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By COLLIN BINKLEY and CHRIS MEGERIAN

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump plans to sign an executive order Thursday calling for the shutdown of the U.S. Education Department, according to a White House official, advancing a campaign promise to eliminate an agency that’s been a longtime target of conservatives.

John W. Hoyt and Judith W. Hoyt sold to Thomas E. Johnson and Elizabeth B. Johnson, 325 Buckland Road. $125,000.

By MADISON SCHOFIELD

As schools across the country grapple with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), new policies are being introduced to govern its use in classrooms, with a goal of balancing innovation with concerns over privacy, equity and academic integrity.

By GREG VINE

ATHOL — An ensemble of musicians from across “the pond” will be leading the annual River Rat Promenade down Main Street this year.

By DOMENIC POLI

GREENFIELD — If you enjoyed Greenfield schools’ inaugural Cardboard Building Challenge, you’re in luck: Brittany Hathaway, vice president of Federal Street School’s Parent-Teacher Organization, says the event is just getting started.

By ANTHONY CAMMALLERI

GREENFIELD — Although the mayor announced last week that the city could not fund the School Department’s nearly $25.59 million budget proposal with a $1.89 million increase, a key driver of which was redistricting measures, the School Committee voted 6-0 with one abstention to continue with its redistricting plan in September.

By ERIN-LEIGH HOFFMAN

MONTAGUE — Two hundred and sixty-five students and staff members at Turners Falls High School and Great Falls Middle School have signed a petition advocating to keep School Resource Officer Dan Miner, whose position is being eliminated as part of fiscal year 2026 budget cuts.

By COLIN A. YOUNG

BOSTON — Two weeks before the policies are set to expire, the House and Senate took the first steps Monday to once again temporarily extend pandemic-era laws allowing remote access for public meetings in Massachusetts.

By BILL DANIELSON

As I write this column I am feeling quite under the weather. The flu has come to town and it has me in its grip. I haven’t left the house in days and all I want to do is sleep. That being said, I am also stuck on “teacher time” and I can’t seem to sleep past 5 a.m. With the recent changing of the clocks this puts me in the unhappy position of being awake while it is still dark outside; annoying on a work day, positively miserable when not going to work.

By DOMENIC POLI

ORANGE — Seven positions were poised to be eliminated in Ralph C. Mahar Regional School’s fiscal year 2026 budget until the teachers union agreed to a change in the insurance deductible amount to save enough money to spare two of those jobs.

By ERIN-LEIGH HOFFMAN

Applications for grants of up to $5,000 to support sustainability and community-building projects are being accepted through FirstLight Hydro Generating Co.’s FirstLight Sustains program, with a deadline of April 4.

By ANTHONY CAMMALLERI

GREENFIELD — The Community Preservation Committee voted to decline funding for three proposed projects this year — one for the construction of a greywater system for a proposed housing development at Stone Farm Lane, and two for the renovation and expansion of the city’s pickleball courts — while fully funding the remainder of project applications for $158,162.

By MITCH FINK

President Donald Trump’s return to office has raised questions about the future of hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding Massachusetts secured for its east-west rail plan.

By MADISON SCHOFIELD and CHRIS LARABEE

Four Franklin County towns have received Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness Planning 2.0 (MVP 2.0) grants totaling $350,000 for climate change planning projects.

By MADISON SCHOFIELD

COLRAIN — In her fifth year teaching kindergarten and fostering independence in Colrain Central School’s youngest learners, Grace Ahrensdorf has been named a winner of the 2025 Pioneer Valley Excellence in Teaching Award.

By THE REV. CINDY LAJOY

Are we living in a post-Christian era? Or a post-Christian dominance? Is the Christian church in decline? Or is it merely not the only game in town any longer? While we may be seeing the deconstructing of DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) programs throughout our government and some enterprises, the data says that the diversity of spirituality is actually on the rise … and that may upset some folks. But should it? Does it matter that one religion “beats” another? Should we be fearful that the religion that tends to be most familiar to Americans appears to be on a gradual downhill slide? And perhaps the most important question of all, does God care whose “side” we are on, or does God care far more that we are trying to tap the Divine in whatever way works best for us?

By CHRIS LARABEE

Budget season rolls on at the Frontier Regional and Union 38 school districts, with Sunderland, Deerfield and Conway elementary schools recently sharing their fiscal year 2026 budget proposals.

By ANTHONY CAMMALLERI

GREENFIELD — Mayor Ginny Desorgher addressed the School Committee Wednesday night to explain why the city cannot fund the School Department’s proposed $1.89 million budget increase in fiscal year 2026.

By ERIN-LEIGH HOFFMAN

TURNERS FALLS — A feasibility study is underway through the Massachusetts School Building Authority to explore the possibility of building a new Franklin County Technical School or renovating its existing building.

By MADISON SCHOFIELD

CHARLEMONT — Some Mohawk Trail Regional School District member towns are considering filing a class action lawsuit against the state of Massachusetts for failing to adequately fund rural schools through Chapter 70.