Business Digest for June 4

Proulx named Constitution chief The National Constitution Center in Philadelphia recently appointed Natick native Julie Proulx to the newly created position of deputy chief of staff. Proulx is a recent graduate of Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. Previously, she served as a program assistant for the Corporation for National and Community Service, where she worked closely with National Constitution Center President and CEO David Eisner during his tenure as CEO of the corporation. In her new role as deputy chief of staff, Proulx will support the center’s president and CEO Continue reading >>>

Growing ‘Fresh Catch’ launching third year

The Northwest Atlantic Fishing Alliance, which has helped prove the viability of community-supported fisheries — selling directly to consumers — played a key role in a three-day national conference held in Portsmouth, N.H. The conference corresponded with the start of the third year of Cape Ann Fresh Catch, the community-supported system that was launched in Gloucester and now operates across much of Greater Boston. "Community-supported fisheries — whether Downeast Maine or downeast North Carolina — seek to reconnect coastal communities to their food system, encourage sustainable fishing Continue reading >>>

Boston Foundation Launches Innovative Charitable Giving Resource

Launch event at JFK Library features address from philanthropists Joyce and Bill Cummings, announcement of October challenge Boston – On May 30 the Boston Foundation, Greater Boston’s community foundation, formally announced the launch of The Giving Common, an innovative web-based resource designed to provide comprehensive and current information about nonprofit organizations across Massachusetts, and to make informed, online charitable giving easy, quick and meaningful. “The Giving Common represents a watershed moment for personal philanthropy in Greater Boston,” said Continue reading >>>

Islamic School Charms Non-Muslim Teacher

CAIRO – Accepting a job as English teacher in Al-Noor Academy, Rick Booth’s dreams came true with a highly disciplined ambitious class of American Muslim students.“The moral rewards are just spectacular,” Booth, a former newsman for more than 30 years at the Westerly Sun newspaper in Rhode Island, told Boston Globe on Sunday, June 3.“I tried to resist, but I fell in love with the place. I found a home here.”Al-Noor Academy is a private middle and high school established in September 2000 to serve the Muslim community in Greater Boston and Continue reading >>>

Robbins, Fox activities in June

The amazing true story of a brave dolphin and the compassionate strangers who banded together to save her life. Swimming free, a young dolphin is caught in a crab trap, severely damaging her tail.  It will take the expertise of a dedicated marine biologist, the ingenuity of a brilliant prosthetics doctor, and the unwavering devotion of a young boy to bring about a groundbreaking miracle-a miracle that might not only save Winter but could also help scores of people around the world.Rated PG for: Mild Violence.(HBO advisory)Mud-Eye Puppet Show Sat. June 23rd  3:00-4:00PM Robbins Community RoomJoin Continue reading >>>

Mass. jobs bill works in mysterious ways

The Massachusetts House of Representatives passed a so-called “jobs bill” May 23, and sent it to the Senate. But my interviews with state officials reveal that there is no estimate of how much the bill will cost, or how many jobs it will create. Still, I could not find one person who was not celebrating it as a great victory. On May 25, J.D. Chesloff, deputy director of the Massachusetts Business Roundtable, said, “We're pretty excited about it.” Tamara Small, director of government affairs for NAIOP, a commercial real estate development association, believes it will help Continue reading >>>

Rocky rollout to era of Mass. casino gambling

The casino law is under assault in federal court. The thorny issue of tribal gambling is expected to produce more litigation before it ever produces a casino. The state gambling commission had a public relations disaster over its first high-profile hire.And although the gambling law was written to create competition among wealthy developers seeking to outdo each other in pursuit of coveted licenses, that bidding war has yet to fully develop, in part because of local opposition and also to a measure of apathy toward Massachusetts from some casino companies.“It’s been a pretty rocky start,’’ Continue reading >>>

Rocky rollout to era of Mass. casino gambling

Once the Legislature finally approved Las Vegas-style gambling last November, after years of debate and near misses, many believed the hard part was over - and that the promise of thousands of jobs and millions in new state revenue would soon be realized. But the first six months of the casino era in Massachusetts have been hampered by controversies and false starts, proving that little is easy when it comes to launching a new industry with billions of dollars at stake. The casino law is under assault in federal court. The thorny Continue reading >>>

The persistence of politics as usual

matthew j. lee/globe staff Governor Deval Patrick’s travel funding has been questioned. When Deval Patrick first ran for governor in 2006, he campaigned against politics as usual, or what he cleverly dubbed “the Big Dig culture.’’ Now well into his second term, Governor Patrick has embraced enough politics as usual to make believers in his earlier crusade feel like chumps. Indeed, the business of politics can’t get more usual than this: According to a recent story by the Globe’s Noah Bierman, Gregory Bialecki, Patrick’s economic Continue reading >>>