Latest news with #MassachusettsSchoolCounselorsAssociation
Boston Globe
16-04-2025
- General
- Boston Globe
Mass. schools that educate mostly students of color experience the highest teacher turnover
'I did not have the backing and the professional development at the school I needed to be successful,' said Mckeiver, who stayed in the profession but moved to Southbridge Middle School, where he says he now gets the training and support he needs. Related : Advertisement High teacher turnover rates cause 'Oftentimes the places that have the hardest time getting good staff and retaining them are the more challenged schools and school districts,' said Bob Bardwell, executive director of the Massachusetts School Counselors Association. In the 2024-25 school year, state data show in the top quartile of Massachusetts schools serving students of color, where about 30 percent or less of students are white, the teacher turnover rate was two-thirds greater than at those in the bottom quartile, where about 78 percent or more of students are white. The top quartile of schools lost 23 percent of their teachers, versus 14 percent at bottom quartile schools. Advertisement Brockton West Middle School Principal Carlton Campbell has struggled to retain educators. His campus, which largely serves high-needs students, including a majority from low-income households, has seen teacher retention rates decline in the last three years, with only 60 percent of his staff sticking around last school year. Campbell said student behavioral issues have been a leading cause for low teacher retention. Watching a turnstile of teachers has been disheartening, he said, and makes it difficult for school leadership to maintain normalcy for students. 'It's very discouraging because you invest time and work into those individuals,' he said. Related : Students said the high turnover leads to a lack of quality instruction, as most of the replacements are new to the profession. State numbers also show schools that both serve students of color and experienced high turnover often failed to meet state standards on the MCAS tests in math, science, and English. They said they're also less likely to pay attention to class content because adjusting to new faces in the classroom can be a distraction. Jamari Roberson, an eighth-grader at West Middle, said consistency is key for students to bond with their educators, providing them needed security in the classroom. Advertisement 'It makes the relationship stronger between the students and the teachers,' he said. 'Some students need that and don't have that when they go home.' Mckeiver, the Southbridge science teacher, agreed: 'Kids need predictability and consistency to do well.' Mckeiver lays blame for high teacher turnover on state and district leadership, saying they're not doing enough to supply educators with trainings that address cultural competency in working with students from diverse backgrounds. 'The way schools are set up, it's not the teachers' fault,' he said. 'The system has to be set up for you to be consistent.' better connect better with students of color and meet their social and emotional needs. They also want principals to advocate more for their needs with district and state leadership. 'If their heart's not in it, its hard to keep people,' Campbell said. Auzzy Byrdsell can be reached at
Boston Globe
27-02-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
FAFSA completion rates fall among Massachusetts high school seniors
At its peak in 2019, about 60 percent of all Massachusetts high school seniors completed the FAFSA, according to a Although FAFSA completion rates declined across all racial subgroups, white and Asian students' completion rates remained around more than 13 percentage points ahead of their Black classmates, and around more than 22 percentage points ahead of their Hispanic/Latino classmates. Related : Advertisement Education experts worry that declining FAFSA completion among students from historically disadvantaged groups could deepen existing gaps in 'You're going to see, in my opinion, a huge drop in the number of students going to college this fall,' said Bob Bardwell, who spent 33 years as a school counselor and is now executive director of the Massachusetts School Counselors Association. 'You're hearing leaders of our country say, 'because you're fill-in-the-blank,' you're not good enough. If I'm a person of color, I'm a person who's LGBTQ, I'm a person who has disabilities,' Bardwell said. 'I hope they don't listen, but if some of that does resonate, then why would I go to college?' Bardwell noted that the sensitive information required for the FAFSA can create challenges for students from mixed-status immigrant families, potentially contributing to the 11 - percentage - point gap between Hispanic/Latino students and the next lowest group in completion rates. Advertisement 'I can only imagine that our students and families are scared. Some of them are very scared because they're worried—who will see this information, and what will happen to me or my children?' he said. According to Bardwell, changing societal attitudes toward college spurred by 'The American dream of 'everyone goes to college' or 'everyone should go to college' is different now,' he said, pointing to rising interest in The report from the two education departments sets a goal to increase FAFSA completion rates to at least 50 percent in every school district by 2028, and to 70 percent statewide by 2029. Massachusetts Secretary of Education Patrick Tutwiler acknowledged that reaching 70 percent in four years would be no easy task but defended its necessity. 'I think the goal is ambitious, and it needs to be ambitious,' Tutwiler said. To better understand the barriers to FAFSA completion, Tutwiler and his team launched a roadshow that will visit eight high schools statewide. 'We've gone out to four schools so far, and we're hearing directly from students about the challenges they face,' he said. 'Some of it is that their families or caregivers need more information. Some of it is a struggle with gathering all the necessary documents. This is extremely helpful for us and for educators so we can provide more targeted support.' Related : The departments propose several initiatives to boost FAFSA completion rates, including a statewide dashboard to track rates by district, similar to a model used in Illinois and Advertisement Additionally, they call for collaboration with partners like the Massachusetts School Counselors Association and the Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority. Though concerned about declining rates, Bardwell stressed that the issue isn't black and white. In the rapidly changing economy and society of today, for some students, avoiding tens of thousands in student loan debt is the best financial decision for their future. 'There are certainly students that should be going to college for a variety of reasons, but then there are a lot of students that shouldn't go for their own reasons, and they shouldn't be made to feel less than because they're pursuing a different path,' Bardwell said. Nathan Metcalf can be reached at
