Patrick OKs Commission to explore Olympics bid
Rod Sox success raises hope for bigger events
Now that Fenway Park has played host to its first World Series victory party in 95 years, Bostonians can move on to imagine another sporting experience no one has ever witnessed in Boston: the summer Olympics. Gov. Deval Patrick on Thursday signed a Sen. Eileen Donoghue bill (S 1840) that will create a special commission to study the feasibility and cost of the hosting the 2024 summer Olympic games in the Greater Boston region.
The Bill states “The study shall include, but not be limited to, the prospects of working with other New England states”.
The 11-member commission will explore the costs, infrastructure, transportation, and security needs associated with hosting the summer Olympics should Boston decide to submit an official host bid to the U.S. Olympic Committee. Donoghue has argued that the high costs associated with the bid process and becoming a host city would be outweighed by the economic gains from increased tourism and business. The law requires the commission to hold its first meeting no later than Nov. 15. Membership will include appointees by the governor, the mayor of Boston and House and Senate leaders.
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State Rep presses STEM to STEAM movement
CCCC $36 Science building encourages an Art add-on
STEM, shorthand for the state’s educational emphasis on science, technology, engineering and math, should become STEAM with an A for arts, Rep. Kay Khan told the Committee on Education Thursday. The focus on STEM education has driven funding for STEM projects, such as the $36 million science building at Cape Cod Community College that Gov. Deval Patrick announced funding for this week. Khan’s bill (H 2994) would establish a nine-member commission to look at what would need to be done to include the arts in STEM education.
A Newton Democrat State Representative, Khan said the STEM to STEAM movement believes skills developed in arts and music education are “just as valuable” as those taught in science and math classrooms. “These skills, which include creativity, confidence building, problem-solving, collaboration and effective communication, are fostered and cultivated through arts programs,” Khan said. She said, “I think we’re seeing the diminishment of arts in our school system.” Khan said arts are also valuable because they make students want to go to school.
The Bill states “Said commission shall study and report on any necessary policy initiatives, regulatory or statutory changes needed to: (a) include the arts in STEM related programs; and (b) research the feasibility of adding the arts in STEM related programs; (c) investigate the barriers to adding arts (A) to STEM; and (d) develop guidelines to implementing fair and adequate appropriations for the arts in Massachusetts. The commission shall identify funding sources available to fairly fund arts in STEM related programs. “
Guv recommends “old fashioned” sign-ups while ACA fixes website
People can still sign up for plans by paper or over the phone
The Affordable Care Act is not a website. It’s a values statement
Gov. Deval Patrick, a day after introducing President Barack Obama at a rally in Boston, said the president is “very frustrated” by the troubles with the federal health care marketplace website, but said people can still sign up for plans “the old fashioned way” by paper or over the phone until it is fixed. “I think it’s important to remember the Affordable Care Act is not a website. It’s a values statement. It’s a program about enabling people to have some real security around their medical and health needs and that is worth committing too and worth getting this website right and I think it will get right,” Patrick said, appearing on MSNBC Thursday afternoon.
Told that for the first time in his presidency Obama’s likeability poll ratings have dipped below 50 percent, Patrick said concerns about the rollout of the federal health insurance exchange “ought not” dent the president’s credibility. “Andrea, I still like him and I’m a relative newcomer to this world. I’ve only run for one office and done it two times and my polls have been up and down. Polls don’t vote. They don’t really count, I think, it seems to me, when you try to get something done, particularly when you’re trying to get something done that’s hard. What the real measure is is whether to you make a difference in the lives of people,” Patrick said, touting the impact and popularity of health reform in Massachusetts.
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