Linda Plaut Festival accepting grant applications
Are you artistic? Talented? Eager to share your creativity with your community? This one's for you. The new Linda Plaut Festival of the Arts grant [...]
Planning Department cuts size of proposed pilot plaza in half
Mayor Ruthanne Fuller and the Planning Department have made some changes to what was a controversial plan to put a public plaza in part of [...]
Parents open up about effects of multilevel learning
In 2021, Newton Public Schools instituted multilevel classrooms at the district's two high schools. Instead of having different classes for each course level, students of [...]
Alicia Piedalue promotes differential learning in campaign for School Committee seat
The following story first appeared on The Heights, an independent, nonprofit newspaper run by Boston College students, with which the Newton Beacon has formed a partnership. Stories [...]
Not Yolking Around: Egg shortages and price hikes not going over easy for Newton restaurants
“When life gives you eggs, make an omelet,” so they say. But what do you do when you can’t find any eggs? Or when they [...]
Newton has a bunch of events to get you through the rest of the frosty season
It’s still cold, but that doesn’t mean you need to stay cooped up in the house. There are a ton of great events in Newton [...]
Trump administration halts funding to special education transition program Newton had just joined
Last week, school districts elsewhere in the country reported receiving notices in that the U.S. Department of Education had shut off funding for Charting My [...]
He felt God call him to come out. Now, he helps Black churches help others to do the same
The following story first appeared on The Heights, an independent, nonprofit newspaper run by Boston College students, with which the Newton Beacon has formed a partnership. Stories [...]
Five things to do in Newton this weekend
We're in for a heatwave this weekend, so to speak—temperatures are expected to reach the upper 30s—and after the week we've had, that's reason enough [...]
Years in the making: City Council approves new city seal design
After lengthy debate Tuesday night, Newton’s City Council approved the city’s new seal design. The vote was relatively narrow, with 13 voting in favor and [...]
City Councilor Andreae Downs not seeking reelection
In the latest Election 2025 bombshell, Ward 5 City Councilor-At-Large Andreae Downs has announced she will not seek reelection this year. "Being a city councilor [...]
New study shows housing discrimination in MetroWest communities
Editor's note: Newton Fair Housing Committee Chair Esther Schlorholtz, quoted in this story, is the wife of Newton Beacon Board of Directors member Joe Hunter. [...]
Newton Career and Technical Education helps students build their dreams
In a drafting and design classroom at Newton North High School on a cloudy Thursday afternoon, a student named Hayden Hannon shows a computer image [...]
School Committee approves competency determination requirements
The school committee recently approved new Competency Determination (CD) requirements for the high school classes of 2025 and 2026. Initially, students had to pass the [...]
Newton North emphasizes the ‘Power of Passion’ in TEDx event
The following story first appeared on The Heights, an independent, nonprofit newspaper run by Boston College students, with which the Newton Beacon has formed a partnership. Stories [...]
Newsmakers: Jazz, theatre and an Aquarium board seat
Editor’s note: Newsmakers is a regular feature spotlighting accomplishments of Newton community members, businesses and organizations. Newton South Jazz Ensemble director wins big honor Lisa [...]
Home burglaries and hate crimes spiked dramatically in Newton in 2024
Last year, Newton saw huge increases in the number home burglaries and hate crimes reported. Mayor Ruthanne Fuller gave a rundown of criminal statistics from [...]
Authors Phoebe Sinclair and Lisa Stringfellow talk writing at Newtonville Books
Phoebe Sinclair perused the shelves for a children’s book she’d heard about. Lisa Stringfellow did likewise. The two authors, who were at Newtonville Books to [...]
Retired Newton teacher Kemp Harris has recorded his fourth album
Kemp Harris, a retired Newton Public Schools teacher, has recently recorded an album, "The American Chronicles," and he's accepting donations to help him release it [...]
Work begins on Albemarle Field stormwater filtration system
The city broke ground Thursday on a massive stormwater filtration system that's going under Albemarle Field along Cheesecake Brook. The project will install an infiltration [...]