IN LATE MAY, Brockton Mayor Robert Sullivan, whose city has been hit hard by the COVID pandemic, launched an effort to aid the reopening as restrictions were lifted and businesses […]
Michael Jonas
Michael Jonas works with Laura in overseeing CommonWealth Beacon coverage and editing the work of reporters. His own reporting has a particular focus on politics, education, and criminal justice reform.
Posted inEducation
Mayoral candidates divided on extending Boston superintendent’s contract
THE BOSTON SCHOOL COMMITTEE gave Superintendent Brenda Cassellius a positive job review for her work during a difficult year and seems poised to grant her a two-year contract extension at […]
Posted inPolitics
Baker, Healey watch as field for governor forms
ANOTHER DAY, another candidate in the race for Massachusetts governor not named Baker. Or Healey, for that matter. With today’s campaign launch by Sen. Sonia Chang-Diaz, three Democrats have now […]
Posted inPolitics
Chang-Diaz launches run for governor
SEN. SONIA CHANG-DIAZ, a hard-charging liberal who has championed issues ranging from education funding to criminal justice reform in her 13 years in the Legislature, declared her run for governor […]
Posted inEducation
State ed board approves vocational school admission changes
OVER THE OBJECTIONS of advocates who said the changes did not go far enough, the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education approved new regulations Tuesday morning aimed at creating […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
For Rollins, it’s full speed ahead
IF ANYONE THOUGHT Rachael Rollins might trim her sails while waiting for word on whether she gets the nod as President Biden’s choice for US attorney for Massachusetts, they clearly […]
Posted inEducation
Coalition says proposed voc school admission changes don’t go far enough
PROPOSED CHANGES TO vocational school admission policies, which the state has developed following years of pressure from municipal leaders and advocates, don’t go nearly far enough toward ensuring access to […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Will Mass. follow Connecticut in ending charges for prisoner phone calls?
IF PEER PRESSURE is a thing among state legislatures, Massachusetts may soon be feeling some heat from its next-door neighbor. Yesterday, Gov. Ned Lamont signed legislation making Connecticut the first […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
What happened to Mikayla Miller?
THE DEATH IN April of 16-year-old Hopkinton resident Mikayla Miller has prompted an outpouring of sorrow and sympathy. It has also led to charges that what happened to the African […]
Posted inPolitics
Mass. GOP shootout in a lifeboat continues
LOU MURRAY, the chairman of the Ward 20 Republican Committee in Boston’s West Roxbury neighborhood, gets it at least partially right in an op-ed in today’s Boston Herald when he […]
Posted inEconomy
Study finds big payoff for community college
WITH A NATIONAL debate underway over whether the federal government should guarantee free community college for all Americans, a new study of Massachusetts students provides strong evidence of just how […]
Posted inEducation
Withholding Boston School Committee texts backfires
THE COVER-UP is always worse than the crime. And so it is that Boston school officials find themselves dealing with the explosive fallout of a contentious school committee meeting almost […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Capping months of drama, Janey fires White
FIRST CAME THE “blue wall of silence.” Then came the very voluble airing of family laundry, an often cringe-inducing exchange of charges and counter-charges of domestic abuse and marital infidelity […]
Posted inPolitics
In progressive field, Essaibi George stands out
IN THE WORLD of Twitter and activist Boston, the unfolding contest for mayor looks like a battle to be crowned the undisputed progressive champion ready to lead the city in […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
White says he told Walsh about domestic violence allegations
ADDING AN EXPLOSIVE new chapter to the leadership crisis in the Boston Police Department, embattled Commissioner Dennis White said in a videotaped affidavit that he told then-Mayor Marty Walsh about […]
Posted inPolitics
Essaibi George vies for mayor as ‘Boston girl’ with immigrant roots
SOME HAVE CALLED her a moderate in the race, a candidate looking to corral some of the base of voters loyal to former mayor Marty Walsh, her Dorchester neighbor growing […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Appeals Court rejects White petition, clearing way for Janey to fire him
A STATE APPEALS COURT judge on Thursday afternoon turned down Boston Police Commissioner Dennis White’s effort to block the city from proceeding with efforts to fire him because of allegations […]
Posted inArts and Culture
Ambassador Claire Cronin? Join the club.
A REPORT THAT state Rep. Claire Cronin is poised to be named US ambassador to Ireland had the state’s political world buzzing on Wednesday. While there was plenty of chatter […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Judge stays her order on Boston police commissioner
Not so fast. Any plans Boston Acting Mayor Kim Janey may have had to move swiftly to fire embattled Police Commissioner Dennis White following a court ruling in her favor […]
Posted inEducation
Lots of academic catch-up needed, say K-12 parents
WHILE MASSACHUSETTS SCHOOLS look to close out the school year with something approximating a normal routine and setting, a majority of parents across the state say their children will have […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Judge sides with city and denies White’s bid to block firing
A SUFFOLK SUPERIOR COURT judge on Tuesday denied a motion by Boston Police Commissioner Dennis White for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction to block his dismissal. Acting Mayor […]
Posted inEconomy
Are feds sending too much money to states?
NO ONE HAS ever been inclined to give back free money handed to them by the federal government, so don’t look for Massachusetts state officials to start now, but the […]
Posted inTransportation
Janey announces free service on Route 28 bus
WHEN THE QUESTIONING at a forum on Monday for Boston mayoral candidates turned to the idea of free fares on the MBTA for low-income residents, Acting Mayor Kim Janey didn’t […]
Posted inEducation
How New Bedford boosted its graduation rate
IN SEPTEMBER OF 2013, two months after her arrival as the district’s new school superintendent, Pia Durkin paid a visit to New Bedford High School one morning not long after […]