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The Boston-area holiday pop-up bars, lounges to visit in 2023

Boston-area bars are bringing out the Christmas trees, menorahs and hot toddies for the holidays.

Food and Drink

John Walsh, 'godfather' of modern grassroots campaigns, dies at 65

Walsh died in hospice care Monday at age 65.

Politics

Celtics fans pay highest beer prices in NBA

News

Where to have a cozy fireside dinner in Boston

There's nothing quite as romantic as a fireside dinner.

Things to Do

How Massachusetts schools are responding to influx of migrants

Education officials tell Axios they have seen enrollment increase, in large part because of migrants.

Schools across Massachusetts have brought in social workers, upgraded technology and made other changes to anticipate the influx of migrant students this year.Driving the news: Education officials tell Axios they have seen enrollment increase in Brockton, Boston, Lynn and other cities even after the start of the school year, in large part because of recently arrived migrant families.

Photo illustration of a collage of a chalkboard, abstract scribbles and family holding hands.

New college admissions guidance for Massachusetts in post-affirmative action landscape

The guidance expands upon when and how race can be acknowledged.

Education

Massachusetts issued guidance today to help colleges and K-12 school leaders pursue racial diversity without affirmative action.Why it matters: Colleges in the state are entering their first admissions season since the Supreme Court struck down race-based admissions.

A young man and woman walking through a door at Harvard next to a sign saying Office of Admissions and Financial Aid 

Massachusetts is a hotbed of Nobel Prize winners

The state can claim winners of half the Nobel Prizes this year.

Massachusetts can claim winners of half the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Nobel Prizes" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/10/02/nobel-prize-medicine-covid-mrna-vaccine" data-vars-content-id="0d79b4a4-d6ae-42d5-a536-0b5166f851b6" data-vars-headline="Massachusetts is a hotbed of Nobel Prize winners" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/10/02/nobel-prize-medicine-covid-mrna-vaccine" target="_self">Nobel Prizes</a> this year, continuing its status as a breeding ground for Nobel recipients. Driving the news: Experts with Massachusetts ties won in three of the six categories that the Nobel Prize organization <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="recognizes" data-vars-click-url="https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/lists/all-nobel-prizes/" data-vars-content-id="0d79b4a4-d6ae-42d5-a536-0b5166f851b6" data-vars-headline="Massachusetts is a hotbed of Nobel Prize winners" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/lists/all-nobel-prizes/" target="_blank">recognizes</a>: physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, economics and peace.

Roxbury Community College opens a food pantry

It's an effort to address food insecurity.

Roxbury Community College&#x27;s new food pantry opens Tuesday for students and staff in an effort to address food insecurity. Why it matters: An estimated 37% of Massachusetts public college students lacked sufficient access to food in 2019, per a <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="report" data-vars-click-url="https://www.mass.edu/strategic/documents/2019%20HOPE%20Center%20MA%20Report.pdf" data-vars-content-id="d864e452-bca4-43a1-adf0-a40412cbeac9" data-vars-headline="Roxbury Community College opens a food pantry" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.mass.edu/strategic/documents/2019%20HOPE%20Center%20MA%20Report.pdf" target="_blank">report</a> from the Hope Center for College, Community and Justice at Temple University.

Boston startup hopes to remedy the nursing shortage with international students

InSpring plans to admit 20-30 international students into its first cohort this winter.

Business

While hospitals struggle with <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="nursing shortages" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/05/01/nursing-shortages-survey-amn-hospitals" data-vars-content-id="dbd9a459-f53c-409f-883f-86edf275821f" data-vars-headline="Boston startup hopes to remedy the nursing shortage with international students" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/05/01/nursing-shortages-survey-amn-hospitals" target="_self">nursing shortages</a>, a Massachusetts startup is preparing to train hundreds of foreign-born students to fill those roles.Driving the news: Boston-based InSpring plans to admit its first cohort of 20-30 international students with bachelor&#x27;s degrees in the U.S. and other countries this winter, co-founder and CEO Chris Hoehn-Saric tells Axios.

Illustration of a caduceus wearing a graduation cap.

Boston colleges lack economic diversity, according to Times report

The top schools for Pell Grant recipients aren't in the metro area.

The Massachusetts colleges with the most economic diversity are nowhere near Boston.<ul><li>That&#x27;s according to the latest <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="College-Access Index" data-vars-click-url="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/09/07/magazine/college-access-index.html?partner=slack&amp;smid=sl-share" data-vars-content-id="451ef66f-4ffd-45c6-9231-2e88f52cf64a" data-vars-headline="Boston colleges lack economic diversity, according to Times report" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/09/07/magazine/college-access-index.html?partner=slack&amp;smid=sl-share" target="_blank">College-Access Index</a> published by the New York Times. The index measures the share of freshmen receiving federal Pell Grants, which are awarded to low-income students.</li></ul>

CIC, C10 Labs launch an AI hub in Kendall Square

C10 Labs and CIC want to make Kendall Square a global AI hub.

The creators of a new venture studio in Kendall Square aim to make Massachusetts the global center of the AI industry.Driving the news: CIC, which operates &quot;innovation campuses&quot; worldwide, partnered with C10 Labs, an MIT Media Lab spinout, to launch an AI venture studio space.

YMCA apprenticeship aims to tackle child care staffing shortage

The Y couldn't find child care workers. So it started training its own.

Like other organizations in Massachusetts, the YMCA of Greater Boston struggled to recruit more <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="early childhood educators" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/boston/2023/06/22/child-care-costs-massachusetts" data-vars-content-id="f5084193-f1f5-4543-aad2-2d82ea18933c" data-vars-headline="YMCA apprenticeship aims to tackle child care staffing shortage" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/boston/2023/06/22/child-care-costs-massachusetts" target="_self">early childhood educators</a>.<ul><li>So the nonprofit built an apprenticeship program to train aspiring teachers and pay them while they’re learning.</li></ul>

Illustration of an exclamation mark on a child play mat.

Undocumented students can now get in-state tuition in Massachusetts

Colleges are moving forward with implementation of the law that took effect this summer.

More than 11,000 undocumented students now qualify for in-state tuition and state financial aid at Massachusetts colleges as schools start to implement the new policy.Why it matters: The <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="law that passed this summer" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/boston/2023/07/31/massachusetts-state-budget" data-vars-content-id="1de610a6-fb19-41d2-b303-7b0bcf22b241" data-vars-headline="Undocumented students can now get in-state tuition in Massachusetts" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/boston/2023/07/31/massachusetts-state-budget" target="_self">law that passed this summer</a> makes higher education more accessible to undocumented people who have grown up in Massachusetts.

Illustration of a graduation cap with a sales tag on the tassel

Massachusetts lawmakers consider cutting religious vaccine exemption for students

The Public Health Committee meets Wednesday.

Beacon Hill is wading into the tumultuous territory of school vaccine requirements as lawmakers vet proposals to tighten school precautions against future outbreaks.Driving the news: The Public Health Committee <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="meets Wednesday" data-vars-click-url="https://malegislature.gov/Events/Hearings/Detail/4600" data-vars-content-id="e919b058-e3d8-485d-975f-514b2f5de587" data-vars-headline="Massachusetts lawmakers consider cutting religious vaccine exemption for students" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://malegislature.gov/Events/Hearings/Detail/4600" target="_blank">meets Wednesday</a> to consider a handful of vaccine bills, including legislation to completely eliminate the state&#x27;s religious exemption option and to standardize the student vaccine exemption system.

Boston college tuition cost ranked one of the highest in U.S.

Boston's one of the costliest cities in the US for a degree

Boston is not only one of the biggest college towns in the country, but it also has the second-costliest average tuition.Why it matters: The rising cost of higher education affects thousands of Boston-area college students years after they graduate, especially those who will soon see federal <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="student loan payments" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2023/06/29/student-loan-payments-washington" data-vars-content-id="fae94ca2-b8a3-4d44-bbfa-ad6acb97a441" data-vars-headline="Boston college tuition cost ranked one of the highest in U.S." data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2023/06/29/student-loan-payments-washington" target="_self">student loan payments</a> resume next month.