February 2023 – Massachusetts State Sen. Ed Kennedy

State Senator Kennedy Meets with Tyngsborough Select Board

February 28, 2023February 28, 2023admin

State Senator Ed Kennedy and State Representative Colleen Garry met with the Tyngsborough Select Board at the Select Board’s meeting on Monday, February 27 to discuss proposed legislation that might impact the town of Tyngsborough.

Congratulations to Tyngsborough Assistant Town Manager Colin Loiselle on his new position as the Director of ARPA Implementation for the City of Boston. Colin will begin his new position on March 15.

From left to right at the Tyngsborough Select Board Meeting – Assistant Town Manager Colin Loiselle, Town Manager Matt Hanson, Select Board Member Eric Eldridge, Select Board Chair Ron Keohane, Select Board Member Mike Moran, Executive Assistant Jacqueline Schnackertz, State Representative Colleen Garry and State Senator Ed Kennedy.

State Senator Ed Kennedy Attends Winterfest in Lowell

February 19, 2023February 19, 2023admin

State Senator Ed Kennedy was at Lowell’s annual Winterfest on Saturday, February 18. The popular winter festival featured live music and various entertainment, all types of food vendors, an art market including many booths from Western Avenue Studios, a youth mural competition, the annual soup bowl competition, magic shows and a fire show by Cirque De Light.

One of the most popular live music performances was blindspot in the Brown Street Tent. blindspot has appeared in Lowell at the 2022 Town and the City Festival, the 2022 Lowell Winterfest, and the 2022 Lowell Folk Festival. blindspot is an award winning, female-fronted alternative rock band comprised of frontwoman Alexa Economou on lead vocals and Chris Cormier on guitar and/or drums.

State Senator Ed Kennedy with Lowla at the Lowell Winterfest on Saturday, February 18. Lowla is the official mascot of Winterfest in Lowell.

Massachusetts Cultural Council Awards Over $51 Million In Cultural Sector Recovery Grants

February 16, 2023February 16, 2023admin

On Wednesday, February 15 the Massachusetts Cultural Council celebrated a historic $51,063,360 public investment into the Commonwealth’s creative and cultural sector by announcing the 5,218 recipients of two pandemic recovery grant programs at the Massachusetts State House.

Joined by more than 300 grantees, legislators, community leaders, and cultural sector partners, the Massachusetts Cultural Council publicly recognized the 1,218 cultural organizations and 4,000 artists, creatives, culture bearers, and gig workers across Massachusetts who received awards from the one-time Cultural Sector Recovery Grants for Organizations and Cultural Sector Recovery Grants for Individuals programs.

State Senator Ed Kennedy delivers remarks to more than 300 grant recipients on Wednesday, February 15 as State Representative Dylan Fernandes looks on.

Massachusetts Cultural Council Director and CEO Michael Bobbitt addresses the crowd in the Great Hall at the State House.

The drum section of the Hamilton-Garrett Music and Arts Center band did an excellent job of opening up the Mass Cultural Council’s Grant Awards Event at the State House. They were joined by an outstanding horn section minutes later.

Emily Ruddock the Executive Director of MASSCreative at the Mass Cultural Council Grant Awards Event.

A large crowd of more than 300 gathered in The Great Hall at the State House for the Mass Cultural Council’s Grant Awards Event.

Massachusetts Cultural Council Chair Nina Fialkow and Vice Chair Marc Carroll also spoke at the Grant Awards Event.

State Senator Ed Kennedy Visits UMASS Lowell’s NERVE Center

February 14, 2023February 14, 2023admin

State Senator Ed Kennedy was happy to tour the UMass-Lowell New England Robotic Validation and Experimentation (NERVE) Center at 110 Canal Street in Lowell on Monday, February 13 as the NERVE Center celebrated its tenth anniversary.

The UMass-Lowell NERVE Center is an interdisciplinary robotics testing, research and training facility that evaluates robotic capabilities, human performance, and human-robot interaction. The mission of the NERVE Center is to improve the development of robotic systems.

The Massachusetts State Legislature has funded a state voucher program that gives Massachusetts-based small and medium sized businesses access to UMass-Lowell’s leading-edge research facilities at 70% off the standard rates. Eleven professionally-staffed core research facilities (CRF), with technologies including materials characterization, flow cytometry, DNA sequencing, NMR, robotics testing, and a clean room nanofabrication facility are available for use with the voucher program.

Associate NERVE Center Director Adam Norton, NERVE Center Director Holly Yanco, State Senator Ed Kennedy, and UMass-Lowell Chancellor Julie Chen.
State Senator Ed Kennedy playing with Spot the robot dog from Boston Dynamics.
Robotics Lab Manager Jordan Allspaw describes some of the robot’s capabilities to State Senator Ed Kennedy.
State Senator Ed Kennedy met up with UMass-Lowell Associate Vice Chancellor Arlene Parquette during the NERVE Center tour. They were both part of the Sister-City Delegation that travelled to Kalamata, Greece last September.
Robotics Engineer Brian Flynn describes some of the research at the NERVE Center to State Senator Ed Kennedy as UMass-Lowell Community Relations Director Patricia Coffey and UMass-Lowell Director of Government and Community Relations D.J. Corcoran look on.
“Robot Dogs” were a big hit during the NERVE Center tour.

State Senator Ed Kennedy Attends Legislative Day Luncheon in Fitchburg

February 2, 2023February 2, 2023admin

State Senator Ed Kennedy attended Legislative Day Luncheon at Fitchburg State University on Monday, January 30, 2023. The luncheon featured remarks by Fitchburg State University President Richard Lapidus, Fitchburg Mayor Stephen DiNatale, and Roy Nascimento, President and CEO of the North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce. At the conclusion of the speaking program legislators took a tour of the former Fitchburg Theater which will soon become the Fitchburg State University Performing Arts Center.

Many legislators from the North Worcester County and Middlesex County area attended the luncheon including State Senator Ann Gobi, State Senator John Cronin and State Representative Margaret Scarsdale.