The Gateway Cities Legislative Caucus met on March 22nd to reaffirm their commitment to work collaboratively this session on issues affecting urban school districts. Caucus members were joined by Superintendents Kathy Smith of Brockton, Mary Bourque of Chelsea, and Dianne Kelly of Revere. The superintendents expressed grave concern over the future of funding for urban
Gateway Cities take a big step forward on early college
Expanding access to early college programs
Education leaders from across the state gathered in Boston on March 23rd to launch an initiative to dramatically expand access to early college programs in Massachusetts. A model pioneered by Gateway Cities over the last decade, early college was a central strategy outlined in the 2013 Gateway Cities education vision. The new initiative seeks to scale
Increasing access to high-quality summer learning
The Gateway Cities Journal
Next week, Rep. Alice Peisch will host a briefing on her new bill, An Act to Increase Access to High-Quality Summer Learning Opportunities. This legislation will give more students the chance to participate in high-quality summer learning programs all across our Commonwealth. Mayors and school leaders from Worcester, New Bedford, and Salem supported an earlier
MassINC issues public comments on state’s proposed ESSA plan
For the past 12 months, MassINC has been focused on the potential the new federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) offers to further educational excellence in our Gateway Cities. This work builds on over a decade of MassINC research on education accountability, including the seminal report Incomplete Grade: Education Reform at 15. Our efforts to
Next Generation Education Accountability in Pittsfield
Recapping Our Sixth (and Final) Community Conversation
Tuesday, MassINC joined with the Berkshire Compact for our final community forum on the possibilities the Every Student Succeeds Act presents to improve teaching and learning in inclusive urban school districts. A coalition of community partners, including the K-12 schools, college leaders, and local businesses and business-led organizations, the compact works to strengthen the regional economy by raising
Next Generation Education Accountability in Boston
Recapping Our Fifth Community Conversation
Last Saturday, MassINC joined with a number of partners to bring students, parents, teachers, and civic leaders together to think about the possibilities the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) presents to improve teaching and learning in our inclusive urban school districts. The format for the meeting was slightly different than our previous forums. With more
Requesting Public Comment
Massachusetts ESSA State Plan Draft
From the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education The draft of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) state plan has been posted on the Executive Office of Education’s website. The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education welcomes your comments, and asks that you use this survey to provide feedback so that all of your thoughts can
The Public’s Take on Education Accountability
Results from a Survey of Massachusetts Voters
Understanding public opinion on education account- ability is crucial as policymakers work to implement the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), the 2015 federal law that replaces No Child Left Behind (NCLB). MassINC partnered with The MassINC Polling Group to learn more about how voters throughout the Commonwealth feel about efforts to assess student learning, measure
Next Generation Education Accountability in Springfield
Recapping Our Fourth Community Conversation
Gateway City leaders from the Pioneer Valley came together on Thursday to talk about how education accountability can help advance our shared vision for educational excellence in inclusive urban districts. Building on the conversation at our New Bedford forum earlier in the week, lots of interesting points were made for state policymakers to consider as
Next Generation Education Accountability in New Bedford
Recapping Our Third Community Conversation
Gateway City leaders from the South Coast gathered on Monday for a conversation on the power of education accountability to advance a shared vision for educational excellence in inclusive urban districts. With the proposed ESSA implementation framework DESE shared with the state board last week, this conversation took on added urgency. As we’ve made our