Entries by Editorial Staff

Op-ed: A Novel Solution To An Old Problem

By Tom Birmingham  | The Boston Pilot  |  December 15, 2017 We are all shaped by our own experiences. When it comes to education, I spent nine years in Chelsea public schools, followed by high school at Austin Prep, an Augustinian Catholic school north of Boston. St. Augustine’s dictum from his Confessions, “Tolle, lege,” “Take up and read,” became Austin’s school motto. I believe that I benefitted from Catholic education and wish more young people could do the same, but economic trends and constitutional amendments in 38 states that prohibit public money from going to religious schools are among the factors that have staggered many Catholic schools. Cristo Rey high schools are returning Catholic education to urban areas. Under the […]

Report: Economic Freedom Up Slightly Across U.S.

Massachusetts ranks 13th in North American index BOSTON – Massachusetts ranks 13th out of all 50 states in this year’s Economic Freedom of North America report, released today by the Pioneer Institute in conjunction with Canada’s Fraser Institute. “Massachusetts has real competitive advantages over other states – a top-rate education system, talent across financial services, consulting and important research and innovation sectors,” said Jim Stergios, executive director of Pioneer Institute. “But state government has also advanced policies that make Massachusetts an expensive place to live and work. We have a well-earned reputation for over-regulation and huge debt obligations that are a drag on the economy.  Several issues on the ballot in 2018, including additional tax increases and restrictions on labor […]

Study: Updated Massachusetts K-12 Standards Are Worse in English, Still Mediocre in Math

Check out news coverage: “Report warns of falling test scores” (Salem News, Newburyport Daily News, Gloucester Times); Bloomberg Bay State; Accuracy in Academia; The Lowell Sun; The Fitchburg Sentinel & Enterprise; RealClearEducation. The Lowell Sun published an op-ed as well, here. Both 2010 and 2017 standards demonstrably inferior to state’s pre-2010 academic standards BOSTON – The 2017 update of Massachusetts’ English and math K-12 academic standards represents further deterioration in English, while the math standards are essentially unchanged from the 2010 version, according to the first independent evaluation of the newly revised standards, which is published by Pioneer Institute.  The 2010 standards, which were based on Common Core, led to […]

Op-ed: Our schools ignore US history at our peril

By Tom Birmimgham | Nov. 30, 2017 State must make good on requirement for history instruction and testing ABOUT 25 YEARS AGO, as a member of the Massachusetts Senate, I co-authored the Massachusetts Education Reform Act. Drafting a complex bill with such far-reaching consequences requires significant compromise, but one thing my counterparts in the House of Representatives and then-Gov. Bill Weld all agreed upon was the importance of educating students about our nation’s history. As a result, the law explicitly requires instruction about the Declaration of Independence, the Federalist Papers and the US Constitution. We also made passage of a US history test a high school graduation requirement. Sadly, subsequent generations of political leaders have not shared our view of the importance of US history. It is now […]

Op-ed: It’s Time to Strengthen—Not Reduce!—History in Our Classrooms

By Tom Birmingham This op-ed appeared in the print edition of American Heritage magazine (Volume 62 Issue 5), with a preface from the Editor. The op-ed also appeared in the MetroWest Daily News and Milford Daily News. It is painful to see a state such as Massachusetts — so central to our Nation’s past — plan to cut back even more on the teaching of American history. In recent years renowned historical sites such as Old Sturbridge Village have reported a dramatic decrease in visits by students because of a reduced emphasis on teaching history in schools (despite the efforts of many dedicated teachers), and an increase in paperwork to justify field trips. (Parenthetically, American Heritagewas launched in 1949 at Old Sturbridge Village, which still guards the original carved eagle […]

Happy Thanksgiving from Pioneer Institute!

Thanksgiving is a time to gather with friends and family, share a traditional feast, and express gratitude for the freedoms we enjoy. We at Pioneer have much to be thankful for, most importantly for your trust in and support of the Institute.  We are also grateful for the opportunity to organize informative events, engage high-profile scholars and experts to develop new ideas and reforms, and advance public conversations on our most pressing policy challenges. In the coming months, keep an eye out for an exciting new documentary film raising awareness about the bigoted history behind opposition to school choice, the kickoff to our 2018 Better Government Competition (which, psst, is on college affordability), a book on how Massachusetts birthed the […]

Press Release: Definitive Biographer of Pope St. John Paul II to Keynote Cristo Rey High Schools Event

Update: Watch the event videos below, in order.   Pioneer Institute to simultaneously release study on Cristo Rey schools BOSTON – George Weigel, who wrote a bestselling two-volume biography of Pope St. John Paul II; former Ambassador to the Vatican and three-term Boston Mayor Raymond Flynn; and Jeffrey Thielman, co-founder of the Cristo Rey Network of Catholic schools, will be among the speakers at “Witnessing Hope: Cristo Rey Schools & Catholic Education,” a Pioneer Institute and Catholic Schools Foundation forum to be held Monday, November 13th from 8:30 to 11:00 a.m. at the Omni Parker House in Boston. Thielman is also the co-author of “Cristo Rey Schools: A Model of 21st-Century Catholic Education,” a Pioneer Institute White Paper that will […]

2017 Lovett C. Peters Lecture in Public Policy to Focus on Politics and Polarization on American Campuses

Social Psychologist & National Commentator Jonathan Haidt to Deliver Keynote Address at Pioneer Institute Annual Dinner BOSTON – Dr. Jonathan Haidt, the leading national commentator on controversial speech at colleges and universities, will deliver Pioneer Institute’s 2017 Lovett C. Peters Lecture on Tuesday, November 7th, in Boston. “With the escalating battle over free speech on campuses across America, Dr. Haidt’s work to promote civil dialogue on political issues is vitally important,” said Jim Stergios, Pioneer Institute Executive Director. “We look forward to hearing Dr. Haidt’s thoughts on how future generations can move beyond the current impasse created by ideological extremism, intolerance, ignorance, and censorship.” Dr. Haidt is an American social psychologist and Thomas Cooley Professor of Ethical Leadership at New […]

Moving the Needle on Healthcare Cost Containment & Reform

Today, Pioneer Institute submitted recommendations to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ Special Senate Committee on Health Care Cost Containment and Reform. Pioneer applauds provisions of the proposed legislation that would reduce emergency room use and re-admissions, expand scope of practice, and embrace telemedicine. The Committee should also be commended for looking to other states’ accomplishments in this area. But the current bill raises some concerns. In some instances, we believe it diminishes the potential for greater cost savings by adding unnecessary regulatory burdens. The projected savings relative to 2020 spending are quite modest, at less than 0.2 percent. The Medicaid buy-in program as it is presented is a radical change from the existing program structure – it will require more elaboration […]

Join us 11/13: “Witnessing Hope: Cristo Rey Schools & Catholic Education”

As the country is engaged in a national discussion about equality of educational opportunity, school choice, and religious freedom, join us at a public forum featuring nationally recognized experts on Catholic leadership and schooling, that will highlight a successful model of Catholic high school education. Date: November 13, 2017 Time: 8:30 am – 11:00 am Location: Omni Parker House Hotel, 60 School Street, Boston, MA Register Now  

Study: Proposition 80 Would Give MA 2nd Highest Combined State & Federal Capital Gains Tax Rate in U.S.

Read coverage of this report in the Boston Herald: “Study: ‘Millionaire’s tax’ would hurt state” and the Boston Business Journal: “‘Millionaires’ tax’ would make Mass. an outlier in capital gains tax, says group” Unlike federal government, gains could move taxpayers into higher state bracket  BOSTON – If voters approve Proposition 80, scheduled to appear on the statewide ballot next year, Massachusetts’ top capital gains tax rate would go from 30th highest in the nation to fourth and the commonwealth’s highest combined state and federal rate would move from 25th to second, according to a new Policy Brief published by Pioneer Institute. “Proposition 80 would have an outsized impact on capital gains,” said Greg Sullivan, the author of “Back to Taxachusetts […]

Is it time to expand water transportation in Greater Boston?

A recent Pioneer Institute report explored the benefits of increased investment in the MBTA’s water-based public transportation service to meet the growing demand among commuters in Massachusetts’ coastal communities. In the brief video clip below, Pioneer Institute Research & Policy Associate Matt Blackbourn shares key findings from this report, which he co-authored with Pioneer Research Director Greg Sullivan, regarding ferry service performance and costs compared to other MBTA transit modes and peer agencies across the country. Click the button below to read the report, and the video player below that to watch the clip. Recent media coverage: This report received extensive media attention, including radio coverage on WGBH and WBUR. Click on the links below: The Boston Herald: “Study suggests […]

U.S. Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Arguments in Janus v. AFSCME

Pioneer Institute Signed onto Amicus Brief Urging Court to Accept Case BOSTON – The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear arguments in Janus v. AFSCME, a case involving an Illinois public employee who sued the defendant claiming that being compelled to pay an agency fee violates his First Amendment right to freely express dissent. Pioneer Institute, through its public interest law initiative PioneerLegal, signed onto an amicus brief at the invitation of the Pacific Legal Foundation that supported Janus’s petition asking the Supreme Court to hear his agency fee case. “We recognized that many observers believed the time was right for the Supreme Court to accept the case as its key issues – particularly those based on First Amendment […]

Don’t Stop the Momentum on T Reform

Today, Pioneer Institute submits testimony in support of MBTA bus maintenance and management reform at a hearing of the Massachusetts State Senate Committee on Post Audit and Oversight. The MBTA is proposing to outsource bus maintenance at 3 of its 9 garages, a practice which has been successful at regional transit authorities across the state. The proposal would have minimal impact on the agency’s mechanics, who would remain in the Machinists’ union; but would free the T to make needed management improvements currently prohibited by contracts that limit the duties of Supervisors. Modernization of business practices as a result of the proposal could save taxpayers $11 million per year. Studies have found opportunities for improvement in the operation’s software system, […]

Press Release: Pioneer Files Amicus Brief on Behalf of Plaintiffs in Boston Charter School Case

Joins with Black Alliance for Educational Options and Cheryl Brown Henderson to argue that case should be allowed to proceed to discovery BOSTON — Through its public interest law initiative PioneerLegal, Pioneer Institute has filed an amicus brief in an important case about public education that will be argued today before Massachusetts’ Supreme Judicial Court (SJC). In 2015, five Boston Public School students who did not win lotteries for admission to charter public schools and were relegated to failing district schools brought suit, asserting that they were denied equal protection and the right to an adequate public education as guaranteed by the Massachusetts Constitution.  The trial court dismissed the suit, and the appeal is before the state’s highest court. Pioneer […]

The Dignity of Liberty

Click the button below to download (may take extra time), or below that, scroll through the report in the Scribd viewer on this page. The Dignity of Liberty: Pioneer Institute’s 2016 Annual Report by Pioneer Institute on Scribd Our fiscal year ends on Saturday! Please make a tax-deductible contribution below. [wpdevart_countdown text_for_day=”Days” text_for_hour=”Hours” text_for_minut=”Minutes” text_for_second=”Seconds” countdown_end_type=”date” end_date=”30-09-2017 23:59″ start_time=”1505850604″ end_time=”0,1,1″ action_end_time=”show_text” content_position=”center” top_ditance=”10″ bottom_distance=”10″ countdown_type=”button” font_color=”#000000″ button_bg_color=”#888888″ circle_size=”130″ circle_border=”5″ border_radius=”8″ font_size=”30″ countdown_font_famaly=”monospace” animation_type=”none” ]Thank you for helping us meet our end-of-year deadline with your generous contribution![/wpdevart_countdown]

Study: Ferry Service Could Provide Opportunity for MBTA Expansion without Huge Upfront Costs

Read press coverage of this report in the Boston Herald: Study suggests MBTA float ferry service expansion and Editorial: “Ferrying off to work“; The Boston Globe: “Look to the harbor to ease Boston’s transportation woes,” “Steady stream of studies fuel transportation debates,” and here; The Boston Business Journal: “Seaport ferry, funded by business, would be open to public“; and State House News Service: “SENATE REPORT ASSERTS PUBLIC DISSATISFIED WITH MASS. TRANSPORTATION“; The Lynn Daily Item: “LYNN FERRY’S FUTURE BUOYED BY REPORT”; and The Salem News: “Our view: Ferry expansion can help ease traffic woes” Service has low capital costs, is cost effective by a number of measures, and could be an inexpensive channel to address critical transit needs in the region BOSTON – A comprehensive study […]

10 Days, 10 Reasons to Give

[wpdevart_countdown text_for_day=”Days” text_for_hour=”Hours” text_for_minut=”Minutes” text_for_second=”Seconds” countdown_end_type=”date” end_date=”30-09-2017 23:59″ start_time=”1505850604″ end_time=”0,1,1″ action_end_time=”show_text” content_position=”center” top_ditance=”10″ bottom_distance=”10″ countdown_type=”button” font_color=”#000000″ button_bg_color=”#1e73be” circle_size=”130″ circle_border=”5″ border_radius=”8″ font_size=”30″ countdown_font_famaly=”monospace” animation_type=”none” ]Thank you for helping us meet our end-of-year deadline with your generous contribution![/wpdevart_countdown] There are 10 days remaining before our fiscal year ends.  Here are 10 reasons why a contribution to Pioneer Institute is worth your investment: 1. Our documentary film exploring legal barriers to school choice will be released this fall and reach half a million viewers nationwide.  2. The state invested $50 million in vocational-technical school facilities due to Pioneer’s work.   3. The Institute will release nationwide a new book highlighting policies that have made Massachusetts’ charter schools the best in the country. 4. […]

Op-ed: Education focus, testing on history, civics critical to well-informed citizenry

By Tom Birmingham Read this op-ed as published in WGBH News, The Springfield Republican, The Berkshire Eagle, The Fitchburg Sentinel & Enterprise, The Lowell Sun, and The New Bedford Standard Times. BOSTON — Sunday marked the 230th anniversary of the signing of the U.S. Constitution, which is being celebrated today. Sadly, this is one of the many facts of which students in our public schools are largely unaware. It’s long past time for that to change. In recent years, much effort has rightfully been devoted to improving math and science education, while U.S. history education has been marginalized. Consequently, American students score better in math and science than they do in civics on the National Assessment of Educational Progress. When Horace […]

Creating Space for Healthcare Innovators in the Marketplace

Pioneer Institute’s initiatives in healthcare focus on three goals.  We promote price transparency, essential in containing costs and increasing access to care. We aim to put state programs like Medicaid on a more sustainable path and create flexibility so the programs provide higher-quality care and access to care, which too often outside greater Boston is not the case. Pioneer’s third goal is to ensure that the market continues to benefit from innovation, whether in the delivery of healthcare services or in the development of new cures. Today, the Institute is pleased to submit testimony to the Massachusetts Legislature’s Joint Committee on Public Health in support of expanded access to oral care. The testimony focuses on why allowing dental therapists to […]

Op-ed: Mass. has tools to lead in online learning — but doesn’t

By Julie Young For two years running, Bloomberg’s State Innovation Index has hailed Massachusetts as the country’s most innovative state economy. Looking at such metrics as R&D; concentration of science, technology, engineering, and math employment; and numbers of science degrees, it’s no wonder that the commonwealth placed first. But it’s not just postsecondary education that makes Massachusetts a leader in innovation. Its K-12 public schools also boast some of the most dynamic and thoughtful approaches to brick-and-mortar education, providing a model for the rest of the country. Despite these successes, Massachusetts struggles to keep pace with innovative online educational offerings that have helped students thrive throughout the nation. The commonwealth is home to digital learning experts Paul Peterson, Clayton Christensen, […]

METCO’s 50th Anniversary Focuses Attention on Pioneer’s Call to Expand & Improve the Program

The recent 50th anniversary of the Metropolitan Council for Educational Opportunity (METCO) has drawn attention to the program, which gives about 3,300 Boston and Springfield students the chance to attend high-performing suburban schools, and to findings from two Pioneer Institute studies about METCO. One of the Pioneer studies was cited in a lengthy feature on The 74, an education news site, and a July 31 Boston Globe editorial echoed Pioneer’s recommendations. These include that the state commission a gold-standard study to compare the performance of METCO students to those who remain on the waitlist and reform the program to make processes, like the one used to move children off the 9,000-student waitlist, more transparent and accountable. Both publications noted that […]

PioneerLegal Signs onto Amicus Briefs Urging U.S. Supreme Court to Hear Two Cases with Local Impact

Petitions would affect group of local educators challenging compulsory union payments BOSTON – Pioneer Institute, through its public interest law initiative PioneerLegal, has signed onto amicus briefs at the invitation of the Pacific Legal Foundation that support petitions for the U.S. Supreme Court to hear two cases that would have a direct impact on Massachusetts. It is settled law that public employees who choose not to belong to the union that represents them can’t be required to pay fees to the union that would fund political activity. However, in 1977 the Supreme Court ruled in Abood v. Detroit Board of Education that employees who are not union members can be required to pay an “agency fee” that covers union contract […]

Public Statement: Pioneer Applauds MBTA Control Board For Seeking To Modernize Bus Maintenance

Pioneer applauds the MBTA Fiscal and Management Control Board’s long-overdue action to use a competitive bidding process to modernize bus maintenance services.  Seeking competitive bids on bus maintenance will likely produce cost savings and service improvement, as it has for the T’s money room and warehousing and logistics. The Institute further recognizes that there will be vocal and politically motivated opposition to this action, but believes that the Control Board’s central concern must be representing the interests of MBTA customers.  It is extremely important for the T to take all reasonable actions to address its cost centers, especially in areas where costs are far more expensive than in comparable U.S. transit systems. (See Pioneer’s 2013 report,  The MBTA’s Out-of-Control Bus Maintenance […]

Study: Telemedicine Can Reduce Healthcare Costs, Improve Outcomes & Patient Satisfaction

Calls on Massachusetts to adopt telemedicine through the Group Insurance Commission, MassHealth and other state-run health programs BOSTON – Massachusetts should more aggressively embrace telemedicine, which can reduce healthcare costs, increase patient satisfaction, and is more convenient for both patients and physicians, according to “Dialing up Telemedicine,” a new study published by Pioneer Institute. “Until now, Massachusetts has been tentative when it comes to reimbursing for telemedicine as part of Medicaid and other programs,” said Pioneer Institute Executive Director Jim Stergios.  “There’s more we can do to capture the lower costs and higher quality outcomes it can provide.” The most common form of telemedicine is live interactive appointments via videoconference that closely simulate in-person meetings between a patient and his […]

Extended Summer Enrichment Programs Most Effective, Cost-Efficient

Part III of Pioneer Institute study series cites three approaches BOSTON – Massachusetts schools establishing summer enrichment programs to close the achievement gap between lower-income and higher-income students can have a greater impact by eventually expanding the program across multiple summers or for a full year, according to the last of a three-part series by Pioneer Institute on summer learning. The final paper, Expanding Educational Opportunities: Three Models for Extended Summer Enrichment Programs in Massachusetts, introduces three types of extended summer enrichment models: 12-month programs, multi-year summer-only programs, and multi-year, year-round programs. Many of the top schools interviewed as part of the project found it beneficial to extend their relationship with students into the school year utilizing one of those […]

“A Source of Wonderful Ideas and Terrific Innovation”

“…yet another idea that came out of the Better Government Competition, in real-time, delivered by Pioneer Institute to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts…This organization, this event, for years and years and years has been a source of wonderful ideas and terrific innovation, and I want to, on behalf of the Commonwealth, thank you for your leadership and your work in so many different spaces…” – Governor Charlie Baker (view Governor Baker’s remarks in their entirety by clicking on the image above!) The Tall Ships weren’t the only attraction drawing a crowd to Rowes Wharf on Monday evening. Now in its 26th year, Pioneer’s Better Government Competition (BGC) Awards Dinner welcomed Governor Charlie Baker, MIT’s Dr. Joseph Coughlin, and BGC winner Kim […]

Study: States Should Provide Parents With More Information About Homeschooling Options

Practice is growing rapidly; practitioners are becoming more diverse BOSTON – States should do more to acknowledge the viability of homeschooling as an educational option, and provide direction and information for parents seeking non-traditional schooling, according to a new study published by Pioneer Institute. “While homeschooling may not be the best choice for most families, the assumption that public school is the best option for all students is equally flawed,” said William Heuer, co-author of “Homeschooling: The Ultimate School Choice.” In 1980, an estimated 10,000 American families homeschooled.  By 2012, 1.8 million, or 3.4 percent of all K-12 students, were homeschooled.  That number likely topped two million last year, meaning more American students are now homeschooled than enrolled in parochial […]

Aging, Technology Take Center Stage at 2017 Better Government Awards Gala

Last night, on an inspiring evening, against the backdrop of the beautiful Sail Boston parade of tall ships, Pioneer Institute held its annual Better Government Awards Gala. Longtime supporters and new friends gathered at the Boston Harbor Hotel to celebrate the country’s most innovative ideas to improve care for the aging, and leverage their skills in new ways. The audience heard from Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker, who discussed his administration’s initiatives on transportation, healthcare, and his new council to address healthy aging. Kim Brooks, the Chief Operating Officer of Senior Living at Hebrew Senior Life, accepted the top prize for her Better Government Competition entry, “The Right Care, Right Place, Right Time: Effectively Integrating Senior Care and Housing.”  And MIT AgeLab’s Joseph Coughlin, […]

Pioneer Institute Announces Winner of 26th Annual Better Government Competition

MIT AgeLab Founder, Massachusetts Governor to Headline Awards Gala BOSTON – Pioneer Institute is pleased to announce that Boston-based Hebrew SeniorLife is the winner of the 26th annual Better Government Competition. The contest received nearly 100 entries from agencies and organizations across the U.S. on the topic, “Aging in America.” The winner, together with five runners-up and three special recognition recipients, will be honored at the Institute’s awards gala on June 19th at the Boston Harbor Hotel in Boston. The Keynote Speaker at the awards gala is Joseph F. Coughlin, Ph.D., Founder and Director of the MIT AgeLab, a research program that works with business, government, and non-profits to improve the quality of life of older people. Coughlin is a […]