Education

On Jan. 1, Worcester Polytechnic Institute alumna Debora Jackson took over as dean of its Foisie Business School. A member of WPI’s board of trustees and experienced in STEM and business professions, Jackson brought a new level of diversity to the role: her background in seminary.

For decades, women have been moving closer to equality with men in the workplace, particularly in workforce participation and pay. A once-in-a-century pandemic has undone much of that progress.

When Kate Tobiasson, a Westborough resident who spent nearly 15 years working as an English teacher at three different Central Massachusetts school districts, was about to give birth to her first son in February 2013, she had fortunately saved enough accrued paid time off over several years. 

Quinsigamond Community College in Worcester has received a $197,183 Kenneth J. Donnelly Workforce Success Grant, which the school will use to help pay for unemployed residents who wish to take part in the administrative medical professional program.

Framingham State University will be taking part in a new, national initiative to increase transfer rates from community colleges to four-year colleges for Black, Hispanic, adult and first-generation learners.

A Worcester Polytechnic Institute research effort that's looking into potential tuberculosis treatments has been given a federal grant of nearly $435,000.

Concerned about the potential for another year of declines in college enrollment, especially among groups including students of color and those from low-income families, officials at state schools are exploring ways to encourage high school seniors to complete financial aid applications.

UMass Medical School will begin enrolling adolescents in a Moderna COVID-19 vaccination trial in early February to make the Worcester college one of 15 such testing sites nationwide.

People are on the move at UMass Medical School, North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce and more.

UMass Medical School Chancellor Dr. Michael Collins and UMass system President Marty Meehan have proposed setting up a volunteer corp of nursing and medical students to vaccinate Massachusetts residents against COVID-19, after the initial rollout of the vaccine has been bumpy.