The Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority—or MBTA, responding to public outcry over the planned closing of the downtown Haverhill train station, could allow some commuter rail trips or provide busing to the Bradford stop. As WHAV reported first two weeks ago, MBTA officials confirmed plans to shutter the Haverhill station for 10 12 months to commuter rail passengers as part of replacement of the South Elm Street bridge across the river. They did not explain why it would remain open only for freight service and Amtrak Downeaster service between Boston and Maine. Haverhill mayoral Deputy Chief of Staff Josselyn De León-Estrada said this week a meeting with city officials helped spur reconsideration and officials expect a report back in about a week.
With the growing number of non-native English speakers in Haverhill Public Schools, director of multilingual learning Heidi Perez says her department has increased in size to meet the greater need. She told School Committee members last week, “It’s been a change [for] the teachers and the school community, so we’ve been trying to stay up-to-date, to give our students what they deserve.”
In her six years at the helm, Perez said the proportion of ML students grew from 9.5% to 13%, while the state average went from 10.5% to 13.1%. The surge accelerated particularly in the last three years, according to slides Perez shared.
Dinorah Peralta, an assistant principal at Haverhill High School, becomes the new principal of Bradford Elementary School July 1. In an email to staff, Superintendent Margaret Marotta wrote, Peralta was one of 19 applicants in the initial pool of administrators, one of eight invited to interview and among five finalists. She succeeds retiring principal Diane Seibold.
Fashion icons Yolanda Cellucci and Sondra Celli, mother and daughter, are scheduled to address members of the Merrimack Valley Chamber of Commerce as well as the public at the end of the month. Cellucci created a successful fashion house and bridal center in 1967, which continues as an online store, while Celli has been featured in TLC’s “My Big Fat American Gypsy Wedding” and its spinoff series “Gypsy Sisters.”
They’ll share their stories during a Women in Business Lunch, Thursday, May 30, from noon-1:15 p.m., at the Artisan Hotel at Tuscan Village, 17 Via Toscana, Salem, N.H. Admission is $35 per person. Registration is accepted online at MerrimackValleyChamber.com or by calling 978-686-0900.