New Bedford Light - A community-news organization

10/04/2025

❓Reporter's query: Have you worked in South Coast nursing homes, or do you have family living in a South Coast nursing home? If so, Light reporter Grace Ferguson wants to hear from you.

You may contact her at: [email protected]

ICYMI: Her investigation of the Brandon Woods of New Bedford nursing home found that it was cited for 44 health violations, more than any other nursing home in Massachusetts, last year. Inspectors said the facility “failed to provide a safe environment free from physical abuse, sexual abuse, and neglect.”

Read the story here
https://newbedfordlight.org/city-nursing-home-cited-for-failing-to-stop-physical-and-sexual-abuse/

10/03/2025

Wrap up the week with these standout events.

DATMA’s Fall Ball blends fashion, a silent auction, and cocktails in support of public art and education. New Bedford Festival Theatre kicks off spooky season with a one-night screening of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show."

Check out our Arts & Culture Calendar for even more fun and enlightening things to do.

https://newbedfordlight.org/culture-calendar/

10/03/2025

Keep The Light shining! As an independent, nonprofit news outlet, we rely on reader support to deliver in-depth journalism that informs the public and holds the powerful accountable. Thank you for being part of it.

Support quality journalism by joining us today!

10/02/2025

📝Student test scores in New Bedford and around Massachusetts have mostly flatlined or declined, according to the latest statewide testing data. And in the first year when 10th grade scores no longer would determine who graduates, far fewer of New Bedford’s high schoolers participated in these tests.

"For many, the value of the test shifted when it was no longer tied directly to earning a diploma,” said Joyce Cardoza, the principal of New Bedford High School.

Now that the 10th grade MCAS tests are no longer a graduation requirement, fewer high schoolers in New Bedford participated.

10/02/2025

How can we help you navigate life in New Bedford? Send us your questions, such as how to get heating or food assistance, and let The Light's reporters find the advice on how to get what you need. We keep all our answers here!

Send us your questions ⬇

10/02/2025

Thursday night brings plenty of ways to get out and have some pre-weekend fun.

Make a light-up Halloween Porch Board at Nasketucket Bay Vineyard or get creative at Buzzards Bay Brewery’s Maker Session with wine, mocktails, and food from Rosie’s Table food truck.

Listen to local singer-songwriter Ian M***a at Bittersweet Farm, or laugh the night away with Tim McKeever and Friends Comedy Night at The Vault.

https://newbedfordlight.org/culture-calendar/

10/01/2025

Opinion: How was it that after 35 years of providing longevity pay to elected officials New Bedford suddenly stopped the practice last year? It stopped because a second-year city employee, working by herself in an understaffed treasurer’s office, questioned it, writes Light columnist Jack Spillane.

Andrea Sanchez was on the job for less than a year before she started to ask why elected officials were getting the same longevity pay as management.

10/01/2025

✍️ The 12 people gathered at the Dartmouth Public Library North Branch were there to hand-copy the U.S. Constitution, an exercise aimed at introducing the document to the public and encouraging interaction with it and meditation on it.

✍️ Want to try it yourself? There'll be a second U.S. Constitution copying workshop at the library, at 211 Cross Road, Dartmouth, on Thursday, Oct. 2, from 6 to 8 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

The public is invited to hand-copy the U.S. Constitution as a way to interact with — and interrogate — the bedrock of American governance.

10/01/2025

Stay connected with local environmental news and updates. Follow for conservation efforts, sustainability tips, and ways you can help protect our community and the planet.

▶︎ Environment ■ Must-read coverage ■ Public and informational meetings ■ Got a news tip? Contact environment reporter Brooke Kushwaha. ■ More news

10/01/2025

Dartmouth’s Long-range Planning Committee will hold a public workshop on Tuesday, Sept. 30, at Southworth Library. Topics include water and wastewater infrastructure along with improvements to the Padanaram Bridge. Those who cannot attend in person can watch the meeting live on DCTV.

DARTMOUTH -- The town's Long-range Planning Committee will hold a public workshop to discuss public works projects, on Tuesday, Sept. 30, at the Southworth Library.

09/30/2025

📽 Store owners on New Bedford's Acushnet Avenue say ICE operations have dealt a blow to their revenue -- and, one noted, "to the psyche of the community."

With this story⤵️
https://newbedfordlight.org/new-bedford-immigrant-businesses-negatively-impacted-by-trump-policies/

09/30/2025

Pascual Cuin González, an immigrant with asylum status and a work permit, was detained in three facilities -- in Massachusetts, New York and Louisiana -- before being released. He was never told why he was arrested or let go. With 🎥

Pascual Cuin González, an immigrant with asylum status and a work permit, was detained in three facilities before being released.