On August 16, the Mass High Tech Council convened a meeting with state and federal environmental officials, participants in the Council’s Energy Program, and others to frame a proactive strategy to decrease carbon emissions and increase overall energy efficiency.  Our goal is to build on 10 years of successfully delivering more than $50 million in savings to MHTC members participating in our Energy Program.  Our Energy Program currently represents nearly 1 billion kilowatts of annual electricity consumption in Massachusetts.

Together, we identified key elements of such a strategy, designed to reduce energy costs, positively impact our environment, and identify and implement new public policies to help boost the competitiveness of our state technology economy. 

The meeting was hosted by Massachusetts Energy and Environment Secretary Ian Bowles, and included representatives from Teradyne, Millipore, Genzyme, Staples, the Environmental Protection Agency (Climate Change Office), Constellation NewEnergy, SourceOne and Siemans Building Technologies.

Businesses are proactively seeking ways to reduce carbon emissions and operate more efficiently.  Heightened awareness and sharp increases in energy costs are dual motivators and the simultaneous rise of clean energy technology is providing options that were nonexistent only a few years ago.  Additionally, unlike a company’s proprietary products, mitigation and efficiency best practices are being shared throughout industry. 

Truman Semans, Director, Business Environmental Leadership Council, Pew Center on Global Climate Change presented Getting Ahead of the Curve: Corporate Strategies that Address Climate Change.  Semans presentation detailed the carbon emissions issue and provided potential reduction strategies that can potentially increase profitability.

Initial feedback was extremely positive, and Secretary Bowles agreed to work with us to organize a working group made up of Council members, energy providers, climate change experts, EPA and other current industry leaders to address the growing opportunity to provide members with carbon emissions reduction and efficiency strategies.

Please let us know if you or an appropriate member of your organization is interested in working with us on this important effort or contact Wyndham Lewis for additional information at wyndham@mhtc.org. 

Driscoll Leaves Strong Legacy

After a history- making tenure as Department of Education Commissioner in overseeing the implementation of education reform, David Driscoll will leave his post on August 31.  Driscoll, a 43-year veteran of Massachusetts public education, will be succeeded on an acting basis by current Deputy Commissioner Jeffrey Nellhaus.

Driscoll has been a major change agent in Bay State schools overseeing the implementation of the 1993 Education Reform Act that introduced charter schools and the MCAS graduation requirement.  During the past year, he has worked closely with Board of Education Chairman and MHTC President Chris Anderson to implement such landmark programs as the statewide expansion of Commonwealth Pilot Schools.   He has also been instrumental in the work of the Council’s Education Leadership Initiative, a diverse group of education stakeholders that meet regularly at Genzyme.  An unbowed advocate for increased educational standards, accountability and competition, Driscoll leaves big shoes – and filling those shoes with a strong new commissioner should be a top priority for the Commonwealth. 

Commonwealth MCAS Point/Counterpoint

Despite overwhelming evidence that the MCAS examination has delivered higher standards and increased academic achievement for Massachusetts schools, a small but vocal group of politicians and educators are working to undermine educational accountability and standards.  Recently, Commonwealth Magazine approached Chris Anderson in his role as Chairman of the Massachusetts Board of Education, to pen a counterpoint to anti-MCAS advocates Rep. Carl Sciortino and former Board of Education Chair Martin Kaplan’s most recent position on the exam. 

This spring, Sciortino filed a bill that would suspend MCAS indefinitely, while a 31 member panel is assembled to review the exam’s effectiveness.  Sciortino and Kaplan also hope to establish alternative assessment measures and held that the MCAS exam has revealed ”the unintended consequences of high-stakes testing, such as narrowing of the curriculum, increasing numbers of drop-outs, and high school graduates who are still not well prepared for higher education or the work force.” 

Anderson was joined by fellow BOE member Henry Thomas, President of the Urban League of Springfield, in co-authoring an impassioned case for maintaining the MCAS graduation requirement.  Anderson and Thomas wrote that MCAS has “brought true accountability to the state’s public schools, and allows employers to feel confident in the basic skills of high school graduates.”  Citing the progress of Massachusetts students on national education assessments since the MCAS was instituted, Anderson and Thomas also pointed out national publications that recognized the MCAS as “a national model for accountability and balanced assessment.”

The authors cautioned that, in a competitive global economy, political, education and business leaders must stay strong on standards and accountability: “If we backtrack on the accountability of MCAS now we will not only do a disservice to our children, we will unravel 15 years of significant progress. In one fell swoop we will erase the grand bargain between teachers, students, parents, administrators and employers that has made Massachusetts the envy of the nation.”

Anderson invited anti-accountability activists, like Sciortino and Kaplan, to work as part of ongoing, collaborative efforts to continue the progress of Education Reform but also deliver new programs and policies to help Massachusetts students and teachers compete in the 21st Century global economy.

To read the entire Commonwealth Magazine article by Anderson and Thomas, please visit /articles/news/council-detail-11901.htm

Mass DTI Holds Defense Workforce Project 2.0

On August 9 more than 50 representatives from the state’s defense industry, department of defense, colleges and universities were brought together by Mass DTI Executive Director, Alan Macdonald and host Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) for Defense Workforce Project 2.0. 

The defense workforce project is a continuation of a program jointly launched by former Secretary of Economic DevelopmentRanch Kimball and MassDTI in early 2006.  The program’s mission is to foster a discussion between the defense sector and the universities that graduate the skilled labor the industry needs to hire.  The industry gets a better understanding of the coursework offered at Massachusetts’ institutions and the universities in return gain insight into the needs of the industry.  Ultimately, the schools can begin to create specific coursework and modify existing curricula to better prepare their students for the defense workforce.

The Defense Workforce Project creates an outlet to better connect the key constituents of the state’s defense technology community – industry, academia and base leadership – to create an atmosphere of increased collaboration and economic opportunity. 

Participating companies and schools at WPI included:

Bluefin Robotics, Draper Laboratory, Engility Corporation, Fosta-Tek Optics, General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems, Kopin Corporation, L-3 Communications ESSCO, Lockheed Martin Corporation, Lockheed Martin Marion, Natick Soldier RDEC, Paradigm Technologies, Inc.,  The MITRE Corporation, Dynamics Research Company, Cobham Defense Electronics, Association of Independent Colleges & Universities in Massachusetts, Boston University Metropolitan College, Emmanuel College, Middlesex College, Northeastern University, University of Massachusetts Amherst, University of Massachusetts Lowell, Wentworth Institute of Technology, WPI and others.

Both the university and industry sides were well represented and Macdonald kept participants engaged and busy in what was deemed ”corporate speed dating.”

Success stories have already developed through this program including partnerships between WPI and Natick Soldier Systems Center, as well as Wentworth Institute of Technology and BAE Systems.  Based on the success over the past two years, MassDTI is looking to broaden the program as it develops Defense Workforce 3.0 in the near future.  

For more information on MassDTI or the Defense Workforce Project, please contact Alan Macdonald al@massdti.com or 781-890-0088.

30th Anniversary Dinner to Feature Kamen as Keynote

World renowned inventor and FIRST Founder Dean Kamen will deliver the keynote speech at the Council’s 30th Anniversary Dinner.  The dinner, to be held Tuesday, October 23 at the Newton Marriott, celebrates three decades of innovation in Massachusetts. 

The event will have a strong focus on education, with both Andrea Peterson, National Teacher of the Year and Michael Flynn, Massachusetts Teacher of the Year providing their perspectives on preparing students for the new global economy.    In addition, the evening will feature interactive displays from some of the state’s leading technology employers.  For more information on the 30th Anniversary event please contact Daniella Lutz at 781-890-6482 x11 or Daniella@mhtc.org

Council to Launch Fund for World Class Schools

For 30 years the Massachusetts High Technology Council has been dedicated to improving the state’s public education system. 

Massachusetts is the national leader in education, boasting top ranking in math and science testing among peer states.  National preeminence, however, is no longer the measure of true success and we are swiftly losing ground to our rapidly rising peers from China, Europe, Singapore and India. In order to remain a premier global technology cluster, Massachusetts must transform itself into a sustainable global center of math and science education.  

In response to the global imperative to create internationally competitive schools and skilled technology workers that propel the state’s economy, the Council is launching the Fund for World Class Schools.

The Fund’s mission is to:

• Support strategies that transform Massachusetts public schools into premier centers of math and science education with a more globally competitive education system;
• Bolster educator quality and systems change initiatives through teacher training, professional development and initiatives that create a more professional and innovative environment for teachers; and
• Serve as a focused, results-oriented vehicle for personal and corporate philanthropy aimed at improving Massachusetts public schools.

Program support will be guided by the priorities set forth in the Council’s CEO Survey and will focus on training and supporting math and science teachers and increased student performance in STEM content areas.

The Fund for World Class Schools will be managed as a Donor Advised Fund (DAF) by The Boston Foundation (TBF).  This structure offers a unique opportunity to tap into TBF’s expertise in fundraising and fund management.  As a DAF, the Council will maintain oversight of all investments through an advisory committee.  More importantly, however, is the opportunity to leverage investments selected by the Fund for World Class Schools with similar investments from the Boston Foundation, thus dramatically increasing the return on investments made by Fund contributors.

AP Grant Provides Early Investment Opportunity

Among the initial programs we have identified as a potential funding target is the Mass AP initiative.  Massachusetts, through Mass Insight Education, is a finalist for a $13 million grant from ExxonMobil to create a state program to encourage more schools and students to participate – and succeed – in Advanced Placement (AP) courses.  Applying the successful Texas AP model, the program maximizes college readiness in math, science and English for higher numbers of Massachusetts students through increased participation in AP programs and higher pass rates.

For more information on the Fund for World Class Schools, please contact Chris Anderson at chris@mhtc.org or 781-890-6482.