MORE ARTICLES
Massachusetts’ Workforce Growing Older and More Diverse, Remains Highly EducatedApril 18, 2024 - 9:26 am
Johns Hopkins’ Ashley Berner on Educational Pluralism & DemocracyApril 17, 2024 - 2:53 pm
Why the secrecy? Pioneer Calls for Open Meetings Dealing with Steward’s Impact on Patient Care.April 16, 2024 - 1:59 pm
Industrial Policy Reimaged: Can Government Improve Free MarketsApril 16, 2024 - 12:34 pm
39th U.S. Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky for National Poetry MonthApril 10, 2024 - 12:16 pm
A Practically 100% Guaranteed Free RideApril 9, 2024 - 1:21 pm
Posting Patient Prices: Transparency Cure for Hospital Blank ChecksApril 9, 2024 - 11:51 am
Pioneer Institute Statement on the Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ March Tax Revenue CollectionsApril 4, 2024 - 3:34 pm
U.S. Chamber Foundation’s Hilary Crow on K-12 Civics EducationApril 3, 2024 - 12:08 pm
Constitutional Property Taking: Exclusionary Zoning’s Costs to Owners and SocietyApril 2, 2024 - 10:54 am
Advice to BU grads as they go into the world
/2 Comments/in Blog, News /byIt’s commencement time in Boston, which means a stream of events with caps bobbing and gowns and parents waving. Yesterday was a beautiful day for the Boston University commencement with Attorney General Eric Holder. After the center-ring event, a number of schools have their own convocation events. Here are remarks I made at the convocation for the University Professors Program at Boston University. UNI is a really unique place to get a degree, something like the Committee on Social Thought at the University of Chicago in its interdisciplinary approach and unabashed elitism in restrictions on access. (God knows why they let me in.) A few segments worth highlighting: I wish you lots of success, wealth and well-being. Often these occasions […]
When will we go cashless on the Turnpike?
/0 Comments/in Blog, News /byFrom Bob Poole is an update on all the toll roads migrating to cashless payments: The conversion of toll roads to all-electronic/no-cash tolling seems to be accelerating. I’m drawing on several recent articles from Tollroadsnews.com for this update. Already operating on a cashless basis are the E-470 in Denver and the West Park in Houston (which has been cashless from its opening day). The next big system to go completely cashless will be the North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA) in Dallas. It’s already converted two of its five toll facilities—the George Bush Turnpike and the Sam Rayburn Tollway. Its busiest toll road, the Dallas North Toll Road, will be converted during the fourth quarter this year, while its two smallest […]
Innovation Smithovation
/0 Comments/in Blog, Blog: Education, Blog: School Choice, Jim Stergios, News, Related Education Blogs /byWe often hear about how charter schools are so innovative. And now we increasingly hear, especially with this week’s release of a Boston Foundation report touting the number of additional hours charter school teachers put into their work, that time in school is what matters. I agree that charter teachers work their butts off, and we all should be incredibly thankful for their commitment to breaking the determinist logic so many had for so long that “those kids can’t do it.” More time does matter. And innovation does matter. But time on task only matters if what is going during the additional time brings real benefits. And I am more and more convinced that the quality of charter school teaching […]
Running the Numbers – Elevator-Style
/0 Comments/in Blog, News /byHere at the posh Pioneer HQ, we are well-aware of the vagaries of our elevators — outages, structural issues, and expired certificates of inspection. The State Auditor took a look at the state agency responsible for inspecting elevators, the Department of Public Safety, and found that 30% of the elevators in the state have expired inspections. The Auditor’s report notes that this represents a large amount of foregone revenue — $2.2 million for the current year’s overdue inspections and over $6 million for the elevators that have gone uninspected for multiple years. The Auditor’s report suggests that hiring 13 more inspectors would cure the backlog. Using the back of the envelope, the average inspector gets $62k in salary (thanks, www.massopenbooks.org), […]
Municipal Benchmarks for Massachusetts’ Middle Cities: A Look at Economic Growth
/0 Comments/in Economic Opportunity, Middle Cities/ Urban, Press Releases, Press Releases: Economic Opportunity, Press Releases: Government /byMunicipal Benchmarks for Massachusetts’ Middle Cities: A Look at Economic Growth Municipal Benchmarks for Massachusetts Middle Cities: A Look at Economic Growth BOSTON- A new policy paper from Pioneer Institute?s Middle Cities Initiative calls for citizens and city officials to shift their approach to municipal benchmarking to one that recognizes meaningful differences within cities that may be lost in a broader comparison or statewide context. Municipal Benchmarks for Massachusetts? Middle Cities: A Look at Economic Growth looks specifically at the performance of fourteen Massachusetts cities in regards to their economic growth. “Pioneer?s Middle Cities Initiative is really an effort to try and engage citizens, local businesses leaders and political officials in a meaningful way, and the best way to do […]