Amherst

A $1 million Powerball ticket was sold at a Tops market in East Amherst, New York, drawing local attention to lottery winners. Elsewhere, a Tyngsboro, Massachusetts store also sold a winning lotto ticket, while state lotteries in Tennessee and Michigan published results and honored a Mason County educator through the Michigan Lottery's Excellence in Education awards program.

A discussion is under way about who should answer for the strain that off-campus student housing places on Amherst's year-round neighborhoods. The piece describes how houses rented by students in the West Downtown neighborhood behave differently at night compared with the rest of the week, prompting questions about accountability among the town, landlords and the college community.

Dr. Thea Kristensen is giving a Data Science Initiative talk at Amherst College on community observations of black bears in Massachusetts. The presentation focuses on how reports from residents can be used to track and understand the state's growing black bear population, combining citizen-submitted data with data science methods.

Amherst town officials have put forward a proposed 2027 budget that would raise the town's tax levy by 6.9%. The proposal now heads into the town's budget review process, where residents and board members are expected to weigh in on spending priorities and the size of the increase before a final plan is adopted.

A bomb squad responded to the Amherst College Science Center in Amherst, Massachusetts, according to local outlet Western Mass News. No further details have been released about what prompted the response or whether anything hazardous was found on campus.

A defendant identified as Perry has ended his self-representation in a murder case in Amherst County, Virginia, after the case went through five continuances. Attorneys are now representing him as proceedings continue. The case has drawn local attention due to the repeated delays and the defendant's decision to switch from defending himself to working with lawyers.

New details have emerged regarding a suspicious package reported on the Amherst College campus in Amherst, Massachusetts. Authorities are investigating the incident, and the college community is awaiting further information about what the package contained and whether anyone was at risk. Local coverage continues to follow the story as updates are released.

Pianist Gilles Vonsattel presented a lecture with demonstration on Beethoven's piano sonatas, hosted by Amherst College. The event paired analysis of the composer's sonata writing with live performance at the keyboard, offering audiences a close look at Beethoven's musical structure and ideas.

The Town of Amherst has released information and reminders for residents ahead of the 2026 state election. The notice covers voting procedures, key dates and what voters need to know to participate. With the election approaching, local officials are working to make sure residents are informed about registration deadlines and polling arrangements.

Amherst College hosted its inaugural AI Summit, according to The Amherst Student. The event brought the campus community together around artificial intelligence, though no details on speakers, topics or attendance have been reported. It marks the liberal arts college's first dedicated summit on the fast-moving technology.

The Rev. Vicki Kemper is stepping away from the pulpit at First Church in Amherst, Massachusetts, bringing her ministry at the congregation to a close. The news was reported locally, and the story is framed around her years of service and the idea of faith as a calling. Details on her plans or successor have not been reported.

Biologists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst report the possible discovery of two of the loudest bird species in the world. The finding is drawing attention online, with people joking in relief that the exceptionally loud birds are not the ones waking them before sunrise each morning. Details of the research were released via EurekAlert, the science news distribution service.

A legal dispute known as the Newell court case is raising the question of when an attic space can be counted as an accessory dwelling unit. The case, covered by the Amherst Indy, touches on how local zoning rules define ADUs and could shape what homeowners in the area are allowed to build or rent within their existing houses.

Amherst College is hosting a curator tour of the exhibition "'My beautiful, pitiful age': The 20th Century through the Thomas P. Whitney Collection." The tour offers visitors a guided walk through works from the Whitney collection, tracing the art and history of the twentieth century, and gives audiences direct insight into how the museum frames the era.

Voters in Pulaski and Amherst, Virginia, will decide on ballots whether to allow Rosie's Gaming Emporium to operate in their localities. The measures would permit the gaming venue, which offers historical horse racing machines, to open facilities there. The outcome will determine whether the towns join other Virginia localities that already host Rosie's locations and receive associated tax revenue.

Biologists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst report that two bird species may rank among the loudest in the world, a finding announced in a science news release. The claim is drawing attention for what it suggests about the limits of animal sound production. Details on the species and measurements remain limited, but the finding adds to debates about how and why some birds produce such extreme calls.