
Benjamin Forman is MassINC’s research director. He coordinates the development of the organization’s research agenda and oversees production of research reports. Ben has authored a number of MassINC publications and he speaks frequently to organizations and media across Massachusetts. With a background in urban revitalization and sustainable growth and development, he is uniquely suited to the organization’s focus on strong communities and economic security.
Prior to joining MassINC in 2008, Ben oversaw strategic planning for the District of Columbia Department of Parks and Recreation, a large agency providing critical services to youth and families in neighborhoods throughout the city. He also worked as a research assistant at the Brookings Institution Metropolitan Policy Program in Washington, DC and Nathan Associates, a global economic development consulting firm.
As a graduate student, Ben was awarded a Rappaport Public Policy Fellowship and served in the City of New Bedford’s planning department. He also worked as a graduate research assistant on a multi-year longitudinal analysis measuring the impact of new information technologies on neighborhood social networks.
Ben graduated from Trinity College, Hartford in 1999 with a bachelor’s degree in economics. In 2004, he completed his master’s degree in city planning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He lives in Boston with his wife Anne and two daughters, Eloise and Cecily.
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Public Commentary — Gateway Cities
Ben Forman and Dr. Tracy Corley offer testimony to the Joint Committee on Revenue
On Regional Ballot Initiatives for Transportation
June 18, 2019
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A third way on the school funding/accountability debate
The answer isn’t more state rules but greater local oversight
March 17, 2019
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Local Accountability
An Untapped Strategy for Advancing Student Achievement in Massachusetts Public Schools
February 26, 2019
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Governing Local Accountability
The Health of School Committees and Councils in Gateway Cities
January 9, 2019
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State and Local Blueprints for Comprehensive Neighborhood Stabilization
New report calls attention to Massachusetts’ “other housing problem.”
January 8, 2019
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Building Communities of Promise and Possibility
State and Local Blueprints for Comprehensive Neighborhood Stabilization
January 8, 2019
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School and District Improvement Plans
A Review of Local Accountability Practice in Massachusetts Gateway Cities
January 6, 2019
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