| | | | |  | | By Kelly Garrity | Presented by Mass General Brigham | GROWING PAINS — There’s a new energy on community college campuses in Massachusetts. Enrollments are up now that community college is free for all students, thanks to the MassEducate program that began this year, bolstering the MassReconnect program rolled out last year that made community college free for students over 25. “The life is back” on campus at Roxbury Community, Jordan Smock, the school’s communications director, told Playbook. At Massasoit Community College earlier this week, close to 500 people showed up for a campus barbecue – something the school hasn’t seen in a long time, according to Alex Villanueva, Massasoit’s communications director. And Bristol Community College saw a jump in the number of students in its athletics program – up to around 100 student athletes this year from 60 last year, according to Kate O’Hara, Bristol’s vice president of Student Services and Enrollment Management. But the sudden spike in enrollments has also put a strain on some schools struggling to match resources with rising interest. “It is working exactly as it was intended, which is to say that we are seeing huge increases in enrollment all across all 15 community colleges,” Nate Mackinnon, the executive director of the Massachusetts Association of Community Colleges, told Playbook. But that also means some community colleges have struggled to adjust to their new size — impacting everything from parking on campus, to getting students to shuffle out of classrooms where there are now back-to-back classes. Cape Cod Community College was resigned to closing its application deadline early, MassLive reported recently. At Holyoke Community College, where the number of new students is up more than 14 percent since last fall, the bump “really put pressure on our ability to hire faculty to fill the courses that students want and need,” the school’s Dean of Strategic Recruitment Initiatives, Admissions, and Financial Aid Mark Hudgik told Playbook. The back-to-back double-digit spikes in enrollment (from MassReconnect last year, MassEducate this year) have meant that some students weren’t able to enroll at Holyoke because the classes they needed – at the times they needed – weren’t available. That’s an issue Holyoke runs into every year, Hudgik said, but one that was “heightened this year because of the sheer number of students who were coming in.” Community college leaders also want to make sure that advising services can keep up with students’ needs, particularly through the SUCCESS Fund, a program that provides intensive advising to help underserved students at community colleges move on to four-year schools. With a tight state budget in FY25, the program, which is funded at $14.75 million, “didn’t see the growth that we were hoping for,” Mackinnon said. “And yet we have a big influx of new students, so that's putting a real strain on that area.” The numbers from MassReconnect’s rollout last year did help prepare school administrators for what to expect this time around. At Roxbury Community College, the school began to hire more adjunct professors over the summer and add more courses to meet the expected bump in demand. At Berkshire Community College, “we had a really good educated guess of what was coming,” Adam Klepetar, vice president of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, told Playbook, and the school was able to extend hours and hold listening sessions across the region. But if last year’s model holds, schools are expecting an even bigger enrollment bump in the spring — “which is great,” Mackinnon said. “We’ll be ready to take them.” GOOD FRIDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. On the bright side, the Patriots won’t ruin our Sunday. Tips? Scoops? Birthdays? Jets hate? Email me: kgarrity@politico.com TODAY — Gov. Maura Healey, Lt Gov. Kim Driscoll and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu attend the El Mundo Hispanic Heritage Month Breakfast at 7:30 a.m. at the Boston Park Plaza Hotel. Healey meets with the Consul General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands Ahmed Dadou at 1:30 p.m. at the State House. Driscoll attends a welcome reception for the America250PA National Convening of States and Partners at 5:30 p.m. in Philadelphia. Wu speaks at the Greater Boston Stand Down, an annual event offering support services to veterans, at 10:30 a.m. at City Hall and performs a duet with world-renowned classical pianist Lang Lang at Boston Arts Academy before participating in a Q&A session with students at 1 p.m. in Fenway. Rep. Ayanna Pressley and other co-chairs of the Haiti caucus hold a press conference to stand in solidarity with Haitian immigrants at 11:30 a.m. in D.C. State Auditor Diana DiZoglio attends the Essex County Sheriff’s Department POW-MIA recognition day at 10 a.m. in Middleton and tours Northeast Arc’s Center for Linking Lives at 1 p.m. in Danvers. THIS WEEKEND — Local entrepreneur and marketing expert Diane Hessan is on WBZ’s “Keller @ Large” at 8:30 a.m. Sunday. State Sen. Barry Finegold is on WCVB’s “On the Record” at 11 a.m. Sunday. Evan Horowitz of the Center for State Policy Analysis at Tufts University and the Boston Globe’s Esmy Jimenez are on NBC10Boston’s “@Issue” at 11:30 a.m. Sunday. State Auditor Diana DiZoglio attends the Weymouth Irish Heritage Festival at 12:30 p.m. in Weymouth.
| | | | A message from Mass General Brigham: At Mass General Brigham, we harness the collective strength of our healthcare system to provide research-driven cancer care for the patients and communities we serve. Mass General Brigham is number one in hospital medical research. We perform the most cancer surgeries and have the most cancer specialists in New England. We have the region’s only proton therapy center and provide access to more than 1,000 clinical trials annually. We’re one against cancer. Learn more. | | | |  | DATELINE BEACON HILL | | — “Massachusetts gun law repeal effort has half of necessary signatures to suspend statute,” by Chris Van Buskirk: “An effort to repeal a new gun law in Massachusetts has managed to secure roughly half of the signatures needed to immediately suspend the enforcement of the statute and place a question before voters in the 2026 election, according to a top organizer. The campaign to strike down a law that — among many things — bans people under 21 from owning semiautomatic rifles or shotguns must collect more than 49,000 signatures from residents in Massachusetts by Oct. 9 to nullify the statute while the repeal process plays out over the next two years.” — “Taxpayers to get break on unpaid debt,” by Christian M. Wade, The Eagle-Tribune: “Scofflaw taxpayers could get a chance to pay their delinquent accounts without facing fines under a 60-day tax amnesty program allowing some Massachusetts residents to clear up their debt. The state Department of Revenue announced Thursday that from Nov. 1 until Dec. 31 taxpayers with outstanding liabilities will be able to catch up on back taxes without paying hefty penalties. The program, approved as part of the fiscal year 2025 budget, is the first tax amnesty scheme in nearly a decade.” — “‘Enough is enough’: Lawmakers, union demand change after corrections officers stabbed,” by Marilyn Schairer, GBH News: “Two state lawmakers are calling for action from the state’s Department of Correction following a violent attack of five correction officers Wednesday night. Two officers were stabbed and three more were injured at the Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center in Lancaster, the state’s only maximum-security facility.” RELATED — “Mass. correction officers union calls for help after attack at Souza-Baranowski prison,” by Deborah Becker, WBUR. — “‘It’s our duty’: Healey, education officials celebrate $20 million early literacy investment,” by Mandy McLaren, The Boston Globe.
| | FROM THE HUB | | — “Boston City Council calls emergency hearing to address USPS failures, mail-in voting concerns ahead of election,” by Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald: “The Boston City Council called for an emergency hearing to address U.S. Postal Service failures that it says have caused residents to miss out on ‘vital’ documents and prescriptions and raised mail-in voting concerns ahead of the election.”
| | ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR | | — “Pro-Palestinian protesters say they warned Newton police about Scott Hayes,” by Phillip Martin, GBH News: “Supporters have raised more than $255,000 on a GoFundMe site for Scott Hayes, the Framingham man charged with shooting an individual in Newton who darted across a busy street toward him during a pro-Israel rally last week. Hayes’ supporters, including Harvard attorney Alan Dershowitz, describe him as an Iraq war hero standing up for the Jewish people and the state of Israel. But others tell GBH News that Hayes is well known in pro-Palestinian activist circles as a gun-toting individual who castigates those calling for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, and insults and harasses peaceful protesters.”
| | YAHD SIGNS AND BUMPAH STICKAHS | | TRAIL MARKERS — Sen. Elizabeth Warren holds a comfortable lead over Republican Senate hopeful John Deaton in a new University of New Hampshire poll out Thursday. Warren won support from 58 percent of respondents to Deaton’s 32 percent among the 596 voters surveyed in the poll between Sept. 12 and Sept. 16 (margin of error of +/- 4 percent). Warren “is only somewhat popular in Massachusetts,” the pollsters wrote, “while large numbers are unfamiliar with Deaton.” The survey found 46 percent of likely voters had a favorable view of Warren, while 35 percent had an unfavorable view and 18 percent were neutral. Meanwhile, 42 percent said they don’t know enough about Deaton to make a call one way or another. — “Election security a concern, but Secretary of State William Galvin is confident heading into November,” by Jim Kinney, The Springfield Republican: “Suspicious packages were sent to election officials in at least six states Monday, Massachusetts included. … The package was benign, [Secretary of State Bill Galvin] said. But the sender was trying to make a point. ‘It was clearly meant to intimidate,’ he said.”
| | WARREN REPORT | | — “Warren advocates for a bigger Fed rate cut, even as Wall Street cheers,” by Tiziana Dearing, WBUR. — “Mass. Sen. Warren, Texas’ Cruz partner on disaster relief bill,” by John L. Micek, MassLive: “New legislation co-sponsored by U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Ted Cruz, R-Texas, would, among other things, speed the flow of federal aid, and change the way the Federal Emergency Management Agency issues the disaster declarations that open the government’s spigot in the first place.”
| | BALLOT BATTLES | | MEASURING SUPPORT FOR BALLOT MEASURES — The UNH poll also gave a glimpse into where voters currently stand on each of the five ballot questions. More than half of those surveyed said they plan to vote “yes” on questions that would over time give tipped workers a full minimum wage (Question 5), legalize and regulate psychedelics (Question 4) and allow the state auditor to audit the Legislature (Question 1). And a plurality said they support allowing app-based drivers to unionize (Question 3). The closest contest, the UNH poll found, was on the question that would remove MCAS as one of the requirements for high school graduation (Question 2). The “no” slide polled slightly higher, notching 40 percent to the “yes” side’s 38 percent — though within the poll's margin of error.
| | | | A message from Mass General Brigham:   | | | | | FROM THE DELEGATION | | — “US Senate committee approves contempt charges against Steward CEO,” by Katie Lannan, GBH News: “A U.S. Senate committee recommended Thursday that Steward Health Care CEO Dr. Ralph de la Torre be held in contempt of Congress over his refusal to appear before them to discuss the inner workings of the bankrupt hospital chain. On a pair of 20-0 votes, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee approved resolutions laying out both civil and criminal contempt charges against de la Torre. The votes move the matter to the full Senate for consideration.”
| | IT'S NOT EASY BEING GREEN | | — “Climate change may be contributing to more frequent, widespread EEE outbreaks,” by Mark Herz, GBH News.
| | FROM THE 413 | | — “Put it to a vote: Adams and Cheshire residents can approve, or defeat, a proposed school budget Sept. 30,” by Sten Spinella, The Berkshire Eagle: “
| | THE LOCAL ANGLE | | — “South Coast’s costly cleanup,” by Adam Goldstein, The New Bedford Light: “Across the South Coast, cities and towns are looking to clean up their sewage and septic systems. And they all agree on one thing: the fix won’t come cheap.” — “Brockton school board tables effort to discipline mayor. Why? Was it canceled or delayed?,” by Christopher Butler, The Brockton Enterprise: “The Brockton School Committee did not discuss disciplining Mayor Robert Sullivan Wednesday night after all — a closed session item on the evening’s agenda that had previously raised question marks. School Committee Vice-Chair Tony Rodrigues at the start of the meeting made a motion to remove that item from the meeting agenda — citing the fact that school board member Claudio Gomes wasn’t present for the meeting.”
| | WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD BE READING | | — “‘Pushed to the outer edge’: Experts say State Police academy culture should factor in probe of recruit’s death,” by Dan Glaun and Sean Cotter, The Boston Globe. — “Trump’s Legal Bulldog — and Possible Attorney General — Says He’s Just Trolling All of Us,” by Adam Wren, POLITICO.
| | HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH | | TRANSITIONS — Kathy Kottaridis will serve as the new director of Boston’s Office of Historic Preservation. HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to former Boston City Councilor Matt O’Malley, former congressional candidate and MassDPH Commissioner Robbie Goldstein and Vanessa Kirsch. Happy belated to Mark A. Chapleau, who celebrated Thursday. HAPPY BIRTHWEEKEND — to Samantha Power, Cass Sunstein, Mia Appelbaum, Deborah A. Weinberger and The Boston Globe’s Christopher Gavin, who celebrate Saturday; and to Sunday birthday-ers Massachusetts Playbook and POLITICO alum Stephanie Murray, who’s now a political reporter at The Arizona Republic; POLITICO alum and GBH’s Jeremy Siegel; Chris Carlson, Abigail DesVergnes, Mike Knittle, Sean Moynihan of The Moynihan Group, TT Sitterley and Helena Zay.
| | | | A message from Mass General Brigham: At Mass General Brigham, we harness the collective strength of our healthcare system to provide research-driven cancer care for the patients and communities we serve. Mass General Brigham is number one in hospital medical research. We perform the most cancer surgeries and have the most cancer specialists in New England. We have the region’s only proton therapy center and provide access to more than 1,000 clinical trials annually.
The vision for Mass General Brigham is to build a world-class center of cancer care, with the patients at the center of everything we do. New collaborations, new treatments, and innovative approaches. Leading to new hope and possibilities. At Mass General Brigham, we’re one against cancer. Learn more. | | | Want to make an impact? POLITICO Massachusetts has a variety of solutions available for partners looking to reach and activate the most influential people in the Bay State. Have a petition you want signed? A cause you’re promoting? Seeking to increase brand awareness among this key audience? Share your message with our influential readers to foster engagement and drive action. Contact Jesse Shapiro to find out how: jshapiro@politico.com. | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our politics and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
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