■The first halfway house in the history of Northampton is scheduled to go into operation by Jan. 1, Matthew Pitoniak, director of the Occupational and Vocational Developmental Center for the Handicapped said today. The 60-year-old, 12-room structure at 97-99 Crescent St. was purchased Friday from Mr. and Mrs. Robert Stone.
■In a report presented to the president and trustees of the University of Massachusetts today, the Committee on the Future University urged that the Amherst campus terminate its growth and place greater emphasis on educational innovation. The report explained that with its present student population of 20,000, the campus has “become hard to administer and even harder for students as individuals to fathom.”
■For the first time, Rexam Graphics has named a native son of South Hadley as president of its worldwide operations. Robert W. Champigny, who was born and grew up in South Hadley and moved back here two years ago, assumed his new post on Sept. 10.
■Early Wednesday, Haydenville’s last herd of dairy cows was loaded onto two aluminum-sided trailer trucks. Their destination: a farm in Stillwater, N.J. For the Warner family, dairy farmers for six generations, the sale of the cows marked the end of an era that dates back to the American Revolution.
■Congressman Richard E. Neal paused to shake hands with surprised passers-by on the Manhan Rail Trail in Easthampton on Monday afternoon, introducing himself to the city residents who would become his constituents after the congressional redistricting changes take effect in 2012.
■Area residents will have a chance to weigh in on a proposal for a new charter school in Holyoke that also aims to serve students in South Hadley, Northampton and three other area districts. Two public hearings will be held this week on an application for the Paulo Freire Social Justice Charter School, a high school proposed by two founders of the Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Charter Public School in South Hadley.