Education Commons^™

Estimating The Impacts Of Legislation To Expand Affordable Quality Child Care And Early Education In Massachusetts: Initial Findings On Utilization, Employment, And Financial Assistance. Research Brief #1, Randy Albelda, Alan Clayton-Matthews, Anne Douglass, Christa Kelleher, Songtian Zeng, Laurie Nsiah-Jefferson

Publications from the Center for Women in Politics and Public Policy

The UMass Boston Early Education CUSP is led by a multidisciplinary team that designed the simulator and uses it to produce current, relevant, accurate, and responsive estimates about the key impacts of proposed legislation to expand access to affordable, quality child care and early education. One of the simulator’s valuable features is that it can produce estimates for a range of policy parameters and provisions. The team will release additional briefs in the coming months to offer a more detailed look at the impacts outlined in this initial publication. Other planned briefs will examine key topics, such as impacts related …

The State Of Latino Education: 2010-2020, Fabián Torres-Ardila, Nyal Fuentes

Gastón Institute Publications

In this report, we will provide a descriptive analysis of the main trends in educational achievement for Latinos in Massachusetts in the period 2010-2022. We highlight areas in which Latino students have made considerable progress since the publication of the 2010 Gastón report “The State of Latinos and Education in Massachusetts: 2010,” along with other areas in which progress has stalled and/or been reversed. The data presented cover only until 2020, before the full effects of the Covid-19 pandemic were felt. We end with recommendations for further development of a Latino Education agenda.

Massachusetts Urban Bicycle Preparedness, Rick L. Sheiber

Instructional Design Capstones Collection

Since 2007, Boston has made tremendous strides in shedding its designation by Bicycling Magazine as one of the “Worst Biking Cities” (Zezima, 2009, p. A12) by designating over 92 miles of bike lanes throughout the city and introducing bicycle initiatives like Boston Bikes, the Hubway bicycle sharing program. These efforts have resulted in a dramatic rise in the number of cyclists in Greater Boston and a decrease in accidents involving bicycles ((Pedroso, Angriman, Bellows & Taylor, 2016). While the quantitative research has been primarily positive, a 2017 survey initiated LivableStreets and the Longwood Area Cyclists of commuters in the Longwood …

Zycie W Ameryce: Life In America (Poster), Brett A. Cotter

Summer Research Program

Poster complementing author's summer research project exploring the history of the Polish-American community of Worcester, Massachusetts centered on the parish of Our Lady of Czestochowa and how its members responded to the forces of Americanization. Research in area archives such as the Worcester Historical Museum, the Worcester Public Library, and at Our Lady of Czestochowa’s rectory and its parish school of Saint Mary’s, as well as oral history interviews with past and longtime members of the community test the assumption that the story of Worcester’s Polish community is one of loss and decline. On the contrary, Polish-American efforts to preserve …

Oral History: John Bartosiewicz

Zycie w Ameryce: A Collection of Polish-American Oral Histories

This conversation is an oral history interview with a former member of Worcester’s Polish-American community. The interview touches on a variety of aspects of life in the community, from school and parish life, to Polishness and the significance of language, and the effects of suburbanization.

Interview keywords: St. Mary’s, church / parish, all Polish, PNI, women’s guild, basketball, immigrant, Polishness, language, John Paul II, I-290, suburbs.

Oral History: Richard Lewandowski

Zycie w Ameryce: A Collection of Polish-American Oral Histories

This conversation is an oral history interview with a former member of Worcester’s Polish-American community. The interview discusses much about the Polish-American experience, from the Polish diaspora, the effects of I-290 and discrimination on the community in Worcester, as well as the effect of global events such as the rise of Solidarity on the Worcester parish.

Interview keywords: St. Mary’s, English, displaced people, I-290, Polish-American parish, Solidarity, Polishness, John Paul II, discrimination, education, Church

Oral History: ​Carol Fredette

Zycie w Ameryce: A Collection of Polish-American Oral Histories

This conversation is an oral history interview with a former teacher at the Polish-American high school in Worcester, Saint Mary’s. The interviewee is not Polish, but of Lebanese descent, so provides the point of view of someone who came from outside the community yet still became a part of it. The interview touches on the rising importance of the English language, the Church’s centrality, ethnic parishes, school life, and high school basketball.

Interview keywords: English, ethnic parish, church, nun, club, basketball

Oral History: Anonymous 1

Zycie w Ameryce: A Collection of Polish-American Oral Histories

This conversation is an oral history interview with a longtime member of Worcester’s Polish-American community. The interview discusses aspects of community life, the neighborhood’s ethnic composition, as well as the effect of I-290 on the neighborhood.

Interview keywords: festivals, non-Polish, White Eagle Club, PNA, PNI, Booster’s, crime, expressway, Polish language

Oral History: Irene Rojcewicz

Zycie w Ameryce: A Collection of Polish-American Oral Histories

This conversation is an oral history interview with a longtime member of Worcester’s Polish-American community. The interview discusses aspects of life in the parish of Czestochowa, from festivals to clubs, to tensions within the diocese, as well as trips organized by the parish to travel to Poland.

Interview keywords: festivals, clubs, English, tension, Poland, John Paul II.

Oral History: Charlene Zimkiewicz

Zycie w Ameryce: A Collection of Polish-American Oral Histories

This conversation is an oral history interview with a longtime member of Worcester’s Polish-American community. This interview touches on difficulties the parish faced, tensions between different groups, school life, and the transition from an ethnic community to a public college.

Interview keywords: ethnic communities, festivals, Irish, fire, I-290, White Eagle Club, basketball, languages, college, immigrants, universal, June Show.

Oral History: John Kraska

Zycie w Ameryce: A Collection of Polish-American Oral Histories

This conversation is an oral history interview with a former member of Worcester’s Polish-American community. This interview touches on community and church life, immigration, divisions in the city, and the effect of I-290 on the community.

Interview keywords: English, festivities, church, I-290, Quo Vadis, White Eagle Club, PNI, sections, basketball, displaced persons.

Oral History: Thaddeus Stachura

Zycie w Ameryce: A Collection of Polish-American Oral Histories

This conversation is an oral history interview with a former pastor of Our Lady of Czestochowa parish, the center of Worcester’s Polish American community. This interview discusses much of the history of the community from its beginnings and delves into the life of a parish priest, while also touching on topics such as immigration, Church corruption, community life and difficulties, and local festivals.

Interview keywords: immigrants, Saint Casimir’s, difficulties, seminary, Bojanowski, Moneta, vocation, dompolski, immoral, Polish priest, Solidarity, redlining, violence, festival, PNI, citizenship.

Assessment Of Impacts Of The Biomedical Careers Program – Just-A-Start Corporation Of Cambridge, Ma, Brandynn Holgate, Françoise Carré, Michael Mccormack, Wendel Mirbel

Center for Social Policy Publications

In 2015, Just-a-Start Corporation (JAS) of Cambridge, MA asked the UMass Boston Center for Social Policy to conduct an assessment of the impacts of the Biomedical Careers Program on the region and state, examining individual impacts for graduates as well as the economic contributions of program graduates to the biomedical industry.

The Biomedical Careers Program (hereafter “BioMed”) is described by JAS as an eight month program designed to enable local residents to complete “a Certificate in Biomedical Sciences to prepare them for entry level jobs at local biotechnology companies, universities, research institutions, clinical laboratories and hospitals. The program includes a …

Latinos In Massachusetts Public Schools: Pittsfield, Michael Berardino, Valerie Watson

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a snapshot of current educational outcomes of Latino students in the city of Pittsfield. It is based on publicly available data from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (MADESE) that has been analyzed by the Gastón Institute for the 2014 Latinos in Massachusetts Regional Meeting in Pittsfield. This report uses the ethno-racial categories assigned by MADESE. It focuses on the evolving demographic trends and the most recent educational outcomes of Latino students relative to other ethno-racial groups in the school district and to students statewide. The first section illustrates the demographic shift occurring within the …

Latinos In Massachusetts Public Schools: Springfield, Michael Berardino

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a snapshot of current educational outcomes of Latino students in the city of Springfield. It is based on publicly available data from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (MADESE) that have been analyzed by the Gastón Institute for a community meeting in Springfield. This report uses the ethno-racial categories assigned by MADESE. It focuses on the evolving demographic trends and the most recent educational outcomes of Latino students relative to other ethno-racial groups in the school district and to students statewide. The first section illustrates the demographic shift occurring in the Springfield Public Schools, with …

The Campus Kitchen At Umass Boston Student-Powered Hunger Relief In Boston, Office Of Student Leadership And Community Engagement, University Of Massachusetts Boston, Walter Denney Youth Center, Housing Opportunities Unlimited, St. Peter's Teen Center, John Winthrop Elementary, Project Alerta, University Of Massachusetts Boston, Camp Shriver, University Of Massachusetts Boston, Massachusetts Law Reform Institute, Inc., Sodexo

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

The Campus Kitchen at the University of Massachusetts Boston (CKUMB) is a part of The Campus Kitchens Project. (CKP), a national network of student volunteers, works to rescue excess food to create meals for those in need. CKUMB opened in 2010 to provide meals for the Dorchester community. By taking the initiative to run a community kitchen, students develop entrepreneurial and leadership skills, along with a commitment to serve their community, that they will carry with them into future careers.

Providing Staff And Program Development For Boston-Area Adult Basic Education Programs, Adult Literacy Resource Institute, University Of Massachusetts Boston, System For Adult Basic Education Support (Sabes), College Of Education And Human Development, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

The Adult Literacy Resource Institute (part of UMass Boston since 1983, and 100% grant-funded) serves as the Greater Boston Regional Support Center for SABES, the state’s System for Adult Basic Education Support. We provide staff and program development services to adult basic education programs in the Boston area, especially the approximately 40 programs in the region (most located at community-based organizations) that are funded by the state’s Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and that offer ESOL, basic literacy and numeracy, high school equivalency preparation, and other classes (including family literacy, civics education, career pathways, and college transition).

Latinos In Massachusetts Public Schools: Brockton, Michael Berardino

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a snapshot of current educational outcomes of Latino students in the city of Brockton. It is based on publicly available data from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (MADESE) that has been analyzed by the Gastón Institute for the 2013 Latinos in Massachusetts Regional Meeting in New Bedford. This report uses the ethno-racial categories assigned by MADESE. It focuses on the evolving demographic trends and the most recent educational outcomes of Latino students relative to other ethno-racial groups in the school district. The first section illustrates the demographic shift occurring in the Brockton Public …

Latinos In Massachusetts Public Schools: Fall River, Michael Berardino

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a snapshot of current educational outcomes of Latino students in the city of Fall River. It is based on publicly available data from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (MADESE) that has been analyzed by the Gastón Institute for the 2013 Latinos in Massachusetts Regional Meeting in New Bedford. This report uses the ethno-racial categories assigned by MADESE. It focuses on the evolving demographic trends and the most recent educational outcomes of Latino students relative to other ethno-racial groups in the school district. The first section illustrates the demographic shift occurring in the Fall …

Latinos In Massachusetts Public Schools: New Bedford, Michael Berardino

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a snapshot of current educational outcomes of Latino students in the city of New Bedford. It is based on publicly available data from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (MADESE) that has been analyzed by the Gastón Institute for the 2013 Latinos in Massachusetts Regional Meeting in New Bedford. This report uses the ethno-racial categories assigned by MADESE. It focuses on the evolving demographic trends and the most recent educational outcomes of Latino students relative to other ethno-racial groups in the school district. The first section illustrates the demographic shift occurring in the New Bedford …

Latinos In Massachusetts Public Schools: Taunton, Michael Berardino

Gastón Institute Publications

This report provides a snapshot of current educational outcomes of Latino students in the town of Taunton. It is based on publically available data from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (MADESE) that has been analyzed by the Gastón Institute for the 2013 Latinos in Massachusetts Regional Meeting in New Bedford. This report uses the ethno-racial categories assigned by MADESE. It focuses on the evolving demographic trends and the most recent educational outcomes of Latino students relative to other ethno-racial groups in the school district. The first section illustrates the demographic shift occurring in the Taunton Public Schools, …

Thrive In 5 – Boston Initiative, Center For Social Policy, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

The Center for Social Policy (CSP) is the external evaluator of Thrive in 5 Boston. Thrive in 5 is transforming Boston into a city that values and proactively nurtures young children’s school readiness – because when our youngest children thrive, we all prosper. Thrive in 5 envisions a city where families, educators, providers, business leaders, and communities come together with the knowledge, skills, and resources to prepare children for success in school and beyond. The center is helping to identify, implement, and evaluate community interventions designed to increase Boston children’s readiness for success in school at kindergarten age.

The Tech Apprentice Internship Program: Engaging Youth In It, Felicia Vargas, Olu Ibrahim, Neil Sullivan, Deborah Boisvert

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

The Tech Apprentice program was designed to provide Boston Public School (BPS) students work-based learning opportunities within information technology (IT) departments across a diverse array of industries for seven-week, paid summer internships. A robust technology internship program encourages BPS students to pursue IT-related post-secondary degrees. Tech Apprentice has expanded from 25 student placements in the first summer to 123 who were employed in 2012, and the program has placed over 600 students in internships since the program launched in 2006. 98% of graduates attend colleges and 78% are pursuing an IT-related degree.

Breakfast And Lunch Participation In Massachusetts Schools, Center For Social Policy, University Of Massachusetts Boston, Massachusetts Budget And Policy Center, Massachusetts Law Reform Institute, Eos Foundation

Center for Social Policy Publications

The Center for Social Policy at the University of Massachusetts Boston (CSP), the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center (MassBudget), and the Massachusetts Law Reform Institute (MLRI), with support from the Eos Foundation, established a research team to examine school food and related programs in Massachusetts.

While the team developed an overview of all federally funded food programs in Massachusetts, the focus of our work was on school meal programs and several aspects of the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP). The full project is composed of several individual pieces of research and analysis, most of which were primarily undertaken by one …

Institute Brief: Advancing Parent-Professional Leadership: Effective Strategies For Building The Capacity Of Parent Advisory Councils In Special Education, Heike Boeltzig, Matthew Kusminsky, Susan M. Foley, Richard Robison, Barbara Popper, Marilyn Gutierrez-Wilson

The Institute Brief Series, Institute for Community Inclusion

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, last amended in 2004 (IDEA 2004), encourages parents and educators to work collaboratively, emphasizing that as a team they are uniquely suited to make decisions that help improve the educational experiences and outcomes of children with disabilities. The Advancing Parent-Professional Leadership in Education (APPLE) Project was funded to develop the leadership skills of parents individually and within their communities. The project took place in Massachusetts, where school districts are required to have a special education parent advisory council (SEPAC).

Research To Practice: Building A Future: Working With The Post-High School Expectations Of Students & Parents, Jennifer Schuster, Steven Graham, Mairead Moloney

Research to Practice Series, Institute for Community Inclusion

This brief examined the circumstances that accompany high expectations for the future for Massachusetts high school students who receive special education services and their parents. Includes recommendations on how to build and fulfill students' goals for adulthood.