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Harlem Children’s Zone EdRedesign Summer Institute

The William Julius Wilson Institute (WJWI) at Harlem Children’s Zone and EdRedesign Lab at the Harvard Graduate School of Education are partnering to host a weeklong leadership institute to accelerate the impact of neighborhood leaders and organizations advancing place-based cradle-to-career solutions.

Why We’re Coming Together

OUR COMMUNITIES ARE CONFRONTING A SINGULAR MOMENT OF CRISIS AND OPPORTUNITY. Amid once-in-a-generation health, educational, social, and economic emergencies, national attention has begun to focus on the systemic inequities that for decades have devastated communities impacted by poverty, especially communities of color. For those of us who care about social and economic mobility in America, we see that our most vulnerable communities and families are facing a tidal wave of new challenges that will overwhelm current governmental efforts.

At the same time, communities have the opportunity to pursue pathways to recovery through a once-in-a-generation infusion of government and philanthropic resources into place-based organizations. To do this work, we need to rethink our efforts to end poverty and center neighborhoods as engines for social and economic mobility. Changing the odds for a generation of young people calls for a deeper understanding of neighborhood-based work and imminent action to change systems that perpetuate inequities. There is no time to waste.

The Summer Institute

We are bringing together a group of the nation’s most promising neighborhood leaders and organizations around critical issues such as securing long-term investment for cradle-to-career pathways, strategy, adaptive leadership, data management, and systems change.

The Summer Institute will be held in-person August 1-5, 2022 at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Participating organizations will send a delegation of senior leaders. Programming will consist of a mix of presentations and professional development workshops focused on general and role-specific topical areas, role-specific skill building, and team-oriented coaching.

The agenda can be found here.

The speaker biographies can be found here.

Please click HERE to review the Summer Institute participant list.

Summer Institute Session Materials

Organizational Finance Pre-Reads

Organizational Finance Assessment:  To be Completed by a Senior Leader from each participating organization in the Summer Institute

Federal Grant Readiness and Competitiveness Pre-Reads

Federal Grants Priorities Survey: To be completed by a senior leader from each participating organization in the Summer Institute.

William Julius Wilson Institute at Harlem Children’s Zone Federal Funding Webinar

EVENT LOCATION & THINGS TO DO

The Summer Institute will begin with registration and breakfast at 11:00 AM Eastern on Monday, August 1st at the Gutman Conference Center located on the garden level of the Gutman Library (6 Appian Way, Cambridge, MA 02138), followed by lunch and opening remarks beginning at 12:00 PM. Greeters will be stationed at the front of Gutman to welcome you.

If you would like to familiarize yourself with the Harvard campus, you are welcome to check out this Harvard Campus Map. At the top of the webpage, there is a search bar where you can input locations you want to know about. We are including below a few links for suggested activities and places to eat in the Cambridge and Boston area:

  • Company One Theater:
    • Can I Touch It? - Shay Solomon is many things — a business owner, a single mom, a community leader — but there’s one thing she’s definitely not: a pawn in Patron Bank’s efforts to buy up foreclosed real estate in Roxbury and Dorchester. At risk of losing her beauty supply store to the bank, she’s caught between the personal fight for her family’s livelihood and the systemic fight against gentrification.
  • Best Restaurants in Cambridge to Eat at Right Now:
    • Wood-fired pizza joint Area Four, which is also conveniently connected to A4 Cafe, offers handmade pies from scratch, with a crispiness and flavorful char perfect for those that like their pizzas ...
  • The 38 Best Restaurants in Boston:
    • Presenting Boston’s updated Eater 38, the answer to any question that begins, “Can you recommend a restaurant?” Whether new to Boston or a lifelong resident, an eater will find much to explore here: The city is lucky to have an incredible seafood-filled dining scene, for one thing, but there’s so much more, from spicy hand-pulled Xi’an-style noodles in a casual storefront to heaping ...
  • Visit Boston:
    • Let us help you plan your vacation or meeting and discover everything Boston MA has to offer. From restaurants to things to do, get the most from your trip!
  • Harvard Square:
    • Things to do in Harvard Square
COVID PROTOCOL

We are committed to following Harvard's COVID-19 public health guidelines for in-person programming. All visitors to the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) campus will be required to follow HGSE Covid policies, which at this time require all visitors to attest that they are fully vaccinated and are not experiencing or displaying any known symptoms of COVID-19. Visitors must complete their attestations using HGSE Clear. Additionally, all visitors will be expected to comply with Harvard's masking policy. Currently, face coverings on Harvard's campus are optional in most indoor spaces. HGSE Covid policies are subject to change. Visitors will be kept abreast of any policy changes.

Please note: Visitors must complete their attestations using HGSE Clear prior to arrival. Once you complete the attestation form, you will receive a confirmation via email that you have permission to visit campus. This confirmation will include a digital green checkmark that must be displayed (either in digital or printed form) when you arrive at the event. Visitor attestations are only valid for 7 days so please complete the attestation no sooner than a day before arrival.

ATTIRE

Attire is business casual. The weather forecast is expected to be in the mid-80's during the day.

HOTEL

For those guests traveling out of town, you will have received a hotel confirmation with the hotel location and the process for checking in. Guests will be staying at the Sheraton Commander Hotel (16 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138) that is walking distance to the convening location at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Unless otherwise requested, guest reservations span Sunday, July 31 through Friday, August 5th. Hotel check-in time is 3pm and check-out time is 12pm.

Upon arrival, please visit the Sheraton Commander front desk to check in. If you plan to stay at the hotel for additional nights, please have a credit card available for payment. You will need to produce a credit card to be used for incidentals.

Taxi/rideshare are at your own expense, with the exception of guest speakers.

PARKING

For event participants, organizers, and special guests who will be driving from their point of origin to Cambridge, MA and staying at the Sheraton Commander Hotel throughout our Summer Institute, your daily parking costs will be covered by the Summer Institute.

For event participants who will commute daily between the Harvard Graduate School of Education and their home, validated parking is available at University Place Garage, 45 University Road. The garage is a 5-minute walk to the event location. Please see a member of the EdRedesign staff to obtain a validation ticket before you return to your car at the end of the day. We regret that we are not able to reimburse out-of-pocket costs. In order to have your parking covered, you must use the validation ticket.

TECHNOLOGY

Wireless internet can be accessed on campus. Login information will be provided the day of the convening. You can also review information on how to access Harvard University Wi-Fi here. We recommend that participants bring laptop computers or tablets for relevant Summer Institute sessions where technology will be used.

MEALS & DINING

The following meals will be provided during the convening:

  • Breakfast and lunch Monday, August 1 through Friday, August 5
  • Dinner in Gutman library on Monday, August 1
  • Dinner at Loeb House on the evening of Thursday, August 4

On Tuesday August 2nd and Wednesday August 3rd, Summer Institute participants are free to self-organize for dinner. For a list of potential dining options around Harvard University, please review this link.

PRESS & MEDIA

Convening sessions will be recorded and segments of the recordings may be made publicly available online. Additionally, we are planning to capture still photographs. You will be asked to sign a media/photo release form upon arrival consenting to being filmed and photographed.

SOCIAL MEDIA

We encourage guests to post about the convening on social media using the hashtag #PowerOfPlace. Please mention @WJWInstitute on Twitter and Instagram, and Harlem Children’s Zone on LinkedIn. Please mention @EdRedesignLab on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook and The EdRedesign Lab on LinkedIn.

The William Julius Wilson Institute: Building upon the work of the Harlem Children’s Zone, the William Julius Wilson Institute advances efforts to end poverty by providing place-based, people-focused solutions that close opportunity gaps and open pathways to social and economic mobility. Our goal is to partner with networks and transform neighborhoods by deepening knowledge, sharing best practices, coordinating more effectively and efficiently, and holding ourselves accountable for measurable outcomes.

The EdRedesign Lab: EdRedesign champions a broad, holistic model of developmental and educational opportunity for all children and youth, especially those affected by racism and poverty. We serve as a catalyst, through research, advocacy, and collaborative action, advancing the cradle-to-career field by promoting cross-sector community-based systems of support and opportunity to provide all children clear and accessible pathways to well-being, educational attainment, and upward mobility. We strive for a society characterized by racial, economic, and social justice.

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