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Amherst, Massachusetts
Emily Dickinson wrote almost all of her roughly 1,800 poems in a house you can still visit on Main Street, and she barely left town to do it. Amherst is a place that small holding three colleges at once: the University of Massachusetts, Amherst College, and Hampshire College together pack tens of thousands of students into a town of about 39,000, which is why the median resident here is barely out of their teens. This guide shows you how Amherst works today: the manager who runs it, the council that makes its rules, the legislators who carry your voice to Boston and Washington, and the data behind it all.
Amherst at a Glance
- County: Hampshire. Amherst sits in the Pioneer Valley, east of the Connecticut River, in the heart of western Massachusetts.
- Government: Council-manager charter, adopted in 2018. A 13-member Town Council makes policy and an appointed Town Manager, Paul Bockelman, runs the town.
- Schools: two districts, the Amherst elementary schools and the Amherst-Pelham Regional middle and high school, both led by Superintendent E. Xiomara Herman.
The Amherst Civics Handbook
A plain-language guide to how your town works: who represents you, how decisions get made, and how to make your voice heard. Read it free online.
How Amherst’s Government Works
In 2018 Amherst voters retired representative town meeting, a form of government the town had used for generations, and adopted a council-manager charter. Voters now elect a 13-member Town Council to make the rules and set the budget, and the Council hires a professional Town Manager to run the town day to day. Voters also elect a School Committee. There is no mayor here, and no one person on a ballot who runs everything. Power is split on purpose between the people you elect and the manager they hire.
Town Council
The 13-member legislative body. Three councillors are elected at large and ten represent the five districts, two apiece. The Council passes bylaws, sets policy, and adopts the budget.
Town Manager
The appointed chief executive. Hired by the Council, the manager runs every department, appoints department heads, and prepares the budget the Council votes on.
School Committee
Elected members set policy and the budget for the schools and hire the superintendent. Amherst has two committees, one for the elementary district and a regional one for the secondary schools.
- Residents elect the 13 councillors and the School Committee.
- The Council hires a Town Manager and votes the budget up or down.
- The Manager runs the town day to day and proposes the budget.
- You take part: public comment, board service, and a call to your district councillor all shape what happens next.
Civic Calendar
- Town Council: generally meets the first and third Mondays at 6:30 PM in the Town Room at Town Hall, 4 Boltwood Avenue.
- School Committee: meets in the evening, and its sessions are aired on Amherst Media.
- Municipal elections: odd-numbered years. The Town Council and School Committee were last chosen in November 2025 and sworn in this past January.
- State and federal elections: even-numbered years. The 2026 primary and general are this fall.
Town Government
Community & Data
Local government works best when residents show up. Find your district councillor, speak at a Monday meeting, or apply to serve on a board.