GRA Research Repository

Northeast

No, Free Buses are Still Good: A ResponseIn the last publication of The Scarlet on October 25, 2024, an article titled “Free Buses are Bad, Actually” argued why the Worcester Regional Regional Transportation Authority (WRTA) should start reinstituting fares on city buses: The fare revenue would fund increased bus frequencies, closer aligning the WRTA with its goals. The post No, Free Buses…

Insights Insider: Voting in Worcester CountyIn the next 20 days, Worcester County and the rest of the United States will head to the polls to vote in local, state, and Federal elections, including for President of the United States. The post Insights Insider: Voting in Worcester County appeared first on Worcester Regional Research Bureau.

Worcester Almanac: 2024Worcester Almanac: 2024 compiles data from a variety of sources to inform decision-makers and the general public on important areas of interest for the City of Worcester, surrounding communities, and Worcester County. The post Worcester Almanac: 2024 appeared first on Worcester Regional Research Bureau.

At Worcester research bureau annual meeting, Fed president predicts return to 2% inflation targetThe U.S. economy is in a good place overall, Susan Collins, president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston said at the Worcester Regional Research Bureau’s annual meeting on Wednesday. The post At Worcester research bureau annual meeting, Fed president predicts return to 2% inflation target appeared first on Worcester Regional Research Bureau.

President of the Boston Fed speaks in Worcester. Here’s what she said about the economyWORCESTER — The U.S. economy is in a “good place” and Worcester’s economic revitalization the past decade has come from a variety of factors, Susan M. Collins, president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, said Wednesday. The post President of the Boston Fed speaks in Worcester. Here’s what she said about the…

Paying for a Public Education, FY25The Worcester Public Schools’ adopted budget for FY25, From Here, Anywhere…Together! (including general and special revenue) of $544,809,848 is a 0.9% decrease from the adopted budget of FY24. The post Paying for a Public Education, FY25 appeared first on Worcester Regional Research Bureau.

Breaking Down the Budget: City of Worcester for Fiscal Year 2025Each year on July 1, Massachusetts cities and towns must have completed this process and implement a new budget. The post Breaking Down the Budget: City of Worcester for Fiscal Year 2025 appeared first on Worcester Regional Research Bureau.

Southeast

U.S. Department of Ed releases playbook on student cell phone use The U.S. Department of Education has issued a new resource, Planning Together: A Playbook for Student Personal Device Policies, education leaders can use to design policies for use of cell phones and other personal devices in schools alongside educators, students, parents, and caregivers, according to a press release. The playbook addresses the following questions: When can…

Perspective | Community colleges teach by example in times of crisis On the evening of Sept. 26, Hurricane Helene was barreling toward Western North Carolina. Our Blue Ridge Community College campuses were uncharacteristically dark and, to be frank, no one expected what our entire region was about to encounter. Just hours earlier, our campus chief of police and communications team issued a statement urging students, staff,…

New rankings released for elementary, middle, and high schools in North Carolina The U.S. News & World Report released its updated lists ranking public North Carolina elementary, middle, and high schools for 2024. Rankings are based on factors such as student proficiency and performance. For schools serving kindergarten through eighth grade, rankings rely on student proficiency in reading and writing and student performance on state tests. … The…

School buses came to the rescue for a hurricane-battered health company and the parents who work there This story was produced by The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news outlet focused on education. It was 5:45 a.m. when three buses with “McDowell County Schools” painted on their sides rumbled through the mist into the gravel lot at Sandy Andrews Park. Starlight revealed the silhouettes of large oak trees lying on their sides,…

Social Determinants of Health: Social and Community Context This document is the fourth installment in a comprehensive five-part series on Social Determinants of Health, produced by the Florida TaxWatch Institute of Quality Health and Aging. The …

Who is Linda McMahon? From ECU grad to nominee for ed secretary, a look beyond the headlines On Nov. 19, 2024, in a statement posted on Truth Social, President-elect Donald Trump nominated Linda McMahon, 76, to serve as U.S. Secretary of Education in his administration. His statement says she is a “fierce advocate for Parents’ Rights.” It says she will “fight tirelessly” to expand school choice. It says her leadership will “empower…

West

Dept. of Agriculture requests major funding increase for food assistance General fund–state (GFS) appropriations for the Department of Agriculture were effectively flat from 2011–13 through 2019–21. Then, appropriations (adjusted for inflation) jumped 120.8% in 2021–23 and another 46.4% in 2023–25. Now, the department is requesting an increase of 56.7% for 2025–27. The total requested GFS increase of $89.3 million is comprised of a carry-forward level…

Midwest

Paving the Way Recognizing a lack of participation by people of color in the commercial real estate industry and seeking to provide a new pathway to change that, Dr. Mark Eppli and Marquette University created the Associates in Commercial Real Estate (ACRE) program in 2004. ACRE is a 26-week program designed to train people of color for careers…

Let’s Reevaluate the Purpose of State Revenue Sharing as Part of Municipal Finance ReformIn a Nutshell: Michigan’s counties, cities, villages, and townships are breathing a sigh of relief with the passage of next year’s state budget. In Fiscal Year 2025 (FY2025 runs October 2024-September 2025), revenue sharing payments – the sum of those obliged by the state constitution and those approved in the state budget – will increase…

State Tax Ranking Hits All-Time LowDriven by strong growth in incomes, tight property tax limits, and a $1 billion state income tax cut, Wisconsin’s state and local taxes as a share of personal income and its national ranking for its tax burden fell to their lowest levels on record in 2022. Once a top ten state for its tax levels,…

Wisconsin sets more referenda records to fund schoolsWisconsin voters approved a record number of referenda in 2024 to increase property taxes to fund their local schools, and nearly set a record for the most referenda to fund municipalities or counties. However, the approval rate for school ballot questions continued a downward trend. These trends raise questions about both the adequacy of current…

Addressing Direct Care Worker Shortages Through State PolicyIn a Nutshell: Significant attention has been paid to shortages among various health care professions, including our recent efforts to highlight potential nursing and primary care shortages. Direct care workers – personal care aides, home health aides, and nursing assistants – are another component of the health care workforce where existing shortages are expected to…

2024 Metro Milwaukee Innovation DataToolvar divElement = document.getElementById(‘viz1729606448178’); var vizElement = divElement.getElementsByTagName(‘object’)[0]; vizElement.style.width=’1000px’;vizElement.style.height=’827px’; var scriptElement = document.createElement(‘script’); scriptElement.src = ‘https://public.tableau.com/javascripts/api/viz_v1.js’; vizElement.parentNode.insertBefore(scriptElement, vizElement);

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