Massachusetts
Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education meeting at Wellesley High on April 30 – The Swellesley Report
Members of the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education will meet at 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, April 30 at Wellesley High School. The public is welcome to attend, though the meeting will also be streamed online.
Wellesley High gets the honor of hosting the meeting because the Board’s student rep, Ela Gardiner, is a Wellesley High student. According to Gardiner’s bio on the Board website, “Ela has been a trailblazer for young voices in Massachusetts advocacy, working with the Massachusetts Association of Student Representatives and the National Student Board Member Association.”
Meeting agenda:
Statements from the Public
Comments from the Chair
Comments from the Secretary
Comments from the Acting Commissioner
- Receiverships (Lawrence, Southbridge, Holyoke)
- Felix Commonwealth Virtual School
- Brockton
- FAFSA
- Perkins State Plan
Routine Business:
Approval of the Minutes of the March 26, 2024 Regular Meeting
Agenda Items:
- Welcome from Wellesley Public Schools
- Update on Commissioner Search — Discussion
- Update on the Safe Schools Program for LGBTQ Students (download) — Discussion
- Update on DESE’s Educational Vision
- Literacy Launch (download) — Discussion
- Early College (download) — Discussion
- Education Budget Update: House Ways and Means FY25 State Education Budget Recommendations (download) — Discussion
Other Items for Information:
- Report on Grants Approved by the Commissioner (download)
Please support your local news source
Massachusetts
Massachusetts From the Lowest to the Highest Elevation
Massachusetts is a small state. At 10,555 square miles, 25.7 percent of which is water, Massachusetts is the seventh-smallest state in the nation. Massachusetts can fit into Alaska, the largest state, 62 times.
As little as it is, Massachusetts seems to have it all. There are oceans, forests, lakes, rivers, islands, mountains and at least two inactive volcanoes that date back hundreds of millions of years.
The Bay State’s highest and lowest elevations are at opposite corners.
The lowest elevation anywhere is sea level. That would be us, here in New Bedford and much of southeastern Massachusetts. New Bedford’s shoreline is the lowest elevation in Massachusetts.
So what about the highest elevation in Massachusetts? That would be Mount Greylock in the northwest corner of the state.
According to the Massachusetts Department of Parks and Recreation’s Mount Greylock State Reservation website, “At 3,491 feet, Mount Greylock is the highest point in Massachusetts.”
The site says, “On a clear day, you can see as far as 90 miles away.”
Mount Greylock is open from dawn to dusk every day except Thanksgiving and Christmas. There is an auto road from the base to the summit, however “vehicles greater than 22 feet in length are prohibited from traveling on the Mount Greylock Auto Roads and to the summit.”
The distance from New Bedford, the lowest elevation in Massachusetts, and Mount Greylock, the highest, is 134 miles as the crow flies. According to Waze, the drive from New Bedford to Mount Greylock is 188.9 miles and will take about three hours and 12 minutes.
Jonathan the Tortoise Is Older Than These Historic Massachusetts Staples
People come and people go but Jonathan is forever. At least it seems that way. The oldest-living documented land animal, born in 1832, is celebrating 192 spectacular years and shows no signs of stopping. To put his mindblowing age into perspective, here are some Massachusetts mainstays Jonathan predates.
12 Things Invented in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
A lot of life-changing things have come out of Massachusetts. Here are a few of the Bay State inventions still relevant to our lives today.
Gallery Credit: Gazelle
Massachusetts
Gov. Maura Healey on plan to protect Massachusetts from climate change
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.
Massachusetts
Here's When Worcester Beaches, Pools Will Open In 2024
WORCESTER, MA — Worcester is targeting a July opening date for the city’s four beaches and the Crompton Park pool, but aquatic activities will look a little different for summer 2024.
Worcester has had trouble hiring lifeguards to staff swimming areas in recent years — a period that saw several drownings, although none at city swimming areas proper — and so this summer will use the YMCA of Central Massachusetts for staffing.
“The YMCA will recruit, train, and staff the beaches and pool from the beginning of July until mid-August,” the city said in a news release this week. “The YMCA will use its access to indoor pool facilities and training programs to assist in staffing the program. Additionally, because the YMCA has year-round facilities, the trained lifeguards will be able to transfer into year-round positions at its facilities.”
Rob Antonelli, Worcester’s parks director, told city councilors on Tuesday the department is on track to open swimming areas by July 1. The beaches are located at Bell Hill Park, Coes Pond and two at Indian Lake. Worcester will still manage the city’s two spray parks at East Park and Greenwood Park, plus activities like trash removal and testing water quality.
The state Department of Conservation and Recreation will open its freshwater and saltwater beaches over Memorial Day weekend, including the two Lake Quinsigamond State Park beaches. DCR’s Bennett Field and Dennis F. Shine Memorial pools typically open in late June.
-
News1 week ago
Compass Direct LLC’s 2024 Registration in North Carolina
-
World1 week ago
Tech compliance reports, Newsletter
-
News1 week ago
Man, 75, confesses to killing wife in hospital because he couldn’t afford her care, court documents say
-
News1 week ago
Columbia University cancels its main commencement ceremony after weeks of turmoil
-
World1 week ago
Pentagon chief confirms US pause on weapons shipment to Israel
-
World1 week ago
Convicted MEP's expense claims must be published: EU court
-
Politics1 week ago
RFK Jr said a worm ate part of his brain and died in his head
-
Politics1 week ago
Presidential polls show deadlocked race as party conventions quickly approach