As summer draws to a close, we hope you had a chance to enjoy some of the events we highlighted across Massachusetts. For a different kind of outing, explore Mass Mini Golf’s top ten list of the state’s best (miniature) courses to play before fall begins.
In the meantime, we’re excited to share another round-up of what we’ve been up to these past two months.
Event Recap
Gateway Cities Leadership Summit
On July 22, 2025, state and local leaders convened in Boston for our annual Gateway Cities Leadership Summit to talk about the issues and emerging solutions coming from municipalities across Massachusetts. The Gateway Cities Innovation Institute released Five Big Ideas designed to drive economic growth and prosperity statewide. Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll, along with legislators and cabinet officials, reinforced the urgency, highlighting priorities ranging from transit innovation and zoning density to clean energy and education.
Making an Impact
Aligning Policy with Opportunity: Expanding ESOL Access
A year after the release of the Policy Center’s report highlighting strategies to expand English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) services, dual investments from the Healey-Driscoll Administration and the Eastern Bank Foundation were announced to help meet the demand for skilled workers in Massachusetts. The combined $20 million investment in ESOL services comes on the heels of MassINC’s data-informed research and underscoring of public-private partnerships to increase access to high-quality, career-aligned instruction for residents with limited English proficiency.
Eastern Bank Foundation’s commitment builds on its long-standing partnership with the MassINC Policy Center. Over the past year, we collaborated to examine the landscape of ESOL access and to identify policy interventions that would create meaningful, measurable impact.
Save the Date
13th Annual Gateway Cities Innovation Institute
Join us in Lowell on October 28 for the 13th Annual Gateway Cities Innovation Summit: Fueling Growth through a New Age of Economic Transition. This flagship event will bring together a broad coalition to highlight and honor civic, business, and state leaders dedicated to expanding opportunity across Massachusetts.
Event registration and award nominations will open soon. Interested in sponsoring this event? Contact us for more information.
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Expanded Coverage
Gateway Cities Beat
In July, CommonWealth Beacon welcomed Hallie Claflin to its team to provide dedicated, original reporting on the state’s 26 Gateway Cities. In just over a month, Hallie’s work has already shed light on pressing local issues — from how Gateway City leaders are bracing for federal budget cuts and Medicaid changes, to how developers in Holyoke are working to restore blighted buildings to meet housing needs. Catch up on Hallie’s recent work here.
Making an Impact
When Our Stories Spark More Stories
Reporting from CommonWealth Beacon was recently cited in two pieces on the main editorial page of the Boston Globe.
The Globe’s lead editorial on bipartisan housing legislation highlighted Jennifer Smith’s recent reporting on the uncertain impact of federal Opportunity Zones. Right alongside it, Joan Vennochi’s column on the Boston mayoral race referenced a story from executive editor, Michael Jonas.
It’s a reminder that our journalism is not only informing readers directly but also shaping the broader conversation across Massachusetts.
Coming Soon
CommonWealth Beacon‘s Health Month
This September, CommonWealth Beacon will spotlight the state of health care access in Massachusetts. While the Bay State is widely recognized for having some of the best care in the nation, the system’s foundation is shifting in ways that make it harder for residents to get the care they need – from hospital closures and rising insurance and prescription costs to long ER waits and strained capacity.
This month-long coverage will include long-form reporting, data analysis, diverse opinion pieces, exclusive polling, and expert conversations at a live event, all exploring the barriers residents face and possible solutions. All coverage will be collected on a special landing page so readers can follow along.
The Codcast
Can Mass. turn the health care crisis around? | Listen
John McDonough of the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health and Paul Hattis of the Lown Institute spoke with Eric Dickson, president and CEO of UMass Memorial Health to discuss the Bay State’s primary care provider crisis.
Top Articles
Read more from CommonWealth Beacon
Get original reporting and insightful commentary on Massachusetts politics, ideas, and civic life in your inbox with <em>CommonWealth Beacon</em>‘s digital newsletters.
New Release
Transportation Challenges in Western Massachusetts
The MassINC Polling Group is proud to announce the release of The Cost of Getting Around: The Transportation Burdens of Lower-Income Residents in Western Massachusetts. The report is the culmination of a year-long collaboration among MPG, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, and Way Finders, a community development corporation that provides housing and housing support services in the Springfield area. The project comprised of eight focus groups and a survey of over 1,600 Way Finders clients, and a separate representative survey of 600 lower-income residents of Hampden and Hampshire counties.
A key theme among both groups is that the cost of transportation – car ownership and maintenance, ridesharing fees – is a significant burden for those least able to afford it. While most respondents prefer to drive, there is also appetite for public transit improvements, including free PVTA buses and a rail link to Boston. MPG is excited to share the findings of this major project and is grateful to their partners at MassDOT and Way Finders for making it possible.
The Horse Race Gallops Along
The Horse Race podcast continues to produce new episodes through the summer, with a new sound and feel to some of the episodes. Look for longer-form deep-dives on single issues, like when State House News Service’s Chris Lisinski explained the State Legislature’s chronic tardiness of the state budget.
Episode 356: The Ghost of Budgets Passed | Listen
After years of delayed budgets, the Massachusetts state budget came ever so close to passing on time this year. Chris Lisinski of State House News Service joins Steve and Jenn to look at how we got here, and why this year was different.
Connect with The MassINC Polling Group
The MassINC Polling Group is actively seeking new business opportunities. If you're thinking about public opinion research, from adding a single question to a statewide poll to a fully custom program of surveys and focus groups, they can help. Working with MPG is a great way to support MassINC's mission.
In Case you missed it
More MassINC News
- Last month, MassINC welcomed Kim Gainsboro Brooks, Mary Jo Meisner, and Dr. Amie Shei, Ph.D., to its Board of Directors.
- Amie Shei, President and CEO of The Health Foundation of Central Massachusetts and new MassINC board member, highlights three ways the state can lead in the wake of the ‘Big Beautiful’ bill in a recent CommonWealth Beacon op-ed.
- MassINC board member, Joe Kennedy III, was recently featured in a New York Times profile during a recent trip to the Mississippi Delta.