Lawmakers must resist the misleading call to mandate ‘evidence-based’ literacy curriculum
We shouldn’t force a one-size-fits-all approach to reading instruction
Posted inCourts
Bar advocate work stoppage becomes an SJC separation-of-powers conundrum
Over the course of 70 minutes of arguments by the two sides, and pointed questioning from the justices, none of the Supreme Judicial Court’s seven judges appeared eager to snatch the power of the purse from Beacon Hill lawmakers.
Posted inState Government
Unions: Buyout talks could affect 2,000+ state workers
Labor leaders say the Healey administration approached them to begin conversations about a buyout program that could reduce the state workforce by roughly 2,000 positions, the latest attempt at belt-tightening amid upheaval from the federal shutdown and funding cuts.
Posted inGovernment
DTA: Some food aid recipients will see benefits drop to ‘zero’
“I’m trying to do the best I can to manage the situation,” Healey said. She added, “No state can come forward and replace what the federal government has taken away.”
Posted inPolitics
Competitive mayoral races abound, just not in Boston
For the real bare-knuckle action in mayoral contests these days, you need to look outside the state’s capital city, where incumbents don’t just often face serious challenges, but lose with some regularity.
Posted inEnergy
Municipalities warn Beacon Hill they’ll need to slow down solar projects due to state limit
The issue threatens to undermine Gov. Maura Healey’s “all-of-the-above” energy strategy as she seeks to thread an increasingly tighter needle to drive down costs, grow power supply, and meet climate commitments as offshore wind stalls.
Posted inOpinion
Teachers know how to fix the reading crisis. The House listened, and now it’s the Senate’s turn
WHEN A veteran AP biology teacher from Boston Public Schools works with high school juniors and seniors, he sees bright students who understand complex concepts but struggle to read their […]
Posted inEconomy
Survey: Mass. business confidence stuck in longest rut since pandemic
Federal policy changes and high costs within Massachusetts continue to squeeze businesses, and by one metric, Bay State employers have not felt this negative about the economic outlook since the first year of the COVID pandemic.
Posted inCourts
SJC considers whether charter schools must obey public records laws
The Mystic Valley Regional Charter School, in rebuffing at least 10 public records requests for information on various aspects of its operations, insists that it is not covered by the sweeping statute guaranteeing public access to the records of government entities.
Posted inOpinion
Turning up the heat on climate funding
ON THE SWELTERING Sunday of July 4th weekend, Dianne Hills called ambulances to provide emergency relief to residents suffering from heat exhaustion. Dianne is the executive director of My Brother’s […]
Posted inThe Codcast
A year of strained systems and trust after Carney closures
This week on The Codcast, CommonWealth Beacon reporters Jennifer Smith and Hallie Claflin talk about Claflin’s deep dive into the fallout from Steward Health Care’s bankruptcy. Two communities – the Boston neighborhood of Dorchester and the rural Nashoba Valley – lost their community health centers. Just over a year later, the local emergency health systems are strained and residents say they still feel confused about why the state allowed their centers to close while others were saved.
Posted inOpinion
Colleges need an experiential learning revolution
We need fundamentally new models for teaching and learning, new models that need to break the monopoly of “sage on the stage” teaching and lean into an experiential learning revolution – a dramatic increase in real-world, apprenticeship-based, internship-based, and work-based learning.
Posted inGovernment
Looming federal food aid cuts put state Democrats in the hot seat
Massachusetts Democrats are unwilling to tap into the state’s significant savings balance to replace food aid, previewing difficult decisions that loom on the horizon.
Posted inState Government
Lawmaker representing Randolph seeks to loosen Gateway City eligibility criteria
Census counts and income thresholds haven’t stopped state Sen. Bill Driscoll, who represents the town of Randolph, from trying to secure its Gateway City status. He has introduced legislation that would revise the eligibility criteria of a Gateway – something previously attempted but never done successfully on Beacon Hill since the Legislature codified the designation in 2009.
Posted inEnvironment
Boston missed its own deadline for applying to a FEMA program. Residents are footing the bill.
Across Massachusetts, more than 300 communities – including Boston – aren’t reaping the benefits of the FEMA program, known as Community Rating System. It’s led to residents in some municipalities collectively paying hundreds of thousands of dollars per year in flood insurance costs that could have been avoided.
Posted inOpinion
For the Fenway faithful, something to cheer about
The wrecking ball’s time, we were told, had come. It’s easy to forget important milestones when they mark something significant that didn’t happen, but it’s a moment worth recalling – and toasting.
Posted inEnergy
Boston looks to go on offense on energy affordability
Cuts at the state level mean the city’s initiative will be operating in a more financially constrained environment. The crux of the new effort will rely on the state’s Mass Save program, which funds energy efficiency upgrades around the state through ratepayer charges.
Posted inTransportation
Drawbridge, Green Line investments top narrower MBTA capital plan
Boxed in by prior commitments, inflation, and federal uncertainty, the MBTA is narrowing its approach to its five-year capital plan to focus on projects such as replacement of the North Station Draw One bridge.
Posted inOpinion
Lawmakers must resist Big Tech fearmongering, pass data privacy bill
PERSONAL DATA HAS become the de facto currency of the digital age, and we’ve surrendered more control over our lives than we may have realized. Our every click is treated […]
Posted inOpinion
The case for raising the age of Juvenile Court jurisdiction has only grown stronger
THE MASSACHUSETTS LEGISLATURE is again debating whether to raise the age of Juvenile Court jurisdiction to include 18 to 20-year-old youth. The last time the state raised the age was […]