HAMDEN, Connecticut – The following area students were named to the dean’s list for the Fall 2025 semester at Quinnipiac University:
HOMETOWN, STATE; NAME

Halifax, MA
Hannah Winiewicz
Kingston, MA
Nicholas Crociati
Mitchell Esposito
Isabella Szachta

To qualify for the dean’s list, students must earn a grade point average of at least 3.5 with no grade lower than C. Full-time students must complete at least 14 credits in a semester, with at least 12 credits that have been graded on a letter grade basis to be eligible. Part-time students must complete at least six credits during a semester. Names followed by an asterisk denotes with honors.

EASTON, MA,North Easton Savings Bank has once again earned a spot on Newsweek’s list of America’s Best Regional Banks and Credit Unions.
The award acknowledges North Easton Savings Bank’s financial health and continued, fiscally responsible growth. To earn a ranking on this distinguished list, Banks and Credit Unions must be financially sound, positively reviewed by clients, and hit specific performance metrics. Newsweek’s awards for 2026 were completed in collaboration with Plant-A Insights Group, recognizing top regional banks and credit unions in the United States, through a large-scale study based on the analysis of over 9,000 institutions, more than 70,000 customer surveys, and millions of social media reviews.
This most recent award comes following several other national and regional honors. North Easton Savings Bank was named to the USA Today Top Workplaces for 2025, The Boston Globe Top Places to Work in 2025, and received the Boston Business Journal 2025 Corporate Citizenship Award.
“Being named one of America’s Best Regional Banks by Newsweek for the second consecutive year speaks to the strong momentum our institution continues to build,” said Rich Spencer, President & Chief Executive Officer of North Easton Savings Bank. “This recognition underscores the dedication of our team and our longstanding commitment to serving customers through a relationship-based approach. Our continued investment in our people, platforms, and the communities we serve is central to who we are, and this distinction affirms that we are delivering meaningful value to our clients and neighbors.”
“More than financial service providers, local banks are community partners, showing up in neighborhoods, participating in local initiatives and helping strengthen the connections that bind their members together,” said Jennifer H. Cunningham, Newsweek’s Editor in Chief. “We hope this list helps you find the most trusted financial institutions in your area—whether you’re planning your next business venture or taking your next step toward financial security.”

Parents seeking fun activities for their young children, and a venue where they can share experiences with other parents, will soon have a place designed and built with them in mind.
Dr. Amber Bartlett, owner of two businesses, today announced the January opening of her third business – Asher’s Sandbox. Named for Amber’s four-year-old son Asher, Asher’s Sandbox will offer a clean, fun, large, indoor sandbox for kids to dig, build and play – but the business will include so much more.
Amber said, “Whether you are looking for a rainy-day activity, a unique party venue or a place to connect with other parents navigating this beautiful chaos called parenthood, Asher’s Sandbox is for you! Let your kids dig, build, create and explore in a clean, organized environment! This 2800 square foot building located at 286 Main St., Plympton, will be a meeting place that is unique, educational and fun – and welcoming to kids and parents alike!
Asher’s Sandbox will offer:
• Open play sessions
• Mommy & me classes
• Sand yoga
• Sand meditation
• Birthday parties
• Special events
Dr. Bartlett is also the owner of The Barker House, a grooming, boarding and daycare facility for dogs, and her business psychology practice. And what led this serial entrepreneur in this direction? She recalls a recent time when Asher, who saw an indoor sandbox on TV and said to her, “Mommy, you’re supposed to take me here.”
“That moment stuck with me,” she recalls. “As a serial entrepreneur, ideas are always swirling, but this one felt different. This one felt like it was meant to be. And when I found the perfect space for lease, I knew it was the right time.”
She said, “Asher’s Sandbox is not just a playspace. It is the community spot that we all need. It is a place for local classes, events, parties, and play; a place where our kids can explore tactile play in a clean, safe, organized environment and make new friends. It is a place where we, the parents, the caregivers, the tired humans keeping tiny humans alive – can build real relationships with people who understand the joys and struggles.”
In addition to space for children, there will be adult classes and workshops, and special programming to bring people together beyond open play. Asher’s Sandbox will offer opportunities to learn, connect, and try new things – it is a space meant to be used, shared, and lived in.
For more details, please visit https://asherssandbox.com or email amber@asherssandbox.com.

ROCKLAND, MA, On Friday December 6, 2025, a tractor-trailer full of nonperishable food left Salt Lake City, Utah, enroute to Massachusetts. Early in the morning on Monday, December 9, the truck arrived in Rockland, MA, and unloaded 40,000 pounds of food donated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to feed thousands of South Shore families in need.
The 28 pallets of food contained essentials like rice, macaroni, green beans, flour, beans, carrots, diced tomatoes, peanut butter, and oats, as well as some fun items like pancake mix, cake mix and hot cocoa, and needed items like dishwashing liquid. All of the donated items were grown, processed and packaged by Church-owned farms, ranches, and production facilities like canneries, dairies, and mills. They process the goods using volunteer labor, plus donations from Church members. These resources provide basic foods and household items to people in need, regardless of their faith.
This 40,000-pound food donation will be split between two local food pantries: Interfaith Social Services and the South Shore Food Bank.
Since 1947, Interfaith Social Services has been a safety net for thousands of children and families who are struggling to make ends meet. Located in Quincy, MA, Interfaith operates one of the largest emergency food pantries in Greater Boston – distributing food and essential hygiene products to local residents in need. Interfaith also operates a mental health counseling center and homelessness prevention program, and coordinates several large-scale seasonal initiatives that bring joy to local children living in poverty.
The South Shore Food Bank is a regional food access hub for food-assistance organizations across 28 South Shore communities in Massachusetts. In 2024, more than half of food distributed by food pantries on the South Shore moved through their warehouse, benefiting almost 30,000 residents across the region. They also operate two large-scale food pantries in Weymouth and Randolph. Their mission is to improve food access, food equity, and promote health.
“Both food pantries have served record-setting numbers of local families in the past few months,” said Pam Denholm, executive director of South Shore Food Bank. “The food has been going out as quickly as it comes in, and we have had a hard time keeping shelves stocked. This donation is so well timed and much needed.”  Each food pantry provides groceries to 2,000+ households each month.
This is the second time The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has made a donation of this size to the two organizations. The last time was in 2020 at the height of the pandemic.

The Board of Selectmen voted unanimously on Nov. 25 to appoint Scott Lambiase, Abington’s current Town Manager, as Kingston’s next Administrator. Lambiase brings 18 years of municipal management experience, including nearly 15 years as Director of Inspectional Services in Duxbury.
The appointment follows a comprehensive search process in which the search committee unanimously recommended Lambiase. He emphasized his commitment to communication, transparency, and volunteer recruitment during his interview with the board. “One of the biggest things that I heard loud and clear in the past communities was that communication out of town hall and finding ways to engage the community is key and important,” he told selectmen.
Lambiase will need four weeks’ notice from Abington before starting in Kingston, meaning he could begin work before year’s end. George Samia will continue as Interim Town Administrator during the transition. The appointment is contingent on contract negotiations and background checks.

BOSTON – Wednesday, November 19, 2025 – Representative LaNatra joined her colleagues in the Massachusetts House of Representatives in unanimously supporting legislation that strengthens protections for health care workers, establishes preventive and protective standards to reduce the risk of violence, improves health care facility incident reporting, enhances interagency coordination to safeguard privacy, and creates legal protections for certain employees harmed in the line of duty.
“Our health care workforce is the backbone of Massachusetts nation-leading health care system. For too long, this workforce has endured violence in the workplace that has gone unaddressed on a state level.” said Representative Kathy LaNatra (D – Kingston). “It is our job to ensure that health care workers do not have to worry for their own safety while trying to deliver the best care for their patients. This legislation affirms the Legislature’s commitment to protecting and strengthening the health care workforce and is a critical step in reducing workplace violence and giving workers the protections and benefits they deserve when it does happen. Thank you to Speaker Mariano, Chairman Lawn and Chairman Cahill for their leadership and thank you to Massachusetts Nurses Association, 1199SEIU and the Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association for working collaboratively with the legislature to address the health care workplace violence crisis.”
Every 38 minutes in Massachusetts health care facilities someone, most often a clinician or an employee, is physically assaulted, endures verbal abuse, or is threatened, according to the Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association. Violence against health care workers most often occurs in emergency rooms, inpatient units and psychiatric units. To support a culture of safety and respect in health care facilities, the bill passed takes the following approach:
Prevention Plans, Training and Reporting
• Establishes a statewide requirement for health care employers to address workplace violence through a standardized framework, requiring annual and facility-specific risk assessments conducted with employees and labor representatives to identify factors that place staff at risk.
• Mandates a written violence prevention plan that includes hazard mitigation strategies, employee training, post-incident debriefing and a crisis response program.
• Requires annual reporting of workplace violence incidents to the Department of Public Health (DPH) and district attorneys, supporting statewide and county-level data tracking while maintaining data privacy. The de-identified data will be publicly published and categorized by occupation and incident type.
• Imposes civil penalties against a health care employer for noncompliance (up to $2,000 per violation) and protects employees from retaliation.
Criminal Protections and Penalties for Assaults Against a Health Care Workers
The bill codifies graduated penalties for assaulting an employee or contracted employee in the line of duty. With 91 percent of violent incidents in hospitals committed by patients against workers, it focuses on health care settings where violence is most prevalent. Strengthening these protections ensures that direct health care providers, and the staff who support facility operations, on-site administrative work, security, or emergency medical transportation, have an opportunity to seek the justice that they are entitled to through the following penalties:
• Assault causing bodily injury: Up to 5 years in state prison, up to 2.5 years in a jail or house of correction, a fine of $500 – $5,000, or combination of imprisonment and fines.
• Assault causing serious bodily injury: Up to 10 years in state prison, up to 2.5 years in a jail or house of correction, a fine of $500 – $5,000 fine, or combination of imprisonment and fines.
Paid Leave for Employees
This bill establishes that employees directly employed by a health care employer in high-acuity settings, who suffer workplace violence resulting in bodily injury or serious bodily injury are entitled to paid leave without using any accrued time (vacation, sick or personal).
Privacy Protection for Employees and Union Members
Victims of workplace violence who are employed directly by a health care facility, or who are union members, may provide either the address of their health care facility or that of their labor organization instead of their personal home address for all court documents related to a workplace violence incident.
Alternative Pathways for Behavioral and Mental Health and Data Protection
• Mandates a statewide report from the Executive Office of Health and Human Services (EOHHS) and the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security (EOPSS) to improve care and alternative treatment options for those with mental or behavioral health diagnoses, and for criminal justice patients.
• Requires identification of new, non-arrest pathways to reduce unnecessary criminal justice involvement for high-acuity behavioral health patients.
• All recommendations must include strong safeguards, penalties for data misuse, and full compliance with federal confidentiality laws, including heightened protections for behavioral health and substance-use information.
• Ensures that improving data sharing of workplace violence incidents to improve safety does not come at the expense of any patient or health care worker’s privacy.
The bill passed the House of Representatives 158-0. It now goes to the Senate for consideration.

North Easton Savings Bank is proud to announce its continued leadership in the Massachusetts’ banking landscape, as confirmed by the recently released FDIC Deposit Market Share Report. In a competitive field of 14 banks, five of which are among the nation’s largest, North Easton Savings Bank has emerged as a standout performer, capturing more than one-third of all market growth across its 10-town footprint.
Data indicate that the overall market grew by $297.87 million in deposits over the past year, with North Easton Savings Bank comprising $107.12 million or 35.96% of that total. While the regional 10-town FDIC market grew 3.4%, North Easton Savings Bank’s deposits were up 7.5% year-over-year – indicating that better than one in three who moved funds transferred them to the Bank. The Bank’s performance reflects a growing preference among consumers and businesses to choose institutions that not only understand and support their local needs, but also have a solid understanding of the mobile-first digital landscape we are all living in.
The Bank views FDIC Deposit Market Share numbers as a “back of the baseball card”-type stat sheet that reflects customer preference, competitive strength, and community trust.
“We have a motivated and talented team here that is relentlessly focused on creating positive outcomes for their clients,” stated Rich Spencer, President and CEO of North Easton Savings Bank. “Our growth in the market is a reflection of our growth in service platforms, tech-integrations, and most importantly – people. I believe we are creating something special here, we’re working hard at it, and the most recent FDIC data tell me the families and businesses of Massachusetts are noticing.”
North Easton Savings Bank’s recent performance in the FDIC Deposit Market Share arrives during a time of celebration at the Bank, as it has recently finished renovations on new banking centers, received local and national awards as a best place to work, and is managing total assets that are at an all-time high. The Bank is looking to continue its current pace via the addition of its new commercial banking teams, the launch of a family banking suite, and expanded service platforms through mobile and in-person channels. At North Easton Savings Bank, all deposits are insured in full as a member of both the FDIC and DIF.