that was stolen from a locked storage room on campus last year, the school announced Tuesday. Police received a local tip that eventually led them to Ridgefield, Connecticut, where someone turned over the artifact in exchange for immunity, said UVM Police Chief Tim Bilodeau. Police would not say where, who had it or if that person was a student — only that the investigation is continuing and it’s possible someone could be charged. Staff members in the biology department discovered the theft last April at the university’s Torrey Hall in Burlington, where the horn had been hanging for decades. (AP)
Ridgefield, Conn.
Superintendent accused of plagiarism resigns
School Superintendent Karen Baldwin, accused of plagiarizing a letter about the Parkland, Florida shooting, will resign, the Connecticut Post reports. The town’s school board announced the resignation Monday. Earlier this month, Ridgefield High School student Paul Kim discovered sections of a letter Baldwin sent to community members concerning the Florida school shooting were identical to a letter West Hartford Superintendent Tom Moore sent. Kim later found three other examples of plagiarism from Baldwin. The school board put Baldwin on paid administrative leave Friday and hired a lawyer to investigate the claims. (AP)
