826 Boston is a nonprofit writing, tutoring, and publishing organization where students in grades K-12 and beyond can share their stories, amplify their voices, and develop as leaders in school and in life.
826 Boston is a nonprofit writing, tutoring, and publishing organization where students in grades K-12 and beyond can share their stories, amplify their voices, and develop as leaders in school and in life.
Our services are structured around the understanding that great leaps in learning can happen with individualized attention and that strong writing skills are fundamental to future success. With this understanding in mind, we provide after-school tutoring, field trips, creative writing workshops, in-school Writers’ Rooms, college essay assistance, help for English Language Learners, and in-depth publishing projects.
Each of our free programs seeks to empower students to express their ideas effectively, creatively, confidently, and in their individual voices.
826 Boston’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI) Statement
At 826 Boston, we honor and actively work toward diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) across our organization. We are committed to centering the voices of the students who we serve, to creating inclusive spaces, and to incorporating feedback from our community into our decision-making processes. Our DEI lens is always evolving through the courageous conversations in which we participate and the relationships that we build through our work and service. We strengthen our cultural competency through experience, training, and feedback, which informs the development of all new organizational practices and goals and the evaluation of all existing procedures.
826 Boston is dedicated to providing a platform for student advocacy through writing and publishing opportunities. In our work and mission, we are committed to dismantling white supremacy culture by recognizing that we are complicit in systems of racism and oppression. We will work to hold ourselves accountable in addressing these harmful structures and behaviors.
Land Acknowledgement
We would like to acknowledge that the land where the 826 Boston center, offices, and partner schools are located is on the original homelands of the Massachusett Tribe. We honor and pay our respects to the ancestral bloodline of the Massachusett Tribe and their descendants who are still inhabiting this land on which we work and serve today.
How many students do you serve each year and where do they come from?
826 Boston provides free writing and tutoring programs for Boston students ages 6 to 18, serving more than 3,000 students and forming supportive partnerships with 150 teachers annually.
How much does it cost to attend 826 Boston?
All of our student programming is free!
When did 826 Boston open?
The late Mayor Menino cut the ribbon in front of the Greater Boston Bigfoot Research Institute in 2007.
How many volunteers are involved with 826 Boston and who are they?
826 Boston maintains a network of more than 2,500 volunteers from the Boston community—including professional writers, artists, and teachers. More than 500 volunteers regularly devote their time and talents to our programs. These qualified and compassionate individuals are involved in each and every program 826 Boston offers.
Why is it called 826 Boston?
The flagship chapter of 826 (826 Valencia) opened its doors at 826 Valencia St. in San Francisco. Founded in 2002 by internationally acclaimed author Dave Eggers and award-winning educator Nínive Calegari, 826 Valencia inspired a network of creative writing and tutoring centers now nine cities strong: Boston, San Francisco, Ann Arbor/Detroit, Chicago, Los Angeles, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New Orleans, New York City, and Washington, D.C. The 826 National office was established in 2008 to serve the growing educational network by providing strategic leadership, administration, and other resources to ensure the success of the 826 network.
826 Boston aims to build communities of empowered young writers who will succeed in school, attend college, and carry with them a lifelong love of writing and reading.
Our programs are designed to motivate students to complete their schoolwork, improve confidence in their writing skills, and foster positive relationships with adult mentors.
To gauge the impact of our programs, 826 Boston uses a variety of metrics, including third-party evaluations and pre- and post-program surveys.
Read our latest Annual Report for more information about what our community accomplished together in the last school year.
See what students and parents say about our programs:
85% of parents report that their child is getting better grades with the help of 826 Boston.
Since working with 826 Boston, my daughter has become motivated and excited to write. I’m in awe of how 826 Boston staff and volunteers achieve such greatness from these scholars.”
-Josette W., after-school parent
Growing up in Austin, TX, Taelor developed a love for storytelling, poetry, literature, art, and policy debate. Her love of writing only continued to grow into adulthood through writing poetry and starting her first novel. She has seen first-hand the power and confidence that writing unlocks for children through her work in education.
Prior to working at 826 Boston, Taelor spent many years working in schools. Taelor wore a variety of hats other than teaching, including ELL Program Manager, Instructional Coach, and Team Lead. In addition to creative writing, Taelor loves reading, painting, cooking, gardening, and making memories with her wife and two dogs.
Daniela Emília (she/her) was born in the Lisbon area of Portugal and moved to the United States at age 8; since she’s lived in Brockton, MA. In May 2022, she graduated from Emmanuel College with a B.A. in Sociology with a concentration in Social Inequality and Social Justice. In addition, she also completed minors in Education and History. As a student, she held a wide variety of leadership roles on campus, including serving as a research assistant, a resident assistant, and different positions within the Black Student Union and the events coordination team, ECPT. Additionally, Daniela has worked with youth on self-esteem and self-advocacy focused initiatives and programs. Passionate about juvenile justice, she is excited to work at an organization that emphasizes a strengths-based approach to tutoring. In the future, Daniela hopes to go back to school for her Ph.D. and focus her research on how to re-imagine public schools’ disciplinary practices to pursue a career in school administration. Daniela’s other passions include traveling to new countries, reading novels by authors from Maya Angelou to Jasmine Guillory, and watching documentaries about anything and everything.
Are you looking to join our team? Internship and full-time opportunities, when they are available, can be found here.
Executive Committee
Janet Tiampo, 826 Boston Board President
Marc Foster, 826 Boston Board Vice President and Board Clerk, Transparency Life Sciences, LLC
Mimi Curran, 826 Boston Board Treasurer, retired, WGBH
Charisse Howse, Boston Medical Center WellSense Health Plan
Benielle Sims, Liberty Mutual
Board Members
David Bagnani, Fidelity Investments, Retired
Jill Harrison Berg
Andrew Cohn, LMEC
Donna Cowan, retired, Bolt, Beranek, and Newman
Jeff Mayersohn, Harvard Book Store
Gillian Kohli, Wellesley Books
Sonali Shah
Kate Taylor
Rosann Tung
April Bo Wang, Little Tiger Strategic Storytelling
Kevin Whalen, Morgan Stanley
Harvey Cotton, 826 Boston Legal Counsel
Co-Founders
Kevin Feeney
Helen Jacobson
Literary Board
Steve Almond
M. T. Anderson
Richard Blanco
Christopher Castellani
Jennifer De Leon
Anita Diamant
Andre Dubus III
A. W. Flaherty
Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
Julia Glass
Meredith Goldstein
Mary Gordon
Julian Houston
Jeff Kinney
Lois Lowry
Tom Perrotta
Heidi Pitlor
Richard Russo
Jim Shepard
Youth Literary Advisory Board
Blessing
Justis
Kaylany
Khaiyrah
Mariam
Maya
Oriana
Salem
Uchenna
For all media inquiries please contact Kara Deese, Communications Director, at 617-390-5610, or kara@826boston.org.
Need some 826 Boston logos? Download high-resolution logos.
Need more info? Download our one-pager.
Mission Statement: 826 Boston is a nonprofit writing, tutoring, and publishing organization where students in grades K-12 and beyond can share their stories, amplify their voices, and develop as leaders in school and in life.
Every year more than 3,000 students ages 6-18 participate in 826 Boston programs, in and out of school.
Since opening in 2007, 826 Boston has served more than 30,000 students.
826 Boston produces professionally published collections of student writing every year, containing hundreds of stories.
The Greater Boston Bigfoot Research Institute, the whimsical storefront entrance to 826 Boston’s center, opened in 2007. It is one of the eight cities that belong to the 826 network. The first chapter was founded on 826 Valencia Street in San Francisco, California by acclaimed author Dave Eggers and educator Ninive Calegari, in 2002.
“Since working with 826 Boston, my daughter has become motivated and excited to write. I’m in awe of how 826 Boston staff and volunteers achieve such greatness from these scholars.” —Josette W., after-school parent
“It’s been amazing,” said senior Ronicia D. “They give us all the support we need to write things for colleges, for essays, for our classes.”
Stay tuned for more information on our latest strategic plan!
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Eye on Education: 826 Boston’s Writers’ Room at the Jeremiah E. Burke High School
WBZ TV—April 26, 2017
“In order to change the status quo, we gotta shake things up and cannot prepare children for the 21st-century opportunities without a partnership with those that live beyond the walls of this school,” said Dr. Lindsa McIntyre, Headmaster of the Jeremiah E. Burke High School in Dorchester.
“It’s been amazing,” said senior Ronicia Da Veigh. “They give us all the support we need to write things for colleges, for essays, for our classes.”
826 Boston Celebrates Night of 1,000 Stories
The Boston Globe — May 7, 2015
The Roxbury writing center for young people, 826 Boston, had its fifth annual “Night of 1,000 Stories” benefit at the Royal Sonesta in Cambridge on Tuesday. The featured speaker was writer (and former Boston resident) Luis Alberto Urrea, who was a Pulitzer finalist for his nonfiction book “The Devil’s Highway: A True Story.” VIPs included 826 co-founder Dave Eggers, and students Stevelyn Desire, Julia Teixeira, and Agnes Ugoji, who helped with the night’s presentation. Photo credit: Anne Haggerty.
826 Boston Hosts Literary Jeopardy at Porter Square Books
The Boston Globe — March 16, 2015
Porter Square Books was packed on Friday night for “Literary Jeopardy,” an event hosted by 826 Boston, the Egleston Square-based nonprofit writing center for kids. Clues that called for answers in the form of a question included “This ‘Freaks and Geeks’ costar took on the role of the Emerald City’s misunderstood leader in a 2013 prequel to the beloved 1939 film,” and “This is the name George Eliot, author of ‘Middlemarch,’ was born with.” (For the record, those answers are James Franco and Mary Ann Evans). The night’s VIPs were “Get in Trouble” author Kelly Link, of Northampton, and “Everything I Never Told You” author Celeste Ng, of Cambridge.
Gregory Maguire Stops in for Books for Breakfast
The Boston Globe — November 21, 2014
“Wicked” author Gregory Maguire was the special speaker at Thursday morning’s Books for Breakfast benefit for 826 Boston. The annual morning celebration raises money for the Roxbury writing center, which supports students 6 to 18 with tutoring and writing projects. WilmerHale hosted the event, which drew young readers such as Nicholas Allen,15, and Emily Gay, 17.
Students Take the Stage at the Strand Theatre, Thanks to 826 Boston and the A.R.T.
WBUR’s the ARTery — August 13, 2014
In a quick five week scramble that would make for excellent reality television, a group of 20 students from ages 10 to 14 write, design and act in their own play—culminating in a performance at the Strand Theatre on Friday, Aug. 15. Read More
826 Boston’s writing and tutoring center is located in the heart of Egleston Square in Boston’s Roxbury neighborhood.
Behind the door of the Greater Boston Bigfoot Research Institute, past the 10-foot statue of Bigfoot and the terrarium with our beloved tarantula Edwina, you’ll find a tutoring center buzzing with activity as students work one-on-one with tutors, read in our library, or look up questions on our computers.
If you’re a parent interested in signing up a student for one of our programs, click here.
If you’re a teacher interested in bringing your class to the center for a field trip, click here.
If you’re a donor or community member interested in learning more about 826 Boston, click here.
If you’re looking to make a difference as a member of our team or as an intern, click here.
Directions & Contact Information
Just trying to find your way?
You can find us at:
826 Boston
3035 Washington Street
Roxbury, MA 02119
Or call us at:
(617) 442-5400