“She’s a good girl. She helps me a lot. She has big, big dreams. I don’t have the money, but she has big dreams. I hope she’s going to get everything, but she works so hard. She works so hard in school.”
“Our family is needing to make some really big sacrifices because we believe this is important, and so, we’re basically going to do whatever it takes… Sometimes we look at each other and go ‘I don’t know if I can do it again another month…’”
“A lot of the families have to sacrifice and work multiple jobs… And just scraping together enough money to just make tuition, just the basics.”
“It is discriminatory, that parents who want to choose an alternative to public school for their children, would not in any way receive any compensation for that, whether it be tax credit, whether it be a voucher…”
In the 1840s, nativist movement leaders formed official political parties and local chapters of the national Native American Party (later the American Party), although they continued to be commonly known as the Know-Nothing Party. Politicians sought to insert provisions into state constitutions against Catholics who refused to renounce the pope. The Know-Nothing movement brought bigotry and hatred to a new level of violence and organization.
The party’s legacy endured in the post-Civil War era, with laws and constitutional amendments it supported, still today severely limiting parents’ educational choices. A federal constitutional amendment was proposed by Speaker of the House James Blaine prohibiting money raised by taxation in any State to be under the control of any religious sect; nor shall any money so raised or lands so devoted be divided between religious sects or denominations. These were then named the Blaine Amendments of 1875.
in recent decades, often in response to challenges to school choice programs, the U.S. Supreme Court has demonstrated great interest in examining the issues of educational alternatives and attempts limit parental options. Massachusetts plays a key role in this debate. The Bay State was a key center of the Know-Nothing movement and has the oldest version of Anti-Aid Amendments in the nation, as well as a second such amendment approved in 1917. Two-fifths of Massachusetts residents are Catholic, and its Catholic schools outperform the state’s public schools, which are the best in the nation.
GIC Consolidation
/0 Comments/in Better Government, News /by Editorial StaffAuthor(s): Steve Poftak — Publication date: 2008-06-01 Category: Better Government Abstract: Municipal leaders seeking cost savings should examine the potential benefits of joining GIC. A compelling case can be made that GIC consolidation reduces pressure on local budgets, allowing the provision of additional services, reducing the need for higher taxes, and presenting an opportunity for savings that will ultimately benefit municipal employees.
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Shades of Green: The Patchwork of Wetlands Regulation in Massachusetts
/0 Comments/in Better Government, News /by Editorial StaffThe Patchwork of Wetlands Regulations in Massachusetts Author(s): Amy Dain — Publication date: 2008-02-14 Category: Better Government Abstract: “Why can’t I just fill the little swamp in the backyard? That way I have more lawn to enjoy.” This question is listed on the website for Gloucester’s Conservation Commission under “Frequently Asked Questions.” The Commission’s response is that all wetlands, including small seasonal wetlands, help clean stormwater, serve as drainage areas and provide habitat for many species.
Scaling Up Educational Innovation
/0 Comments/in News, Related Education Blogs /by Editorial StaffAuthor(s): Jamie Gass — Publication date: 2008-06-01 Category: Education Abstract: In recent years, a vast majority of schools in Boston, Worcester, and Springfield, not to mention Fall River, New Bedford, Lowell, Lawrence, Holyoke, and Brockton were placed on the federal ‘In Need of Improvement’ list, as mandated under the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) law. Today, in these urban districts in the Bay State, nearly 70 percent of the students score in the ‘Needs Improvement’ and ‘Warning/Failing’ categories on the MCAS test.
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