Voc-tech tension

Massachusetts vocational schools are a big success story, but are they shutting out those who might need them most?

KELSEY CLARK, A SENIOR at Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational Technical High School, is showing a visitor work from her graphic design portfolio. There is a pointillism-style poster she drew for assignment to promote a rock concert (she says it left her practically drawing dots in her sleep). A brightly colored infographic poster that she

Accurately measuring a school’s contribution to student growth

ESSA Strategy Call

Our first weekly ESSA Strategy Call focused on Gateway City priority 1: A formal accountability system that creates a level playing field for urban districts when describing performance by isolating each school’s contribution to student learning.  Accurately capturing school performance is largely about the model Massachusetts adopts to statistically control for demographic variation across schools.

Jobless rates dropping all over MA

Of 10 metro areas in US with biggest declines, 7 from Bay State

NEW ECONOMIC DATA suggest the state’s labor market is nearing full capacity, which is translating into employment gains across the state and not just in metropolitan Boston. A group of Massachusetts economists released a MassBenchmarks report on Wednesday suggesting tight labor market conditions are likely to lead to worker shortages in some occupations and high

Testimony on the Baker-Politio economic development bill from the Gateway City perspective

Benjamin Forman Testimony Regarding House Bill 3983

The Joint Committee for Economic Development & Emerging Technologies held a hearing on April 5th to review the Baker-Polito administration’s economic development bill. Filed in January, the $918 million package provides funding to implement the administration’s economic development strategy. MassINC Research Director Ben Forman submitted the written testimony below in support of Gateway City provisions

Secretary Jay Ash 

Speaks on private nonprofit economic development organizations

MassINC released new research on the role of private nonprofit economic development organizations in Gateway City growth and renewal at event held in Lawrence on December 8th. Cohosted with the Lawrence Partnership and the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development, the forum brought together business and economic development leaders from across the state. In

Monitoring the fiscal health of Gateway Cities

Gateway Cities can’t make progress toward renewal if they’re bogged down by insurmountable structural budget deficits. With state finances under increasing strain, it is unlikely that cities and towns will see the kind of local aid for municipal government that they once enjoyed. This makes it all the more imperative that we find strategies like Transformative Development

Those who tell the stories, rule the world

“Those who tell the stories rule, the world” goes the proverb. Gateway City leaders know firsthand that there’s still a lot of truth in this old wisdom. Too often, the performance and potential of Gateway Cities are defined by those on the outside who have little understanding of the struggle. When we make policy based

The Lawrence Story

Partnerships boost student performance and strengthen the community

MassINC is working hard to find new ways to tell the story of Gateway City Leaders. This video and the related case study describe Lawrence’s community partnership model. Jeff Riley, the leader appointed to transform the Lawrence schools in 2012, immediately set about extending the school day to offer students a wider array of learning opportunities.

Zenub Kakli

This week’s Gateway Cities Leader

Cities are shaped by their citizens. From New Bedford to Pittsfield, a new generation of passionate young leaders are spearheading innovative efforts to reinvent their communities. This series profiles their work and introduces their ideas, visions, and aspirations to the wider Gateway City world. Is there a young leader in your city that we should spotlight? Please let us know.

Capturing Ideas

Gateway City Leaders talk about what works

MassINC is working hard to find new ways to tell the story of Gateway City Leaders. This video and the related case study describes the 5DP, a collaborative venture developed by the Chelsea, Everett, Malden, Revere and Winthrop school districts to respond to the challenge of student mobility. Every year, thousands of students move among the
|<< 2 3 4 5 6 >

Our sponsors