Even before the official start of fire season, the region is grappling with dry conditions that are fueling brush fires and prompting water conservation measures across Massachusetts.

A brush fire in Lowell Monday followed a series of similar incidents in the Northeast, including a 400-acre blaze in Long Island over the weekend and another in Somers, Connecticut, on Sunday.

“The start of the fire season in the spring is coming sooner now and the end of the fire season in the fall is coming later now,” said Vandana Rao, director of water policy at Massachusetts’ Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs.

Rao attributes this extended fire season to climate change, noting that dry conditions began as early as August and have rapidly worsened since.

“We got an unprecedented number of fires in the months of September and October compared to other times,” Rao said.

Extremely dry weather has left firefighters battling wildfires in recent weeks.

Currently, most of Massachusetts is experiencing a level three, or critical, drought. The Cape Cod National Seashore is planning to conduct a prescribed burn at Fort Hill this week, which will mitigate potential brush fires in the spring.

Local officials are also working to raise awareness about the ongoing drought and the need for water conservation in their cities and towns.

The conditions prompted the town of Topsfield to reinstate an outdoor water ban that’s been in effect since August. Well levels have hit an all-time low for this time of year.

“These are going to be the strictest restrictions we’ve ever had to impose,” Topsfield Water Superintendent Greg Krom said. “I think (people) are going to be surprised. We had a rainy, snowy winter. I think they’re going to be surprised that we’re still in a drought.”

Despite all the snow we’ve seen in recent weeks, Massachusetts continues to deal with an ongoing drought.

As temperatures rise, officials are urging residents to conserve water as much as possible.

“You know, people have plans to have ChemLawn come out and water the grass before and after,” Krom said. “Sorry, better off canceling it for now.”

Rao echoed that sentiment, stressing the importance of indoor water conservation.

“Any small steps that individuals can take, businesses can take right now, mostly indoor use to tide us over, because we don’t know how long this drought will last,” Rao said. “We don’t know if it will get worse.”

Experts warn that it will take more than a few rain showers to alleviate the 12-inch precipitation deficit across much of the state. The drought is expected to persist for the next few months.

BOSTON (WHDH) – As President Donald Trump continues his push to eliminate the Department of Education, Massachusetts educators are raising concerns — saying the department provides funding for low-income students and students with disabilities.

But, Education Secretary Linda McMahon says the current system isn’t working.

“It has sown incredible anxiety and angst around what the future will look like,” said Massachusetts Secretary of Education Patrick Tutwiler.

White House officials said they are preparing an executive order to direct McMahon to begin the process of dismantling the department.

However, Trump cannot eliminate the Department of Education on his own. Doing so would require Congressional approval, so Trump is expected to target programs within the department, moving them to other agencies or ending them completely.

Tutwiler said districts are concerned about how this will impact the $2 billion the state receives from the department.

“Superintendents are concerned about how they’ll be able to provide reading intervention, how they’ll be able to provide related services for students with disabilities,” he said. “I will tell you definitively that we don’t have the funds to backfill $2 billion in funding that we get from federal government.”

The Massachusetts Teachers Association hopes the state will provide additional funding if the department is eliminated.

“If there are cuts coming down, the state has to be willing to respond to protect our public schools and colleges,” said Max Page, president of the Massachusetts Teachers Association.

The state says money from the department helps pay teachers’ salaries in low-income communities and supports assistive technology, special education paraprofessionals, and also transportation.

It also operates the Pell Grant program, which helps low- and middle-income students afford college.

McMahon says a review of the Department of Education’s programs is long overdue.

“Since the Department of Education was established in 1980, we’ve spent over a trillion dollars to see our scores continue to go down,” she said.

But, some education leaders say that fails to capture the full picture.

“Our public schools have performed remarkably well given that they also do not have the funds and the staffing that they need, so the notion that somehow you’ve stopped funding special education services, you’ve stopped funding supports for low-income students, and that somehow is going to make schools even better is of course patently ridiculous,” Page said.

Closing the department also leaves the future of higher education loans in question. Trump acknowledged that the more than $1.6 trillion in outstanding student debt is delaying his efforts to shutter the agency.

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It’s no secret that Massachusetts is home to some of the world’s most prestigious colleges, from Harvard University to Babson College.

People from all walks of life — even big-name celebrities — flock to the Bay State to learn from some of the best in academia.

From actors to politicians, many famous faces got their start as students at the various universities around the state.

Some celebrities are known for their Massachusetts ties, while others may surprise you. Here’s a list of 20 living celebrities who went to college in Massachusetts.

The 44th President of the United States attended Harvard Law School and earned his juris doctorate degree in 1991. While there, he was the editor of the Harvard Law Review.

Obama’s presidential predecessor also attended Harvard University. Bush earned a master of business administration degree in 1975.

The former first lady also attended Harvard Law School, though not at the same time as her future husband.

Before becoming the second person to walk on the moon, Aldrin earned a doctorate degree in astronautics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1963.

The six-time Emmy Award-winning actor graduated from Harvard University in 1967.

Poehler, a Burlington native, went to Boston College, where she earned a degree in media and communications.

More: Celebrities from MA: Can you name them all? These famous faces grew up in Massachusetts

The two-time Emmy Award winner grew up in Norwell and went to Emerson College.

The longtime actor went to Harvard, where he majored in English literature and graduated in 1969.

Winkler, an actor and director, graduated from Emerson College in 1978. He also later went to nearby Yale University for graduate school.

The Academy Award-winning actress went to Boston University.

The actress is another Harvard graduate on this list.

A former radio and television host, Williams is a graduate of Northeastern University.

Mayer, a singer and Connecticut native, is an alumnus of Berklee College of Music in Boston.

A famed activist, Davis graduated from Brandeis University in Waltham in 1965.

The former Olympic figure skater studied business at Emmanuel College.

The “Fast car” singer went to Tufts University in Medford.

An actor known for roles in “While You Were Sleeping” and “Independence Day,” Pullman earned a master of fine arts degree from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Before playing in the NFL, Flutie was a quarterback at Boston College.

Andover native and comedian Leno went to Emerson College.

The Supreme Court justice graduated from the College of the Holy Cross.

Melina Khan is a trending reporter for the USA TODAY Network – New England, which serves more than a dozen affiliated publications across New England. She can be reached at MKhan@gannett.com.