Gardner News
GARDNER As professor Thomas Matsuda prepares to retire from Mount Wachusett Community College this summer, school and city officials are honoring the longtime art instructor’s legacy on campus and throughout the community.
The MWCC’s board of trustees recently voted unanimously to approve the recommendation of Matsuda to emeritus status, an honor conferred to show respect for a distinguished career.
“I’m glad to have received it, but I don’t know what kind of perks come with it,” joked Matsuda, who will retire in August. “But it’s a nice way to be distinguished.”
Matsuda, who began working at the Mount in 2005, served as the art department chairman for several years. He was also an adviser to the MWCC Art Club and mentored countless students during his tenure at the school.
FITCHBURG Hoping to shed light on the city’s changing downtown, Fitchburg State University students have created a “Positivity Tour” of the area, the school recently announced.
Spearheaded by Professor Christa Marr and her students, the tour guides visitors via a customized Google map through various downtown attractions. Points of interest include notable buildings, public art installations, and shops and restaurants.
Marr’s current events and service learning class, which in pre-pandemic years had put on a pop-up petting zoo and family fair, also created weekly scavenger hunts that highlight art and architecture along Fitchburg’s Main Street.
“We knew an event was out of the question this year, but we wanted to get people downtown,” Marr said. “We decided, why not a positivity tour?”