■ “I, Luke F. Ryan, do swear and affirm to faithfully discharge and perform …” And with those words, repeated after Lt. Gov. Donald Dwight, the 62-year-old Florence native whose law career spans 34 years became the presiding justice of the Hampshire County District Court.
■The summer playground supervisors in Northampton have been named. The supervisors at the Agnes Fox Field this season will be Frank Labato and Diane Maginnis. Arcanum field supervisors will be Patricia McGrath and Cholly Gleason.
■Easthampton firefighter Joseph P. Sieracki Jr. graduated this month with honors from Greenfield Community College with an associate in science degree in fire science technology. As part of his duties with the Easthampton Fire Department, Sieracki is the Student Awareness of Fire Education instructor.
■William A. Thomas, son of Jackie and William R. Thomas of Hadley, has reported for duty aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln at its port in San Diego. He joined the Navy in November 1995.
■A snag in the plans to change the city’s pay-as-you-throw trash system will delay the move to Aug. 1. The new system will force residents who currently buy trash stickers at the residential transfer stations to instead purchase special blue bags at one of several local retailers. A problem with bag quality and performance has resulted in the postponement.
■Public school teachers in Massachusetts will soon be evaluated based on how their students perform on test scores and in the classroom. Under the new rules, teachers will be evaluated based on measurable student performance that includes the use of MCAS scores and other testing benchmarks.