Local News

Wu to deliver first-ever ‘State of the Schools’ address

In place of an annual speech to Boston's business community, Mayor Michelle Wu will deliver an address at the Josiah Quincy Upper School in Chinatown later this month.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and Superintendent Mary Skipper read to a class of second graders in Mattapan in September. Jessica Rinaldi/Boston Globe

By Ross Cristantiello

October 17, 2025

2 minutes to read

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu is planning to deliver the first ever “State of the Schools” address later this month, she announced.

Wu will deliver her speech at the Josiah Quincy Upper School in Chinatown on Tuesday, Oct. 28 from 7 to 8 p.m., the mayor’s office said in a release. It will be streamed on the city’s website.

During an interview Wednesday on the “Java with Jimmy” program, Wu elaborated on her thinking. Traditionally, many of the annual major speeches by Boston’s mayor have focused on the business community, she said. The idea for a speech focused entirely on the city’s school system is meant to take the place, at least for this year, of the mayoral speech at the Boston Municipal Research Bureau’s annual lunch.

Wu declined to speak at the lunch this year, breaking with tradition. In her interview Wednesday, Wu said this move was because the bureau spread “misinformation” about the city’s finances. Her animosity towards the group appears to revolve around her attempts to temporarily shift the city’s property tax burden onto commercial taxpayers. The bureau and its interim president Marty Walz have been major voices arguing against the plan, which Wu has yet to successfully push through the state Legislature.

“In place of that address, I really wanted to make sure that we were putting a focus on where our investments just can change the whole world and our future. That is in our young people, our families, our public schools, public education,” Wu told host Jimmy Hills.

Wu, a Boston Public Schools mother herself, campaigned on the promise of improving the BPS system. She is overseeing efforts to close and merge multiple schools, which Wu says is necessary because of decreasing enrollment and the fact that many BPS buildings need serious upgrades.

One of the major stumbling blocks during Wu’s first term revolved around the abandoned plan to move the John D. O’Bryant School of Mathematics and Science to West Roxbury. The mayor walked away from her plan after months of fierce pushback from students, teachers, parents, and elected officials.

Josh Kraft, Wu’s mayoral opponent until he left the race, sought to capitalize on discontent with the BPS system by highlighting topics like Wu’s opposition to an elected school committee, and problems with the BPS transportation system. Wu ultimately trounced Kraft in the preliminary election last month, leading him to drop out.

“Our mission is to make Boston Public Schools the first choice for families. The country’s oldest public school system should be the best, and our city has the resources and vision to make it happen,” Wu said in a statement. “I look forward to delivering this first ever State of the Schools address to showcase the work of our school communities and invite our entire city in pushing forward progress for our young people and families.”