1. From The Berkshire Waldorf School (BWHS): the Afghan Scout Relief Fund (ASRF) enables Afghani children to continue their schooling now entirely denied in Afghanistan for girls and young women under the Taliban regime. ASRF is a 501c3 tax exempt organization founded in New Mexico. Their motto is Rescue – Empower – Transform. More information about ASR is available at: gates@afghansscoutrelieffund.org

In collaboration with ASRF, BWHS helped “Afghan Women Continue Studying Safely in the U.S.” Three students attended and graduated from BWHS and are now accepted to American colleges. Steve Sagarin, Director of BWHS, writes, “Afghan women are being heard in the halls of the US Congress. These women are incredible!!” Steve goes on, “We are advocating on Capitol Hill to build support for a formal Congressional letter to Secretary Rubio, asking for an exemption from the travel ban for Afghan women who wish to study in the US. ASRF has been working with Senator Graham and Congressman Bacon, the Senate and House support a letter we helped draft. It’s now our job to convince other Senators and Representatives to sign onto the letter. This effort must wrap up by late May and it’s imperative we get as many signatures as possible before the letter heads over to State and Homeland Security. That will take many visits from our students. Your support today helps ensure their voices are not just heard—but impossible to ignore. We need funds for plane tickets, lodging, food and more advocacy expenses. We’re happy to accept frequent flyer miles. If you’re willing to be a chaperone, please contact me at the school.” Steve Sagarin, Director BWHS

2. The Open Meeting Law (OML)
   
   We may think the OML is a pain in the neck – just an additional bureaucratic layer to make elected officials despair of having run for office. Some of us even say the most important reason to change from a 3- to a 5-member Select Board is so two members can talk to each other about issues before them outside of meetings. Oh dear – talk about dodging the intent of the law as the reason to vote in favor of it.
   
   OML is a codified defense of democracy and the democratic process. It empowers the people. OML has one underlying purpose: to cause elected officials to discuss the issues at a public meeting to which all have access and to argue the merits and vote their conscience in public. To put that purpose in government-speak, OML 

• Promotes transparency in governmental decision-making processes. 
• Encourages public participation in local governance. 
• Prevents secret deliberations that could undermine public trust. 
• Establishes clear guidelines for meeting notifications and minutes. 
• Protects the public’s right to be informed about governmental actions.
  
  It protects out rights – why circumvent or vote against it?

3. Journalism Corner
   
   Question for the press: If an author asks another person to sign an article or column he wrote, because, for some reason, he doesn’t want us to know who actually wrote it, wouldn’t that be a very good reason for the public to know? The concealment is the larger story. Wouldn’t a newspaper that reports facts about others want to report that fact? Wouldn’t that paper want its readers to know who wrote what?
   
   Question from the press: Congrats to Clarence Fanto for his article, “Is Using AI Plagiarism,” Berkshire Eagle, April 24, 2026. We all should be asking that question and many more about AI. From the article: “Williams College, for example, has a Committee on Academic Integrity that found more students responsible for violating the honor code last fall than in recent years, primarily driven by prohibited use of artificial intelligence, according to the Williams Record newspaper.”