Celebrating Black History Month

During the month of February, City Year Boston celebrated Black History Month and the accomplishments of Black individuals, organizations, and movements throughout American history. For our staff, AmeriCorps members, students, and larger City Year Boston community, it was a month of learning, growth, and celebration. 

Celebrating Black History Month with Students 

Our teams of AmeriCorps members at Boston Public Schools commemorated Black History Month with their students through a variety of lesson plans and activities. The team serving at Excel High School learned about Black suffragists, like Ida B. Wells, while the Advent International team, serving at the King K-8 School explored past, present, and future Black leaders demonstrating excellence.  

Amplifying Black Voices from Our Community 

City Year Boston also collaborated with two Boston-based, Black-led organization on ‘pass the mic’ Instagram takeovers. Media Girls is an organization that teaches girls and young women to become critical media consumers, and Black Men Run Boston is the local chapter of a larger organization that promotes community that is rooted in love and centered on Black male health and wellness through running. Both organizations took over our Instagram account for the day, sharing their organizations’ missions with our City Year Boston community, giving a behind-the-scenes look at their work in the Boston community, and how to get involved. We invite you to watch the ‘Pass the Mic’ Instagram takeovers here.  

On Thursday, February 25, 2021, City Year Boston hosted a virtual roundtable, Representation Matters: The Power of Black Educators & Mentors. More than 85 attendees came together to hear Black educators and AmeriCorps members reflect on their personal experiences of representation in the classroom, discuss triumphs and challenges, and imagine ways in which the recruitment and retention of teachers of color can improve. We were thrilled to welcome Dr. Charles Grandson, the Chief Equity & Strategy Officer at Boston Public Schools to be a part of this important conversation along with Isabel da Rosa and Kevin Dua, two City Year Boston alums who are also teachers. You can watch the roundtable discussion on City Year’s YouTube channel. 

“There’s a reason why Black educators represent the lowest percentage demographic of educators nationwide, and it’s [not] that we aren’t committed and wanting to teach, it’s because it’s a strain.” ~ Kevin Dua, History Educator, Cambridge Public Schools