Sticking around

Also: Why Harvard adopted its new neutrality policy; Boston Calling crowds [Donate ❤️]( [View in Browser](  May 29, 2024 🌤️ Mostly sunny, with a high near 77 and a chance of thunderstorms after 5 p.m. Good Morning Boston, It's already Wednesday. Let's keep speeding along to the news: - Sticking it out: PWHL Boston was [80 seconds away]( from not even making the playoffs this spring. But tonight, they'll play for the new professional women's hockey league's first-ever championship. The Lowell-based team hosts PWHL Minnesota in the decisive Game 5 for the inaugural Walter Cup tonight in front of a sold-out crowd at the Tsongas Center. Tied at 2-2, the best-of-five series has already featured its share of stunning turns. - Catch up: It will be hard to match the drama of Game 4. Minnesota thought they had broken through the 0-0 stalemate in double overtime to win the cup — only for [their goal]( to be overturned for goaltender interference (after the team had launched into full celebrations). Seventy seconds after play resumed, Swiss forward and Northeastern alum Alina Müller [scored]( to send the series back to Massachusetts. - Key figure to know: Boston's playoff run this year has come on the back of goalie Aerin Frankel (also a Northeastern product). She stopped all 33 shots she faced in Game 4 — and [141 of the 145]( shots she faced during Boston's [first-round sweep of Montreal](. "Her ability to stay calm through all these ups and downs and her ability to keep us in games and win games for us ... that's what you want heading into the championship," head coach Courtney Kessel recently said. "If you have a hot goalie, you can win." - How to watch Game 5 tonight: The puck drops at 7 p.m. and will be televised on NESN. Cord-cutters can also livestream the game on YouTube. ([Just bookmark this link]( - The big picture: The six-team PWHL [launched in January]( — after the previous North American pro women's hockey league folded. [Here's a look at why some observers think their business model might have more staying power]( than previous leagues. - It's electric: Seventeen Massachusetts school districts are getting federal funding for new electric school buses, the White House announced this morning. The biggest winners include Andover, Fitchburg, Holyoke and Ipswich — which all got $5 million or more from the rebate program to purchase electric school buses. - In Andover, the money will help the district grow their fleet of electric buses from five to 30. Assistant Superintendent Keith Taverna says they have been a hit with students. "They spoke to how quiet they are and how it's a positive start to their academic day ... which is one of the unintended benefits beyond being environmentally friendly," Taverna told WBUR's Amy Sokolow. - Boston Calling organizers say they'll work on making the layout and experience better next year, following complaints about crowds Sunday that [some called "scary" and "dangerous."]( While festival organizers stopped short of an apology, [they issued a statement]( saying "we never want anyone to feel uncomfortable or unsafe at the show." - [Drone footage]( during pop singer Chappell Roan's performance showed huge crowds of people tightly packed together — though organizers said the number of attendees was "several thousand" below the festival's official capacity. Medical staff told WBUR there was not a significant increase in incidents on Sunday. - What's in a name? Gov. Maura Healey's administration is pushing to rename the state's Office of Elder Affairs. The governor [filed a bill yesterday]( that would change the name to the Office of Aging and Independence to reduce the stigma around aging and better reflect the 50-year-old agency's mission. Healey's office said their research found older adults do not connect with the term “elder.” - The legislation would also replace the terms “elder,” “elderly person(s),” and “handicapped” with “older adult(s)” and “adult with a disability" in the language of the state's laws. - Bird watch: The world's fastest bird is continuing its comeback in Massachusetts. Scientists with the state's Department of Fish and Game will [put identifying bands on three recently hatched peregrine falcons this morning in Newburyport]( to track their growth. - The state's peregrine falcon population hit zero in the 1960s, largely due to the use of pesticides like DDT. But now, state ornithologist Andrew Vitz says there are around 45 nesting pairs of peregrine falcons across Massachusetts. (While they used to pick rocky cliffs to nest, most falcons in the state now nest atop tall buildings and bridges.) P.S.— The state has [six live cams]( that let you watch some of those peregrine falcon nests up close. Don't miss [the nest atop UMass Amherst's library]( (which has a very floofy chick). Nik DeCosta-Klipa Editor, Newsletters  The Rundown [Harvard leaders adopt policy to avoid speaking officially on social, political topics]( “The university’s leaders are hired for their skill in leading an institution of higher education, not their expertise in public affairs,” the report released by an eight-member working group stated. Going forward, administrators said they will only issue statements on behalf of the university on issues like academic freedom. [Read more.]( [Harvard leaders adopt policy to avoid speaking officially on social, political topics]( “The university’s leaders are hired for their skill in leading an institution of higher education, not their expertise in public affairs,” the report released by an eight-member working group stated. Going forward, administrators said they will only issue statements on behalf of the university on issues like academic freedom. [Read more.]( [Evaluation requested for suspect charged in stabbings at Mass. movie theater, McDonald's]( A Massachusetts man has been arraigned on charges including assault with the intent to murder after six people were stabbed in separate attacks. A prosecutor says 26-year-old Jared Ravizza was appointed a lawyer, who asked Tuesday that Ravizza undergo a mental health evaluation. [Read more.]( [Evaluation requested for suspect charged in stabbings at Mass. movie theater, McDonald's]( A Massachusetts man has been arraigned on charges including assault with the intent to murder after six people were stabbed in separate attacks. A prosecutor says 26-year-old Jared Ravizza was appointed a lawyer, who asked Tuesday that Ravizza undergo a mental health evaluation. [Read more.]( [Mass. Senate takes up effort to prevent home equity theft]( Massachusetts Senate has agreed to legislation aimed at preventing the continuation of so-called home equity theft. An amendment added to the fiscal 2025 budget would eliminate a municipality's ability to take a property owner's earned equity beyond what is owed in unpaid taxes and "reasonably incurred expenses." [Read more.]( [Mass. Senate takes up effort to prevent home equity theft]( Massachusetts Senate has agreed to legislation aimed at preventing the continuation of so-called home equity theft. An amendment added to the fiscal 2025 budget would eliminate a municipality's ability to take a property owner's earned equity beyond what is owed in unpaid taxes and "reasonably incurred expenses." [Read more.]( [The abortion debate is headed to the ballot box. Here's where voters will decide]( From Florida to Arizona, reproductive rights supporters seek to add abortion access to state constitutions after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the federal right to abortion in 2022. [Read more.]( [The abortion debate is headed to the ballot box. Here's where voters will decide]( From Florida to Arizona, reproductive rights supporters seek to add abortion access to state constitutions after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the federal right to abortion in 2022. [Read more.]( [Feds grant Maine a lease for floating offshore wind research project]( Up to a dozen floating wind turbine platforms would be located about 30 nautical miles southeast of Portland as part of a project to study the UMaine-developed technology and its interactions with the surrounding environment. The federal government has granted a lease to Maine for the project. [Read more.]( [Feds grant Maine a lease for floating offshore wind research project]( Up to a dozen floating wind turbine platforms would be located about 30 nautical miles southeast of Portland as part of a project to study the UMaine-developed technology and its interactions with the surrounding environment. The federal government has granted a lease to Maine for the project. [Read more.]( Anything Else? - BAMS Fest founder Catherine Morris is on a mission to change how people experience art in the city. "In Boston, art is a nicety; it's not a required must-have," Morris [tells WBUR's Cognoscenti team](. "We’re a city of champions, but the idea of champions needs to be broadened beyond the Red Sox and the Celtics." - Vermont officials have rediscovered a plant that hasn't been recorded in the state for more than a hundred years: [the false mermaid-weed](. - Two decades since the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court legalized same-sex marriage, the author of the decision [now worries that the nation's high court could threaten those legal protections](. - Do you daydream about which local intersections and rotaries (cough, [Kosciuszko Circle]( cough) we could replace with something better? [Meet the diverging diamond interchange]( an unorthodox traffic configuration aimed at making left turns more efficient and safe, which has now expanded to more than 30 U.S. states. What We're Reading 📚 - At Harvard, a confrontation during a protest erupts in political controversy — and lands in court ([The Boston Globe]( - Raw Milk’s Risks Don’t Stop Right-Wing Commentators From Defiantly Pushing It ([The New York Times]( - Bill Walton’s Long, Strange Trip to Basketball Immortality ([The Ringer](  Tell Me Something Good [New independent Somerville bookstore almost sells out after grand opening (Boston.com)]( Owner Mila Hossain initially introduced the new store in December and announced opening day just last week. Despite the short notice, the independent bookstore almost completely sold out its initial stock on Sunday. “It was so overwhelming to see how much you all believed in Narrative and what I’m trying to do through it,” Hossain said. [Read more.]( [New independent Somerville bookstore almost sells out after grand opening (Boston.com)]( Owner Mila Hossain initially introduced the new store in December and announced opening day just last week. Despite the short notice, the independent bookstore almost completely sold out its initial stock on Sunday. “It was so overwhelming to see how much you all believed in Narrative and what I’m trying to do through it,” Hossain said. [Read more.]( Play: [WBUR's daily mini crossword.]( Can you keep your streak going? Before you go: [New MBTA mascot?]( 😎 Forward to a friend. They can sign up [here](. 🔎 Explore [WBUR's Field Guide]( stories, events and more. 📣 Give us your feedback: newsletters@wbur.org 📧 Get more WBUR stories sent to your inbox. [Check out all of our newsletter offerings.](    Want to change how you receive these emails? Stop getting this newsletter by [updating your preferences.](  I don't want to hear from WBUR anymore. Unsubscribe from all WBUR editorial newsletters [here](.  Interested in learning more about corporate sponsorship? [Click here.]( Copyright © 2023 WBUR-FM, All rights reserved.