Cambridge native Matt Damon just endorsed scrapping the MCAS grad requirement. Here’s what he said

by John L. Micek 31 October 2024

In case you were wondering, Matt Damon, actor, philanthropist, and Bay State native, is officially a “yes” on Question 2.

That’s the fall ballot question that would scrap the 10th-grade MCAS exam as a high school graduation requirement and allow school districts to institute their own graduation standards. The districts would still administer the tests.

Damon made his endorsement on behalf of the Yes on 2 campaign, which is backed by the Massachusetts Teachers Association and others.

The video was posted Wednesday across the coalition’s social media channels, including X, Facebook, and Instagram

In the selfie-style video, the “Bourne” franchise star offered two, big arguments for voting “yes” on the ballot question.

First, "We need to trust our teachers, not some one-size-fits-all test. Our teachers use multiple forms of assessment to determine whether or not a student deserves a diploma or not," Damon, who graduated from Cambridge’s Rindge and Latin School, said. “So let’s put the power back in their hands to make that determination.”

Second, “High stakes testing in general tends to narrow the curriculum so that teachers are teaching to the test,” Damon, whose mother was a Lesley University professor, continued.

“What this means is we’re compromising time spent teaching very important skills like critical thinking, collaboration, problem-solving, creativity, things like the arts,” he said.

The actor concluded by saying he wanted to clear up "some misinformation ... about what a ‘Yes’ vote would do."

He noted that school districts would continue to administer the exam, but they would “use it for what it is intended for, which is a diagnostic tool for teachers to support their students, to understand where they need support.”

The video also resurfaces arguments made by “yes” supporters, who have pointed out that the MCAS graduation requirement disproportionately impacts lower-income communities and English language learners.

A slender majority of respondents (51%) to a WBUR/CommonWealth Beacon poll last month said they supported ending the MCAS graduation requirement, compared to 34% who opposed it. Fifteen percent of respondents said they were undecided.

While Damon’s endorsement has lent some star power to the well-funded “Yes on 2″ campaign, its opponents also have been spending heavily to defeat it.

Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg donated $2.5 million to the “No on 2″ campaign, state records showed.

Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey also has come out in support of keeping the graduation requirement.