CCT has awarded its 2022 consulting grants to eight Boston-area nonprofit organizations, chosen based on demonstrated need, organizational stability, and readiness to plan and implement change.
The following organizations been awarded consulting engagements to address a variety of strategic issues, ranging from business planning to growth and marketing analyses:
Boys & Girls Club of Stoneham & Wakefield - Youth Development
Bread & Roses Housing - Housing & Shelter
John F. Kennedy Family Service Center - Human Services
Minds Matter Boston - Education
The Educational Justice Institute of MIT - Education
Urban College of Boston (UCB) - Education
William James INTERFACE Referral Service - Mental Health & Crisis Intervention
Steps to Success - Education
William James INTERFACE Referral Service is returning as a client after CCT provided a strategy and growth assessment in 2019. Following that project, Advisory Board member Margaret Hannah shared, "Our goal was to learn how we might grow more strategically. The team helped us narrow down the scope into three areas. The impact of CCT’s work will be significant. It’s going to be an intentional longer process to implement all of their recommendations, but we are already making good progress in each of the key areas."
Our goal was to learn how we might grow more strategically. The team helped us narrow down the scope into three areas. The impact of CCT’s work will be significant. It’s going to be an intentional longer process to implement all of their recommendations, but we are already making good progress in each of the key areas.
Volunteers have been assigned to project teams to fulfill these consultancies and are becoming acquainted with their respective clients. Project managers and sponsors have been working on refining project scopes to provide their clients with actionable deliverables. Take a look into the 2022 projects below.
The Boys & Girls Club of Stoneham & Wakefield
The Boys & Girls Club of Stoneham & Wakefield has the mission to enable all young people, especially those who need them most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens. Their leadership is considering purchasing or building a new facility in Wakefield, but needs more clarity on the specific needs and wants for expanded programming in the community. CCT will evaluate the possibilities with a needs assessment to support their decision-making and fundraising.Learn more: https://bgcwakefield.org/
Bread & Roses Housing
Bread & Roses Housing is a Community Land Trust that provides housing assistance to low-income families in Lawrence, Haverhill, and North Andover. COVID has increased the need to look at the strategic plan, particularly with housing needs in the spotlight and potential for expansion. CCT will develop a SWOT analysis to prepare for a comprehensive strategic plan.
Learn more: https://www.brhousing.org/
The Educational Justice Institute at MIT
The Educational Justice Institute at MIT aims to create sustainable solutions to mass incarceration, social justice, and barriers to reentry through education and emerging technologies. CCT will help develop a plan to scale what TEJI started in the Massachusetts Prison Education Constortium across New England.
Learn more: https://www.teji.mit.edu/
The John F. Kennedy Family Service Center
The Kennedy Center's mission is to provide individuals and families in need with services, opportunities, and the tools they require to lead productive and fulfilling lives. CCT will create a cost/benefit analysis for evaluating a potential partnership with the Mass General Hospital Institute of Health Professionals to expand early intervention services for at-risk children and promote the wellness of older adults.
Learn more: https://www.kennedycenter.org/
Minds Matter Boston
Minds Matter Boston's mission is to connect driven and determined students from low-income families with the people, preparation, and possibilities to succeed in college, create their future, and change the world. They are in the midst of a three-year strategic plan with the goal to build organizational capacity and increase enrollment by 75%. CCT will help kick off the strategic planning by conducting stakeholder interviews, revewing the organization's past surveys of constituents, and a review of competitor organizations offering similar services.
Learn more: https://www.mindsmatterboston.org/
Steps to Success
Steps to Success' mission is to promote equity for Brookline's students from low-income families. As part of their long-term strategic plan, they are seeking to expand into K-2 programs. CCT will conduct stakeholder interviews and research to provide an impact assessment and recommendations for their expansion goals.
Learn more: https://www.stepstosuccessbrookline.org/
Urban College of Boston
Urban College of Boston opens new pathways to opportunity through individualized, supportive, and multilingual education. UCB is a private, non-profit college granting degrees in Early Childhood Education, General Studies, and Human Services Administration. In the context of COVID and hybrid teaching environments, CCT will develop a marketing segmentation strategy to improve outreach to current, former, and potential students.
Learn more: https://www.urbancollege.edu/
William James INTERFACE Referral Service
William James INTERFACE Referral Service is part of the Freedman Center for Child and Family Development at William James College. Their mission is to provide resources and referral guidance to appropriate mental health and wellness services. Through research, interviews, and competitive analysis, CCT will follow up on the work they did 3 years ago to help William James evaluate its strategic planning.
Learn more: https://interface.williamjames.edu/
