HUGE NUMBERS of Massachusetts students this fall will be returning to school on a “hybrid” plan – some mix of in-person and remote learning. Like so much of the post-pandemic […]
What is a ‘hybrid’ education plan?
Posted inThe Codcast
Downing, Vennochi voice concerns on Baker
MASSACHUSETTS VOTERS GIVE Gov. Charlie Baker very high marks in general and for his handling of the COVID-19 crisis, but two guests on the CommonWealth Codcast criticized him for failing to […]
Posted inPolitics
Downing, Vennochi voice concerns on Baker
MASSACHUSETTS VOTERS GIVE Gov. Charlie Baker very high marks in general and for his handling of the COVID-19 crisis, but two guests on the CommonWealth Codcast criticized him for failing to […]
Posted inThe Download
Downing, Vennochi voice concerns on Baker
Massachusetts voters give Gov. Charlie Baker very high marks in general and for his handling of the COVID-19 crisis, but two guests on the CommonWealth Codcast criticized him for failing […]
Posted inOpinion
We need to do more to support the elderly
MASSACHUSETTS NEEDS to clearly demonstrate that it values older Massachusetts residents and is committed to building an age-friendly Commonwealth so that all residents of Massachusetts can age with dignity and […]
Posted inEducation
Parents turning to ‘pandemic pods’ and ‘microschools’
WHEN NORTH ANDOVER SCHOOLS closed in March, Jennifer Quadrozzi’s family formed a quarantine pod with three other neighborhood families. Quadrozzi’s seven-year-old daughter now had eight other children, ages two to nine, to play with. The kids would learn at their […]
Posted inOpinion
Grit alone is no longer enough
I DROPPED OUT of high school at the age of 17 after immigrating to Massachusetts from the Dominican Republic. School was just too hard for me, and there was not […]
Posted inOpinion
We must address black, brown mistrust of COVID-19 vaccine
MASSACHUSETTS IS IN DANGER of failing communities of color, once again, if we do not start preparing for a COVID-19 vaccine now. Black Americans, in particular, are both more susceptible […]
Posted inOpinion
Schools need to sign up now for fed food program
REGARDLESS OF HOW schools approach reopening in the fall, many Massachusetts schools face a choice right now that could affect nutrition and local economic stimulus in 2021 and beyond. That […]
Posted inTransportation
How do we avoid a transportation relapse?
FOR MANY US CITIES, the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic provided a remarkable if temporary glimpse of an urban environment with dramatically less car travel and air pollution. On […]
Posted inUncategorized
Baker pauses reopening; cracks down on gatherings
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER is hitting the pause button on the state’s reopening efforts and ramping up enforcement of coronavirus prevention measures in an effort to limit community transmissions. At a […]
Posted inUncategorized
Frustrated Globe union to protest at Fenway
THE UNION REPRESENTING Boston Globe editorial workers, which has accused management of employing “hardball” union-busting tactics, is coming inside with a high hard one of its own. Members of the Globe union are taking a contract battle to […]
Posted inEducation
Baker backs in-person learning in most towns
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER on Friday strongly pushed back against the notion that it’s not safe to open schools this fall with some form of in-person learning, saying most communities in […]
Posted inEducation
Colleges reconsider reopening plans
WHEN THE BOSTON GLOBE reported Sunday that many colleges and universities throughout the country were reversing their plans to reopen in-person, only Berklee College of Music had taken that step in […]
Posted inThe Download
Colleges reconsider reopening plans
When the Boston Globe reported Sunday that many colleges and universities throughout the country were reversing their plans to reopen in-person, only Berklee College of Music had taken that step in […]
Posted inUncategorized
July tax revenues offer some hope
STATE REVENUE COLLECTIONS in July helped narrow the deficit for fiscal 2020 and provided some stability heading into fiscal 2021. The Massachusetts Department of Revenue reported on Thursday that it […]
Posted inOpinion
House takes baby steps on climate change
WE ARE WRITING as Mass Power Forward, a grassroots coalition of over 200 environmental groups, community development organizations, clean energy businesses, faith groups, neighborhood health and safety advocates, and Massachusetts […]
Posted inOpinion
Tuerck’s critique of Healey fits a pattern
CommonWealth recently published an op-ed by David G. Tuerck, president of the Beacon Hill Institute. His piece, titled “Healey’s kitchen-sink Exxon-Mobil lawsuit,” takes aim at Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healy […]
Posted inUncategorized
Marijuana delivery model seen as unworkable
DEVIN ALEXANDER, 26, is the type of entrepreneur state regulators have said they hope will be able to get into the state’s new marijuana home delivery industry. A black man […]
Posted inEducation
Under any in-person school plan, buses are a problem
AS SCHOOL DISTRICTS FINALIZE their reopening plans for the start of the school year, it’s becoming increasingly apparent that schools will need to find more buses at some point, even when […]
Posted inThe Download
Under any in-person school plan, buses are a problem
As school districts finalize their reopening plans for the start of the school year, it’s becoming increasingly apparent that schools will need to find more buses at some point, even […]
Posted inHealth Care
Massachusetts hospitals bleeding money
EVEN AS MASSACHUSETTS hospitals were coping with an influx of COVID-19 patients this spring, they were losing massive amounts of money. While some hospitals got large sums of federal relief […]
Posted inOpinion
Kennedy walked the walk in DA’s office
I HAVE SEEN some recent statements and articles criticizing Joe Kennedy III for working as a prosecutor for Republican District Attorney Michael O’Keefe, suggesting his work there indicates he is […]
Posted inOpinion
Best climate change policy you’ve never heard of
FIFTY-SIX GAMES, eight consecutive NBA titles, 297 straight NFL starts. The sports world is full of well-known streaks. A less famous streak is held by our own Commonwealth of Massachusetts […]