Community News & Events: December 22, 2020

NEW- Rescuing Leftover Cuisine
Rescuing Leftover Cuisine is looking for volunteers who are willing to transport meals from restaurants in Boston and Dorchester to BPS homes in East Boston. We have 75 homes there which we are trying to better assist and have had a hard time getting volunteers willing to go to EB. See here for Serving Our Students (SOS!) information information and sign-up.  

NEW- New York Life Foundation Grant for OST Programs
The New York Life Foundation is seeking applications from afterschool, summer, or expanded learning programs serving underserved middle-school youth. In total, $1.35 million in grants will be awarded to programs all across the country. Read the full application and eligibility requirements, and join a webinar on January 14 at 2 p.m. to learn more about this opportunity. Applications are due February 1, 2021 at 5 p.m.

NEW- Child Care Strategies for a Just Recovery
With many public schools shifting fully online and limited spots available in child care programs, many working parents are struggling to find care for their children. However, a recent policy change from the Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance (DUA) may offer some support for parents who are not working because they need to care for a child or supervise remote learning. A brief summary of the policy can be found here to help parents navigate these changes.

Branch Libraries Support Boston’s Diverse Neighborhoods!
The Professional Staff Association AFT believes that the librarians who actually work with the public in our communities are much better suited to select the books for their branches and are also much more responsive to neighborhood needs and interests. We need a better collection development plan that will move the Boston Public Library forward toward greater equity, not backward. Please help by sending the following point-and-click email to Library President David Leonard.

Mutual Aid for Hungry Union Members
Local 26 has been raising funds to distribute grocery store gift cards to laid-off workers, but at this point, the amount of need is so great that we have a waiting list of over 650 union members who have applied for and not yet been able to receive a grocery store card. The UNITE HERE Support and Education fund is a 501c(3), and donations will go to buy grocery store cards for hospitality workers. The link to donate is here.

NEW- Virtual Bullying Prevention PD: January 26, 4:00-6:00PM
Succeed Boston @ the Counseling Intervention Center is offering a Virtual Bullying Prevention PD. In this PD, we will review the definition of bullying and its types and modes. We will cover cyberbullying & social media and biased based bullying as well as how to report & investigate bullying in the BPS School District. Please click HERE to sign up.

NEW- Substance Use and Misuse Seminar
Succeed Boston @ the Counseling & Intervention Center is excited to announce the opportunity for BPS STAFF to learn more about substance use and misuse, as well as providing a virtual circle of care experiences. To sign up for both of these events, please visit TeachPoint. Workshops and the upcoming dates as well as themes can be found here.