Ep 1: A Call to Action - Education Panel
This is a critical time in the City of Boston and Boston Public Schools (BPS). Tonight, a new superintendent, the 7th in the last 13 years, will be announced. This leader will be charged with uniting stakeholders to address the persistent opportunity gaps and achievement gaps that have plagued our school system for decades.
Over the past year, a number of reports have been written about the challenge of preparing all BPS high school students for college and career success. Importantly, Interim Superintendent Perille and her team have created working groups to address the key challenges raised in these reports. The working groups are focused on critical topics:
Common graduation requirements across the district that align with MassCore
Comprehensive counseling and support for all students
Career pathway programming, and
Effective alternative options to traditional high schools for students who fall off track
It is essential that we remain engaged in this work as we transition leadership of the district. There is no priority more important in Boston than addressing the inequities in our high schools.
Last night, Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Boston, BPS and we hosted an event for over 100 leaders from BPS and its key partners to discuss these challenges and the road forward. The room was full of great energy and participants expressed a strong desire to keep this community connected.
This initial post is the first of many that we will share to inspire us to remain engaged and informed in BPS’ efforts to improve our high schools. We are including overviews and notes from last night’s working group discussions, as well as a podcast taped during the event. In future weeks, we will post blogs, videos and additional podcasts about the work that is unfolding and the ways in which we can all stay involved.
