■Captain David U. Burke, son of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph T. Burke of 15 Adare Place, Northampton, has been decorated with the U.S. Air Force Commendation Medal at Fuchu Air Station, Japan. Captain Burke distinguished himself by meritorious service as a health services officer at Randolph AFB, Texas.
■The campus of the Northampton School for Girls may be purchased by the state Department of Mental Health for a training and research center. The NSG campus is reported to have a $1.5 million price tag and contains 20 acres and 12 buildings.
■Clarke School’s Stock Market Challenge Club received good news on Nov. 17. It placed 12th out of a field of 54 area schools in trying to obtain the highest average value of stocks “purchased” in October with an imaginary $1,000,000 and managed on a weekly basis since then.
■After several failed merger attempts and a shakeup in its top management last summer, Bank of Boston Corp. on Tuesday signed an agreement to acquire BayBanks Inc. for $2 billion in stock. The merger is expected to be completed by the end of the second quarter of 1996.
■David Rondina, of Leeds, and Sean Ashcraft, of Greenfield, are planning a fitness and outdoor recreation center on 16.5 acres on Rocky Hill Road in Hadley just west of the Amherst town line. The center, to be called Rock Nirvana, will have about 25,000 square feet of space.
■The Greater Amherst Chapter of Business Network International has been awarded the organization’s prestigious Founders Award in recognition of its exceptional growth over the past year. Bill Mastroianni, the chapter’s newly appointed president, credits the outgoing leadership team of Abby LaValley, Frank Aronson and Mary Wing as well as the remarkable chapter members for Great Amherst BNI’s stellar growth.