■A group of faculty and staff at the University of Massachusetts concerned with a state law requiring the signing of the loyalty oath voted yesterday to seek the support of the American Civil Liberties Union. The law requires state employees to sign the oath before entering employment.
■A petition signed by 30 residents in the Agnes Fox Field area on State Street resulted in a decision last night by the Recreation Commission to have a skating rink on the field this winter. The rink will be one of five prepared in the city at which youngsters can skate.
■The Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Charter School is eyeing the Hampshire College campus as a future home. School administrator Robert Brick said the school plans to make a presentation to officials at Hampshire College, where they hope to buy a parcel of land and construct a building.
■The Whale Inn in Goshen, a regional landmark, is closing to the public Saturday night after 74 years as a tearoom, then restaurant and until now, one of the few remaining places in western Massachusetts where guests could enjoy ballroom dancing every weekend.
■A reporter for the Daily Hampshire Gazette will receive a top honor from the New England newspaper industry today for her coverage of a sexual harassment case in Easthampton. Rebecca Everett will join Laurie Loisel, the Gazette’s managing editor for print, at a Natick ceremony hosted by the New England Newspaper and Press Association.
■Three companies seeking to develop a resort casino in Springfield submitted applications Thursday to the western Massachusetts city, and a fourth that had previously expressed interest declined to enter the competition. “To get three is a great accomplishment,” said Kevin Kennedy, Springfield’s economic development director.