Executive Summary

Since 1964 the Kennedy Center has championed the cause of low-income, majority BIPOC children and elders living in subsidized housing in our part of Boston. We focus on equitable access to the resources our neighbors need to thrive, not just survive. As community needs shift, we adapt; e.g. services related to substance abuse during the opioid crisis and COVID emergency response: 19,000 prepared meals, mobile vaccination sites within the projects, school-at-home programs for families via zoom, holiday packages for 685 kids, 1400 wellness check phone calls to isolated seniors, and 400 deliveries of critical supplies. Through it all, we maintained our core Head Start preschool and eldercare services.

Post pandemic we are shifting towards sustainable long-term impact on wellbeing, e.g. our “Starting Off Strong (SOS)” pilot in early intervention for literacy and motor skills, one of the most powerful tools to level the playing field for typically disadvantaged populations. Through a partnership with a local graduate school, we bring nursing students to conduct health checks and wellness workshops with our elders. At our preschool, expert faculty and their students work with our teachers to address inequitable barriers for low-income children to access appropriate services when screenings reveal risk of delays. While children wait for formal evaluations, the experts provide on-site interventions and train teachers in skill-building strategies. We have expanded services to children not enrolled in formal early education, offering literacy and social skill playgroups and bilingual Spanish workshops for guardians to learn more about their rights and resources when children have special needs.

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