Chelsea

For twenty years, the percentage of English language learners in Massachusetts’ public schools has been steadily climbing. Urban districts are accustomed to serving large immigrant populations. But district leaders are appealing to Beacon Hill in the 11th hour for major assistance.

The Island End River cuts inland right at the line between Chelsea and Everett, following the municipal border for its 2,500-foot length.

For Boston’s communities of color, the redistricting process for the Massachusetts House and Senate offers a chance to advocate for better representation. Under maps expected to be approved Wednesday, the state Legislature would add 13 new majority-minority districts — districts in which the larger share of population is not white — in the House and three new ones in the Senate, resulting in a total of 33 House districts and six Senate districts that are majority-minority.

This month, Apollinaire Theatre Company presents “Romeo and Juliet” like Greater Boston has never seen it before. In collaboration with Teatro Chelsea and the City of Chelsea Department of Housing and Community Development, the company will stage an immersive, outdoor, bilingual adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic love story.

U.S. Representative Ayanna Pressley is fighting for funding for local community projects to help residents recover from several of last year’s hardships. If she is successful, hundreds of thousands of dollars will go to programs at the Dimock Center, La Colaborativa in Chelsea and the mayor’s tuition-free college program, as well as several others across the Massachusetts 7th district.

In the city of Chelsea, once considered the epicenter of the coronavirus crisis in Massachusetts, residents have new hope, with a new vaccination site located downtown now available to residents.