BOSTON — State Sen. Vanna Howard (D-Lowell) was recently recognized as a legislative champion by The Arc of Massachusetts for her advocacy on behalf of members of the autism community.

The award was presented by The Arc of Massachusetts during the 21st annual Autism Advocacy Day on April 8 at the State House. Howard was introduced by constituents Lindsey Gresco and Maxwell Banfield.

“I am truly honored to receive this award,” Howard said. “There are so many deserving individuals who are on the frontlines doing the hard work including teachers, paraprofessionals, caregivers, and therapists. As a state senator, I will never stop advocating for the necessary funding to grow and support the many resources we have available here in the Commonwealth.”

Now in her first term as state senator in the 1st Middlesex District, Howard previously served as state representative for the 17th Middlesex District. From 2021 to 2026, Howard put the work of physically and intellectually disabled individuals at the forefront of her work. In 2025, she was appointed as a member of the Commission on the Status of Persons with Disabilities by Speaker of the House Ronald Mariano. Howard was on hand as the commission hosted its latest Meeting the Moment: A Community Conversation and Resource Fair event at UMass Lowell on March 27.

“We are incredibly proud to honor Senator Vanna Howard for her steadfast dedication and impactful service during her tenure in the House of Representatives,” said The Arc of Massachusetts CEO Maura Sullivan. “By weaving her lived experience as a parent and caregiver into the her policy work, she has served as a powerful voice for our community. We are thrilled to recognize her achievements as she carries this vital advocacy into her new chapter in the Senate.”

In addition to Howard, state Sen. Paul Feeney was also recognized as a 2026 Legislator of the Year. Jeremy Spittle, the legislative director for Senate Ways and Means Chair Michael Rodrigues, also received The Arc’s first-ever Distinguished Staff Champion award.

The mission of The Arc of Massachusetts is to enhance the lives of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and autism and their families.  For two decades, Advocates for Autism of Massachusetts has been a fierce public voice and a powerhouse of legislative change. Established in 2004, AFAM has grown over the years and its membership has always included the leading autism advocacy or service organizations in Massachusetts. AFAM’s history has been inextricably linked with The Arc of Massachusetts, operating as its dedicated division to mobilize and advocate for individuals with autism, their families, and professionals who provide essential supports and services.

The 1st Middlesex Senate District includes Lowell, Dracut, Dunstable, Pepperell and Tyngsboro.

A new Tufts University study finds that Massachusetts is the most vulnerable state in the nation to job disruption from artificial intelligence — a shift researchers say could reshape the state’s workforce and economy.

The report, “Will Wired Belts Become the New Rust Belts? AI and the Emerging Geography of American Job Risk,” released in March, estimates that 7.35% of jobs in Massachusetts are at risk of displacement in the near term due to artificial intelligence, the highest among U.S. states. Boston, one of the nation’s leading innovation hubs, is also among the most exposed cities, with an estimated $20 billion in annual income losses tied to AI-driven job disruption. 

“The jobs loss will be among more educated, typically higher-paying jobs,” said Christina Filipovic, head of research at Digital Planet, the research center at Tufts’ Fletcher School that completed the study. That distinction marks a stark departure from past waves of automation, which primarily displaced lower-wage, manual labor workers.

Which jobs are most at risk? 

The report finds that AI exposure — or how much AI tools can reach or influence a job — is highest in occupations centered around data, analytical or language-based skills, and cognition — the same kinds of knowledge work that dominate Boston’s economy. 

AI job vulnerability, by comparison, goes a step further: it measures how likely AI exposure will lead to job loss or major restructuring.

Highly vulnerable roles in Greater Boston include: software developers, market research analysts and marketing specialists, management analysts, and customer service representatives. Software developers alone could see more than 12,700 jobs affected in the Greater Boston region.

Bhaskar Chakravorti, dean of global business at The Fletcher School, describes the moment as a paradox: “The occupations that are seeing the greatest productivity boosts are also the occupations that are seeing the greatest job risk, and Boston is high in all those areas,” he said.

“Boston is really interesting. It’s almost a Petri dish for how AI is going to increase productivity and also potentially change the way people do work and maybe displace a certain proportion of people,” Chakravorti said.

On the other end, jobs least exposed to AI include roles like cement masons and concrete finishers, cooks, ship engineers, and ambulance drivers — positions that rely more on physical labor than cognitive tasks.

Why Massachusetts stands out

Researchers point to the structure of Massachusetts’ economy as a key reason for its high exposure. The state’s concentration of universities, tech firms, and innovation mean a large share of workers are employed in highly educated, knowledge-based roles susceptible to AI.

“In addition to the high education levels, Boston in particular is such an innovative city … a lot of the tech industry that’s in the area makes Massachusetts a bit more vulnerable,” Filipovic said.

Chakravorti added that the region’s role as a hub for education and research puts it at the center of the transition.

“Boston right now is at the cutting edge of figuring out how much AI to use in the classroom in order to prepare students for jobs that are going to include and involve AI,” he said.

A warning sign for the nation

The implications of AI’s arrival extend far beyond Massachusetts. 

The report estimates that nationwide, between 9.3 million and 19.5 million jobs are at risk of being replaced by AI, with up to $1.5 trillion in annual income loss.

The report identified a group of “Wired Belt” regions — including cities like Philadelphia, Atlanta and Phoenix — that could face similar job disruptions.

“In many ways, Boston is a canary in the coal mine, and we’ll see similar things playing out in knowledge-intensive cities,” Chakravorti said.

The researchers say the goal of the report is not just to measure risk, but to prompt legislative and societal action.

“What we were most curious about was the nature of job loss … and then also to help policymakers at various levels figure out what the best path is forward,” Filipovic said.

Chakravorti was more blunt about the urgency for the city and state to meet the moment.

“We are watching this hurricane hit us … and we are largely sitting on our hands in terms of doing something about it,” he said.

Annie Jonas is a Community writer at Boston.com. She was previously a local editor at Patch and a freelancer at the Financial Times.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The women said they were frightened, but they didn’t show it Wednesday in a Massachusetts courtroom as they watched the teacher who allegedly preyed on them when they were students at the posh Miss Hall’s School plead not guilty to rape.

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