Community Partnerships

Collaborative. Innovative. Focused on Youth.

Throughout our history, BGCB has leveraged the expertise and resources of other organizations to broaden our reach and deepen our impact. Our reputation for exceptional program delivery has, in turn, made us a sought-after partner for organizations seeking to provide beneficial programs or services to children and teens.

BGCB's partnerships, listed below, play a vital role in serving members, in leveraging resources for maximum impact, and in helping us develop effective citizens and leaders among the youth whom we serve.

Commonwealth Compact

Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston is proud to be a founding signer of the Commonwealth Compact, formally launched on May 23, 2008. Commonwealth Compact is an initiative to make Massachusetts a location of choice for people of color via a strategic, positive, and multi-pronged approach to promoting workforce diversity.  Its mission is to establish Massachusetts as a uniquely inclusive, honest, and supportive community of — and for — diverse people, to acknowledge our mixed history in this effort, and to face squarely the challenges that still need to be overcome, understanding that the rich promise of the region’s growing diversity must be tapped fully if Boston and Massachusetts are to achieve their economic, civic, and social potential. To learn more about this important initiative, click here.

Camp Harbor View Foundation, Inc.

The Harbor View Foundation is a not-for-profit corporation established in 2007 for the purpose of creating Camp Harbor View, a summer day camp located on Long Island in Boston Harbor. Led by BGCB Senior Advisory Board member Jack Connors, the Foundation created the camp in partnership with Mayor Menino and the City of Boston, and Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston was selected to manage the camp. To learn more about Camp Harbor View, click here.

Boston Police Department

Youth Service Providers Network (YSPN) is an innovative BGCB program that works in partnership with the Boston Police Department to place Masters-level licensed social workers at police stations. These clinical social workers and their clinical supervisors provide prevention and intervention services to disadvantaged, high-risk urban youth and their families who are referred by police officers. Additionally, when there is an incidence of community violence, YSPN provides critical incident trauma services to individuals, groups and the community. Since its inception in 1996, YSPN has served more than 2,400 youth (80% between the ages of 13 and 21) from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. YSPN has gained a reputation, locally and nationally, as an innovative model for effectively addressing the complex needs of at-risk youth.

Boston Public Schools - School-Based Clubs

BGCB provides a safe, nurturing and challenging Club environment within school buildings to reach more children who need us. We help youth develop the skills necessary to become competent and capable leaders by combining diverse after-school activities, including the arts and physical activities, with an emphasis on academics. These School-Based Clubs, which serve nearly 400 elementary and middle school-aged children annually, are located at the Condon Elementary School, South Boston; Dearborn Middle School, Roxbury; Mattahunt Elementary School, Mattapan; and Charles Sumner Elementary School, Roslindale.

MIT Media Lab - Lifelong Kindergarten Group

BGCB's long-standing partnership with the MIT Media Laboratory, which extends beyond its involvement in the Computer Clubhouse, has enabled thousands of young people to utilize technology in more complex and meaningful ways. The goal of the Lifelong Kindergarten group, located within the MIT Media Laboratory, is for all children from all backgrounds, to grow up knowing how to express themselves through a process of designing, creating, experimenting, and exploring. Through the partnership, BGCB receives software donations for our Clubs, software training for staff, and curriculum guidance from MIT faculty, keeping our technology programs on the cutting edge. Our members are often involved in "piloting software," providing feedback on new, innovative technologies that MIT designs for young users. Many of these educational software products build on young people's interest in art and music, while bringing science, math, and engineering into their artistic exploration. In addition, MIT staff members volunteer as mentors throughout our program year, and play an essential role in planning and implementing BGCB's annual CyberSummit, a two-day technology showcase that encourages teamwork, creativity and technical savvy.

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA)

Through the MFA's Community Arts Initiative, a team of MFA staff works directly with BGCB staff and with our members (ages 9-13) to help them create their own artwork and to develop appreciation for works of art and the artists who create them. This program effectively makes the Museum's vast collection a centerpiece for learning and community participation in the arts, generating a great deal of excitement for our members. The program, which is implemented at our five Clubs and at the MFA, focuses on one medium each year to bring art into the lives of Club members and personalize the museum-going experience for them. It helps to develop visual-thinking skills, expressive abilities, cultural sensitivity and collaborative capacity of all its participants. It informs and inspires BGCB members about the world of professional artists and museums, and about the value of their own skills and creativity. For more information about the MFA, visit www.mfa.org.

Museum of Science - Intel Computer Clubhouse Network

BGCB is actively engaged in the Computer Clubhouse Network- now numbering 100 Clubhouses around the world - in partnership with the Museum of Science and the MIT Media Laboratory. Through this partnership, BGCB operates a Computer Clubhouse in each of our five Clubs. Established in 1993, the Computer Clubhouses help youth (ages 10-18) acquire the technology skills necessary for personal and professional success. At BGCB's Clubs since 1998, they provide a creative and safe after-school learning environment where young people from under-served communities work with adult mentors to explore their own ideas, develop skills, and build confidence through the use of technology. By creating their own animations, interactive stories, music videos, and robotic constructions, members become more capable, confident, and creative learners. For more information, visit www.computerclubhouse.org.

Greater Boston Food Bank - Kids Café

BGCB partners with The Greater Boston Food Bank to provide well-balanced, nutritious meals and related educational activities to Club members through The Greater Boston Food Bank's Kids Cafe® program. Kids Cafe is the nation’s largest charitable meal service of its kind. America’s Second Harvest food banks operate nearly 1,000 Kids Cafes in more than 50 U.S. cities. They are located in safe, convenient environments, and most of the children arrive by bike or on foot with friends.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston’s first Kids Cafe opened at the Jordan Club in Chelsea in 2003, followed by the Blue Hill Club in 2006, and the Yawkey Club of Roxbury in 2007. We currently serve approximately 2,500 meals each week, and our long-term goal is to serve nutritious meals at all BGCB Club locations. The New England Patriots Charitable Foundation sponsors the Kids Cafe program at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston.

The Greater Boston Food Bank provides food, food-safety training and nutrition education. BGCB provide the staff to prepare and serve the meals.

Kids Cafe is a registered trademark of America's Second Harvest and is used under license. For more information about The Greater Boston Food Bank, please visit their web site at www.gbfb.org.


Boston Center for Community & Justice (BCCJ)

BCCJ is dedicated to advancing social justice in Greater Boston by empowering and training leaders of all ages to engage in civic action and transform their communities. In 2006, BGCB partnered with BCCJ on a new initiative for BGCB Club members, a leadership retreat called Club Remix. The program is designed to unite and engage youth from a variety of neighborhoods across the city through a deep and shared understanding of the power of stereotypes. The retreat created awareness of the impact of stereotypes on teen health concerns such as suicide, STDs, and violence, and empowered them to take action on these issues back at their Clubs. The 41 teens who participated are diverse in many ways: culture, race, family situations, religion, national origin, interests, sexual orientation, court involvement, and disability. Staff was similarly diverse, and formed a strong team that was able to both challenge and support youth in these complex, emotional matters. For more information, visit www.bostonccj.org.

Collaborators

Achieve Boston

Agassiz Village

Appalachian Mountain Club

Babson College

Berklee College of Music

Big Apple Circus

Big Brother Association

Big Sister Association

Boston Centers for Youth & Families (BCYF)

Boston Children's Museum

Boston Hope

Boston Police Athletic League

Boston University, School of Visual Arts

Bright Horizons

Charlestown Substance Abuse Coalition

Charlestown Working Theater

Children's Hospital Boston

Chill Program

City Year

Codman Square Health Center

Community Service Department

Courageous Sailing

Cushing House

Gavin Foundation

Generations Incorporated

Greater Love Tabernacle

Harvard School of Public Health

Harvard University, African American Alumni

Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA)

Junior Achievement

Junior League of Boston

Lena Park

Massachusetts Golf Association

Mattahunt Community Center

Metro Lacrosse

MGH/Charlestown Health Center

MIT Girls Only Tech.

New England Aquarium

The Ocean in Our Backyard

Outdoor Explorations

Piers Park Sailing Center

Pine Manor College

Read Boston

Roxbury Comprehensive Health Center

Roxbury Youth Work

Save the Harbor/Save the Bay

Share Our Strength

Simmons Graduate School of Social Work

South Boston Community Health Center

South Boston Summer Collaborative

Sportsmen's Tennis Center

Strong Women Strong Girls

Suffolk Country Sheriff's Department

Technology Goes Home

University of Massachusetts

Urban Dreams

Veteran Benefits Clearing House,

HIV Program

Whittier Street Health Center

Young Achievers

Youth on the Move in Roxbury