June 5, 2018
BOSTON: In May 2018, the Cummings Foundation named 826 Boston one of its “$100K for 100” organizations for the second time. 826 Boston is one of 100 local nonprofits to receive grants of $100,000 each through Cummings Foundation’s “$100K for 100” program. The Roxbury-based organization was chosen from a total of 597 applicants.
826 Boston is a nonprofit youth writing and publishing organization that empowers traditionally underserved students ages 6-18 to find their voices, tell their stories, and gain communication skills to succeed in school and in life.
Jessica Drench, 826 Boston’s executive director, said about the grant, “It has always been our mission to provide a platform for our students’ voices. We are honored to be among the worthy causes that the Cummings Foundation has selected to receive this transformative gift. The grant will enable us to publish and showcase the powerful stories of students at 826 Boston’s newest Writers’ Room at the Boston International Newcomers Academy.”
The Cummings Foundation grant constitutes a leadership gift that will power the fourth 826 Boston Writers’ Room in the Boston Public Schools district and the first at a school serving the needs of a predominantly English Language Learner population. Every student at the Boston International Newcomers Academy (BINcA) in Dorchester arrived in this country within the past four years. While navigating the challenges of graduating from high school, many students are learning English as a second, third, or fourth language.
Writers’ Rooms are fully staffed programs that serve every student enrolled in a school. Modeled on the university writing center, the programs are a method for 826 Boston to deliver writing programs to whole classes and individual students during the day and to offer creative extracurricular activities, such as slam poetry teams and journalism clubs, during after-school hours.
“We are indebted to nonprofit organizations like 826 Boston that have a meaningful positive impact on the local communities where our colleagues and clients live and work,” said Cummings Foundation Executive Director Joel Swets. “We are delighted to invest in their important programs and services.”
Representing 826 Boston, Director of Advancement Kristin Barrali and Board Clerk Emily D’Amour Pardo joined 300 other guests at a reception at TradeCenter 128 in Woburn to celebrate the $10 million infusion into the Greater Boston nonprofit sector. With the conclusion of this grant cycle, Cummings Foundation has now awarded more than $220 million to Greater Boston nonprofits. The full list of winners is available at www.cummingsfoundation.org.
About 826 Boston
826 Boston is a nonprofit youth writing and publishing organization that empowers traditionally underserved students ages 6-18 to find their voices, tell their stories, and gain communication skills to succeed in school and in life. Over the last ten years, 826 Boston has worked with more than 22,000 students to publish dozens of original collections of student writing. To find out more about 826 Boston or get involved as one of the organization’s 700 volunteers, visit www.826boston.org.
About Cummings Foundation
Woburn-based Cummings Foundation, Inc. was established in 1986 by Joyce and Bill Cummings. The Foundation directly operates its own charitable subsidiaries, including New Horizons retirement communities in Marlborough and Woburn. Bill Cummings released his memoir, Starting Small and Making It Big: An Entrepreneur’s Journey to Billion-Dollar Philanthropist, in March 2018.
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