In the wake of the United States Supreme Court’s June decision to hear Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, a case challenging a state constitutional amendment marked by religious bias, Pioneer Institute today announced that it has again filed an amicus curiae brief, this time urging the Court to strike down Montana’s Blaine amendment. Massachusetts...
Today, the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) announced that it would hear Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, a case that reveals the harm a state Blaine, or anti-aid, constitutional amendment marked by religious bias does to families by depriving them of educational options. This case has particular relevance to Massachusetts, which is one of the nearly...
High degree of error, especially in small school districts, leads to small districts replacing larger ones in bottom 10 percent BOSTON – The Student Growth Percentile (SGP) that the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) now uses as 25 percent of the formula for determining school district rankings has a high degree of...
This past week, in a display of the state’s teacher unions' raw political power triumphing over deliberative debate, reasonableness, and the best interests of urban students, the Legislature quietly discarded state education Commissioner Jeffrey Riley's bold effort at compromise in the ongoing saga over the Alma del Mar Charter School's expansion in New Bedford. The...
Claims amendment to Montana Constitution motivated by anti-Catholic bias Contact Micaela Dawson, 617-723-2277 ext. 203 or mdawson@pioneerinstitute.org BOSTON – Pioneer Institute today announced that it has submitted an amicus curiae urging the United States Supreme Court to hear Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, which challenges a state constitutional amendment marked by religious bias. The amendment in question is a so-called...
State should establish a fund to provide partial support for health services for private and parochial schools Media inquiries: Contact Jamie Gass, 617-723-2277 ext. 210 or jgass@pioneerinstitute.org BOSTON - Private and parochial school students in Massachusetts have been denied well over $10 million in school nursing services to which they are entitled under state law,...
“Foundation” districts unaffected, but charter tuition may cause strain for fast-growing “above-foundation” school districts Contact Jamie Gass, 617-723-2277 ext. 210 or jgass@pioneerinstitute.org BOSTON - At a time when the funding of charter schools is widely debated, a new Pioneer Institute study finds that foundation districts are largely unaffected by students who choose to transfer to charter...
Last night, Jeffrey Riley, the Massachusetts Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) made a recommendation concerning Alma del Mar Charter School’s application to serve 1,188 more students in New Bedford. Commissioner Riley is recommending that Alma be expanded to serve 450 more students, that the school accept students from a neighborhood rather than through...
Philanthropic, other organizations should consider providing financial assistance to allow programs to expand into lower-income communities BOSTON – At a time of declining state and national math proficiency, after-school math programs offer a viable option for quickly increasing the number of mathematically competent students, according to a new Pioneer Institute study that profiles two such programs:...
Read coverage of this report in The Daily Caller, Breitbart News, and The Federalist. Curriculum centralization has failed to improve international competitiveness—it’s time to re-think curriculum standards-based reform BOSTON - While U.S. academic performance has declined since the broad implementation of Common Core, school choice programs are increasingly hamstrung by regulations that require private schools...
