Jessica Lander is a former Citizen Schools Teaching Associate, who taught at the Edwards Middle School from 2011–2012. Currently, Jessica is an EL History and Civics High School Teacher in Lowell, MA, having taught there starting in 2015. She has also authored three books, including her most recent publication, Making Americans: Stories of Historic Struggles, New Ideas, and Inspiration in Immigrant Education.
Read MoreThis year Citizen Schools hosted nine WOW! celebrations with thousands of students, parents, teachers, and community members to highlight students’ hard work from their apprenticeships.
Read MoreFrom April through June, coast to coast, Citizen Schools celebrated the school year’s apprenticeship programs with two WOW!NOW breakfasts in Massachusetts and New York and a mock-trial themed benefitEd in California. These events mark the culmination of both the 10-week apprenticeships and also the school year.
Read MoreAs each SPLATs lit up with different colors, so did the faces of our students who beamed with pride, joy, and curiosity as they began their unique SPLATs journey. SPLATs is a remarkable tool that exposed students to various STEM careers and academic pathways as they sharpened their skills in critical thinking, problem-solving, and creativity. SPLATs didn’t just keep the students moving intellectually, they also were able to exercise physically. Some games focused on trivia, and others were speed-based competitions or obstacle courses. “Giraffes and Leaves” a game created by Mahdiat and Makayla allowed students to imagine they were in a safari, crawling over and around SPLATs as they ‘gathered leaves’ with their heads.
Read MoreThis month our employee spotlight goes to Vanessa Bishop, Regional Director of the Massachusetts region. When asked where she gets her inspiration from she had this to say, “My faith and students. When I think about both of them, they give me a purpose to keep going when things are challenging. My faith reminds me that there is a bigger purpose in everything that I do. On the same note, our students our the center of all the work and they deserve the best we can give. “
Read MoreCitizen Schools, a national nonprofit organization headquartered in Boston, is pleased to announce Kathryn Gabriele has been named the Campus Director at the East Somerville Community School. As Campus Director, she will oversee Citizen Schools out-of-school time programming at East Somerville Community School, where she will work with a team of AmeriCorps Teaching Fellows and school administrative staff to provide hands-on learning experiences, taught in partnership with local volunteers, for students.
Read MoreOn Tuesday, December 11th, Citizen Schools Massachusetts students from the Trotter Innovation School, East Somerville Community School and Orchard Gardens K-8 schools got the chance showcase all that they have learned and practiced in a Mock Trial at the Moakley Courthouse in Boston, Massachusetts.
Read MoreBenjamin Erazo was a 2018 summer intern at Citizen Schools headquarters in Boston. As a member of the Technology team, he was responsible for helping repair computers and assisting the tech team solve any problems. Benjamin attended the Browne Middle School in Chelsea, MA, and is now a sophomore at Chelsea High School.
Read MoreThis semester, our students traveled to the Microsoft offices in Cambridge, MA, every Thursday to take part in the ‘Robotics with Microsoft’ apprenticeship. The students programmed their own robots alongside Microsoft engineers and programmers. They learned about sensor technology and fundamental coding skills. The students worked in teams and came up with solutions through their own design ideas.
Read MoreGeneral Electric volunteers went to Orchard Gardens K-8 School yesterday to conduct mock interviews with eighth-grade students as they prepare for the city’s rigorous high school application process
Read MoreStudents from Chelsea public schools, including those that participate in Citizen Schools’ Expanded Learning Time, will kick off the new school year with 900 donated backpacks full of pencils, notebooks, rulers, and more. Citizen Schools, an organization that empowers public middle schools in low-income communities with longer learning days, received the backpacks filled with supplies as a donation from Kronos Incorporated, Mass.-based global leader in workforce management solutions.
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