Achievement Gap - Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education

January 5, 2021

Decision to move forward with MCAS this year is the right one

Today, Massachusetts Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education Jeff Riley announced the state will administer MCAS this year. MBAE strongly supports the Commissioner’s decision to move forward with MCAS and to streamline administration of it in response to pandemic-related challenges. […]

November 9, 2020

MBAE releases database of district learning plans for 2020-21 school year

MBAE released today a database comparing teaching and learning plans during the COVID-19 pandemic from the 40 largest districts in the state. We teamed up with the Boston University Wheelock College of Education and Human Development to document school districts’ goals […]

October 31, 2020

Early College is a tangible equity and recovery strategy

Out of the 11.6 million jobs created in the post-Great recession economy, 11.5 million went to workers with at least some college education, and 8.4 million of these went to workers with a bachelor’s degree or higher, according to the […]

September 14, 2020

Missing the Mark: How Chapter 70 Education Aid Distribution Benefits Wealthier School Districts and Widens Equity Gaps

An analysis of state education aid distribution by the Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education (MBAE) and the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce (GBCC) shows Massachusetts distributes more aid to wealthier school districts than the state formula determines they need at […]

September 14, 2020

New Analysis: State education aid widening equity gaps

A new Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education and the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce report on state education aid distribution shows Massachusetts sends more aid to wealthier school districts than the state formula determines they need at the expense of […]

June 23, 2020

MBAE Receives the 2020 Excellence in Advocacy Award from the Mass Nonprofit Network

The Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education was honored to accept the 2020 Nonprofit Excellence Award in Advocacy from the Massachusetts Nonprofit Network (MNN) at a virtual event sponsored by Citizens Bank. The award recognizes a nonprofit organization whose work resulted […]

May 19, 2020

MBAE supports amendments to H.4708 that would expand and enhance remote learning

Today, MBAE sent a letter to legislators in support of amendments #68, #73, and #95 to House Bill 4708. H.4708 is a more than $1 billion information technology bond bill that the House will consider during its session tomorrow, May […]

April 24, 2020

MBAE releases database that shows concerning disparities among districts’ remote learning plans

Database contains information from the 20 largest school districts in the state April 24, 2020 — Schools are closed for the foreseeable future, making remote learning an important topic. Students cannot afford to have learning stand still. To inform an […]

April 22, 2020

Schools are closed: time to maximize remote learning opportunities

Yesterday, Governor Baker made the expected announcement that schools will be closed through the end of the school year. This was the right decision for the safety of students, teachers and families. The Governor also rightly made clear that this […]

April 9, 2020

Learning must move forward during school closures

The coronavirus has caused an unexpected and unprecedented upheaval in our schools. Without exception, the health and safety of our students, teachers, and their families is the number one priority. We applaud and appreciate districts’ extraordinary efforts to deliver meals […]

February 18, 2020

Massachusetts Considers Changes to the High School Graduation Standard

MBAE’s Ed Lambert is serving on the advisory committee that will assist Commissioner Riley in developing his recommendations to the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education regarding what level of achievement students will need to demonstrate on the next-generation high […]

February 11, 2020

Early College: Supporting a proven strategy for boosting college completion

Commissioner Jeff Riley announced last week that Early College is one of three priority strategies he’d like to see districts adopt as part of the three-year plans they are required to develop to close equity and opportunity gaps. While relatively […]

November 7, 2019

MBAE Priorities for a Final School Funding Reform Bill

MBAE sent the following letter to state lawmakers this week as a conference committee debates a final school funding reform bill. Dear Legislator, The Student Opportunity Act, a bill intended to address funding inequities identified by the Foundation Budget Review […]

October 17, 2019

House must restore accountability language in ed funding bill; add focus on college and career readiness

Next week, the Massachusetts House will take up the Student Opportunity Act, a bill that has the potential to greatly improve equity and student readiness for future success if funds are deployed strategically by districts. Senate amendments to the bill […]

October 10, 2019

BayCoast Bank’s President and CEO Joins MBAE Board

Nicholas Christ, President and CEO of BayCoast Bank, was elected to the board of directors of the Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education (MBAE). BayCoast is a community bank serving SouthCoast Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Mr. Christ has over 40 years […]

October 2, 2019

Business groups press the Senate to amend the school funding bill

On Thursday, the Massachusetts Senate will debate the most important legislation dealing with our state’s education system in more than twenty-five years. An Act Relative to Educational Opportunity provides a rare chance to take aggressive action to close persistent gaps […]

September 20, 2019

School Funding Bill Includes Accountability, Misses Opportunity to Expand Career-Connected Learning

On September 19, the Massachusetts legislature announced the Student Opportunity Act, a school funding reform bill that will increase spending on public education by $1.5 billion over seven years. The Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education appreciates the hard work of […]

September 18, 2019

Find out how your district distributes funding to schools

MBAE created the School Spending Explorer to enable users to compare school spending within and across districts to determine whether schools are getting equitable funding and to evaluate the relationship between spending and outcomes. Learn about funding in your schools […]

September 10, 2019

Without Props or Stunts, Business Groups Visit Beacon Hill Lawmakers to Hold Serious Discussions on School Funding Reform

(BOSTON) September 10, 2019 – Organized by the Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education, business groups from nearly every corner of the state visited the offices of Beacon Hill lawmakers today strongly urging them to pass a school funding reform bill […]

August 6, 2019

Biz Asks Commissioner to Ensure New Funds Follow Students

The substantial increase in school funding made in the 2020 budget, the largest increase in Chapter 70 and other state aid for education in over a decade, combined with two previous years of increases, amount to a significant “down payment” […]