Times of global political and social unrest can negatively impact students’ ability to thrive. However, strong public education can serve as a vital anchor for community, resilience, and democracy. Now more than ever, public schools need support from their communities to ensure all students are engaged and excited about school. As a community member, parent, educator, or concerned citizen, we all have roles to play in supporting Boston’s students.
Our Model
Boston Partners in Education (BPIE) has been working in Boston Public Schools (BPS) since 1966 to connect the community to the classroom. BPIE creates supportive relationships between students and volunteer academic mentors to ensure a more equitable city where every student is equipped with the opportunities and skills needed to succeed in the classroom and beyond.
Academic mentors work with the same student(s) for one hour every week for the duration of the school year, supporting them in the ways they need most. They give students the opportunity to build their academic skill sets, strengthen their confidence and persistence in challenging situations, and explore career paths. Having a caring adult who is committed to the success of a student’s academic, social, and emotional growth in school leads to 85% of teachers reporting improved classroom behavior, indicating that consistent support fosters engagement and enthusiasm in school.
Promoting Belonging in School
For students to excel academically, they first have to feel like school is a space where they belong—a rising challenge given the increased ICE presence in our communities. The threat of detainment for students who have immigrated to the U.S. is very real, affecting not only their focus and sense of safety in school but also that of teachers and volunteers. In response to circulating concerns about students’ safety surrounding ICE, BPIE reached out to all of our academic mentors with resources and strategies. “As a volunteer academic mentor,” we wrote, “your role is to provide a safe space for students to talk about their feelings, concerns, and questions. While you cannot promise that nothing bad will happen, you can be a steady, unconditional listening ear for your students.”
Massachusetts has seen numerous recent and highly public incidents involving ICE. In February, ICE detained Lynn teenager Zeneyda Barrera for arguing with her brother over a cell phone, and just this past June, ICE detained Milford High School student Marcelo Gomes Da Silva on his way to volleyball practice. ICE raids and their increased presence in the community has led to students’ academic decline and increased feelings of anxiety and fear. As fellow education nonprofit Changing Perspectives states, “These raids don’t just remove people, they unravel trust. Trust in schools as safe havens. Trust in educators and caregivers to protect. And trust that families would be there at the end of the day.”
Standing With/Supporting Teachers
Beyond fostering safe spaces for students, academic mentors also provide teachers with invaluable aid, whether it’s an extra set of hands or another thoughtful, student-centered presence in the classroom. In “Teaching in a ‘Sanctuary City’ Under Siege,” Jennifer Dines, a high school ESL teacher at New Mission High School who works with recently immigrated students, writes, “students crave the connection and community offered by school.” BPIE strives to expand students’ access to caring adults in school. We aim to equip our academic mentors with the tools to provide a safe space for ALL students, including students learning English as a new language and immigrant and refugee students. One of the matches we made in Mrs. Dines’s class this year was between an academic mentor who spoke multiple languages and a newly immigrated Russian-speaking student. The mentor shared, “in a class where the other students had been in the U.S. for longer and many of them spoke Spanish and Haitian Creole, it was helpful for her to have someone to give her some extra help.”
Many of our teachers ask for academic mentors who speak a language other than English — a need in a district where students come from 139 countries and nearly half of all students speak a language other than English. During the 2024–2025 school year, a teacher at Fenway High School shared, “Having a mentor who speaks Spanish is such a gift because I know that on at least the day that [the mentor] comes, language is not a barrier for [the student] to access the curriculum.” Academic mentors provide invaluable support to students and teachers by bridging language barriers and improving equitable access to the curriculum for all students.
What Can You Do?
Naturally, the current divide in our political and social landscape may bring up personal feelings of uncertainty. How do we maintain our own awareness about the real-world issues facing education in our country, and how those issues directly affect the youth in our communities? In times like these, what impact can we have in our community, specifically on our young people, right now?
That’s where BPIE’s academic mentoring programs come in—and so do you. Whether in the classroom or online, no matter the grade or the subject, you have the chance to connect with a student, and it makes all the difference. You may be that extra supportive adult that students are seeking—one who may live in the same neighborhood, have the same racial or cultural experiences, or even speak the same home language—for the duration of the school year.
So, when is the best time to support BPS students and teachers? Right now, with the resources we have at our disposal — even if they’re not perfect. “We often experience the paralysis of finding the right words to say, optimizing our actions, or picking the best course,” says BPIE’s Assistant Director of Program Operations, Susie Beyl. “We all have so much information and resources that it’s easy to get overwhelmed and look past simple commitments that can make a huge difference. The time spent contemplating action is also time spent by educators, students, and families who can use community support right now.” Let us center that urgency, that “right now,” on young people, and on the people working with them in every corridor and classroom to ensure their safety and success. Even as the political sphere shifts, we will continue to adapt to best support students where they belong: in the classroom. Because above all, we show up for Boston’s young people.
Looking to get involved and make your own impact? Check out the following resources to get started:
- Become a volunteer with us by filling out our application here.
- Become a Pathfinders speaker by filling out our application here. Or, host a Pathfinders speaker in your classroom by filling out our Pathfinders Educator form here.
- Donate directly to Boston Partners in Education and its academic mentoring programs here.
- For teachers: Nominate your student or your classroom for academic mentoring by filling out our nomination form here for in-person mentoring, or here for online mentoring.
- For families: Nominate your student(s) here for online mentoring.
You can also learn more about our like-minded community partners below:
- The Mass Mentoring Partnership (MMP) ensures that young people in Massachusetts have access to mentoring relationships as they develop into engaged adults.
- The Massachusetts Nonprofit Network (MNN) connects and strengthens Massachusetts’s nonprofit sector through advocacy and community-building initiatives.
- Citizen Schools helps all students thrive in school and beyond through hands-on learning and career mentors.
- St. Stephen’s Youth Programs promote equity in education, employment and opportunity through long-term relationships with youth and their families and communities.
- YW Boston helps individuals and organizations transform policies, practices, attitudes, and behaviors with the goal of creating more inclusive environments where women, people of color, and especially women of color can succeed.
- City Year enlists young AmeriCorps members to engage in meaningful, resourceful relationships with students in grades K-12.
- The MIRA Coalition promotes the rights and integration of immigrants and refugees through education and training, leadership development, institutional organizing, strategic communications, policy analysis, and advocacy.
- Literations enlists volunteer literacy coaches to empower young readers in their literacy and social-emotional development.