Leverett Wing, Author at MassINC

Leverett Wing President and CEO, Commonwealth Seminar

Leverett Wing is the Executive Director of the Commonwealth Seminar, a 20-year-old non-partisan, civic education, training, and networking program with a mission of “Opening the Doors of Government to Everyone”. Prior to leading the Seminar, Leverett directed the Community Services Division, at the MA Department of Housing & Community Development overseeing a staff of 50+ and a budget of over $200 million. Leverett was also the Executive Director Asian & Pacific Islander American Vote (APIAVote), a national, D.C. based organization focused on civic engagement & participation in the country’s AAPI community.

Leverett sits on Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center’s Leadership Board where he Chairs the board’s Diversity Outreach Committee as well as the Board of Trustees at Joslin Diabetes Center for which he Chairs its Governance & Nominating Committee and helped create Joslin’s groundbreaking Asian American Diabetes Initiative.

He recently, joined the Board of Directors of Meet Boston, joining his work on the Board of Directors of Higher Ground Boston, the Board of Advisors at Eastern Bank, the Boston Children’s Museum’s President’s Council, the Board of Advisors of Boston Harbor Now and the Board of Advisors of ‘GBH-TV/Radio where he founded the station’s annual AAPI Heritage Month event in 2007.

He has written numerous op-ed pieces for the Boston Globe, the Boston Herald and the Boston Business Journal, been a featured guest on Boston’s NBC, CBS, PBS and ABC television affiliates, and has served on the Transition Teams for both former Governor Deval Patrick and current State Treasurer Deborah Goldberg as they prepared to take office.

Among his many honors, Leverett has been recognized as one of Get Konnected’s “One Hundred Most Influential People of Color” in Boston, honored as one of the Asian Hustle Network’s 50 National Unsung Heroes in 2023, and was a recipient of the prestigious ”Good Guy Award” from the MA Women’s Political Caucus, only the second Asian American to receive the award in its history.

Leverett is a graduate of Tufts University and Harvard University’s Kenendy School of Government and lives in Boston with his family.

Explore research reports

MassINC is a key partner to the Boston Foundation, and all of us who are seeking to advance the regional conversation around economic opportunity and a strong quality of life for all. MassINC's robust, nonpartisan research is exactly what our citizens and leaders need to make good decisions.

Paul Grogan, Former President of The Boston Foundation
I watch my inbox for CommonWealth magazine’s Daily Download. I can count on the newsletter to tell me succinctly what’s happening in politics and public policy. The magazine itself always delivers in-depth news, analysis and commentary. It's simply outstanding, quality journalism. I am happy to support unbiased reporting through my participation in Citizens Circle.

Helen Chin Schlichte Former Public Administrator; President Emeritus, South Cove Manor at Quincy Point
MassINC's long-term dedication to Gateway Cities makes them a valuable resource to all of our communities. They are a true thought partner. They go the distance to help others appreciate our unique opportunities, needs, and perspectives.

Tim McGourthy Chief Financial Officer, City of Worcester
MassINC serves as a credible, thoughtful resource for all of us who are invested in the future of the Commonwealth. Its emphasis on careful analysis that is grounded in data, research, and polling makes an important contribution to and helps elevate the conversation about the challenges and opportunities facing the region.

Trevor Pollack, Manager of Special Projects for the Barr Foundation
The potential of Massachusetts’ Gateway Cities is limitless. MassINC’s dedicated work in promoting these cities has been, and will continue to be, instrumental in their individual and collective success.

Jay Ash
Massachusetts Secretary of Housing and Economic Development and former chair of the Gateway Cities Innovation Institute
MassINC has always provided research showing the detrimental impact of the state’s unforgiving criminal justice system on our communities. Their polling confirmed that the public understood the need for change in our system. That criminal justice reform is at the forefront of bipartisan local and national debates today is in no small measure due to MassINC’s persistent and fair commitment to the issue.

Juliette Kayyem Faculty Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, Founder Kayyem Solutions LLC
Through my partnership with MassINC, the Building On What Works Coalition is working to unite a diverse collection of civic leaders around an urgent call to encourage the state to act on the progress that has been made ensuring all children in Massachusetts have a true chance to succeed in the state’s economy. MassINC’s research and commitment to data driven public policy are helping to give the children of Massachusetts a better education.

Kim Driscoll Mayor of Salem
MassINC's work with the Gateway Cities is unmatched. As Eastern Bank strives to help businesses in these communities thrive, MassINC has been a tremendous partner, providing data-driven research and affirming that these cities are full of opportunities.

Bob Rivers Chairman and CEO of Eastern Bank
When MassINC speaks, it’s well worth listening. After all, the nonpartisan think tank has established itself as a thoughtful, careful, credible voice on public policy in Massachusetts.

Scot Lehigh Boston Globe Op-Ed Columnist
Few organizations in the country have better understood the important role of governance reform and accountability in education policy and economic development than MassINC.

Bruce Katz Former Vice President and Founding Director of the Metropolitan Policy Program at The Brookings Institution
[MassINC's] understanding of the complexity of the challenges facing the state’s older cities, its belief in the opportunities that present themselves in those communities, and its advocacy of the role that public higher education can and should play in them, has added to the understanding that policy makers need to have as they move our state toward the future.

Jean MacCormack

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