NORTHAMPTON — Northwestern Assistant District Attorney Becky Michaels was one of 55 women honored in Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly’s annual Top Women of Law awards last month.
Award recipients, which the Boston publication described as making “significant contributions to the legal profession while also serving as role models for women entering the law,” were chosen by a panel made up of members of the legal community and representatives of Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly.
Michaels, 52, is director of community prosecution projects for the Northwestern district attorney’s office, which includes alternatives to incarceration, restorative justice initiatives and a conviction integrity unit to examine claims of innocence.
“ADA Michaels is a valued part of our team. Her work on community prosecutions and diversity initiatives has been impactful,” Northwestern District Attorney David Sullivan said in a statement. “It’s satisfying to see hard work and a commitment to excellence rewarded by one’s peers.”
Michaels graduated from Western New England University’s School of Law in Springfield in 2009, after which she was a clerk for two judges. She joined the Northwestern district attorney’s office in 2012, left for a stint at the Attorney General’s Office and returned to the DA’s office in 2019. Prior to law school, she had a career in publishing and nonprofit communications.
EASTHAMPTON — bankESB has recently promoted Meridith Salois to vice president, commercial credit systems management.
Salois, of Westfield, joined bankESB in 2001 as a loan servicer and progressed over time to collections assistant, credit analyst and senior credit analyst before being elected officer in 2015 and promoted to assistant vice president in 2016. In 2020, she was promoted to assistant vice president, commercial credit systems manager.
Salois was responsible for leading the commercial integration group for bankESB parent Hometown Financial Group’s recent acquisition of Randolph Bancorp and Envision Bank.
Salois holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and management from Bay Path College and is a graduate of the New England School for Financial Studies. She currently serves as vice president of the LoanVantage User Group and is an active volunteer in her community with the Southampton Road PTO and All 4-Kids Consignment Sale.
HOLYOKE — Holyoke Community College’s associate degree program in nursing was ranked one of the best in Massachusetts by RegisteredNursing.org, an online repository of information and educational resources for registered nurses and those aspiring to enter the field.
Meanwhile, HCC also received the award for Best Student Support Services from Intelligent.com in its 2023 listings of the top community colleges in Massachusetts.
In its 2023 RN program rankings, RegisteredNursing.com listed HCC’s associate of science in nursing degree program (ADN) fifth among 41 college and university programs in Massachusetts and number one in the state west of Worcester.
To determine its rankings, RegisteredNursing.org analyzed student performance over the previous five years on the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN). Aspiring registered nurses in the United States must pass the exam before they may begin to practice.
Also, Intelligent.com, an online guide to higher education, recently gave HCC its award for Best Student Support Services in its 2023 listings for the top community colleges in Massachusetts.
HCC prides itself on its student support services, particular in areas that address barriers outside the classroom that may hinder a student’s ability to succeed, such as its Thrive Student Resource Center and Food Pantry; its Homestead Market, a campus convenience store that accepts SNAP benefits (federal food subsidies); and its free Itsy Bitsy Child Watch program, which was singled out in Intelligent.com’s report on HCC.
EASTHAMPTON/NORTHAMPTON — Mass Audubon’s Arcadia Wildlife Sanctuary has named Tim Donner as camp director and lead education coordinator at the environmental resource and nature center, which serves communities throughout the Valley.
Donner comes to Arcadia after 14 years with Portland Audubon In Oregon, where he worked with young people in camp and other nature-based education roles of increasing responsibility. Prior to that tenure, he worked in the Portland Public Schools, and earlier worked as a biological field technician and wildlife habitat restoration specialist.
He succeeds longtime camp director and education coordinator Patti Steinman, who will continue to engage sanctuary visitors part-time as senior teacher naturalist. Arcadia educator Kim Hoff continues to serve as assistant camp director, a position she has held since 2019.
Donner, who has already assumed his new role, said he shares the same sense of positive anticipation.