GOV. CHARLIE BAKER talked up the state’s progress in dealing with COVID-19 on Wednesday, but the latest data using the administration’s most closely watched metric showed the situation worsening on several […]
Communities at high-risk for COVID-19 grow
Posted inEducation
Worcester is leaving low-income students behind
THE COVID-19 CRISIS has thrown into relief the need for us to reassess the use of technology in education, public access to digital devices, and robust, reliable broadband as we […]
Posted inUncategorized
Baker: COVID precautions driving down health care costs
Gov. Charlie Baker said on Wednesday that health care costs overall in Massachusetts are dropping, not because fears of COVID-19 are prompting people to avoid hospitals but because the incidence […]
Posted inEducation
Unions say ruling against Andover teachers won’t curb activities
AS SCHOOL DISTRICTS and teachers’ unions continue to debate whether teachers must report to work in person, a decision by the Commonwealth Employment Relations Board condemning an “illegal strike” by […]
Posted inEconomy
SJC case questions enforceability of Uber rider agreement
HAVE YOU EVER scrolled past the terms and conditions when downloading a new app, then mindlessly clicked “done” without reading the fine print? Most of us have done that more […]
Posted inThe Download
Group gatherings at universities…exactly how small?
Limits on gatherings at local universities are suddenly a hot topic after Northeastern University dismissed 11 students on Friday for violating the campus’ coronavirus policy on parties and meet-ups. The […]
Posted inEducation
Group gatherings at universities…exactly how small?
LIMITS ON GATHERINGS at local universities are suddenly a hot topic after Northeastern University dismissed 11 students on Friday for violating the campus’ coronavirus policy on parties and meet-ups. The […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Study spotlights racial disparities in state criminal justice system
A NEW REPORT prompted by the huge overrepresentation of blacks and Latinos in Massachusetts prisons zeroes in on disparities at various stages of the court system’s handling of cases that […]
Posted inPolitics
Car manufacturers pool $25m to fight auto repair ballot question
THE NATIONAL AUTOMOTIVE industry is ponying up huge sums of money to defeat a question on the Massachusetts ballot that would give independent auto repair shops the right to access […]
Posted inPolitics
Walsh plays hardball on Wu’s announcement
IT LOOKS LIKE the race for mayor of Boston is off to a testy start. City Councilor Michelle Wu called Mayor Marty Walsh as a courtesy on Sunday to tell […]
Posted inTransportation
Red Line train gets a bit close for comfort
I rode in a Red Line car on Tuesday afternoon that was very near the MBTA’s crowding standard, and it felt like passengers were close together. I knew something was […]
Posted inThe Codcast
Parent frustration about schools is rising
With less than two weeks until school starts, parents from Somerville and Newton say they have yet to get any details on what classes will look like for their children […]
Posted inThe Download
Parent frustration about schools is rising
With less than two weeks until school starts, parents from Somerville and Newton say they have yet to get any details on what classes will look like for their children […]
Posted inEducation
Parent frustration about schools is rising
WITH LESS THAN TWO WEEKS until school starts, parents from Somerville and Newton say they have yet to get any details on what classes will look like for their children […]
Posted inEducation
17 Boston school officials paid $762,000 in settlements
IN AN APPARENT EFFORT to stave off potential lawsuits for wrongful termination or to just cushion departures, Boston Public School officials shelled out $762,000 over a nearly two-year period for […]
Posted inHealth Care
Massachusetts should not mandate telehealth prices
The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the many positive benefits of telehealth. Virtual visits with a medical provider can save patients time and help them avoid germy waiting rooms. Providers cut […]
Posted inTransportation
MBTA: Truck driver had no ‘malicious intent’
THE TRUCK OPERATOR who drove into the restricted access Silver Line tunnel on Friday morning had “no malicious intent,” according to an MBTA spokesman. Joe Pesaturo, a spokesman for the […]
Posted inOpinion
Essential workers need a bill of rights
THIS YEAR, Labor Day arrives in the crossfire of a global pandemic, an economic crisis, and a reckoning for racial justice throughout America, laying bare how vital working people are […]
Posted inArts and Culture
Cambridge arts groups seek city COVID relief funds
BEFORE THE PANDEMIC, Improv Boston averaged about 2,000 patrons a week who watched its comedy shows and participated in acting classes at its Central Square location. Now, almost six months […]
Posted inEconomy
Employers face huge hike in UI taxes
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE WITH UNEMPLOYMENT SOARING, state lawmakers are considering ways to soften the blow from a major impending increase in the taxes employers pay toward the state’s unemployment […]
Posted inTransportation
Truck causes damage to Silver Line tunnel
A TRUCK ON FRIDAY morning entered the Silver Line underground transitway that runs to South Station and caused damage to the overhead wires, which had not been fully repaired as […]
Posted inOpinion
Rethinking high school during COVID
FOR 20 YEARS, I’ve taught in an adult ed program in Dorchester. Every year we tweak things, adjust the schedule, hire new faculty, tinker with syllabi. Change happens gradually. This […]
Posted inOpinion
CDC eviction moratorium raises constitutional questions
WHILE WE HAVE BEEN in federal court arguing the constitutionality of the Massachusetts eviction moratorium, the Trump administration’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) just issued an emergency order imposing a nationwide residential […]
Posted inOpinion
Reopening schools will be a matter of trust
TEACHERS, STUDENTS, AND FAMILIES are facing a back-to-school season unlike any other in our nation’s history. As policymakers push more strenuously for a return to in-person instruction, more teachers and […]