FYI from BSF, 4.5.24
Before a short summary of data and news of the week, I have some news of our own to share.
Recently, Boston Schools Fund (BSF) has decided to wind down, closing with the end of our current strategic plan by June, 2025.
This decision was not made lightly, nor is it a reflection of a diminished need for resources and reform in Boston schools. As BSF began planning for its next five years, we acknowledged the significant changes in the Boston education landscape over the past decade. When given choices to reshape/”pivot” the organization to meet the new context, there were options, but all that would have required wholesale changes of our organization and even our mission.
As a non–profit organization - which, I would argue, must provide mission-aligned, timely value - BSF has done its best with the season it had, and it is time for the resources and talent that drove BSF to find new places to make impact.
We did the math and made a decision that I believe is prudent and faithful to our mission and values. We are setting aside funds to maintain our core commitments through the 2024-2025 school year to successfully close Fund II. Even as we wind down, we will be actively supporting schools through our PEAK program, transitioning Boston School Finder, serving as a trusted source of information for the public and decision makers, helping our staff transition to new roles, and more. And, yes, this weekly newsletter will continue to arrive in inboxes most Friday mornings.
While it is natural to feel loss, I am choosing to focus on what has been gained. We woke up every day, for nearly a decade, working for one goal: more Boston children in high-quality schools. And we got to do that, for thousands of children and families, in every neighborhood.
I will have a lot more to say about the past, present, and future of Boston schools in the coming months, but I will start with a simple note of gratitude. There is nothing greater than to be of service, and BSF has had the privilege to serve many people in the city of Boston for many years.
Thank you, and to be continued.
notes in the margin
Big shifts coming in Boston school leadership, as Boston Teachers Union (BTU) president Jessica Tang will pursue leadership of the BTU’s statewide parent union, the American Federation of Teachers (AFT).
Advocates are calling for ending suspension as a practice for the state’s youngest students. This would be largest change in discipline policy since 2014, with the enactment of a 2012 law designed to limit long-term suspensions and provide significantly more process/alternatives for short-term suspensions. Over the past decade, however, progress may be stalling (pandemic years, notwithstanding).
With Holyoke leaving state receivership, a primer on the "mixed bag" of state intervention.
Chronic absenteeism gets the New York Times treatment. A new tool displays trends at individual Massachusetts schools. How do you intervene at a school that has ~100% chronic absence rate? (Greater Egleston in Boston).
What could be behind the decline in school-aged children in Boston and across Massachusetts? 25-44 year olds leaving.
The graph above may show more 18-24 year olds, but they aren’t finding their way to the state’s regional public colleges.
