■Dr. Robert C. Wood, chairman of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, is considering the post of University of Massachusetts president, according to a Wood spokesman. If he accepts the post, Wood would succeed Dr. John W. Lederle, who last June announced his intention to retire at the end of the current academic year.
■Members of the Hopkins Academy band departed early yesterday morning from the Hadley school for the Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C., where there will be a concert and marching competition today and a big parade on Saturday.
■Local doctors and other supporters of smoking bans learned yesterday the harsh political realities of imposing a limit on smoking in restaurants statewide. Advocates found out that a bill sponsored by state Sen. Robert Durand, and reportedly favored by a state House committee, could put recent gains for protection from second-hand smoke in jeopardy.
■Big Y Foods Inc. will move quickly to fill the 30,000-square-foot supermarket on University Drive in Amherst that is being vacated next month by Price Chopper. Price Chopper announced two weeks ago that it will close its stores in Amherst and Northampton on May 21.
■Michael Hayes, who has worked at the Amherst Regional Middle School for over 12 years as a math teacher and administrator, will become principal on April 26. Maria Geryk, the interim superintendent, made the decision Wednesday.
■Mounted police patrols at the University of Massachusetts have provided enforcement and community engagement for more than 20 years. But with potential cuts in funding to the department, the program is at risk of being discontinued.