Boston programs

Each year the Office of Government and Community Programs lends its support and guidance to the student organized activity, Youth Day. Youth Day 2001 was the pinnacle event of the work Harvard School of Public Health students have done with area middle school-aged students throughout the academic year. The student organization, Diaspora, invite Mission Hill School students to the School of Public Health for a day-long series of workshops and fun activities focusing on a variety of public health issues.

The Abigail Adams Society was originally formed—albeit under a different name—by a group of conservative-leaning women at Harvard who felt that they had no forum in which to freely discuss their views on work, family, and the ever-precarious balance that professional women must strike between the two. They further hoped that the Forum would serve as a voice for women who felt alienated by modern mainstream feminism.

Every spring, the Harvard Kennedy School Student Public Service Collaborative encourages high school students to explore the merits of public service. Its one-day Public Service Conference, held at the Kennedy School since 1993, engages some 50 to 60 students from the Academy of Public Service High School at the Dorchester Education Complex. This year, the Conference will be opened to students from several public schools that are focused on different forms of public service.

The Achievement Gap Initiative (AGI) is a university-wide effort initiated by the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) to focus academic research, public education, and innovative outreach activities toward eliminating achievement gaps. Major funding is provided by Time Warner Inc., with additional support from the Spencer Foundation and the Murphy Innovation Fund. The HGSE provides important core support. The Scholars affiliated with the AGI represent a cross section of academic disciplines--Education, Economics, Public and Social Policy, Sociology and Law.

Every child should get to open a new toy at the holidays; Harvard Business School students hold a fundraiser every November to raise money for toys for local families, hopefully brightening the holiday season for less privileged children in the community.

PBHA’s AHEAD is a tutoring program working to teach and build relationships with the youth of R.W. Emerson School in Roxbury. Our aim is to help disadvantaged children use their academic and personal strengths to succeed academically and personally. There are two parts to the afterschool program: homework tutorial and AHEAD-coordinated educational games and lessons. AHEAD serves 20 Cape Verdean, African-American, and Latino students ages 5-12 (kindergarten-5th grade).

Named for the first Black woman to graduate from Radcliffe College, the Alberta V. Scott (AVS) Leadership Academy gives participating 9th, 10th and 11th grade girls the opportunity to cultivate leadership skills and individual creativity through semester-long projects. Each girl, or scholar, is assigned a mentor, and mentors and scholars participate in weekly discussions on topics ranging from maintaining physical and emotional health to setting and achieving goals.

Every autumn, Harvard welcomes Allston-Brighton and Cambridge families to one of the season’s Crimson football games, providing complimentary tickets and playing host with a free pre-game lunch. It’s a great opportunity for Harvard to host its neighbors, young and old alike, while Allston-Brighton and Cambridge residents get a chance to visit campus and spend an exciting fall afternoon cheering on the local team.

The Allston-Brighton Community Scholarships cover tuition for any Harvard Extension School course taken for noncredit, undergraduate, or graduate credit by residents of Allston and Brighton. Ten scholars are chosen each term by the Allston Civic Association. To date, Harvard has provided 73 Allston-Brighton community scholarships.

It’s been an annual event for nearly two decades. Allston-Brighton youngsters and their families lace up their skates and take to the ice at the Bright Hockey Center—home to the Harvard men’s and women’s ice hockey teams—for the popular Allston-Brighton Community Skating Party. As boys and girls enjoy a spin on the Crimson ice, some may race and some may glide leisurely, but everyone has fun.

The Allston-Brighton English Language Scholarships cover full tuition for one course in the Institute for English Language Programs (IEL). Fifteen residents of Allston-Brighton are selected each term. For information about this scholarship, call the Honan Library, the Allston branch of the Boston Public Library, (617) 787-6313.

Annual support for local Little League

Allston-Brighton Little Leaguers participate in an annual clinic at Harvard conducted by the Varsity baseball coach and players.

Harvard provides complimentary game tickets to athletic events for community youth groups and hosts a variety of special family events for Allston-Brighton residents, including the following: Allston-Brighton Day at Harvard Football For a select Harvard football game each year, Harvard hosts a pre-game lunch and provides complimentary tickets to Allston-Brighton residents. Allston-Brighton Youth Hockey Clinic For over 12 years, Harvard hockey coaches and players conduct an annual clinic for the Allston-Brighton Youth Hockey League.

Every summer, more than 1,000 motivated high school students from the United States and abroad come to Cambridge for the Harvard Secondary School Program (SSP) —their first taste of college life. The Harvard Summer School encourages local students to join in the program with the Allston-Brighton Student Scholarship Program, which awards a limited number of scholarships to Allston and Brighton students who have been admitted to SSP. The scholarship covers tuition for one course.

Harvard provides annual support for the Allston-Brighton Youth Hockey league.

Allston-Brighton youths love the chance to play hockey with the college kids, and thanks to this yearly clinic, they can. Started in 1989 by former Harvard Athletic Director Bill Cleary, the Allston-Brighton Youth Hockey Clinic lets local hockey players hone their skating and stick handling skills in the Bright Hockey Center. Youngsters learn new hockey drills, get tips from players, and take on Crimson athletes in scrimmages.

PBHA’s Alternative Spring Breaks runs public service trips during Spring Break. We travel to rural and urban areas throughout the eastern United States. We work closely with community organizations to (1) renovate homes, churches, community centers, and playgrounds; and (2) learn about the social, economic, and political issues affecting the region. There is time for fun activities like bowling, skating, and visiting national parks. With a motto of “Community service, cultural exchange, and fun,” ASB provides a worthwhile experience during Spring Break.

The American Repertory Theatre (ART) is Harvard's professional theatre in residence. Harvard provides the ART with the use of the Loeb Drama Center as well as other support, and the ART, in turn, brings world class artists, directors and designers to the Cambridge-based non-profit theatre company. There are over 200 performances of seven to twelve productions each year, including the 2008-2009 productions of Chekov's The Seagull and David Mamet's Romance.

For 19 years, HMS and the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) have sponsored An Affair to Remember, a holiday dinner for seniors living in the Mission Hill neighborhood. The program was started as a way for Harvard to engage with members of the community and develop relationships with our neighbors.

The HMS Office for Diversity and Community Partnership developed this after-school program for 11th- and 12th-grade students and teachers from selected schools. Participants attend one session per month throughout the entire academic year. In the two-part student program, students and their teachers engage in hands-on AP Biology laboratory experiences as well as test preparation for the AP Biology exam.

AP Biology Teacher Call Back is a professional development opportunity, offered by the HMS Office for Diversity and Community Partnership, that is held at HMS during the academic year for a cohort of Advanced Placement (AP) Biology teachers from Boston schools. Participants attend advanced topical seminars and field trips to Harvard museums and research sites.

The AP Summer Institute is a one-week professional development opportunity for AP Biology teachers citywide to engage in hands-on AP Biology laboratory experiments at HMS. The program focuses on increasing urban teachers' knowledge of AP Biology themes and topics and is held in collaboration with the Boston Science Partnership, the College Board and the HMS Office for Diversity and Community Partnership.

Students in Linda Bilmes’ applied budgeting class volunteered their time and resources to help the town of Hull inventory and access its flood preparation plans in order to help the town quality for federal funding. Bilmes’ classes have undertaken similar projects in recent years in Somerville and Newton.

Under a long-term lease with the City of Boston, Harvard manages The Arnold Arboretum, a living museum containing over 14,000 trees collected during the past century from Asia, Europe, and North America. One of the city’s largest green spaces, the Arboretum draws approximately 250,000 visitors each year. In addition, indoor exhibits about botanical and historical themes are presented in the Arboretum’s Hunnewell building, located in the Jamaica Plain section of Boston.

The Schlesinger Library draws thousands of researchers each year to study women’s history, gender issues, and United States social history. Officially known as the Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America, its impressive holdings include letters and diaries, photographs, books and periodicals, ephemera, oral histories, and audiovisual materials—all of them documenting women’s lives and women's issues, primarily in the 19th and 20th centuries.

A number of programs bring artists to Harvard for varying lengths of stay and highlight these artists in programs open to the community through the Office for the Arts.

ARTS FIRST is Harvard’s annual four-day festival, sponsored by the Harvard Board of Overseers, that celebrates those students and faculty who are involved in the arts. The entire community is encouraged to check out Harvard’s art scene and its more than 200 events—most of them free and open to the public—that include a dance festival, theatrical performances, exhibitions, films, concerts, musicals, and poetry readings. Information: Office of the Arts 617-495-8699

The Askwith Education Forum acts as a galvanizing force for debate and conversation about education from its narrowest to its broadest perspectives. Each year, the forum sponsors 35-40 events, which are free and open to the public. Speakers and panelists come from many diverse fields and backgrounds to speak on topics relevant to education and learning. Issues range from immigration to mind/brain research to arts and technology. Past speakers have included Rob Reiner, Studs Terkel, Anna Deavere Smith, Steven Pinker, Henry Louis Gates, Ted Sizer, James Comer, E.D.

In partnership with the HMS Office of Enrichment Programs/Division of Service Learning and the South Cove Community Health Center, HMS students and volunteers provide health education and swimming lessons at the Chinatown YMCA for children with asthma and their families