Massachusetts routinely leads the nation in test scores and high school graduation rates. But the state isn't immune to the same opportunity gaps (and resulting achievement gaps) that hinder students across the country, particularly students of color and students from low-income communities.
For education advocates and organizers, the small city of Lynn, MA, (just a short drive north of Boston) has become a local hotspot in the national immigration debate.
This guest post was written by Tom Mela, Senior Project Director at Massachusetts Advcoates for Children (MAC).
Personal Opportunity Plans: Conditions and Considerations for Effective Development and Implementation of Personal Opportunity Plans by the Commonwealth, Districts, and Schools
This report contributes to the movement to shift from standards-based to supports-based reform that provides necessary resources so that every student has the opportunity to learn, succeed in school, and craft a productive future with the support of counselors, teachers, and personal advocates.
Personal Opportunity Plans: Conditions and Considerations for Effective Development and Implementation of Personal Opportunity Plans by the Commonwealth, Districts, and Schools
Whether you can get to school shouldn't depend on whether you can afford a subway pass. Students in Boston staged a protest and day-long sit-in this week arguing just that point.
Boston students are playing an active role in helping the city select its new superintendent. Though not officially a part of the search committee, students from the Boston Student Advisory Council, Youth and Board, and Boston-area Youth Organizing Project have crafted a set of criteria and priorities they think are important when selecting a superintendent.
Here's what they have to say!
OTL allies in Massachusetts played a huge role in passing a 2012 law known as Chapter 222 that required schools to provide continuing educational resources to suspended students. Now, these same allies are playing a role in drafting state guidelines to help schools implement the new law. Check out some of the recent media coverage of their work!
As part of the National Day of Action, hundreds of Boston students, parents, teachers and advocates participated in a Town Hall on December 9 to discuss how to improve Boston Public Schools. The next day, students got a chance to present feedback from the Town Hall in a meeting with new Mayor Marty Walsh and his transition team.
Warren Simmons, Executive Director of the Annenberg Institute for School Reform, has some advice for Boston's Mayor-Elect Marty Walsh: to improve the city's schools and ensure every student has a great education, he should focus on equity and providing access to a robust web of wraparound student supports.
