CHANTING “JOBS NOT JAIL,” advocates for criminal justice reform briefly disrupted the final meeting of a state criminal justice policy commission today, part of a growing chorus of voices expressing concern that state leaders are preparing to put forward legislation that won’t include major changes to sentencing laws. The protest came as advocates and lawmakers
Next Generation Education Accountability in Worcester
Recapping the Conversation
Worcester leaders gathered last Thursday for a spirited conversation on the opportunity that the new Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) presents to help Gateway Cities realize their vision for educational excellence. Here are four takeaways from their dialogue: A measure that “raises the bar” is critical. When urban students see that they can meet the highest
Initiating an urgent conversation on education accountability
The Gateway Cities Journal
We head to Worcester this week for the first of six community dialogues on education accountability. Over the next few months, Massachusetts will revise its accountability policies to comply with the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), a major overhaul of federal education law signed by President Obama last December. Anticipating this change, we spent a
Serious Fun for All!
Celebrating 20 Years
Serious Fun for All! Thank you for joining us on December 1 to celebrate MassINC and CommonWealth magazine’s 20th Anniversary. For those of you who were unable to attend, it was a wonderful gathering of MassINC friends, old and new, and you can now see the photos from the evening and share the videos (below) with anyone
Recapping the Fourth Annual Gateway Cities Innovation Awards and Summit
Recognizing this year's award winners
A warm thank you to all of the Gateway City leaders who travelled to Springfield last week for the fourth annual Gateway Cities Innovation Awards and Summit. As always, your spirit and optimism were infectious. We especially want to recognize this year’s award winners. For those who were unable to join us, please take a
BNN News Interviews MassINC Research Director, Ben Forman
To discuss latest research on the Geography of Incarceration
On Wednesday, November 16th MassINC Research Director, Ben Forman sat down with Christopher Lovett on Network Neighborhood News to discuss a new report from MassINC on the “geography of incarceration,” tracing its disproportionate effect on certain Boston neighborhoods and populations.
Mapping incarceration in Boston
Study finds minority neighborhoods burdened by high jail rates
A SWATH OF mostly minority Boston neighborhoods is so heavily affected by the criminal justice system that nearly every street has a resident who has spent time in jail, a concentration of incarceration that is costing millions of dollars and threatening the social fabric of neighborhoods already struggling with high rates of poverty and other
Checking the pulse on criminal justice reform
The MassCJRC Journal
One after another last week the Sentencing Commission held a public hearing to gather input on ideas discussed in a closed session over the past year, the Justice Reinvestment Initiative (JRI) working group met to review the latest CSG analysis, and Justice Gants delivered his third state of the judiciary address. This burst of activity
Gants launches study of racial disparities in incarceration
Chief justice also "encouraged" by progress on wider criminal justice policy review
THE STATE MUST confront racial disparities in imprisonment rates and move to “reimagine” a flawed criminal justice system to focus less on incarceration and more on lowering recidivism, Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Ralph Gants said on Thursday. Delivering his third annual address on the state of the judiciary since becoming the Commonwealth’s top judge,
Bringing community corrections into focus
The MassCJRC Journal
Over the summer months, we spent time with grassroots organizations working in neighborhoods disproportionately impacted by incarceration. These groups try their best to support justice-involved individuals and their families, but with very modest resources they only reach a small fraction of those who need services. A key consideration for the Justice Reinvestment conversation is how