Massachusetts

Just over half of all workers in Massachusetts now hold a college degree, marking the first time any state has reached that threshold. The Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center, which did the study, says Massachusetts has the best-educated workforce and the highest median wages in the U.S.

Massachusetts has the highest percentage of people with a college credential or certification in the U.S. That's according to a new report out this week from Lumina Foundation, an education nonprofit. While fewer than half of working-age Americans hold at least one college credential, Lumina finds here in Massachusetts the rate is 55 percent.

Community colleges have long operated in the shadows of more expensive, elite four-year colleges, but worries about the cost of college are now drawing students to these two-year programs. A new survey by WGBH News shows Americans believe strongly that community colleges are essential to providing families with opportunities.

The University of Massachusetts has selected its next president: former congressman Marty Meehan. Meehan will become the first UMass graduate to lead the system, and he’ll face a unique set of challenges.

And then there were two. The University of Massachusetts is one step closer to choosing its next president, as a presidential search committee has named two finalists: UMass-Lowell Chancellor Marty Meehan and Harvard business professor John Quelch.

MIT scientists are presenting a report Monday at the American Association for the Advancement of Science that describes what they call America’s growing innovation deficit.

In schools across the country, it is testing season – an anxiety-provoking time for parents, students and teachers. This year, there’s a new twist to the old stress: beginning Monday about 220,000 Massachusetts students will take a new standardized test – one that is designed to better assess new standards set by the state.

Massachusetts is adopting a plan to make civics part of the curriculum at state colleges. The statewide policy is the first of its kind in the United States.

The new policy proposed by the Board of Higher Education encourages colleges to track civic engagement -- things like understanding the countries' history, government and founding documents. 

There's one overriding theme facing Massachusetts as Gov. Deval Patrick prepares to make his State of the State Address. How will the state pay for the initiatives Patrick has proposed this week?

On the heels of a major transportation plan, Patrick announced a massive plan to expand education on Tuesday.

Patrick’s announcement, at the Orchard Gardens K-8 school in Roxbury, was softened by a little boy named Francisco.

"When I grow up I want to be a firefighter so I can help people from fires," he said.