Paying for College

The Rising Cost of Higher Education

At the same time that a college education has become the ticket to the middle class, college has become less affordable. The situation in New England is worse than it is nationally. Even though incomes are higher in the region, families are likely spending a higher share of their income to pay for college. In

The Changing Face of Massachusetts

The Changing Face of Massachusetts is a joint project of MassINC and the Center for Labor Market Studies and was made possible by the generous support of a number of sponsors, including the Nellie Mae Education Foundation, Verizon, Citizens Bank, Polaroid, and Bank of America’s Frank W. and Carl S. Adams Memorial Fund. The demographics

Reaching Capacity

A Blueprint for the State Role in Improving Low Performing Schools and Districts

The Massachusetts Education Reform Act (MERA) of 1993 sparked an unprecedented era of reform activity in schools and districts that continues to this day. Over the past decade, the state has more than doubled its local aid to schools and districts, and held local entities accountable by creating standards and assessments on which the progress

Massachusetts Charter Schools and Their Feeder Districts

A Demographic Analysis

The Rennie Center for Education Research and Policy at MassINC today issued a report detailing the results of its recent study exploring the demographic profiles of charter schools in Massachusetts as compared to the districts from which they draw students. This analysis of student population data informs the ongoing debate on the funding, effectiveness, and

Examining State Intervention Capacity

How Can the State Better Support Low Performing Schools & Districts?

State accountability systems and the No Child Left Behind Act force policymakers and the public, alike, to recognize the large numbers of schools that are failing to educate all students to high standards. More schools and districts than ever are being identified as low performing, and the problem requires substantial, systemic action from the state.

Pathways to Graduation

Supporting All Students to Mastery A Retrospective Look at the Class of 2003

The aspirations of the 1993 Massachusetts Education Reform Act are ambitious, but clear — to provide every student with an opportunity to learn and achieve mastery at a high standard of academic proficiency. Since the legislation’s passage, considerable time, effort, and resources have been dedicated to achieving this lofty goal, and substantial progress has been

Improving Early Childhood Education

Framing the Options and Imperatives for State Action Policy Brief

Across the nation, early childhood education and care has suffered from poorly organized service delivery systems, inadequate funding, and insufficient attention by the policymakers. The result is a complicated system plagued by competing interests that is in need of reform and alignment. The field’s capacity to meet the needs of children and families has been

Gaining Ground

Value-Added Analysis for Massachusetts

The premise of standards-based reform in Massachusetts is that a statewide commitment to standards, teaching, assessment, and accountability will lead to greater learning opportunities, higher achievement, a narrowing of the achievement gap, and a more promising future for all of the Commonwealth’s students. And indeed, ten years after the passage of the 1993 Massachusetts Education

Head of the Class

Characteristics of Higher Performing Urban High Schools in Massachusetts

With few exceptions, urban high schools that serve high proportions of low-income and minority youth are failing to meet the academic needs of their students, according to a new study released by the Center for Education Research and Policy at MassINC. Using a range of indicators, some of which include: attendance rates, drop-out rates, college

The State of the American Dream in Massachusetts, 2002

The new research finds that the path to economic success for Massachusetts families and workers is narrow and unforgiving, and those who stumble pay dearly. The report argues that the difficulty today in obtaining, or holding onto, a reasonably secure middle-class standard of living is the result of fundamental changes in the “recipe” for achieving
|<< 19 20 21 22 23 >

Our sponsors