WHEN IT COMES to the state of the news industry, the news has not been good. Over a span of less than two decades, a quarter of the country’s newspapers […]
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
Mayors renew call for vocational school admission changes
MORE THAN THREE YEARS after calling on the state to revamp what they said were unfair and discriminatory admission practices at regional vocational schools, a group of Massachusetts mayors says […]
Posted inPolitics
Arroyo, Lara losses carry echo of past races
CHALK ONE UP for the goo-goos. Actually chalk two up. The term came into use in the late 1800s and early 1900s as a reference to good government reformers who […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Did Patriots cornerback Jack Jones get off easy in gun case?
WITH THE OFF-FIELD behavior of professional athletes an increasing focus of concern, getting busted trying to bring two loaded guns through security at Logan Airport certainly was not exactly a […]
Posted inPolitics
Is Massachusetts becoming the state of emergency?
IN GOVERNMENT, as in life, what gets the most attention is often a matter of priorities. It’s hard to focus on too much at once, so the most important things […]
Posted inArts and Culture
UMass Dartmouth exit a tough blow for New Bedford
WHILE STUDENTS ACROSS the state descend on campuses for fall move-in day, Monday was move out day for Zeph Luck. With a backseat loaded with canvases, the 26-year-old grad student […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Boston launches coordinated plan to curb gun violence
ISAAC YABLO, Mayor Michelle Wu’s senior advisor for community safety, says a shortcoming of efforts to rein in those responsible for gun violence in Boston has been that “we gave […]
Posted inGovernment, Politics
Wu backs challenger to Arroyo in Boston council race
IN A MAJOR blow to City Councilor Ricardo Arroyo’s already hobbled reelection bid, Mayor Michelle Wu is throwing her support behind one of his challengers, Enrique Pepén, a former City Hall […]
Posted inPolitics
For Lara, a lot of explaining
“IF YOU’RE EXPLAINING, you’re losing,” according to a quip credited to Ronald Reagan. For the Hollywood actor-turned-president, regarded as a master communicator, that meant delivering a straightforward message that voters […]
Posted inEducation
UMass Dartmouth arts college exiting downtown New Bedford. Who’s to blame?
THE ABRUPT announcement Monday that the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth’s College of Visual and Performing Arts would be immediately vacating a downtown New Bedford building, where it’s been housed for […]
Posted inDrug Addiction
On Mass. and Cass, a Wu turn
ACCORDING TO THE old adage, a conservative is a liberal who has been mugged. That may not be exactly what’s happening with the shift in the city’s approach to the […]
Posted inEducation
For Campbell, case against Malden charter school is also good politics
IT MAY NOT BE at the level of Nixon-goes-to-China, when an inveterate cold warrior became the unlikely US president to establish diplomatic relations with a long-time communist foe. But Attorney […]
Posted inTransportation
What’s the timeline for return to a normal-functioning MBTA? No one will say.
AMID CONSTANT TALK of the crisis-ridden MBTA, where slow zones have reduced the speed of trains at some points to a crawl, and passengers can endure interminable “headway” waits of […]
Posted inHousing, Politics
Historical geographer says local control has been enemy of efforts to preserve community character
IT’S A FAMILIAR REFRAIN in the push and pull over development in Massachusetts: When a project of some kind is proposed, local officials and residents who oppose it often say […]
Posted inPolitics
For progressives, Boston city councilors becoming awkward embarrassment
WHAT COULD BE the best of times for Boston progressives looks like the worst of times when it comes to the behavior and public image of elected officials championing their […]
Posted inGambling
Campbell cautions against headlong rush to online lottery
ATTORNEY GENERAL Andrea Campbell has been reluctant to dive head-first into the debate over whether to move state lottery games online, steering clear of unconditional support or opposition to such a […]
Posted inEducation
Bill aims to strengthen teacher diversity by weakening seniority rights
THERE IS STRONG research evidence that minority students benefit from being in a classroom with a teacher of their background, but Pavel Payano says he knows it from on-the-ground experience. […]
Posted inEducation
Riley rips Boston schools – again
CALL IT THE double-secret probation of Massachusetts public schooling. State education commissioner Jeff Riley is livid at leaders of the Boston Public Schools, from the mayor on down, and he’s letting […]
Posted inEducation
Peyser says ed reform overpromised
IT’S HARD TO imagine a sweeping education initiative driven by a theme like “Making Steady Gains, Little by Little,” or “Inch by Inch,” to borrow from the popular children’s song […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Commission urges New England states to prioritize prison education
IF EDUCATION IS key to a better life, that may hold double for those who are incarcerated. People who land in prison tend to have low educational attainment levels, while […]
Posted inEducation
Boston, Holyoke go very different ways in great middle school debate
MORE THAN 15 years ago, Robert Gaudet, then a senior policy analyst at the University of Massachusetts’s Donahue Institute, who had extensively studied school performance across the state, offered a […]
Posted inEducation
Will bold plan for Boston high schools get traction this time?
YEAR AFTER YEAR, mayor after mayor, plans are hatched to transform Boston high schools – many of which have poor outcomes in subpar facilities – only to see them fade […]
Posted inEconomy
A race to keep up – or to the bottom? Lottery bets big on $50 scratch ticket, online games.
MARCH WAS “Problem Gambling Awareness Month” in Massachusetts, but for those in charge of the state lottery the gambling problem coming into the new year was that people weren’t doing […]
Posted inEconomy
A race to keep up – or to the bottom?
MARCH WAS “Problem Gambling Awareness Month” in Massachusetts, but for those in charge of the state lottery the gambling problem coming into the new year was that people weren’t doing […]