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Center Hosts Newly-Elected Mayors from Amesbury, Beverly, Boston, Brockton, and Chicopee
|  On Saturday, December 7, the Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management at the John W. McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies, conducted a seminar for mayors-elect that attracted new elected mayors from five cities: Boston, Amesbury, Chicopee, Beverly, and Brockton.
The seminar facilitators included two seasoned mayors, Robert Dolan of Melrose and Kimberley Driscoll of Salem.
"The session was informal, productive, and engaging," commented Stephen McGoldrick, interim director of the Collins Center. "This is the third time over six years that we've offered this seminar for newly-elected mayors, and each time we find that the advice we offer and the discussion among new elected mayors themselves who need to quickly make the transition from campaigning to governing are welcomed and extremely helpful."
Mayor Dolan offered tips on what to focus on in terms of finances, while Mayor Driscoll offered advice on issues ranging from relationships with the city council and the state legislature to assembling a staff.
The mayors-elect were also offered general advice to take it slow, to listen, and to strike a healthy balance between their personal and professional lives.
At the end of the five-hour session, McCormack Graduate School Dean Ira A. Jackson extended warm congratulations to the successful candidates for mayor and encouraged them to continue to take advantage of the Collins Center and the resources of the only public university in Boston and the only one with a center that focuses on issues relevant to local government. "Good luck and come back whenever you need a place that understands your issues. We are prepared to roll up our sleeves and help you solve the tough and urgent problems that mayors must deal with and resolve every day."
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Multiple StatNet Meetings Being Planned in the First Half of 2014
|  New England StatNet will hold two meetings on municipal topics in the first half of the new year. The March meeting will focus on inspectional services while the May meeting addresses issues in public works. The meeting date for the first meeting will be available the first week in January.
Our School StatNet group will focus its next two meetings on education-related topics, with the first one dedicated to the topic of school administration. Dates for several of these meetings will be forthcoming in January.
New England StatNet is a network of municipal officials interested in improving their use of data in management and policy making. Coordinated by the Collins Center, StatNet participants learn
from each other about best practices in municipal performance management and operations. StatNet holds three meetings per year focused on different areas of municipal government, such as public works, police, fire, budget, IT, or inspectional services. StatNet also hosts an annual conference to train municipal officials on the use of data and performance management in municipal government. Participants represent municipalities of all sizes from across the Northeast.
School StatNet is a parallel network of education officials focused on data and performance management in Massachusetts school districts.
Both initiatives are funded through the Patrick Administration's Community Innovation Challenge (CIC) Grant Program.
For more information, please contact StatNet Coordinator Amy Dain at Amy.Dain@umb.edu.
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Input Still Needed on a Municipal Performance Management Website
| As part of the Massachusetts Municipal Performance Management Program, the Collins Center is developing a website on performance management, data and analysis, information technology, best practices, and related topics to serve as a resource for municipal managers in Massachusetts and beyond. If you are a municipal manager or someone who works with municipalities, the Center would appreciate your input to make the site as useful as possible. Please click here to take this eight-question survey. The survey will remain open through the end of December.
The Executive Office for Administration and Finance has provided funding for the website through its Community Innovation Challenge (CIC) Grant Program.
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Visit with Collins Center Staff at the 2014 MMA Annual Meeting and Trade Show
|  The Collins Center joins more than 200 exhibitors at the Massachusetts Municipal Association's 2014 Annual Meeting and Trade Show, being held at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston on Friday and Saturday, January 24 and 25. The theme of this year's meeting, which is the largest regular gathering of Massachusetts local government officials, is "Building Our Communities, Building Our Future."
Collins Center municipal experts in departmental operations, charter revision, performance management, regionalization, human resources, and finance will be available, along with the executive recruitment team, to answer questions and provide information about the many services the Center offers cities and towns.
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MEP Conference: Improving Student Achievement through Labor-Management Collaboration and the Common Core
|  The Massachusetts Education Partnership held its second successful conference on October 28 in Marlborough, Massachusetts. The conference theme was "Improving Student Achievement through Labor-Management Collaboration and the Common Core." Approximately 300 teachers, school superintendents, school committee members and education leaders heard plenary session presentations by Professor Susan Moore Johnson from the Harvard Graduate School of Education; John Doherty, Superintendent of the Reading School District; Robert Mooney, President of the Reading Teachers Association; and Peter McWalters, the former superintendent of the Rochester, NY school district. Attendees also participated in breakout session on interest-based negotiations, tools to support teacher implementation of the Common Core, innovations schools, district-determined measures, and MEP's District Capacity Project work.
Be sure to save the date for the MEP's spring conference, which will be held on June 12, 2014 in Westborough, Massachusetts. Information about the program will become available on the MEP website in the coming months. If you wish to be added to the MEP mailing list, please contact Executive Director Nancy Peace at Nancy.Peace@umb.edu.
MEP has recently redesigned its website and added new materials. For information on innovation schools, interest-based collective bargaining and other topics, please visit www.massedpartnership.org. The slides from Susan Moore Johnson's conference presentation on teacher evaluation have also been posted.
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Contracting with the Collins Center
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Agreements between local governments and the Collins Center are exempt from the provisions of Chapter 30b, the Uniform Procurement Act, since the University of Massachusetts is an instrumentality of the Commonwealth. Municipalities may negotiate a scope of services and a price with the Collins Center directly, saving both time and money. Similarly, Massachusetts state agencies may enter into Interagency Service Agreements with the Collins Center. For further information, please contact Stephen McGoldrick at stephen.mcgoldrick@umb.edu.
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The Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center for Public Management
John W. McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies
100 Morrissey Boulevard
Boston, MA 02125
Phone: 617.287.4824
FAX: 617.287.5566
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Volume 5, Issue 6
December 2013
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Collins Center in the News
Orange Looks to Benefits From Data-gathering
The Recorder,
December 15, 2013
Medway Board Begins Search For Next Town Administrator
Milford Daily News,
December 14, 2013
Sharon Selectmen May Hire Search Firm
Sharon Advocate - Wicked Local,
December 11, 2013
Selectmen to Interview Carver Town Administrator Finalists
Wicked Local Carver,
December 09, 2013
Council Hears Final Report on Parks and Recreation
Jamestown Press,
December 5, 2013
Cohasset Selectman Name Three Finalists for Town Manager
Cohasset Mariner - Wicked Local,
November 27, 2013
Carver Voters Overwhelmingly Approve Construction of New Central Fire Station
Wicked Local Carver,
November 17, 2013
Saugus Hires DPW Director
Itemlive.com,
November 14, 2013
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About Ed Collins
Throughout his outstanding public career, Edward J. Collins, Jr. epitomized the spirit and goals of the center that now bears his name. We at the Collins Center are proud to continue Ed's legacy - helping governments work effectively and productively for the benefit of their citizens.
More about Ed Collins
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