Policy Center
Research, events, and articles from the MassINC Policy Center, including the Gateway Cities Innovation Institute.
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Event Recap: The 12th Annual Gateway Cities Innovation Summit
On Thursday, November 14th, over 250 attendees came together in Worcester for our 12th annual Gateway Cities Innovation Summit. Leaders and community members from across the state participated in a dynamic day of discussion and reflection focused on efforts to address housing challenges.
November 14, 2024
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2024 Gateway Cities Housing Monitor
To recover from an affordable housing crisis that has been decades in the making, Massachusetts needs Gateway City housing markets to produce new homes in line with increasing demand.
November 14, 2024
- Over the next ten years, Gateway Cities should aim for the creation of 83,000 additional housing units.
- Meeting the housing production goal requires doubling the pace of housing production compared to the previous 10 years.
- Increasing housing production will require robust state and local partnerships to overcome financial and regulatory barriers.
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Gateway Cities Journal: Can the Tech Ecosystem Reach Gateway Cities?
New collaboration between the Gateway Cities Innovation Institute and The Engine Accelerator explores emerging industries.
October 25, 2024
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Event Recap: Kick Off at the Ballot Box
With the General Election fast approaching, Massachusetts’ top law enforcement official — Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell — discusses the importance of voting in 2024, and her efforts to promote voter access and participation, and ensure voter protection in the Commonwealth.
October 15, 2024
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The Massachusetts School Centered Neighborhood Development Playbook
Neighborhood vitality and public school performance are closely linked, yet education improvement efforts are generally siloed from planning, housing, and community development.
October 9, 2024
- Growing education reform movements and an influx of housing resources provide a window to embrace coordinated planning efforts at the neighborhood level
- The funding of backbone organizations and the implementation of the Community School model are both effective ways to work across silos and create mixed-income neighborhoods and schools
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Gateway Cities Journal: A Toast to Brockton Beer
Brockton Beer closed its doors for the final time this past Saturday. Losing this Black-owned business in the heart of a revitalizing downtown is painful.
October 8, 2024
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Gateway Cities Journal: Historic tax credit increase is a big win for Gateway City housing production
The Gateway Cities Journal
August 20, 2024
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Gateway Cities Journal: Gateway Cities need actionable strategies to expand access to ESOL services
The Gateway Cities Journal
July 26, 2024
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Massachusetts Needs an Actionable Strategy to Expand ESOL Services
Adults with limited English skills comprise one-tenth of the commonwealth’s workforce. This makes English for Speakers of Other Language (ESOL) services key to the Massachusetts economy.
July 24, 2024
- State and federal funding for ESOL services isn’t keeping pace in MA.
- There are just 5.4 vocational ESOL opportunities per 1,000 work-age LEP adults in MA, a third of the state’s capacity to provide ESOL instruction.
- Increasing English proficiency among working-age LEP adults in MA would generate $3 billion in additional annual earnings.