WriteBoston

SUNNY DAYS AT WRITEBOSTON (Fall 2018).  WriteBoston is a nonprofit organization with expertise in writing instruction. Boston International Newcomers Academy, known as BINcA, is a public high school that enrolls newly arrived immigrants who often need intensive support learning to speak, read and write English, all while taking high school courses. The Fund first met BINcA during the 2011 EdVestors review process, and in 2013 the Fund helped WriteBoston and BINcA join forces to boost BINcA students' writing skills with an on-site Writing Center staffed by volunteers trained and supervised by WriteBoston.

New England Program Officer Megan Reilly visited BINcA and the Writing Center in fall 2016 and saw volunteers helping with a range of writing tasks, from college essays to research papers. All of the students and teachers that Fund staff met shared their appreciation for the Writing Center volunteers. Successful partnerships between public schools and community organizations don't happen overnight; they require careful cultivation through staff time, a commitment to mutual respect, and often outside funding. WriteBoston and BINcA have invested in their partnership with a shared goal of helping the young people at BINcA develop the communication skills needed to succeed in an American high school and life after graduation. 

In the image, two BINcA students work on a writing assignment.

Clowes Fund Field(s) of Interest: Education/Instruction