We have been actively involved with City Year Boston for many years.  We were initially introduced to CYB through MFS' corporate partnership with City Yea.  Over the years, our involvement and commitment to the organization and its mission has increased meaningfully.  We've enjoyed getting to know many corp members by sponsoring lunches and breakfasts for teams at unsponsored schools, participating in service days, co-chairing the Women's Leadership Breakfast and joining the City Year Boston Board.

Seeing younger people helping and serving others is inspiring.  We have a shared commitment to service, a desire to improve the communities we live in and to make a difference in people's lives.  With the current crisis profoundly affecting the 15,000 Boston Public School students, City Year's partnership and the work that the City Year Americorps Team members are doing is profoundly impactful.  Having an extra pair of hands extending the outreach to students, knowing they've got someone in their corner and supporting their academic, social and emotional needs has rarely been more challenging, or more important.  As we look ahead to the fall, there is a tremendous role for City Year and our amazing corps members to play in supporting students and teachers.  But, we can't do it without the support of individuals like you.  Please help us help our Corps members forever change the lives of the students they serve.

In March, Boston Public Schools (BPS) announced the closure of all 125 schools citywide. These school closures left 50,000 Boston students without access to in-person schooling.  City Year Boston is working closely with BPS to provide innovative distance learning opportunities to students, adapting our Whole School Whole Child program model to suit virtual spaces.

While teachers continue to provide whole-class instruction using platforms like Google Classroom or Zoom, City Year’s AmeriCorps members are providing academic supports in English language arts/literacy and math by facilitating breakout groups, answering questions, and leading enrichment activities.  Our corps members are assisting teachers in planning lessons and reviewing students’ assignments and holding office hours to provide one-on-one and small-group tutoring.  Importantly, our AmeriCorps members are also supporting students’ social-emotional health and placing phone calls home to students and their families as a way to build connectedness, troubleshoot, and communicate updates. 

City Year Boston is one of the only partners to support Boston Public School students throughout the COVID-19 pandemic

City Year’s support of virtual classrooms is a pivotal step in preventing learning loss and generating opportunities for new learning, as well as ensuring greater equity of experience among families who may not otherwise have the ability to facilitate in-home instruction.  Beyond this school year, City Year will continue to engage in the virtual space to support BPS students and will be in schools next year to support students when they will need more than ever.