BOSTON -- Gov. Charlie Baker on Wednesday pointed to Springfield's use of an "empowerment zone" as one example of policies that can be used to improve education now that voters rejected a ballot question to increase the number of charter schools in Massachusetts.
Baker, a Republican who strongly supported charter school expansion, said a major reason for his support of charters is that they closed or eliminated the achievement gap between black and Hispanic students and white students.
Voters on Tuesday resoundingly defeated a ballot question that would have allowed up to a dozen new charter schools a year outside of an existing cap.
"That achievement gap is something we need to continue to work on," Baker said. "My view at this point is that that means we need to pursue, given what the voters said, other alternatives."
The empowerment zone is a partnership of Springfield Public Schools, the Springfield teachers union and state education officials. The partnership includes eight schools, which are each allowed to make their own decisions on things like hiring, scheduling, budgeting and curriculum, rather than having those decisions be made on a district level.
Baker said the Springfield model is one that could be done in other cities. Districts could also look at efforts in Lawrence to lengthen school days. Charter schools will also continue to be part of the mix.
"We're going to ... make sure we continue to work on this," Baker said. "In a state obviously where so many of our schools and so many of our school districts are national leaders, it's really important we make sure all our kids have those kinds of opportunities."