Public meetings this week look at city-funded housing vouchers; transportation planning policy; universal after-school options and the middle-school experience; and what’s next for a church weathervane made in 1721.

In a look ahead at a week of Cambridge and Somerville events, the vibe is strangely spooky with a Third Annual “Hafoween,” Crypt Night, Zombie Prom and Here Come the Mummies performing, but there’s also Arab American and Japanese festivals, a Glowball “anti-gala,” Taylor Swift trivia and comedian Emma Willmann.

Schools in Cambridge and Somerville are protesting over Gaza, but administrators and police are moving with caution, emphasizing support for protest and free speech to contrast with the tarnished images of officials elsewhere.

The play examines sexism in science through a 30-year look at Irene Pepperberg teaching her parrot, Alex, to have the cognitive abilities of a human child.

Harvard plans to take the empty former Coop Annex building at 12-30 Palmer St. and reuse it for new commercial ventures and outdoor space.

No Harvard affiliation needed: The student-written play, an annual tradition, holds its own against professional productions in Somerville and Cambridge.

With every student in a dorm a student not competing for housing with other Cambridge residents, it was a key concern for Planning Board members hearing annual town-gown reports from Harvard, MIT and Lesley.

Arrow Street Arts opens its Black Box Theater – once the American Repertory Theater’s Oberon – with a Boston Opera Collaborative production of “Carmen.” After that, several groups move in for performances throughout the spring and summer.

We continue Black History Month with Emory Clark, who dreamed of owning his own pharmacy and made it come true (with a sideline in ice cream), and Charles Lenox, whose quiet work helped build Cambridge business community in the early 1800s.

After honoring Barry Keoghan as Man of the Year last week, Harvard’s Hasty Pudding Theatricals will be honoring its Woman of the Year Annette Bening on Tuesday.