Education

As advocates and child care providers continue to call for an infusion of public funds to help the industry cope with added costs and lost revenue associated with providing care during a pandemic, stuffed animal-facilitated hugs are among several short-term adjustments speakers highlighted during the Education Committee's virtual oversight hearing.

Quinsigamond Community College in Worcester is launching a League of Legends esports team that will compete against five other members in its division of the National Association of Collegiate Esports, the school announced on Tuesday.

Massachusetts Teachers Association President Merrie Najimy said the union would be presenting its own plan to reopen school "in the next week and beyond."

Business confidence in Massachusetts rebounded in June in lockstep with the reopening of economic sectors that had been sealed off by government order to guard against the spread of COVID-19.

Dean College in Franklin is joining an increasing number of colleges in Central Massachusetts and elsewhere planning to hold classes on campus this fall despite risks from the coronavirus pandemic.

Companies with new hires and promotions include UniBank, Vision Advertising, Westfield State University and Bay State Savings Bank, among others.

Emergency federal funding will fall short of covering major financial gaps in the Massachusetts child care sector, prompting an industry group to warn state lawmakers that they will need to triage limited resources with a wave of closures on the horizon.

Worcester Polytechnic Institute will reopen its campus to students in August, according to a Wednesday announcement from college president Laurie Leshin.

Research spending at UMass Medical School in Worcester hit $282 million in fiscal 2019, a jump of 12% from four years prior.

Members of the Massachusetts Board of Education on Tuesday dove into the plan to reopen Massachusetts schools this fall under new COVID-19 precautions, with the unknown variables associated with a still-unsettled state budget looming over school districts.