Boston College Neighborhood Center

Community Benefits

Boston College contributes greatly to our host communities of Boston and Newton through notable programs and events such as the Community Fund, the Scholarship Program, the Arts Festival, the Flynn Recreation Complex Summer Program, and the Boston College/Boston Public Schools Partnership Program. Many students, staff, and faculty are active volunteers in our neighboring communities. They contribute their time to a wide range of activities including education and literacy programs, youth sports, neighborhood development initiatives, and the arts.

St. Columbkille School

In 2006, Boston College, the Archdiocese of Boston and St. Columbkille Parish established a ground breaking partnership to preserve and strengthen Catholic, parish-based education for the children and parents of Allston-Brighton. This unique collaboration, the first between a Catholic university and a parochial school in the United States, draws on the rich resources of the Lynch School of Education at Boston College, best practices in American elementary education and the guidance of Catholic educational, social, and religious principles. In its first year, the partnership implemented new early childhood curriculum, offered teacher training and professional development programs, completed much-needed renovations to the physical plant, and examined both the financial and management structure of the school.

St. Columbkille Summer Camp

Since 2003, Boston College and St. Columbkille School have joined forces to offer a summer day camp that is truly a unique learning experience and tons of summer fun! Open to 120 campers from ages 3 to 14 residing in Allston-Brighton and beyond, the camp operates for nine, one-week sessions on the BC campus. In addition to classroom learning, activities include specialized on-campus informational tours of the BC bookstore, admissions, police department, museum and library, field trips to the science museum, the zoo and the aquarium, use of computer labs, the pool and other athletic facilities, a karate clinic, events with student athletes, and reading enrichment provided by the Storymobile.

Allston Main Streets and Brighton Main Streets
		Boston College administrators play active roles in the Allston and Brighton Main Streets Programs by serving on their respective boards and providing technical assistance as needed.

Allston/Brighton Scholarships
		Boston College annually awards qualified Allston/Brighton students with full tuition scholarships to BC. Furthermore, a number of permanent residents of Allston/Brighton may receive scholarships upon entrance to the College of Advancing Studies (Evening School).

Allston/Brighton Youth Hockey
		Each year Boston College makes ice time available to the Allston/Brighton Youth Hockey Program. The Office of Governmental and Community Affairs works closely with the youth hockey program and the Boston College Athletic Association in arranging dates and times for use of the hockey rink in Conte Forum.

Allston/Brighton YMCA
		Through the Office of Governmental & Community Affairs and the Neighborhood Center, Boston College assists the YMCA by providing student volunteers for a variety of projects and programs at the facility. As needed, Boston College also makes available its campus facilities for YMCA programming requests.

Arts Festival
		Every April, Boston College hosts its Annual Arts Festival. The entire community is invited to over 30 free events that include drama, dancing, symphonies, jazz, visual arts presentations and children's activities.

Athletic Tickets
		In conjunction with the Athletics Department, the Office of Governmental & Community Affairs provides fifty tickets to residents of Allston/Brighton to all home football, basketball and hockey games. Whenever possible, tickets are also donated to youth sports organizations and local community groups to support their charitable activities.

Allston/Brighton Boston College Community Fund
		Aiming to foster and maintain positive relationships with the Allston/Brighton community, the Community Fund provides financial support in the form of grants to community organizations involved in educational or beautification projects. During this most recent cycle, ten organizations received over $25,000 in grants, now with each grant being worth up to $3,000. Since its inception in 1995, the Community Fund has awarded over $650,000 in grants to nearly 100 Allston/Brighton organizations. More...

Boston College Neighborhood Center
		The Boston College Neighborhood Center opened its doors in January 1995 at its location on Washington Street in Brighton Center. The Neighborhood Center works in tandem with the Office of Governmental & Community Affairs to provide resources to Allston/Brighton residents and to cultivate partnerships with schools, non-profits and social service agencies in the neighborhood. Additionally, the Neighborhood Center fosters the Jesuit tradition of service by offering volunteer opportunities for the Boston College community through its volunteer programs which include tutoring and mentoring for children, teaching English to immigrants, and working alongside Allston/Brighton community members in service projects.

Boston Police Advisory Committee
		Bill Mills, the Director of Community Affairs at Boston College serves as a member of the Boston Police Department District 14 Advisory Board that meets to discuss police related matters impacting the Allston/Brighton neighborhoods.

Boston Police Department
		Boston College, through the Office of Governmental & Community Affairs, hires the Boston Police on a detail basis to patrol areas of Brighton where Boston College students reside. These patrols respond to party or noise complaints received through the 911 emergency line. The Boston Police patrols are also proactive in addressing situations before they become problems.

Circle K Club of Boston College
		Circle K is a service organization dedicated to community and campus involvement in and around the Boston College area. A majority of the service projects are aimed at improving the general well being of the residents and community of the Allston/Brighton neighborhood. About 35 Boston College students participate in projects ranging from Storycrafts at the Hamilton & Baldwin Schools, aimed at improving literacy; to soup kitchens at Brighton Congregational Church; to a bicycle and helmet safety program at various local schools arranged by the Boston College Neighborhood Center.

Commonwealth Tenants Association/Commonwealth Housing Development Initiatives

Boston College maintains a significant presence in the Commonwealth Housing Development (CHD). Each semester, at least fifty BC students spend after-school hours tutoring young residents of the Commonwealth Tenant Association. Additionally, BC's 4Boston Program coordinates the volunteer efforts of another twenty BC students for four hours per week at CHD. BC students frequently bring their mentees from CHD to the Flynn Recreation Complex and to BC football, basketball, and hockey games.

Employment
		Boston College currently employs more than 300 Allston/Brighton residents. Boston College has implemented a special employment policy which provides employment opportunities to Allston/Brighton residents.

Flynn Recreation Complex
		Five days per week during the summer, Boston College reserves thirty daily slots, for residents of Allston/Brighton to use the swimming pool and the equipment at the Flynn Recreation Complex at no charge. This program runs from early June through mid-August.

Food for Families
		The Office of Governmental & Community Affairs and the Neighborhood Center collaborate with the Commonwealth Tenants Association and the Boston Food Bank to feed needy families at the housing development. Volunteers from Boston College and Commonwealth Tenants meet at Commonwealth Tenants on the second Wednesday of every month to bag groceries from the Food Bank. The Tenants Organization distributes the 350 bags per month to families in need and the elderly.

HEAR-Helping Educate for Academic/Athletic Responsibility
		Boston College Student Athletes and their coaches have visited every Allston/Brighton public and parochial elementary and middle school at least once this past year. The Student Athletes speak to students about the value of academics and the importance of teamwork in everyday life. The Assistant Director for the Neighborhood Center visits regularly with the schools and presents free tickets for Boston College events.

Let's Get Ready! SAT Prep Program
		"Let's Get Ready!" is an intercollegiate network in Boston and the Northeast which offers almost forty free hours of SAT tutoring as well as fifteen hours of college search assistance. The program is run and taught by Boston College undergrads. BC Chronicle (See page four)

Mayor's Cup Hockey Tournament
		Each October, Boston College donates ice time to the City of Boston for the Mayor's Cup Hockey Tournament, which involves youngsters of all ages throughout the City of Boston to compete at the squirt, peewee, and bantam hockey levels.

Options Through Education
		For many years Boston College has provided incoming students, many of whom are disadvantaged Boston residents, the opportunity to get a head start on college prior to their freshman year. The program has been recognized by the Education Testing Service as a national model and boasts a "91%" retention rate for its students during their collegiate careers.

Step Up Initiative
		In conjunction with Boston University, Harvard University, Northeastern University and Tufts University, Boston College is collaborating on an exciting new partnership to bring a comprehensive set of learning support services to 10 Superintendent Schools in Boston. The Lynch School of Education is paired and working closely with the Winthrop Elementary School and Russell Elementary School located in Dorchester. major areas that have been identified by the Superintendent of Schools and where Boston College will be offering its resources include professional development and instructional support in English language learning, cultural competency, executive leadership coaching, training principals and teacher leaders on the use of data and its implications for evaluation and assessment. Press Release

Veronica Smith Senior Center
		Boston College works with the Veronica Smith Senior Center to provide health screenings and programming. The Men's Club from the Senior Center has attended events at Boston College and had a number of speakers from the University address the Club.

West End Boys and Girls Club
		Each semester, approximately 22 Boston College students volunteer at the West End House as part of the 4Boston Program coordinated by the Chaplain's Office. These students assist the West End House staff by tutoring and mentoring youngsters at the Club. Additionally, they coordinate the Homework Club and provide computer instruction. The former Executive Director of the club has estimated that this work saves the Club as much as $100,000 to $125,000 a year. Boston College has also worked with the West End House on physical upkeep of their building and computer consultation.

Read Aloud Program
		Boston College annually collaborates with Boston Partners in Education to participate in the Read Aloud program for two public schools in Brighton, the James Garfield and the Mary Lyon Elementary School. Since 2005, Boston College has introduced this program at the St. Columbkille School, also located in Brighton. Every Thursday, a team of approximately twenty volunteers comprised of faculty and staff members spend their lunch hour reading to children in each Kindergardern through 5th grade classroom at those three schools. The Office of Governmental and Community Affairs coordinates this program.

ReadBoston
		Boston College continues to be part of the ReadBoston effort and sends over 100 Boston College students to the Hamilton, Baldwin, and Gardner Schools to read aloud to students and also serve as tutors.

Boston College/Boston Public Schools Partnerships

Boston College is involved in a number of ongoing partnerships with the Boston Public Schools. These include student teaching and internship placements as well as portfolio assessment and professional development consultation. Over the years, hundreds of Boston College students have volunteered in the Boston Public Schools or with BPS students. Several exemplary partnership programs are listed below.

Boston College Collaborative with the Boston Public Schools 1973-Present
		The BCC has over 25 years experience working in school/college partnerships with the Boston Public Schools and numerous other schools/systems both locally and nationally. The BCC, in addition to the support by the University and the School of Education, has an annual budget of more than $350,000 from external sources of funding. The BCC is directed and coordinated by a full professor in Teacher Education and is assisted by a secretary and several graduate assistants. It draws upon the expertise of University faculty, staff, and students as well as classroom teachers and other school personnel in the implementation of its school/university partnership programs. The BCC, in concert with the Boston Public Schools, provides the following programs and services to assist in promoting educational excellence within its schools.

College Bound
		College Bound is a school/university academic enrichment and support program that benefits urban-based, economically disadvantaged students from Brighton and West Roxbury High Schools. The Program is a proactive, preventative one designed to help students gain access to, achieve competitive success in, and graduate from quality, four-year institutions of higher education in order to obtain careers of their choice. College Bound students represent a culturally diverse, coeducational group from all Boston neighborhoods.

Connect 5: An Allston/Brighton/Boston College Initiative
		To strengthen the potential of children and youth to succeed in school, the Allston/Brighton Cluster 5 schools, Boston College and community agencies are currently engaged in a two-year planning process to develop and enhance resources and services that support and accelerate learning for all children and youth.

Gardner Extended Services School
		The Thomas Gardner Elementary School is engaged in a transformation from a traditional school to an extended services school. In a school-community-university partnership involving Boston College, Allston-Brighton Family YMCA, and the Allston-Brighton Healthy Boston Coalition, the Gardner seeks to implement this unique project. The goal of the program is to enable students to become successful learners and productive citizens and to offer families opportunities for support and enrichment.

Jackson Mann Community Center
		Boston College students assist the staff at the Jackson Mann Community Center by working in the After School Program. Other Boston College students volunteer in the literacy program, the ESL program, and the City Roots alternative high school program. Additionally, the Director of Community Affairs is a member of its Board of Directors.

Juvenile Rights Advocacy Project
		Boston College operates a Juvenile Rights Advocacy Program at both the Thomas Gardner Elementary School in Brighton and Brighton High School. Boston College law students meet with the support services team at the Gardner School each week during the academic year. At Brighton High School, law students provide legal education and counseling services to students. The project takes an interdisciplinary approach to problem-solving by involving students from Boston College's schools of Education and Social Work.

The Massachusetts Coalition for Teacher Quality and Student Achievement
		This statewide initiative aims to enhance the preparation of new teachers with the skills and knowledge to excel in urban public schools. The Coalition's goals include (1) increased participation of arts and sciences faculty in teacher education to ensure that future urban teachers have deep understanding of content knowledge; (2) expansion of the school and community-based nature of teacher education so that future teachers are demonstrably able to teach effectively in urban schools; (3) organization of broad-based "communities of inquiry and practice" among school, university, business, and community stakeholders to inform our enhancement of teacher preparation; (4) improvement of instruction in literacy across the content areas both in teacher preparation programs and in our partnering public schools; and (5) recruitment of diverse teachers reflective of urban populations into the teaching force; and (6) conduction of research and informing public policy on issues of teacher quality.

Parent Information Center Support
		The BCC not only assists the Parent Information Centers in the Boston Public Schools with parent staffing, but also assists Level staff in coordinating activities and services needed to outreach to other parents and community organizations. Boston College has ongoing student teaching and internship programs with the Boston Public Schools. Students and student teachers are currently active at a number of local schools.

Professional Development
		At the Elementary Level a series of workshops are being coordinated for K-8 teachers and professional staff from across the schools.

Technical Assistance
		The BCC coordinates and provides specialized assistance to high schools in such areas as curriculum development and instruction, professional development, computer networking, grantsmanship, and in other areas of need within schools. In addition, BCC staff works with school personnel to prepare proposals and other design curriculum and staff development programs to better meet their individual needs.