BCYF teen program to receive $100,000 grant

The Foundation for Boston Centers for Youth & Families (BCYF) is one of 100 local nonprofits to receive a grant of $100,000 through the Cummings Foundation’s $100K for 100 program to support the BCYF SuperTeens summer pre-employment program. The Foundation for BCYF was chosen from a total of 549 applicants during a competitive review process.

“I want to thank the Cummings Foundation for their support of Boston’s youth and families,” said Mayor Martin J. Walsh. “The SuperTeens program is a great opportunity for our 13- and 14-year-olds to continue learning outside of school, build skills and gain experience that will prepare them for the future."

The citywide BCYF SuperTeens program provides 250 youth ages 13-14 with the opportunity to attend weekly leadership development workshops, gain work experience in BCYF community centers, and participate in field trips to Boston’s arts and cultural institutions.  Program goals include providing hands-on work experience and/or service experience for each youth, engaging youth in high-quality leadership development workshops based on BCYF’s Youth Development Outcomes, and developing creative writing skills by teaching youth to share personal learning experiences in writing. The youth receive a stipend at the end of the summer for successful completion of the program.

The $100K for 100 program is benefiting 35 different cities and towns in Massachusetts. Through this place-based initiative, the Cummings Foundation aims to give back in the areas where it owns commercial buildings managed by its affiliate, Cummings Properties.

“Nonprofit organizations like the Foundation for BCYF are vital to the local communities where our colleagues and clients live and work,” said Joel Swets, Cummings Foundation executive director. “We are delighted to invest in their efforts.”

This year’s diverse group of grant recipients represents a wide variety of causes, including homelessness prevention and affordable housing, education, violence prevention, and food insecurity. The complete list of winner is available at CummingsFoundation.org.   

Eighteen BCYF community centers across the City are hosting the SuperTeens program. Learn more about SuperTeens on BCYF's webpage.

Boston Centers for Youth & Families (BCYF) is the City of Boston’s largest youth and human service agency. BCYF operates 36 community centers in Boston that offer a variety of engaging and enriching programs for people of all ages created through community input and need. BCYF also oversees many citywide programs, including the nationally-recognized violence intervention and prevention Streetworker Program and SuccessLink, the Mayor’s Summer Jobs Program.

Woburn-based Cummings Foundation, Inc. was established in 1986 by Joyce and Bill Cummings of Winchester. With assets exceeding $1.4 billion, it is one of the largest foundations in New England. The Foundation directly operates its own charitable subsidiaries, including two New Horizons retirement communities in Marlborough and Woburn. Its largest single commitment to date was $50 million to Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University.