Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Public hearings will be held on student assignment, school quality and student transportation, as it relates to the Boston Public Schools system.
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Tuesday, May 15
Editor's note: Below is a letter sent out by At-Large Boston City Councilor John Connolly. I am writing to invite you to be a part of a series of upcoming hearings to be held by the City Council’s Education Committee. Beginning on Tuesday, May 22nd, I will chair hearings on three related topics: the current student assignment lottery, what makes a quality school, and student transportation. I want to make sure that your voice is heard on each of these important issues. If you are interested in testifying at one of the hearings, please email me or call (617) 635-3115. The schedule for the hearings will be: Student Assignment: Tuesday, May 22, 4:00 PM School Quality: Wednesday, May 23, 4:00 PM Student Transportation: Thursday, May 24, 6:00…
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
City Councilor Mike Ross said Charles Street on Beacon Hill is an example of a business district where retail is being strangled by too many street-level banks.
Clusters of banks can strangle the retail vitality of certain Boston streets, warned City Councilor Mike Ross. Ross said Charles Street is an example where too many "big box banks" are buying up storefronts at inflated prices mom and pop shops can't afford. The resulting row of banks deadens what could be lively retail zones. "It’s not right for every street to make this 'No Bank First Floor' zoning change, but I believe it’s right for Charles Street on Beacon Hill," said Ross, who represents District 8. Ross said that banks close at 5 p.m. and aren't open on weekends, all of which has a deadening effect for the neighborhood businesses. He made his remarks at Wednesday's City Council meeting. The matter will be taken up by the Committee on…
Monday, May 7, 2012
Unveiling today at 5:30 p.m.
Below is a press release from the Park Street School and Park Street Kids: On Monday evening, May 7, 2012 at 5:30 PM at Park Street School on Brimmer Street, Park Street School (PSS) and Park Street Kids (PSK) students, parents and staff will unveil eight pieces of art, lovingly created to hang on the walls of Christopher’s Haven, a home away from home for families who have traveled to Boston for their child’s treatment for cancer. Joyce Duvall, executive director, and Katelyn Hinson, family services manager of Christopher’s Haven will both be present to accept the gift at the 5:30 PM unveiling. Under the guidance of Louisa Trombetta, PSS Art Faculty and Louise Profit, a PSS parent and Co-chair with Christine McCormick of the Park Street …
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Surveys are available in multiple languages at bostonpublicschools.org.
The Boston Public Schools is offering two two online surveys to help the district gather feedback on two important BPS efforts: increasing school quality and improvements to the system's school choice process. The Improving School Choice survey is available to the entire Boston community, regardless of whether you have a student in the system, at www.bostonpublicschools.org. BPS officials said the surveys ask similar questions to what was discussed in community meetings in April. The School Climate Survey is only open to current BPS parents and can be accessed on the district’s website. Different versions for students and teachers are being offered to students and teachers in schools. Both surveys are offered in multiple languages…
Monday, April 30, 2012
A look at the Chapter 70 funding estimated for the next fiscal year.
Chapter 70 funding is complicated and contentious, which makes for a controversial topic in most communities. The funding is given to every Commonwealth community by the state each year to help pay for education costs. Essentially, the state uses a formula to determine how much it’ll cost a community to educate its kids. Then it determines how much the community can raise in property taxes to pay for education. The state aid given is used to cover the difference. Communities can chip in more to educate kids without hurting its Chapter 70 funding total; the whole exercise is done to make sure there’s a minimum standard met. Boston would receive $207,858,773 in Chapter 70 funding next year according to the House budget passed late on …
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Two City Councilors are holding a hearing today to discuss the possibility of making Black History a mandatory subject at Boston Public High Schools. Is this something you support?
City Councilor Tito Jackson of Roxbury and At-Large City Councilor John Connolly will hold a hearing today to discuss the possibility of making Black History a mandatory part of the curriculum at all of Boston's public high schools, according to an article on UniversalHub. The order for a hearing that the two Councilors have submitted says that District's vision for an ideal Boston Public Schools graduate includes that student's ability to "acknowledge and respect people with diverse backgrounds, histories, and perspectives," that "building such a model student first requires that the district acknowledge the history of its own students," 80% of whom are students of color, with "a large percentage being of African descent." Additionally, …
Two Boston City Councilors and two Boston state representatives testified about why they feel the high school dropout age should be raised from 16 to 18. What do you think?
At-Large Boston City Councilor John Connolly and District 7 City Councilor Tito Jackson, state Rep. Ed Coppinger, D-West Roxbury, and state Rep. Carlos Henriquez, D-Dorchester, testified Tuesday before the Joint Committee on Education at the State House. The Councilors and Representatives supported a home-rule petition sponsored by Councilors Connolly and Jackson that would raise the drop-out age in Boston from 16 to 18. [Editor's note: This item is posted on West Roxbury, Beacon Hill and Jamaica Plain Patch.]
Thursday, March 29, 2012
The Boston Teacher's Union has gone 21 months without a contract with the city, and neither side, including Mayor Menino, is happy about it.
The City Of Boston's School Department and the Boston Teacher's Union have agreed to enter into a formal mediation process with the state after yesterday's meeting to negotiate teacher contracts ended with both sides declaring an impasse, according to this Boston Globe article. “The union refuses to accept a $32 million raise for teachers,” Menino said in his speech to the Boston Municipal Research Bureau yesterday, as quoted in the Globe, and added that, because of the teacher's failure to agree with the City's contract proposals, "Unfortunately, we must start planning for next year with the old process in place. A process that puts teachers with mismatched skills in mismatched classrooms. That’s wrong." Richard Stutman, the Boston …
Thursday, March 1, 2012
The lack of access to a nearby public school combined with high mortgages is pushing young families off the Hill.
A small group of concerned parents from Beacon Hill met this week to discuss how to keep young families in the neighborhood by improving access to good public schools. Of the Hill's 399 students in the 2008-09 school year, only 74 attended public schools. The reason, many in the neighborhood say, is that there aren't enough seats in the public schools closest to Beacon Hill. There are no public schools on Beacon Hill. The lack of public school options means that many families with young children are leaving Beacon Hill. According to a study by the Beacon Hill Civic Association, 70 percent of children born to parents living on Beacon Hill in 2000 are gone by third grade. Most commonly, the parents move to a community where they can attend …
Monday, February 13, 2012
Does the Mayor's recent State of The City speech signify the end of busing? Or does the word "busing" itself hinder the process for the ultimate goal of better schools?
In history, a handful of phrases have conjured such hostility as to forever alter their original, mundane meaning. In Boston, we have "bussing,"—or "forced busing" if you will. The city cannot progress forward with this same failed system in place. Supposing the factors around busing now are different than they were in the 70's when Judge Garrity made his infamous decision, is it possible to correct the mistakes made in yesteryear regarding this original decision? I believe we can, but we must study history, or we will repeat the same mistakes. The philosophy, the purpose behind busing is something I wholeheartedly support. Segregated school systems and/or underfunded programs and schools in minority districts are not only unfair, but …
John Keith
3:12 pm on Thursday, March 1, 2012
We have to fix this problem, once and for all! more ›