FYI from BSF, 10.25.24

 
 
 

This past week, our Board approved Boston Schools Fund’s (BSF) dissolution and, in the next 6-8 weeks, we will cease its operations.  

We have closed well.  We are thrilled that PEAK, our initiative to improve student learning outcomes, will continue, now at Boston Public Schools and led by Dorie Withey.  Our longtime partner EdVestors will be taking on some of our data tools and capacity.  Boston School Finder will continue as a static site, still providing the only spot where a Boston family can begin the school choice process with all of their options.  We are archiving material on our website.  And, with our last public communication, we are sharing a final report.  

So, what is happening with this newsletter?  Until you choose otherwise, it will still land in your inbox every Friday at 7 AM, arriving via Substack starting next week.  Different platform, slightly more expansive in topics and scope, but hope you will continue to read and engage.  More to come on that.

The wind down has given us many opportunities to reflect and thank people.  It has been a real privilege for all of us at BSF to work on behalf of Boston’s children, families, and educators for the past decade.  A season and an organization have passed, but the need and opportunities for impact endure.

FINAL BELL

Less of a retrospective, BSF’s Final Report is intended to provide an analysis of what has happened in Boston schools over the past 10-15 years, and what that means for the future.  We will hold a brief summary webinar on November 18th at noon (register here).  Aside from BSF-specific information, here are the central themes (and a provocative graph or two).

Academic Achievement
Shifts in standards and assessments and the pandemic have depressed many student learning outcomes.  

Enrollment
Enrollment in Boston schools has declined and shifted, presenting major short and long term challenges for schools.

Funding
Funding for education in Boston has increased dramatically and will require greater investment each year to sustain programming.

Facilities
Despite attention and initiatives, Boston school facilities are a major impediment to the creation and sustainability of high-quality schools.

People
Changes in leadership, consistent school teams, and broad acceptance of the current state of Boston schools have resulted in limited innovation or reform.

Notes in the Margins

Boston School Committee met on Thursday.  Materials here.  Big item on the agenda was Boston’s “transformation schools,” the 44 BPS schools identified as needing “assistance or intervention” since 2019.

Closed and then reopened in 2017, the Mattahunt was selected as this year’s School on the Move.

Question 2 continues to drive the news.  A primer, if you still need one.  Without the MCAS or required courses, Massachusetts would be one of the lone states with essentially no graduation standards.  Harvard hosted a debatebetween Secretary of Education Pat Tutwiler and Massachusetts Teachers Association (MTA) President Max Page.  The MTA and psychedelic mushroom enthusiasts lead in ballot spending.  Brockton and Peabody are  “yes,” but Mount Greylock isn’t sure.  A Western Mass teacher and a Dorchester educator are “no.”  

Regardless of outcomes on November 5th, the Massachusetts legislature is making their intentions pretty clear.

Greater Boston's decline in student enrollment.

Increased special education needs and spending are creating budget pressure across the country.

At $3.2B, the “culture wars” playing out at school boards across the country cost more than the actual Mexican-American War (in today’s dollars).

As potential school closures paralyze Chicago and San Francisco schools, a report indicates Denver’s school consolidation plan worked.

After shifts in public policy, Massachusetts community college enrollment is up.

But how much of that result in more graduations?

Will Austin