Boston Foundation to host conversation and panel discussion on the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers

The event, titled “PARCC Assessment and College Readiness,” is part of the Boston Foundation’s “Understanding Boston” Forum Series

Boston —The Boston Foundation, whose Success Boston College Completion Initiative is observing the month through a number of events, will host Thursday morning the latest in its “Understanding Boston” forum series, “PARCC Assessment and College Readiness.”

Since 1993, Massachusetts’ standards and assessments have been widely viewed as the strongest in the nation. Students in the Commonwealth have outperformed their peers consistently on common measures of achievement. But while there is much to be proud of, too many students graduate high school unprepared for college or career.

In November, the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education will consider replacing the MCAS assessments with PARCC, which has been piloted already in approximately half of public school districts, in Massachusetts, including Boston.

“This has become a politicized and divisive issue, and The Boston Foundation has not taken a pro-PARCC or anti-PARCC position, nor do we plan to do so,” said Paul S. Grogan, President and CEO of the Boston Foundation. “But in our role as civic convener, I am very pleased to host this conversation on PARCC and college readiness.  This forum will address important educational societal issues: How are we preparing our children for success in college and career? And how do we measure and evaluate our work in K-12 education.”

Thursday’s forum will explore the PARCC test in particular, and standards and assessments in general.

The forum will include a panel discussion featuring Dr. Robert V. Antonucci, President-Emeritus, Fitchburg State University; Dr. Paul Dakin, Superintendent Emeritus, Revere Public Schools; Dr. Richard Freeland, former Commissioner Massachusetts Department of Higher Education; Lindsay Sobel, Executive Director, Teach Plus Massachusetts; and William H. Swanson, retired Chairman and CEO, Raytheon & Chairman, MACP.

What: The Opportunity Forums’ Understanding Boston series’ latest installment – “PARCC Assessment and College Readiness
 
When: Thursday, October 08, 2015, 8:30 AM – 10:30 AM

Where: The Boston Foundation, 75 Arlington Street, 10th FL, Boston, MA 02116

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The Boston Foundation, Greater Boston’s community foundation, is one of the largest community foundations in the nation, with net assets of some $1 billion. In 2014, the Foundation and its donors made more than $112 million in grants to nonprofit organizations and received gifts of nearly $112 million. In celebration of its centennial in 2015, the Boston Foundation has launched the Campaign for Boston to strengthen the Permanent Fund for Boston, Greater Boston’s only endowment fund supporting organizations focused on the most pressing needs of Greater Boston.  The Foundation is proud to be a partner in philanthropy, with nearly 1,000 separate charitable funds established by donors either for the general benefit of the community or for special purposes.

The Boston Foundation also serves as a major civic leader, provider of information, convener and sponsor of special initiatives that address the region’s most serious challenges. The Philanthropic Initiative (TPI), an operating unit of the Foundation, designs and implements customized philanthropic strategies for families, foundations and corporations around the globe. For more information about the Boston Foundation and TPI, visit www.tbf.org or call 617-338-1700.