■The Cooley Dickinson Hospital announced a hike in room rates of $4.50 to $5 a day. The new rates, which followed a Cost-of-Living Council ruling for the entire health industry, went into effect Monday.
■Dean Dwight Allen, controversial head of the University of Massachusetts School of Education, was named a special adviser to UMass President Robert Wood this week. The announcement aroused immediate opposition as the faculty union coalition at UMass called on Wood to withdraw the appointment on the grounds that Allen’s views may be “in sharp contrast” to the majority of the faculty.
■The sudden departure of the director of Necessities/Necesidades, who was hired six months ago, will not impair the agency’s ability to run a shelter for battered women, a hotline or other counseling services, staff members said Wednesday. “We are a creative and committed group of women and we are continuing to find ways to do the work we’ve always done,” said Betsy Shally-Jensen, a service coordinator.
■Friends of Bosnia, a local nonprofit group, is sending medical and office supplies for the sixth year to the former war-torn country. The group, along with about 10 volunteers, gathered at Eastworks last weekend to inventory, clean, and package the eight tons of supplies donated from hospitals, manufacturers and private individuals across the state.
■David K. Bartley and Donald F. Humason will face off in a special election Nov. 5 to fill the 2nd Hampden and Hampshire District Senate seat after the two came out on top in Democratic and Republican primaries Tuesday. In the Democratic primary, Bartley narrowly defeated Easthampton Mayor Michael A. Tautznik, while Humason easily won over Michael Franco, a Holyoke veterans’ services officer.
■Starting Oct. 15, after the long holiday weekend, nuts will be banned from the Amherst schools. Peanuts, walnuts, almonds and all other tree nuts and produces that contain them, that is. That means no more peanut butter on school grounds before, during and after school.