MASC Staff is Available for Your Questions and Guidance

Due to the growing concerns about the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19), in consultation with the MASC Board of Directors, many of the MASC staff will be working remotely for at least the next two weeks.

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MASC Statement Following the Death of George Floyd

The Massachusetts Association of School Committees deplores the indefensible actions of the Minneapolis police that resulted in the murder of George Floyd. We further call upon all of our national, state and local leaders to recognize that Mr. Floyd’s death and the demands of millions of Americans to respond must be addressed with, not only swift and fair justice, but also with a national commitment to secure freedom from hate, bigotry, and social and economic injustice.

As school leaders, we must look to those policies, practices and procedures that often unintentionally produce inequitable outcomes for children at risk and adopt strong anti-racism policy statements locally to show our commitment to identify, challenge and change values, structures and behaviors that can create systemic racism.

We call upon our colleagues and constituents at every level of government and in every school district to use their positions as leaders, educators and mentors to the current and future generations to speak out and use their classrooms, schools and their voices as instruments for securing social and economic justice for our students, their families, and their communities and their nation. We must move with purpose to ensure that the we, as a people, act deliberately to demonstrate to all Americans that prejudice and hate will not be tolerated and will be challenged at every turn.

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Public Policy Updates: May 2020 Board of Ed

The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education met remotely on Tuesday, May 26, 2020, for a rare afternoon meeting. The agenda can be found online here, video of the meeting here.

Chair Katherine Craven opened the meeting by speaking of the value of being as transparent as possible during this time, as they make plans for the nearly one million children impacted by the school closure. She spoke of her appreciation for those at the Department and in districts and of families, and said that the Department would share plans as soon as they are developed.

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Public Policy Updates: April 2020 Board of Ed

The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education held their April 2020 meeting remotely on April 28 at 9 am. The agenda can be found online here; the video can be found here. 

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MIT Report Ranks Massachusetts 2nd on Remote Learning Guidance

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the MIT Teaching Systems Lab reviewed state education agency guidance to identify areas of consensus and emerging practices. The report, Remote Learning Guidance from State Education Agencies During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A First Look, provides objective recommendations and best practices for state education agencies providing remote learning guidance during COVID-19 school closures.

Massachusetts fulfills 16 out of 21 criteria outlined in the report, ranking the state second in the nation.

The report and datasets are available here.

Public Policy Updates: April Economic Roundtable on FY21

Recognizing how radically circumstances have shifted since the joint revenue hearing back in early December, the chairs of the Joint Committee on Ways and Means, Senator Michael Rodrigues and Representative Aaron Michlewitz, together with Secretary of Administration and Finance Michael Heffernan, hosted an economic roundtable on April 14 to update the projected revenue for the fourth quarter of FY20 and the budget year of FY21. While Sen. Rodrigues, Rep. Michlewitz, and Secretary Heffernan were all at the State House, all testimony was taken remotely. 

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