Pittsfield Community Television is launching a new talk show – and its first episode features the mayor discussing school resource officers in the city’s schools.
Executive Director Shawn Serre says “413 Outspoken” hopes to raise the level of discussion and civic engagement in the community, starting with an issue it has been grappling with since December.
“The issue was triggered by a resignation of a school resource officer at Reid Middle School, and that has some wider implications apparently because it’s been difficult for the city to train and keep police officers, so that’s part of the discussion," said Serre. "But also what this brought up was a wider discussion of the purpose and the training of school resource officers and whether that money is being used correctly.”
Serre will host the show, which will feature Pittsfield Mayor Linda Tyer alongside Schools Superintendent Jake McCandless, as well as officers from the Pittsfield Police Department.
Later episodes will tackle marijuana cultivation, road maintenance, and more. The monthly live show will take phone calls from community members, and will also solicit questions from commenters on a live Facebook feed of the show. The first episode of “413 Outspoken” airs tonight at 7 on PCTV.
Josh Landes, WAMC News.
