Boston Higher Education Resource Center (website)
Samuel Acevedo, Esq., Executive Director

The mission of the Boston Higher Education Resource Center is to provide disadvantaged youth, adults, and their families with the tools necessary to overcome the barriers to higher or other education and employment.

Programs include: “Keys 2 College” one-on-one college and financial aid counseling; “Let’s Get Ready!” a free nine-week SAT, MCAS, and college counseling/preparation program for high school students ages 15-18 years; “The Mentor Program”, which pairs college/graduate students with at-risk middle and high school youth for a minimum of one school year; and “Passport,” a comprehensive two-year college preparatory initiative that supports at-risk/low-income high school juniors and seniors. We also offer Adult English-as-a-Second Language (ESL) and Computer Literacy classes and have a Computer Lab available to the community.

Children's Services of Roxbury (website)
Pamela Ogletree, President & CEO

Children’ Services of Roxbury’s mission statement reflects its commitment to building healthy communities and families: “We strive to provide high quality services to economically disadvantaged infants, children, adolescents and their families, thereby promoting and strengthening family life and individual growth.” CSR’s 35-year history is rooted in community and diversity. Its predecessor agency was established in the early 1960’s to provide family and child welfare services to disenfranchised communities. On July 1, 2005 CSR merged with United Homes for Children, Inc., another child welfare agency with a strong record of service to disadvantaged minority families. This merger dramatically expanded CSR’s ability to reach families state-wide, while strengthening the agency’s administrative and financial capacity.

CSR currently provides a spectrum of community-based resources—ranging from transitional housing and support services to homeless families, preparing them to become self-sufficient, to child development programs that nurture and prepare children to succeed in kindergarten. CSR is known for its commitment to advancing practice through skillful use of collaboration with a variety of stakeholders at the community, regional and state levels. Recently, CSR’s capacity to coordinate a wide range of formal and informal community supports was demonstrated in the local response to Hurricane Katrina: CSR served as lead agency in a statewide effort to coordinate housing and services for more than 398 displaced families.

Since 1971, La Alianza Hispana has been an icon of Latino leadership and has served as a portal to hope for well over 30,000 Bostonians. La Alianza is a results-oriented organization strategically focused on family support services, elder care programming, and workforce development and education. People and families are at the heart of its work, and its impact is measured in the number of individuals and families who have: stabilized their lives, developed healthy parenting styles, are living independent, healthy lives, and have obtained sustainable employment.

Roxbury Youthworks, Inc. (website)
Mia Alvarado , Executive Director

RYI is a community-based nonprofit organization whose mission is to create healthy families and strong communities; to inspire young men and women to recognized and develop their strengths; and to prepare them to lead independent and self sufficient lives. We combat the roots of juvenile delinquency in the inner city neighborhoods of Boston by providing innovative support services to court involved and other youth up to 21 years of age.

RYI is one of the oldest minority-based non-profit organizations in the city of Boston. Conceptualized and then initiated by Justice Julian T. Houston in 1981, RYI’s primary focus was to help decrease recidivism among young men and women from the Roxbury District Court. Today RYI also provides community-based supports, positive alternatives, advocacy, and an array of social services to young people and their families. We partner with the Department of Social Services as both the Lead Area Agency for the Dimock Street Area Office and as a network provider; with the Department of Youth Services with our Community Re-Entry Centers; and with the Department of Mental Health with our Juvenile Court Clinics.

YouthBuild Boston (website)
Ken Smith, Executive Director

YouthBuild Boston (YBB) works with young adults in the Boston area to develop personal and career skills using innovative programs in the building trades, from design and construction to the green industry. YBB enhances the lives and skills of their students, encouraging them to work with integrity, confidence, discipline and aspiration. More than 800 graduates have been equipped with the professional skills and the tools necessary to lead successful lives and further their education.

While YBB promotes the core values of youth development and community service, it stands out as an innovative non-profit offering a hands-on approach to building trades training. Students are put on a career path through highly successful programs, from construction training to sustainable landscape design. Not only do these programs provide opportunities in vocational education, but also academic instruction, counseling and other life skills that readily strengthen and prepare students for the workforce upon graduation.

As a highly respected non-profit in Roxbury, Massachusetts founded in 1990, YBB teaches young adults the importance of serving the community. Each project has a service element, and YBB has completed more than 80 units of housing since its inception. YBB produces more than just skilled workers. It helps to transform youth into young adults who are able to think creatively and critically in order to serve their communities and themselves.

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