Overview

Mass Insight Education and Research works to create a world in which student achievement and related life outcomes no longer correlate with race, gender, ethnicity, social class, or zip code because all students have equitable opportunities, supports, and access to quality education. It’s a leader in closing achievement and opportunity gaps for underserved students, driving college and career success by focusing on system transformation and student academic success. Mass Insight sought state funding for its program to prepare students in underserved districts for college success through the Advanced Placement program.

Our Work

To achieve this, we developed a strategic government relations plan that included grassroots organizing and legislative outreach. We strategically targeted legislative districts in which Mass Insight had a presence and developed relationships with those legislators. As a result of these efforts, Mass Insight was able to leverage a strong group of political allies.

We worked to leverage these key political allies to develop and consistently secure a budget line item that has grown from $400,000 to $3.2 million.

Results

Mass Insight’s presence has grown from 40 districts to 84 districts statewide, an expansion that allowed Massachusetts to become the national leader in students who take Advanced Placement tests. Mass Insight is now the largest statewide high school STEM program in Massachusetts.