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Advocates fighting cut to youth jobs funding Martin Desmarais Last month, youth job advocates were put on high alert when the Massachusetts House proposed budget contained cuts in funding for youth job programs, despite a battle to keep the funding. Now the fight turns to the state Senate. The House’s $36.2 billion state budget proposal is slightly higher than the current fiscal year budget and $191 million less than Gov. Deval Patrick’s proposed 2015 fiscal year budget. The House proposal increases funding for local aid to cities and towns by $25 million over the governor’s proposal, with a $61 million boost to education through the community college and state university systems. H o w e v e r, the House budget savings come at the expense of six youth jobs and violence prevention programs, cutting $13.5 million in funding from them. The cuts make the youth jobs situation even more dire considering most of these programs have traditionally received supplemental funding throughout the year just to keep running. Youth job advocates say the cuts could cost as many as 1,000 summer jobs. In the House, state reps fought to stave off the cuts with several amendments filed to restore much of the funding, but the House leadership refused to consider them.
State Sen. Sonia Chang-Diaz said that losing funding for youth jobs and violence prevention programs is a big concern for her and she hopes to keep the funding in the budget to back them. “Certainly these line items are hugely important to me and hugely important to the district I represent,” Chang-Diaz said. “I will certainly be fighting really hard for these.” Chang-Diaz points out that last year the Senate proposed more funding for youth job and violence prevention programs, so there is hope that something similar will happen this year. A big challenge, according to ChangDiaz, is that while many people think the state has recovered from the recession there are still many areas covered by the budget that have not recovered and these areas are forcing budget cuts in programs, including those for youth jobs, that have proven their worth. “It is extremely frustrating. It is frustrating for me, as a legislator, that we have to fight for this every year,” she said. The Boston-based Youth Jobs Coalition has been at the heart of the fight for funding. It is composed of 40 youth and community groups from across Massachusetts that work together to create more employment opportunities
“It is frustrating for me, as a legislator, that we have to fight for this every year.”
— Sonia Chang-Diaz
jobs, continued to page 11
Protesters assembled in front of the State House to demand that the Nigerian government step up efforts to find more than 200 school girls, who were kidnapped by the militant Islamic group Boko Haram (see page 7 story). (Laura Onyeneho photo)
UMass prog. steers blacks, Latinos into STEM majors By Kenneth J. Cooper Under a new, Harvard-trained dean of science and mathematics, UMass Boston set out to increase the number and diversity of students enrolled in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, known together as STEM. Seven years later, UMass Boston has achieved both goals. Enrollment in its College of Mathematics and Science has nearly doubled and become majority-minority. About 56 percent are students of color, with 35 percent from minorities who are underrepresented in STEM fields — blacks, Latinos and Native Americans.
“We have the most diverse college at UMass Boston, which is not that typical for STEM,” said Andrew Grosovsky, dean of the College of Mathematics and Science. In 2010, Forbes magazine rated the best colleges for underrepresented minorities in STEM, based on whether student diversity in those fields matched the school’s overall enrollment. Twenty schools made the list, including UMass Lowell. With its increased diversity, UMass Boston would break into the top 20, because its enrollment of underrepresented minorities in STEM slightly exceeds their 32 percent in the entire student body.
But Grosovsky knows that bringing in students of color is not enough — seeing them graduate is what matters. On that measure, UMass Boston also appears to be making progress. About 40 percent of those STEM freshmen who entered in 2009 and also benefitted from new academic supports graduated after four years, nearly all in STEM fields — a degree completion rate comparable to the national level. Grosovsky estimates a similar proportion of underrepresented minorities in that group completed their degrees. From tracking credit hours and grades, Grosovsky expects STEM, continued to page 18
Casinos reaching out to Roxbury residents Yawu Miller
Mohegan Sun Hotel Manager Derrick Williams speaks about job opportunities during a job fair at Roxbury Community College. Should the Connecticut-based chain obtain a license to open a casino in Massachusetts, Mohegan Sun will hire staff for a 2017 opening, resort officials say. (Banner photo)
There are no safe bets in the push for a casino in the Boston area. In November of last year, East Boston residents soundly rejected plans for a casino on the grounds of the Suffolk Downs race track in a neighborhood-wide ballot. Revere voters approved the plan and the city pushed forward with plans to build a casino on the 40 acres of Suffolk Downs located on their side of the municipal boundary. That casino plan, advanced by Mohegan Sun is vying with a plan for
a casino in Everett, being advanced by gambling magnate Steve Wynn. Plans for casinos across Massachusetts may come to a halt if the state’s Supreme Judicial Court rules in favor of allowing a question on the November ballot that would repeal gaming in Massachusetts. With a potential vote looming, the potential of thousands of casino jobs and an ongoing public discourse on the negative effects of casinos on low-income communities — crime, addiction, foreclosures — black casino, continued to page 11
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2 • Thursday, May 15, 2014 • BAY STATE BANNER
Landmark 1800s Roxbury home undergoes renovation Yawu Miller For more than 177 years, the Alva Kittredge house has been a commanding presence on Fort Hill. The six Doric columns adorning the front of the high-style Greek revival house have seen scores of residents pass through the front door — prominent citizens of the Town of Roxbury, renters from the building’s decades as a landing spot for immigrants and clients of the Roxbury Action Program, which called the building home during the ‘70s and ‘80s. In the 20 years the Kittredge
House has been vacant the leaks and deferred maintenance took a toll on the building, as evidenced by a sagging portico and the decaying columns. When a real estate developer bought the building from the Roxbury Action Program with plans to cash in on the building’s prestige, preservationists grew worried. The downturn in the economy and the city’s real estate market put the brakes on the developer’s plans and landed the Kittredge House in the hands of the Historic Boston Initiative. Now, after a one-year, $3.8
million rehab project, the house is almost completed with five two-bedroom rental units — two of them affordable — ready for the homes newest residents. “We had to replace 30 to 40 percent of this structure,” says Historic Boston Initiative Executive Director Kathy Kottaridis. “It was in such rough shape.” Alva Kittredge, a furniture manufacturer and real estate developer, built the house in 1836 when Roxbury’s Highland Park neighborhood was home to farms and large estates. The home originally fronted High-
Built by 19th century furniture maker, real estate developer and Roxbury selectman Alva Kittredge, the Kittredge House originally faced Highland Street and had a large wing extending to the south (left in this photo). Linwood Street, which the house now faces, is to the right. (Photo courtesy Historic Boston Incorporated)
land Avenue and had a large addition extending to the south. Also on the estate was a large tower, erected on the site of remnants of the Lower Fort, a 1775 Revolutionary War fortification. Kittredge was a founding member of the Eliot Congregational Church on nearby Walnut Avenue. In researching Kittredge in the church’s archives, Kottaridis found a framed photograph of the prominent Roxbury resident. Kittredge served as a Roxbury alderman prior the city’s annexation by Boston. He was also a real estate developer, who purchased the land for the Forest Hills Cemetery. He sold the Fort Hill estate to prominent Boston architect George Dunbar. In the late 1800s, the house was re-oriented to face Linden Street, where its facade has since been hemmed in by brick row houses. The additions to the house were demolished at that time. The decline of the Kittredge House in the 20th century mirrored the broader pattern of capital flight and urban disinvestment in the United States. When the Roxbury Action Program bought the building in the 1970s, the neighborhood redevelopment organization helped reverse that tide. “RAP did a lot of stabilization when they acquired it,” Kottaridis said. “But it’s really hard to maintain a historic building. At some point you have to do some serious capital upgrades.” Capital upgrades are de rigueur for Historic Boston Incorporated, which has also renovated the 18th century Spooner Lambert House and the 19th century Cedar Street marble row houses
Historic Boston Initiative Executive Director Kathy Kottaridis says the renovation of the Kittredge House will help revitalize the surrounding Fort Hill neighborhood. (Banner photo) in the Fort Hill neighborhood. The nonprofit has its offices in the old Eustice Street Fire Station building, which it renovated two years ago, and is currently working on a plan to repair the Dale Street home where Malcolm X spent much of his teenage years. Kottaridis said she expects the Kittredge House to be occupied by July. Currently, new interior walls, kitchens, heat and air conditioning systems have been installed. The reconstructed columns will soon be installed. When the columns go up, the neighborhood’s beloved Greek revival edifices will be restored to its glory. And history will be preserved. “Not only do we preserve the rich 19th-century history of this neighborhood, but it also re-activates a long empty building for new housing units that will support the continued growth and vibrancy of this community,” Kottaridis said.
Thursday, May 15, 2014 • BAY STATE BANNER • 3
Pioneering entrepreneur expands IT systems firm Martin Desmarais Denise Jones, president and CEO of Dnutch Associates, Inc., has been a trailblazer for women entrepreneurs in Massachusetts, running and growing her company successfully for over 20 years. The recent growth earned Jones and Dnutch the Massachusetts Small Business Association 2014 Woman-Owned Small Business of the Year award. The award is presented annually to a woman-owned business with a successful three-year track record. According to Massachusetts SBA District Director Robert Nelson, the selection of Dnutch for the award was based on staying power, growth in number of employees, increase in sales, innovation of product and
about $3 million in annual revenue. Current growth has Jones optimistic that the company can increase this revenue into the $5 million to $10 million range — which she has set as a target. Nelson referenced these heightened business prospects as reason for tapping Dnutch with its small business award, though Jones didn’t expect the honor. “The award itself I was surprised I got it, but it is an honor to get it,” Jones said. She credited her company’s longevity for the recognition. “It is a lot of hard work. I average about 80 hours a week. I am an A-type personality and I just go, go, go.” Jones also credits the federal sector for driving Dnutch’s success. Surprisingly, she admits that getting state government work
“I have been in business for 20 years and I don’t have a chance to do much work in my backyard. I would like to do that.” — Denise Jones
service, response to adversity and community contributions. “After starting Dnutch Associates, Inc., Denise Jones showed an impressive willingness to innovate and to grow, and took full advantage of the government contracting and other help that was offered to her and to her business, including the SBA’s Emerging 200 training program. Dnutch Associates is a strong example of a resourceful woman-owned business that has staying power, and we are delighted to recognize its success,” Nelson stated. A native of the Boston area, Jones grew up in Lynn and has much of her family in Cambridge. She started the Methuen-based Dnutch Associates in 1993. The company specializes in systems engineering consulting services. It provides services in the design, verification, development and testing of large-scale information technology systems to federal, state and private sector customers. Dnutch has an impressive list of government customers including the U.S. Army, Navy and Air Force, as well as the Department of Transportation and Department of Defense. However, it has also scored big in the commercial industry with giant clients such as Cisco, Intel, General Electric and Raytheon. Jones said that Dnutch has consistently had approximately 15 employees, but more new work has the company up to 25 employees now. Dnutch generates
in Massachusetts has been one of her biggest frustrations in her two-decades at the helm of her own company. In fact, Dnutch can more often be found working on government contracts in New York and Washington than in Massachusetts. “I have been in business for 20 years and I don’t have a chance to do much work in my backyard. I would like to do that,” Jones said. Despite the difficulty getting government work in the state, Jones said she continues to work at it and has increased her efforts with the state office of the SBA in recent years, taking part in several of the programs they offer to minority-owned, women-owned and veteran-owned businesses. “Massachusetts has been coming up to speed but we are still behind the eight ball. I have seen a lot of companies like me go out of business because they were trying to get the work but couldn’t get the work,” Jones said. Regardless, she is optimistic that things will get better for her business in Massachusetts. She said she is counting on the federal sector to help her company hit the higher revenue targets she has and any additional state government work will give a boost to that, and could really make the difference. Jones’ technology background can be traced back to her time in the military. She joined the Air Force in 1976 and, while being a woman in the military at that time was unusual in itself, the choice to venture into technology was basi-
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cally unprecedented for women. Still, she found a foothold working first on air traffic control radar systems, then on telemetry instrumentation, microwaves and satellite communications, as well as in the emerging fields of data and telecommunications. She specializes in systems analysis, systems engineering and quality assurance. During her military time, Jones worked on the systems behind many of the military’s most advanced missiles and satellites. This experience led her into work with government contractors in the 1980s, and through this she was part of projects that supported NASA during the time of the first space shuttle launch. Jones’ military and government contract work in the ‘70s and ‘80s took her across the country, but she returned home in the late ‘80s and joined the Boston-based AGSC Inc., a systems security and IT-support company that was run by two women of color: Barbara Roberson and Grace Hammond. Both Roberson and Hammond had experience with top tech companies prior to starting their own business, including IBM and The Mitre Corp. Jones worked for Roberson and Hammond at AGSC until 1993, when she decided to start Dnutch Associates. “I learned a lot from them but I — in turn — always wanted to do
Denise Jones my own business,” she said. She credits her detail-oriented nature for helping the company survive the early years, placing a large focus on business development, marketing and execution of services to initial customers. “I had to build my own company up utilizing mostly just me,” she said. “For the first two or three years you are carrying all the financing and build off your personal credit. “There are a lot of stepping stones,” she added. “A lot of asking: ‘What do I have to do to meet the goals?’ And making sure to do the things you need to do to meet those goals.” With Dnutch, Jones has ridden
out some unstable periods that have killed off many technology-related businesses, including the dotcom burst, the post-Sept. 11 swoon and The Great Recession. According to Jones, reinventing and adapting were critical to Dnutch during these times. “It really is about diversifying, being able to diversify yourself, your company and your portfolio. That allows you to have specific targets in mind, and you can expand when the opportunity presents itself take advantage of the opportunity,” she said. For Dnutch, this diversifying continues today, and is what Jones hopes will drive the company forward into the future.
4 • Thursday, May 15, 2014 • BAY STATE BANNER
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Unveiling subconscious discrimination Reasonable Americans would agree that racist behavior is undesirable. However, some people are unable to perceive the discriminatory nature of their own conduct. Observers must wonder what drives such pernicious behavior, especially in financially successful people like Donald Sterling. Less publicized sections of the transcript of the remarks by Donald Sterling, the owner of the Clippers basketball team, indicate a subconsciously racist attitude toward blacks. His response is profoundly racist to V. Stiviano’s question “do you know that you have a whole team that’s black, that plays for you?” Sterling answered, “do I know? I support them and give them food, and clothes, and cars, and houses. Who gives it to them? Does someone else give it to them? Do I know that I have — who makes the game? Do I make the game, or do they make the game? Is there 30 owners, that created the league?” This is a lucid expression of a plantation mentality. There are 30 teams in the National Basketball Association and no team can carry more than 15 players. So the athletes that Sterling dismissively refers to are among the 450 best in the nation, and they average multi-million dollar annual salaries. In his remarks, he shows them little respect, as though they go out every day to pick cotton. It is unlikely that he would ever speak of white male professionals in the same way. In a perceptive analysis in the Boston Globe entitled “Becoming White,” Farah Stockman indicated how Sterling might have been motivated to elevate his social status by erasing the fact that he was a product of Boyle Heights, a poor section of East Los Angeles. He even changed his name from Tokowitz to Sterling in order to become a gentile with nothing more than the magic of the stroke of a pen. Sterling knows that there is an advantage in being perceived as white. Even Cliven Bundy,
the Arizona rancher knows that. When he started getting bad press for failing to pay the fees to graze his cattle on federal land, Bundy gratuitously brought up the subject of African Americans. Blacks had nothing at all to do with his dispute with the feds. So why did Bundy raise the issue? Perhaps the blundering Bundy wanted to remind the public that he is still entitled to the privilege of being a white man in America. Some would argue that there is no such privilege but Katherine Milkman of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and her colleagues conducted a study that established some evidence of white male privilege. They found that women and minorities are at a disadvantage in getting college professors to meet to discuss research opportunities for grad school. Race and gender are their impediments. Researchers sent fake identical e-mails to 6,548 professors at 259 U.S. institutions. The only change in the e-mails was the names of the senders that identified them as white, black or female. For example “Steven Smith” would be white male and “Latoya Brown” would be black female. The e-mails were sent to professors in 89 academic disciplines. According to Milkman, there was a 25 percent gap in the rate of responses to males with Caucasian sounding names than to women and minorities. Only in the area of fine arts was that statistic reversed. More than likely, decisions about whether to respond were made without an active intention to discriminate. There might well be an unspoken convention of white privilege in America. One remedy for such a racist custom would be to continue the practice of affirmative action to raise the level of awareness of inadvertent racial discrimination. Under America’s commitment to fair play the principle of equality should prevail.
“I don’t know why the minorities blame us for their inability to become corporate CEOs and join the 1 percent.” USPS 045-780 Publisher/Editor Assoc. Publisher/Treasurer Senior Editor
Melvin B. Miller John E. Miller Yawu Miller
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LETTERSto the Editor
Housing costs an issue in every neighborhood
The rising rents issue your paper has been writing about is not just an issue in the black community. Gentrification stands out more in black and Latino communities because the higher-income demographic moving into those neighborhoods is overwhelmingly white. But that doesn’t mean white communities are immune to gentrification. South Boston and Charlestown have already become unaffordable to most middle-class families. And with housing costs and rents rising rapidly in the Greater Boston
area, it’s only a matter of time until the same economic forces that pushed so many middle-class renters out of the South End will transform the city into a playground for the moneyed classes, with small bantustans of affordable housing sprinkled here and there like so many jimmies on a vanilla ice cream cone. Boston, like so many other cities, is at a crossroads. Elected officials and the voters who support the idea of economic diversity in our city need to begin considering more radical means of preserving affordability not just for the poor, who qualify for affordable housing subsidies. Putting a ban on
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condo conversions, for instance, would keep speculators from outbidding owner-occupants buying multi-families. A modified form of rent control which exempts owner-occupied properties could also slow the rapid rise of rents. The point is, it’s time for government officials to get creative in thinking about ways to combat gentrification. After all, it’s not just their constituents who are at risk. Their City Council and State House salaries don’t exactly put them at the upper end of Boston’s income spectrum. S. Thompson Dorchester
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Thursday, May 15, 2014 • BAY STATE BANNER • 5
ROVINGCamera
OPINION ‘Historic’ high school graduation rate hides a concerning reality Nicholas C. Donohue
The recent National Center for Education Statistics’ report that the U.S. high school graduation rate has climbed up to 81 percent — the highest it’s ever been — was widely covered as “good news.” This rate is, in fact, “historic,” but it conceals a far more troubling reality. More students are graduating from high school, but fewer are gaining access to post-secondary success, which today is an essential threshold for personal economic viability. The Nation’s Report Card tells us that the majority of our 12th graders can’t read or add. What is wrong with this picture? Today, staying in high school and graduating is no longer sufficient. The social and economic imperatives — given the elevation of the skills needed for today’s jobs and the knowledge and dispositions necessary to prepare a democracy forward to a stronger future — require us to forge a pathway for more people, significantly those for whom school has served the least effectively, to attain at levels once held for elite achievers. NCES data also reveals the variances between students of color and their white counterparts. In the state of Massachusetts, where the graduation rate has reached a historic 83 percent overall, English Language Learners are graduating at a rate of 56 percent, Latino students at 62 percent, and black students at 71 percent compared with white students who are graduating at 89 percent. But other national findings tell us more. In fact, a report by the Schott Foundation tells us that it will take up to 50 years to close the graduation gap between black males and their white counterparts if we continue at this current pace. The situation gets worse when readiness for post-secondary success is taken into account. The Boston Foundation, in its 2013 report called “Getting Closer to the Finish Line,” revealed that one in every five Boston Public Schools While we may be students make it all the way graduating more through high school, graduates, enters college, takes remedial students, it’s clear courses, and ends up receiving a that graduation does college degree. So while we may not mean our students be graduating more students, it’s are adequately clear that graduation does not mean our students are adequately prepared for what comes next. prepared for what comes next. The good news is that there is a path forward which is different from just continuing to make improvements that may be statistically significant but mathematically incremental and socially insufficient. Like an old building, the public education system needs a 21st-century upgrade so that all learners have access to post-secondary education and career success. Massachusetts students lead the nation, but the pillars of our educational structure are failing and it could very well impact the future of our economy. By the year 2020, slightly more than a third of the jobs in Massachusetts will require the skills of someone in possession of a post-secondary degree yet only one out of every five Boston Public School graduates earns a college degree today. Business leaders say that their biggest challenge is recruiting skilled workers to fit the jobs they offer. They decry that the problem is a school system in need of “moderate” repair or a “major overhaul,” according to a report of the Massachusetts Business Alliance for Education. The report also suggests remodeling the public education system so that it fits the current needs and dispositions of today’s learner with student-centered teaching practices such as personalized learning, which recognizes that students engage in different ways and different places; competency-based learning, which moves students ahead based on their demonstration of knowledge and not the amount of time that they sit at a desk in a classroom, as well as makes room for learning to take place anytime and anywhere; and last, giving students ownership over their own learning so that they can develop grit and think and improve on their own. The current educational system is not able to sustain these learning practices and we must therefore consider ways to remodel it so that it does. Taking steps to modernize public systems of education in Massachusetts will support a prosperous future for the state. It will also prepare a citizenry to lead our great state forward. And it will secure Massachusetts position as a leader of educational change and improvement in the United States. Nicholas C. Donohue is president and CEO of the Nellie Mae Education Foundation.
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What do you think would be the effect of a casino on the Greater Boston area?
It would increase gambling and, I think, it would lead to more family problems and take away people’s incomes.
It might create more jobs. It might also create more violence. It should be for the greater good, but we don’t know how it’s going to turn out.
I think it would bring thousands more jobs and more tax revenue. It’s hard to find jobs in this economy.
Emoro Efetie
Phyllis Payne
Dana Franklin
It will make a lot of money. Everybody likes to gamble.
Bad. In all religious traditions, gambling is not seen in people’s best interests.
Michael Young
Khabir Jami
Teacher Roxbury
More traffic and aggravation.
Rebecca Johnson Dental Assistant Dorchester
Phlebotomist Roxbury
Disabled Roxbury
Unemployed Roxbury
Retired Plummer Roxbury
INthe news
Maureen Alphonse-Charles Maureen Alphonse-Charles has been named senior vice president and chief operating officer of The Partnership Inc. A longtime business and civic leader in Boston, Alphonse-Charles brings more than 25 years of experience as an executive search recruiter, sales and marketing executive, financial services director and academic affairs director to The Partnership. Alphonse-Charles joins The Partnership from City Year, where she was vice president of executive acquisition. “We are honored to have someone with Maureen’s business expertise and civic leadership join The Partnership,” said Carol Fulp, president and chief executive officer of The Partnership. “Her success in expanding City Year’s capacity to coach underserved students around the nation and globe by identifying and securing executive talent is closely aligned with The Partnership’s mission of developing and advancing professional leaders of color. We look forward to the passion she will bring to her role here as chief operating officer.”
The Partnership is an organization dedicated to leadership development and talent management solutions for professionals of color Alphonse-Charles will be responsible for overseeing internal functions and will assist in bringing the organization to the next level of development. In this capacity, Alphonse-Charles will be involved in executing The Partnership’s new C-Suite Program designed for the
region’s highest level of executives. Before joining City Year, Alphonse-Charles served as managing director at Horton International, a global search firm. Prior, she was partner and co-head of the Diversity Practice at Whitehead Mann Pendelton James, where she recruited senior management and board-level executives. She also served as assistant treasurer of the Private Banking Division at Swiss Bank Corp.
6 • Thursday, May 15, 2014 • BAY STATE BANNER
NEWSBriefs
Rising Star grant kicks off application process
of their Rising Star awards in the Boston area. The June 9 deadline for submission of applications for eligible nonprofits is fast approaching. The Rising Star Nonprofit award is $50,000, and two winners will be selected from among the applicants. The application is similar to a grant application, but also calls for documentation of measurable results and successes in the carrying out the mission statement, details of collaboration with secondary or post-secondary schools, information about wellness or educational programs provided to students, and
Sun Life Financial will give selected education-based nonprofit organizations and exemplary high school students a total of $110,000 in grants and scholarships as part
a creative submission to further illustrate the nonprofit’s mission and successes. Also as part of the application process, each nonprofit will nominate a student who participates in its program and has demonstrated a commitment to his or her community and continuing education. The Rising Star Student award is a scholarship of $5,000, and two winners will be selected from among the nonprofit entrants’ nominees. Student nominees must be high school seniors actively involved in an organization that shares the Sun Life Rising Star awards’ mission.
The student nominee must also plan to pursue post-secondary education, exhibit leadership qualities and demonstrate a strong commitment to their communities. Nominated students must submit a 750-word essay elaborating upon their leadership attributes and community service experiences. Last year, City Year Boston and Sociedad Latina were the Rising Star Award nonprofit recipients, and the student winners were Terel Andrews of City Year, who organized a collection and shipment of school supplies to Cape Verde; and Vickie Miranda of Sociedad Latina, who made a film to document the cultural concerns of Hispanic youth, which she presented to the City Council.
Community forum to be held on Roxbury Strategic Master Plan
Mayor Martin Walsh is joined by state and local leaders in the ceremonial groundbreaking at the Bowdoin Street Health Center in Dorchester on May 12. (Jeremiah Robinson / Mayor’s Office photo)
Place Your Child on the Waiting List, Now
Mayor Martin Walsh and members of the Roxbury Strategic Master Plan Oversight Committee will hold a community forum to discuss life, work and education in Roxbury at the James P. Timilty Middle School on May 19 at 6 p.m. This forum will replace the committee’s regularly scheduled working session. Topics from the committee’s previous working session included
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status updates on a proposed hotel and residence and a proposed housing development at the intersection of Melnea Cass Boulevard and Washington Street; Tremont Crossing mixed-use building development on Tremont Street across from the Boston Police Headquarters; and the Bartlett Place housing and retail development for the Bartlett Yard, at 2565 Washington St.
Domestic workers’ protection bill passes state senate Last week, the Massachusetts Senate passed the Domestic Workers Bill of Rights, which codifies basic labor rights for domestic workers such as nannies, maids and personal care attendants. The bill was passed unanimously and was referred to the House, where it is expected to pass and to become effective in April 2015. The legislation is in response to domestic workers and their representatives who testified before lawmakers about working conditions approximating indentured servitude. Common complaints from domestic workers include inadequate personal time, being fired arbitrarily and with no notice, being sexually harassed, and being underpaid. Part of the bill includes establishing a multilingual outreach program to inform domestic workers and employers about their rights and responsibilities. The outreach will include model employment agreements, educational materials to inform employers of their duties when employing domestic workers, information on benefits, tax and insurance laws, and a model written work evaluation form.
Berklee City Music Faculty Outreach concert set for May 17 The Berklee College of presents its annual Faculty Outreach Concert on Saturday, May 17, at 2 p.m. This concert features the students and faculty from nine of Berklee’s partner schools in the Boston area. An awards presentation follows the show. The Faculty Outreach program provides student enrichment and extra support to public school music programs and teachers. Berklee faculty and alumni participants provide instruction and equipment to the partner schools. Faculty Outreach is offered to grades 4-12 in 17 public schools and one charter school in Boston, and the Berklee College of Music invests approximately $350,000 into the program. The concert, which will be held at the Berklee Performance Center in Back Bay, is expected to last two hours and admission is free.
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Boston protesters demand return of kidnapped girls
Last week, protesters marched on the State House demanding action by the Nigerian government to rescue the more than 200 school girls kidnapped by Boko Haram, an Islamic militant group. U.S. military is helping track the group’s movement with surveillance flights over the African country. (Laura Onyeneho photo) Laura Onyeneho At the State House last Thursday, members of the Greater Boston Nigerian community and supporters marched on the Boston Common, demanding the return of the 200plus boarding school girls abducted in Chibok, Borno state, Nigeria by the Islamic group Boko Haram. More than two dozen men and women wore red shirts, chanted, and carried signs that read “Bring Back
Our Girls” and “Boko Haram is a Threat to the World.” The marchers expressed frustration at what seems to be the inaction of the Nigerian Federal Government to save the missing children. “The Nigerian government is making a mockery of itself internationally,” said Nigerian-American Nse Umoh Esema. Esema said he hopes that the rally efforts “put pressure on both the Nigerian and American governments to act and
return those girls home safely.” Boko Haram whose name means “Western education is evil,” rejects Western culture and has terrorized the Northern rural parts of Nigeria in its quest for a pure Islamic state based on a strict interpretation of Islamic law. In a video released last week, Islamic group leader Abubaker Shekau claimed responsibility for the abductions and referred to the girls as “slaves” and threatened to sell them in a marriage market.
Teens from Boston Aquarium youth programs, including ClimaTeens, which is a group of teens that have been training since last fall to better engage youth in discussion and action around climate change, met with Massachusetts environmental leaders on Earth Day. (Photo courtesy of EPA)
Shekau released a video Monday purporting to show the school girls, three of whom spoke about converting to Islam. Shekau threatened to sell the girls as wives and said he would return them only if the Nigerian government releases Boko Haram fighters who are being held in prisons. This week Nigerian leaders responded to international pressure to step up their efforts to find the kidnapped students, allowing U.S. military surveillance flights over Northern Nigeria to help track the insurgents. Speakers at the Boston rally last week were critical of Nigeria for what many said was its slow response to the crisis. “This should not be allowed in the 21st century,” said Muslim attorney Aminu Gawama. Gawama who has visited Chibok and said Boko Haram’s usage of the religion of Islam has been misrepresented. “Please don’t allow anybody to use religion to divide you in this cause,” he told demonstrators both Muslim and Christian. “God can never approve what those extremists are doing,” he said. Rally participants honored the kidnapped girls by reading aloud several names of the children, who were kidnapped from the boarding school on April 15. 180 names
have since been released by a local organization in Nigeria according to the Los Angeles Times and ABC News. On Tuesday of last week, there were reports that another 11 girls had been taken from villages in Wala and Warabe. The tragedy created an outpour of protests and rallies worldwide. Social Media played a key role in the international pressure for swift action in searching for the missing students. Boston resident Erica Barry heard about the rally through Facebook and wanted to support it. “I don’t know very much about what’s going on in Nigeria, and I have learned a lot coming here. Social media brought me here, and it is a primary example of how powerful a tool it really is,” said Barry. Darren Kew, associate professor of conflict resolution at the University of Massachusetts Boston said these girls are being used as “human shields” for a terrorist group that is growing into a “movement.” “We don’t know where these girls are, but the world is watching the next moves the Nigerian government will take,” said Kew. The rally was one of two last week to take place in front of the State House. Protestors also were out on Saturday.
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Marianny Martinez, a sophomore nursing major at Simmons College, participated in the Student Success Jobs Program at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and receives backing from Partners HealthCare’ community scholarship foundation in pursuing her degree.
Marianny Martinez and Jesus Martinez (no relation) are just two of hundreds of Boston students who are making their way through college with help from Partners HealthCare. The community scholarships foundation, an effort led by Partners and its founding hospitals, Brigham and Women’s and Massachusetts General Hospitals, is providing up to 450 Boston area students the chance to graduate from college and pursue their interests in careers in science and health care. Education is one of the strongest factors to improving health and well-being. More education can lead to a healthier, longer life. That’s why the community scholarships of $13 million over 10 years are helping to ensure that young people achieve their goals. But financial support alone doesn’t necessarily guarantee a student’s success in college. In anticipation of this, the scholarship foundation also provides additional services for students including mentoring, tutoring, summer jobs at the hospitals, and guidance from staff dedicated to supporting the scholarship recipients throughout their undergraduate years. All of these components together help to create an enriching, positive, and
successful educational experience for the students — many of whom are the first in their families to attend college. The scholarships are available to young people who are participants in the hospital youth achievement programs throughout their high school years. Brigham and Women’s Scholar Marianny Martinez is a sophomore nursing major at Simmons
reinforced Marianny’s desire to pursue nursing. “Without the support of the scholarship, I probably could not afford to come here,” Marianny said. “Being able to graduate with a degree from such a good school can really make a difference.” Like Marianny, Jesus Martinez participated in a youth achievement program. As an MGH Youth Scholar, Jesus took part in
“Marianny and Jesus are both terrific examples of the positive impact the hospital programs and the scholarship foundation can have on young people.” — Partners HealthCare Vice President for Community Health Matt Fishman
College. Marianny participated in the Student Success Jobs Program (SSJP) at Brigham and Women’s. Through SSJP, she not only discovered an exciting career path, but she also discovered the community scholarship foundation. It has made pursuing her education and future career goals possible. Working directly with health professionals during her time in SSJP
STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) curricula at Massachusetts General Hospital. The program provided Jesus with academic and college readiness support during high school as well as mentoring and a wide range of opportunities for health careers. This experience also led him to scholarships, continued to page 9
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CAREER Advancement scholarships continued from page 8
the community scholarship foundation. During the Youth Scholar program, Jesus worked in the MGH in-patient psychiatry unit and helped to stock the Operating Room with appropriate supplies for the surgical teams. Experiencing different options for careers in health care was very helpful while he was at MGH. “My experience there really taught me a lot about professional development,” said Jesus. Job-shadowing different employees at the hospital helped to open his eyes to the professional possibilities ahead of him. Jesus is currently a student at Ithaca College
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where he aspires for a career that combines his interest in health care with his passion for law. “Marianny and Jesus are both terrific examples of the positive impact the hospital programs and the scholarship foundation can have on young people,” said Partners HealthCare Vice President for Community Health Matt Fishman. “Expanding economic and educational opportunities for Boston and area young people is a pillar of our mission. We are excited to watch Marianny and Jesus — and all the other scholarship recipients — thrive in their college years and beyond.”
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Community scholarship foundation recipient Jesus Martinez was a Massachusetts General Hospital Youth Scholar during high school. He is now a student at Ithaca College pursuing an interest in health care and law.
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casino
continued from page 1
elected officials and black community organizations in Boston have been largely absent from the casino debate. But the casinos have not been absent from the black community. In spite of the uncertainty, casino developers are pushing ahead with job fairs and vendor meetings in Revere, in Roxbury and in the cities and towns within a 15-mile radius of the proposed Suffolk Downs casino site. Under the Massachusetts casino law, 20 percent of a casino’s jobs will go to residents of the host community and 75 percent to the communities within the 15-mile radius. The casino plans for Everett and Revere would both include all of Boston in their respective 15mile radii. “You’re within the 15-mile radius,” Mohegan Sun executive Peter Schultz told a gathering of about 80 job seekers at Roxbury Community College last week. “It’s good that you’re here tonight.” While Mohegan Sun managers and executives gave an overview of the proposed Revere casino, manag-
jobs
continued from page 1
for teens. The coalition has helped secure over $50 million of funding for youth jobs since the organization was started in 2009. Every year, youth coalition members come together to meet with legislators and propose spending in Massachusetts budget line items that support youth jobs. On April 29, the Youth Jobs Coalition descended on the State House in a show of force to back more funding for youth job programs. Another rally is planned for May 20. The coalition is asking for funding for its MAWORK4TEENS Legislative Package, which includes $9.5 million for The Safe and Successful Youth Initiative, $12 million for Youth Works and $5 million for School to Career. These programs cover jobs for struggling teens, jobs in the community and private sector jobs. “I want to encourage the advocates to keep it up,” Chang-Diaz said. “We have to keep that hope so that people still keep making their voices heard. Everybody else is up here pulling for their line item. The minute that people stop pulling for theirs, that is when we start to lose.” Mayor Martin Walsh’s administration has pledged its support as well. “The City of Boston has a robust program to put youth to work year-round, especially during the summer months,” said the mayor’s spokeswoman Gabrielle Farrell. “Our efforts bring together public, private, and nonprofit sectors to provide meaningful employment for Boston youth, and the state financial support is a vital component of this collaborative effort. State funding is a critical piece to leveraging youth jobs and providing a productive, enriching, and safe summer for our youth. The mayor is continuing to work with legislative partners to ensure there is sufficient funding in Fiscal Year 2015 for youth programming,” Vanessa Snow, manager of organizing and policy initiatives for Hyde Square Task Force, cautions against thinking that the
ers of table games, slots, food services and other casino operations stood at the back of the room, prepared to answer questions from prospective job applicants. In all, the casino plans to hire 4,000 people for operational jobs by the 2017 projected opening date. In addition to job fairs in Roxbury and Dorchester, Schultz said Mohegan Sun is planning meetings with potential vendors about service contracts with the casino. “It’s about jobs and what we purchase in goods and services,” he said. “The requirements that we do business with local vendors is unique to the Massachusetts casino law.” Whatever the economic benefits, the casinos will also bring social costs, opponents argue. “Should casino gambling come to Massachusetts, the state will be creating new problem gamblers,” said Laura Everett, executive director of the Massachusetts Council of Churches. “I’m not convinced that we’ve got the resources to deal with the increased foreclosures, increased crime and addiction. Our social service agencies and our churches can’t absorb the thousands of gambling addicts that will
youth job programs are simply about giving teens something to do during the summer or to give them a little extra money in their pocket with after-school work. She says the programs provide employment opportunities to teens who are really contributing to their households. “A lot of them support their families,” Snow said. Snow says it is unfortunate to face cuts in funding for youth job programs considering there is an increasing need for state-funded programs as jobs in the service sector — a traditional well of youth employment opportunities — become less and less available to teens. The trend sees teens turning to community organizations, such as the Hyde Square Task Force, for work experience, according to Snow. But these community organizations are often dependent on state funding. Hyde Square Task Force employs about 100 youth throughout the course of the year and, while it relies on a variety of sources for funding, state grants contribute significantly. Snow said her organization will turn elsewhere if the state funding does not come through. “In order for us to meet our goal of trying to provide a stipend for the 100 youth who work for us we have to scramble around
be created with new casinos.” Everett and other casino opponents point to Atlantic City and Detroit, two cities where they say casinos have failed to spark economic development. They point to a different 15-mile radius around casinos —
“It’s not just going to have an impact on Revere; it’s going to have citywide impacts.” — Rev. David Searles one where gambling addiction is five times more likely. “It’s not just going to have an impact on Revere; it’s going to have city-wide impacts,” said Rev. David Searles, pastor of the Central Assembly of God in East Boston. Searles says the number of gam-
The activists were able to collect enough signatures to secure a spot on the November ballot for their question, but Attorney General Martha Coakley blocked the ballot measure, stating that the repeal would void implied contracts between the casino companies and the state. Now with the matter in the Supreme Judicial Court, the controversy over the casinos is as hot as ever. Last week state Gambling Commission Chairman Stephen Crosby recused himself from voting on licensure for the Everett and Revere casino proposals, which are vying for the sole Eastern Massachusetts license to be issued by the state. Also last week the Boston Globe disclosed that Supreme Judicial Court Justice Robert Cordy represented Suffolk Downs as a lobbyist and lawyer in the 1990s. Searles remains optimistic the casino opponents will prevail, pointing to the 2008 ballot question that banned dog racing in Massachusetts. “We put an existing dog racing track out of business, yet there’s this idea that without any building in the ground we can’t stop casinos,” he said. “It seems like common sense has gone out the window.”
Organizations such as the Youth Jobs Coalition have been very active with a number of demonstrations and protests asking state legislators to continue funding for youth job and violence prevention programs. The current House budget proposals includes $13.5 million in cuts from funding to these programs. (Photo courtesy of Youth Jobs Coalition) to find the funding,” Snow said. “But not every organization has the capacity to do that type of fundraising while still being dedicated to delivering quality programs.” She also said Hyde Square Task Force will work with the Youth Jobs Coalition to engage state Senators and advocate against budget cuts to youth job funding, as it did with state Representatives.
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bling addicts — those who cannot control their impulse to gamble — will increase if the Revere or Everett project go forward, potentially wreaking havoc on low-income communities in the Greater Boston area. While black elected officials have not come out against the casinos, City Councilor Charles Yancey says blacks should be paying attention. “People of color have just as much at stake as everyone else,” he said. “For the city itself, there could be a net gain of revenue. But the costs to families could be significant, particularly if we don’t have services in place to help with gambling addiction.” Under the state’s gaming law, the Massachusetts Council on Compulsive Gambling and other organizations that work with addiction services are slated to receive a portion $20 to $25 million the state is expected to receive from a 5 percent gambling addiction tax on Massachusetts casinos. Gambling addiction may not be as much of a problem in Massachusetts if anti-casino activists prevail in their efforts to secure a ballot question that would bar the state from licensing casinos.
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Gugu Mbatha-Raw revels in her role as historical figure Dido Elizabeth Belle
Kam Williams Born in Oxford, England on June 30, 1983, Gugu MbathaRaw trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. Her first professional role was as Celia in an open air production of Shakespeare’s “As You Like It.” She subsequently landed roles at Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre where she performed the title roles of Cleop-
atra in “Antony and Cleopatra” and Juliet in “Romeo and Juliet,” the latter opposite Andrew Garfield of “The Amazing Spider-Man.” Her other stage credits include the critically-acclaimed “Big White Fog” at the Almeida T h e a t r e a n d D a v i d H a r e ’s “Gethsemane,” a production at the National Theatre that later toured the U.K. She made her West End debut as Ophelia in
“Hamlet” opposite Jude Law, which was brought across the pond to Broadway in 2009 where it became a big hit at the Broadhurst Theatre. Her television credits include “MI-5,” “Dr. Who,” “Spooks,” “Marple: Ordeal by Innocence,” “Bonekickers” and “Fallout.” In 2008, she was selected as a ‘Star of Tomorrow’ by the showbiz industry magazine Screen International. A couple of years later, she
starred as Samantha Bloom in the NBC-TV series, “Undercovers,” for which she was nominated for an NAACP award for in the Best Actress in a Television Series category. On the big screen, she found her first major feature film work in “Larry Crowne,” directed by Tom Hanks and co-starring Julia Roberts, followed by “Odd Thomas” alongside Willem Dafoe. She also recently finished
filming “Jupiter Ascending” with Channing Tatum and Mila Kunis. Mbatha-Raw, who divides her time between L.A. and London, spoke to the Banner about playing the title character in “Belle,” a biopic about Dido Elizabeth Belle, the orphaned offspring of an African slave and a British ship captain who was raised in 18th century England by her father’s rich relations.
What research did you do in preparation for this role? Did you study 18th century history to become more familiar with the culture of the period in which “Belle” is set, or did the screenplay supply sufficient background information?
Handel, which helped me appreciate the elegance and sumptuousness of that style. And the cast also took some etiquette classes with Amma [director Amma Asante] to help us understand the bows, the curtseys and the manners of the time, which was really fascinating. I also spoke with Amma about Dido’s trajectory, her growing from this naïve, quiet and quite accepting girl into a strong woman with political and romantic awakenings. For me, working with Amma was very rewarding, because she had done a tremendous amount of research. There were a lot of documents which she had sourced which provided context for the story. So, like I said, the script was the starting point, and we leapt off from there into the characters’ relationships.
Q&A What interested you “Belle” and how did you feel about the idea of playing Dido Belle?
There were so many wonderful things that drew me to this project. First and foremost, the historical elements, the fact that this character really existed and that the script was inspired by a real painting. That was fascinating to me because, as a biracial girl growing up in England, I’d never really seen any historical characters who looked like me depicted on film before that weren’t being brutalized or playing slaves. It was refreshing to know that there had been a biracial girl in the aristocracy. I felt that that was a perspective on history that had been so much overlooked, and a story that needed to be told. I was also drawn in by the
romance, the beautiful love story at the core of the drama, having grown up with Jane Austen’s classics like “Pride and Prejudice” and “Sense and Sensibility.” I just thought that would be a fascinating period to explore. And besides being a period drama, we have so many contemporary themes in this film, such as race and class and gender and identity which, as is shown in the news nowadays, are still issues we’re struggling with daily. So, I felt that Belle had a wonderful number of layers that made it a fascinating project.
Is the prejudice we see in Belle at all relatable in today’s more enlightened times?
Yeah, I think Belle is incredibly relatable, not only insofar as the issue of race, which is proba-
bly, on the surface, the most obvious one, but also in terms of the ambiguity and nuances of racism. After all, Belle’s position was ambiguous. She was the daughter of a slave, but her father was in the aristocracy. I think that affords us the opportunity to explore those gray areas, the little slip-ups and subtle comments that are made in society. To me, that’s very contemporary, as is the issue of identity. I think, irrespective of your race, everybody has moments in life where they don’t fit in, or where they try to puzzle through who they really are or to find the courage of their convictions. I think this story really is about finding the courage to be your true self. And I think that is an eternal, universal theme, and a very inspiring one. So, yes, there’s a lot of contemporary stuff in the film, despite its being set in the 18th century.
For me, the script was definitely the starting point, because, although it was inspired by a true story and historical fact, the way I often connect with a character is on a human emotional level, and this script had those subtleties and nuances to it. Because I had grown up with Jane Austen novels and period dramas, I was very familiar with that period and that world already. On a personal level, I took some piano lessons and I listened to music of the period, like
Mbatha-Raw, continued to page 16
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Music, magic and dance make for accessible ‘The Tempest’ Colette Greenstein T h e v e r s i o n o f Wi l l i a m Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” playing now at the American Repertory Theater fuses an extraordinary and colorful world filled with music, magic and dance from playwright and director Aaron Posner and Teller of the legendary magic duo Penn & Teller. “The Tempest” tells the story of Prospero, played by Broadway actor Tom Nellis, an exiled duke and magician, who, after years of living with his daughter Miranda, played by Charlotte Graham, on a magical island must unexpectedly confront the people who wronged him in the past. Adapted and directed by Aaron Posner with magic by Teller and music by Tom Waits and Kathleen Brennan, this production has been a labor of love for both men. Posner and Teller have not only strived to bring Shakespeare’s words to life but have also worked on making the words and vision of William Shakespeare accessible to everyone through the elements of magic, dance and song. “If I’m evangelical about anything in the world it is the accessibility of Shakespeare, and the
fact that he can speak to everyone,” Posner says. “Accessibility goes deep for both of us. “And we’ve had some fabulous responses of people saying, ‘I’ve never seen a Shakespeare play before and I love this,’” he added. (Prior to coming to the ART, the production had a limited run in Las Vegas in April.) Posner and Teller first met when Teller saw a production of “The Tempest” 21 years ago in 1993. The two united on a production of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” in 1998, where Teller did some magic for the play. A decade later the two reunited or as Posner said “it was a full-on collaboration” on a production of “Macbeth” in 2008. According to Posner, their conversation of ‘The Tempest’ has been going on for a while and the significant conversation about ‘The Tempest’ has been going on for about five years. The two have had numerous meetings and workshops and conversations in discussing how they would bring their version of “The Tempest” to life. “Teller and I have read the play to each other a couple of times as we went through cutting it and discussing where the magic goes and where the music
goes. It’s been a labor of love but a tremendous amount of work to bring it to fruition,” Posner said. When asked about what excited him about bringing “The Tempest” to the ART, Posner says, “I think it will be helpfully fabulous for Shakespeare scholars and for people who love Shakespeare and are seeing their fifth Tempest to compare it to the others. It’s also completely available for people who’ve never seen a Shakespeare play before. For people who are coming because they’re fans of magic, or they’re Tom Waits fans, or they’ve seen Pilobolus or they love dance.” In addition to the haunting and spare music by legendary singer/songwriter Waits and his writing partner and wife, Brennan, another element that makes this production so unique is the movement of the characters. They’ve been brought to life through the choreography of Matt Kent of the famed and internationally renowned American Dance Company, Pilobolus. Pilobolus performances are characterized by a strong element of physical interaction between the bodies of the performers and exaggerations or contortions of the human body requiring extreme strength, flexibility and athleti-
cism, often blurring the lines between individual performers. The audience will see these incredible movements interpreted and inspired through the character Caliban by dancers Manelich Minniefee and Zachary Eisenstat. Over the centuries, Caliban (the child of the witch Sycorax who inhabits the island), has been interpreted as a monster, an animal, and a mistreated and misunderstood man. This time around, the character will be played as conjoined twins by the Minniefee and Eisenstat. Of his first time acting role, Manelich Minniefee (who has never uttered a sound in his professional life until this show), says “that it’s about developing a language of movement between us [he and Zach].” Before landing the role of Caliban, Minniefee did some workshops with Aaron Posner and Teller. Minniefee says “I was intrigued by it right off the bat as a dancer. I got into it through the physical.” He goes on to say that “this role for me has been one of my most challenging roles to date because I’m acting, using my voice and speaking text.” After the workshops a couple of years ago at the ART, it was apparent to Posner and Teller that Minniefee was right for the role. Of Minniefee, Posner says, “He is in his body, a performer. So, the fact that he understands that performance energy through his life and dance was incredibly important. He had all the things you look for in a great actor; which are compassion, connection, hu-
“The Tempest,” an adaptation by Aaron Posner and legendary magician Teller, is now playing at the American Repertory Theater. The play features music by Tom Waits and Kathleen Brennan. manity, that draws us into him. He’s intensely likeable.” What makes this version of “The Tempest” so special for audiences according to Posner is “that Shakespeare was a populist. Shakespeare was saying this is for everyone; trying to make it as funny, as dramatic, as magical, as musical as possible. He was a populist playwright and this is a populist production. We’ve been very careful and very eager to provide as many different avenues into the play as possible so it can be as broadly accessible as possible.” The Tempest is currently playing now through June 15 on the main stage of the Loeb Drama Center of The American Repertory Theater. For more information on “The Tempest” and to purchase tickets call 617-547-8300 or go online at americanrepertorytheater.org.
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Mbatha-Raw continued from page 12
What message do you think people will take away from “Belle?”
I really hope people will be inspired by the history of it, and the fact that it’s a true story. The message, for me, at its core, really, is “Be who you are!” Don’t worry about society’s conditioning and the labels that are put on you by external forces. Hold onto your true self. The journey that Dido goes on is about learning to be comfortable in her own skin. I think that’s an inspiring message that we always need to be reminded of in today’s image-obsessed world.
Given your being biracial, was this an especially emotionally demanding role?
Well, it’s an emotional story and I try to put myself into whatever character I play. Obviously, this film is about race and identity, and I am biracial every day. Yes, . . . it was fun to explore those themes, especially the identity theme which is very contemporary. And yeah, it was an emotional experience, because it’s essentially an emotional journey that Dido goes on, from her moments of self-harming, despair and frustration. And that starting point really gave us somewhere to go in terms of her becoming comfortable in
her own skin and developing the confidence to stand up for herself. So, yes, it was a very, very emotional experience. But that’s what I respond to in any role, the human condition and the human connection.
Did you feel any pressure to do justice to Belle?
Absolutely! Because I had never played a real person before and since this was an incredibly refreshing tale to me. Even though there wasn’t much evidence about Dido, factually, I felt this was a terrific opportunity to shed light on a period of history that has somewhat been overlooked and certainly has never been seen from this perspective before. A woman of color… in the lead… of a period drama… And she’s not a slave… she’s not being brutalized… She’s being brought up as an heiress in a genteel society, at least one that’s seemingly genteel on the surface. To me, that that was just such an inspiring new perspective. And because it was based on historical fact, I did feel a responsibility to make Dido as much of a living, breathing human being as possible, first and foremost.
Do you see “Belle” as part of an emerging trend of historical films revisiting the transatlantic slave trade from a fresh perspective?
I hope so. I think that what makes “Belle” unique and different from recent films about the slave experience in the United
States is that this one is about the British perspective. And not just the British perspective, but also a female perspective. I think there are so many more stories to be told surrounding this period of history and the legacy of the slave trade. It feels wonderful to be a part of a canon of films exploring this issue. I only hope that it opens the doorway for more stories to be told like this, so that we can celebrate our heritage and history.
Do you recall your initial reaction years ago when you first saw the postcard of the painting which inspired the script?
Yes! When I saw the postcard, I was intrigued by Dido, because she had such a light in her eyes, and such a mischievous, almost vivacious gaze. My reaction was, “Wow! This girl really looks like she’s got a personality,” unlike other persons of color in period portraits who were usually depicted in those days as an ornament or to signify the status of their white counterpart. They’d be positioned almost like a pet in the painting. By contrast, Dido seemed to have so much life about her. That was what attracted me to her as a person to play. But it was only after shooting the film that myself and Sarah Gadon, who plays [Dido’s cousin] Elizabeth [the other subject of the portrait] got to see the real painting in the flesh which was a magical experience after having spent all that time staring at the postcard and inhabiting the char-
acter. So, to see the actual painting was very special.
How do you define yourself as a performer, given that you’ve done stage, TV, film, and even radio?
Well, I try not to limit myself. The actors that inspire me are the comedians and the people able to shape-shift into different roles and into different media. That ensures your longevity as an artist and prevents you from getting bored with yourself and, hopefully, prevents people from getting bored with you. So, for me, it’s about variety and working with inspiring, creative people. I try not to define myself. Other people are going to do that for you anyway. I like being free to take on any project that inspires me and to trust that the work will speak for itself.
Have you ever worked with a female director before Amma Asante.
Amma Asante is a unique person in several regards, independent of being male or female. I think I might have worked with a couple of female directors in television, but never before with one on film. Amma is incredibly talented, incredibly articulate, and had such a crystal clear vision from the outset of this world we were creating. She was very inspiring! She has a lot of heart, and was very detailed in her directions and notes. I loved working with her and, being a woman, she obviously put a lot of herself into this interpretation. And
“Belle” not only had a female director, but a female scriptwriter and even a female composer. I believe having a female pointof-view was wonderful for such a female-centric story being told in a voice that hadn’t been heard before. So, I am hopeful that this will open the door for more female-driven films.
What kind of direction did Amma Asante give you about Dido Belle’s relationship with Lady Elizabeth Murray?
This is something that Amma was very passionate about. Even though they were only cousins biologically, they were nevertheless very much a sisterhood. I know that Amma herself has a sister she’s very close to, and the intensity of sisterhood was something she very much wanted to explore in the film, not only because the starting point was the painting where they are depicted in such an intimate way with a feeling of affection, but also because of a desire to create a Jane Austen “Sense and Sensibility” dynamic in exploring the depth of that bond. Consider the scene where they have a fierce argument and are saying the most horrible things to each other. I think you can only really explore in that fashion with intimate family. So, yes, Amma was constantly nurturing us to create a sisterhood bond, and Sarah Gadon is such a fun and lovely actress to work with that it was pretty easy to achieve. And we’re the best of friends now.
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MAY 22 “South End Character: Speaking Out on Neighborhood Change” Reading by Author Alison Barnett “Gentrification Jujitsu & Working Toward A Unified Vision, Influencing the Community Process” by Christian Williams, Open Mic
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MAY 29 “Sister Locks Workshop” Led by Certified Loctitian Regina Jackson, Acclaimed Storytellers Linda & Sumner McClain Featuring the Streetfeet Women Presenting “Grandmotherhood”, Open Mic
JUNE 5 Drumming Workshop with Drummer Alvin Terry The Fulnai Haynes Jazz Collaborative Open Mic
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Thursday, May 15, 2014 • BAY STATE BANNER • 17
Community Calendar Thursday
Monday
The rangers recommend wearing hiking boots and bringing drinking water on all hikes.
¡Muévete! Moving to a Latin Beat 5:30-7pm. In honor of El día de los niños, MetaMovements will perform and lead the audience in Salsa, Bachata, and Merengue. The history of each dance will also be revealed. www.bpl.org, Uphams Corner Branch of the Boston Public Library, 500 Columbia Road, Dorchester ~ 617-2650139. Free.
Temple University Concert Choir Starting at 7:30pm, at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 838 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, the Temple University Concert Choir presents “I heard a voice from heaven”, with Howells’ Requiem, and Esenvalds’ Three Teasdale Pictures. Concert and wine reception to follow are FREE. For directions to the venue please visit www.saintpeterscam bridge.org.
The Trouble with Tribbles At the end of May the Post-Meridian Radio Players are proud to present the return of our gender-swapped interpretation of The Trouble with Tribbles. A faithful reproduction of the original Star Trek episode, except with Captain Jane T. Kirk, Ms. Spock and Mr. Uhura. Friday, May 30 — 8pm, Saturday, May 31 — 2pm, Saturday, May 31 — 8pm. The show will be at Unity Church at 6 William St. in Somerville, just a quick 5 min. walk from Davis Square on College Ave. The show is free to attend although a $5 donation would be appreciated. Seats will be first come-first served although you may reserve a spot ahead of time at www.brownpa pertickets.com/event/686847. In addition, there will be a Q&A session with Director Mindy Klenoff after the May 30 performance. The Post-Meridian Radio Players perform shows in the style of the Golden Age of Radio with actors in front of microphones and live sound effects performed on stage. For more information please visit www.pmrp.org.
May 15
Shirley-Eustis House Spring Lecture Series The Shirley-Eustis House, 33 Shirley St., a National Historic Landmark house museum and c a r r i a g e h o u s e i n R o x b u r y, Massachusetts announces its Spring Lecture Series Schedule. Thursday, May 15 — Dr. Joseph Warren — 6:30 pm; Sunday, May 18 — A Tale of Two Cities: Louisbourg and Halifax in the Contest for Empire — 2:00 pm; Thursday, May 29 — Lafayette! We are here!! — 6:30 pm; and Sunday, J u n e 1 — William Shirley’s Contribution to the American Revolution — 2:00 pm and Tour Season Opening 1-4 pm. All lectures will take place at the Shirley-Eustis House. A d m i s s i o n f o r e a c h l e c t u re will be $10 per person. Visit www.shirleyeustishouse.org for more information, call 617-4422275 or email governorshirley@ gmail.com.
Saturday May 17
Puppet-making Workshops FREE! 10:30am - 12:30pm. Jamaica Plain Community Center (Curtis Hall), 20 South St. Families Creating Together offers free series of four puppet-making workshops for children ages 7-11 with and without disabilities led by celebrated teaching artist using recycled materials. Spanish, ASL translators. Wheelchair accessible. To register and for more information call 617-522-4832.
Sunday May 18
Southeastern MA Adult Walking Club Moderate walk, some hilly terrain, 3 miles. Walk from the Donovan School to Ponkapoag Trail and return via Madden Road. Meet at the Donovan School on 123 Reed St. in Randolph at 1pm. The Southeastern Massachusetts Adult Walking Club meets each weekend on either a Saturday or Sunday at 1:00 for recreational walks. This club is open to people of 16 years of age and older, and there is no fee to join. Walks average 2 to 5 miles. New walkers are encouraged to participate. The terrain can vary. Walks will be led by a park ranger or a Walking Club volunteer leader. Occasionally, the Walking Club meets at other DCR sites. Some DCR sites charge a parking fee. The rangers recommend wearing hiking boots and bringing drinking water on all hikes
May 19
Thursday May 22
American Crisis The Shirley-Eustis House, 33 Shirley St., Boston, a National Historic Landmark house museum and carriage house in Roxbury, Massachusetts announces lecture on Thursday at 6:30pm. In Mr. Fowler’s presentation, “American Crisis,” he explains that most people believe that the victory at Yorktown resolved the question of whether the colonies would become a free and independent nation. In a captivating historical tour de force, Author and Historian William M. Fowler chronicles the two years after Yorktown. If any individual was essential to the nation’s survival during the crisis years, it was George Washington. This lecture series is honoring longtime board member Grace Thaler who passed away in October of last year. All lectures will take place at the Shirley-Eustis House. Admission for each lecture will be $10 per person. Visit www. shirleyeustishouse.org for more information, call 617-442-2275 or email governorshirley@gmail.com.
Upcoming FREE Family Fun Days at the Kroc This Spring Join us for 4th Fridays: FREE Family Fun Days at the Kroc. Participate in: Swimming, Open Gym, Rock Wall Climbing, Specialized Workshops & Activities, & More! May 23, 5-8pm. Arrive Early! Activities are based on capacity. No membership or registration required. For more information contact our Welcome Desk at 617-318-6900. Southeastern MA Adult Walking Club Moderate walk, some hills, 4 miles. Old Rte. 128 to Beech Hollow and Doe Hollow. Return via the green dot trail. Meet at the Houghton’s Pond main parking lot at 840 Hillside St. in Milton at 1pm on May 24. The Southeastern Massachusetts Adult Walking Club meets each weekend on either a Saturday or Sunday at 1:00 for recreational walks. This club is open to people of 16 years of age and older, and there is no fee to join. Walks average 2 to 5 miles. New walkers are encouraged to participate. The terrain can vary. Walks will be led by a park ranger or a Walking Club volunteer leader. Occasionally, the Walking Club meets at other DCR sites. Some DCR sites charge a parking fee.
Kids Flycasting Training Again this year, experienced fly fishing fishermen and fisherwomen — members of the Greater Boston Chapter of Trout Unlimited (GBTU) — will provide free introductory, hands-on training to Boston youngsters in how to cast a fly with a fly fishing rod. Advance registration is not required, and there is no cost to participate. Who: Boys and girls who are strong enough to hold and manipulate a fly fishing rod are eligible to participate. (Kids age 6 and up participated last year.) When: Saturday, May 31, from 10am – 4pm, Where: Boston Common Frog Pond. This program is a repeat of the very successful training event the Chapter conducted last year. Thanks to The Skating Club of Boston, Inc., year-round managers of the Frog Pond, the Boston Parks Department, The Friends of the Public Garden, and L.L. Bean, for their continuing support. For more information , contact David Glater, GBTU President, by email at david@gbtu.org or Steven Kundrot, GBTU Treasurer, at Steven@ gbtu.org. Houghton’s Pond walk Easy walk, 2 miles. Loop around Houghton’s Pond and old Rte. 128. Meet at the Houghton’s Pond main parking lot at 840 Hillside St. in Milton at 1pm on May 31. The Southeastern Massachusetts Adult Walking Club meets each weekend on either a Saturday or Sunday at 1:00 for recreational walks. This club is open to people of 16 years of age and older, and there is no fee to join. Walks average 2 to 5 miles. New walkers are encouraged to participate. The terrain can vary. Walks will be led by a park ranger or a Walking Club volunteer leader. Occasionally, the Walking Club meets at other DCR sites. Some DCR sites charge a parking fee. The rangers recommend wearing
hiking boots and bringing drinking water on all hikes.
Ongoing Rarified Simmons College presents Rarified, an exhibit of drawings by Rebecca Doughty and Alice O’Neill through May 30 at the Trustman Art Gallery, located on the fourth floor, Main College Building, 300 the Fenway in Boston. The exhibit is free and open to the public (closed May 9, 26). Rebecca Doughty and Alice O’Neill are artists exploring shape and line through an economy of means and a rigorous process. Their drawings elegantly compress form, their very spareness an invitation to respond on one’s own terms. These two artists skillfully maximize feeling with a minimum of embellishment. Their aptitude in soliciting our interest in their characters and forms lies in their ability to imply much through their thorough understanding of essence. Trustman Gallery hours are 10am - 4:30pm, Monday through Friday. The gallery is free, open to the public and wheelchair accessible. For more information, contact Marcia Lomedico at 617-521-2268, or visit the Trustman Art Gallery website at www.simmons.edu/trustman. Tuesday Noon Hour Recital King’s Chapel announces the TUESDAY NOON HOUR RECITAL programs for MAY 2014. Historic King’s Chapel is located in downtown Boston at the corner of School and Tremont Streets. Hailed by residents and visitors alike as a treasure in the midst of a bustling city, this year-long series features a wide range of programming from classical to jazz and more! Admission to the Noon Hour Recitals is by suggested donation of $3 per person; the donations are given to the performing musicians. Programs begin at 12:15pm and last approximately 35 minutes; for more information, please call 617-227-2155 or visit www. kingschapel.org. Geometry Of Nature The Multicultural Arts Center presents GEOMETRY OF NATURE on view through June 3, in the Upper Gallery, exhibiting
paintings by CJ Phu, a local artist. An ephemeral display of bright greens, blues, and oranges, Phu’s acrylic paintings place you in a world of new beginnings — teeming with life. His handling of acrylic, graphite, oil stick, and water is almost evocative of printmaking due to the technique he employs. FREE and open to the public. Regular Gallery hours: Monday-Friday, 10:30am - 6pm. 41 Second St., Cambridge, one block from Green Line Lechmere station and walking distance from Red Line Kendall/ MIT station. www.multicultural artscenter.org.
Chaos & Identity: Floating Island The Multicultural Arts Center and Latin Art Space presents CHAOS & IDENTITY: FLOATING ISLAND on view through June 3, in the Lower Gallery, exhibiting works by Angel Ramirez and Ibrahim Miranda, two renowned Cuban artists. The two artists create a celebration and investigation of Cuban past and present that is sure provoke new thoughts about the chaos of one’s cultural identity. The collection of works, which range in mediums from woodcuts to printmaking, addresses the chaotic process of establishing an identity. It also explores, challenges, and inspires thought about assumptions that many people have about what it means to be Cuban. FREE and open to the public. Regular Gallery hours: Monday-Friday, 10:30am - 6pm. 41 Second St., Cambridge, one block from Green Line Lechmere station and walking distance from Red Line Kendall/MIT station. www.multiculturalartscen ter.org. Celebrate African History in Song and SpokenWord Youth, teens, families and seniors are invited to gather at the Dudley library, 65 Warren St., to Celebrate African American History and express the Spirit of the Sixties in song and spoken word. This free intergenerational program facilitated by Vocal Instructor Barbara Sanford Epps and Spoken Word Educator Lisa Lee takes place from 2-4 pm on Saturdays through June 14. Contact Hawthorne Youth and Community Center, Inc,. at hyccroxbury@hotmail.com or 617427-0613 to register.
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The Community Calendar has been established to list community events at no cost. The admission cost of events must not exceed $10. Church services and recruitment requests will not be published. THERE IS NO GUARANTEE OF PUBLICATION. To guarantee publication with a paid advertisement please call advertising at (617) 261-4600 ext. 7797 or email sandra@bannerpub.com. NO LISTINGS ARE ACCEPTED BY TELEPHONE, FAX OR MAIL. NO PHONE CALLS PLEASE. Deadline for all listings is Friday at noon for publication the following week. E-MAIL your information to: calendar@bannerpub.com. To list your event online please go to www.baystatebanner.com/events and list your event directly. Events listed in print are not added to the online events page by Banner staff members. There are no ticket cost restrictions for the online postings.
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18 • Thursday, May 15, 2014 • BAY STATE BANNER
STEM
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graduation rates to rise above 50 percent, reflecting the increased number of students who received academic supports in successive freshmen classes. Both Chancellor J. Keith Motley and Grosovsky said the effort is off to a good start, but acknowledged that boosting STEM diversity on commencement day remains a work in progress. “It’s exciting. We’re still writing the story. We’re on chapter one,” Motley said. Since arriving from the University of California, Riverside, in 2007, Grosovsky has launched a number of initiatives to improve student success and diversity. The lynchpin are “Freshmen Success Communities” of up to
two dozen students with same major who are grouped together in their first-year courses. The communities reflect the college’s diversity. A professor advises each group and instructs members in a required freshman seminar. The communities are academic support groups that better connect their members to the commuter school. Grosovsky compares the communities to undergraduate houses at Harvard, where he earned a doctorate in biology. “We had to create a greater sense of engagement and belonging,” the dean explained. “We wanted them to engage with other students, faculty, advisors, academic support staff. We wanted them to feel this is their university.” The college gradually has increased the number of communities until more than half of current freshmen belong to one. The
Andrew Grosovsky
number of students who return for a second year, a key milestone en route to graduation, has gone up. “Students are staying here because they’re supporting each other,” Motley said. “They’re getting support ‘round the clock with each other, with the social media that they use, the studying together that they’re doing with the faculty members.” Funding to support the communities has come from the university, local businesses, and the National Science Foundation through the Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation in STEM. The college has forged partnerships with tech companies and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute to provide students with internships and research assistantships. Melissa Cruz, a junior interested in biomedical research, previously tried out UMass Amherst and UMass Lowell in her hometown. “The reason I chose UMass Boston is because I felt there was a greater opportunity to be involved in research as an undergrad, and there was also a greater diversity, both in your student body and also in the faculty,” Cruz, who is Dominican, said. To improve retention, the college identified courses where students often struggle and then assigned paid tutors to those classes, which include calculus, Introduction to Biology and General Chemistry. The tutors are undergraduates who had excelled in those classes. Gifty Addae, a junior majoring in biochemistry and anthropology, has benefitted from the initiatives. She was in a freshman community. She did a summer internship in a Dana-Farber lab. Currently, she is a tutor for a chemistry class. Addae, whose family roots are in Ghana, immigrated to go to college. She considered Yale and
Melissa Cruz Tufts, but found them too expensive. UMass Boston was affordable. But since being one of 15 minority students in a selective internship at the Cornell Medical School last summer, Addae has come to believe that UMass Boston rivals pricier schools in the quality of STEM education. “After I interacted with my colleagues, I sort of realized that I could hold my own with them,” Addae said. “The education that I have on campus is comparable to (that of) people who are coming from places conventional people will think are better schools, if not the best schools.” Grosovsky believes the College of Science and Mathematics is on track to move from diverse students to diverse graduates. “If we enroll students who are diverse, and we can’t have them complete their program and be successful, then what’s the good of the diversity of our enrollment?
That’s really what the difference is,” Grosovsky said. “We’ve got a long way to go, but I think we’ve made a lot of progress.”
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John DeGrasse: Boston’s pioneering black surgeon Anthony W. Neal African American surgeon Dr. John Van Surly DeGrasse, between the years 1850 and 1860, was regarded as the most cultured and accomplished black in the world, according to historian William Henry Ferris. The son of Count George DeGrasse and Marie M. Van Surly DeGrasse, he was born in June 1825 in New York City, where he attended private and public schools. In 1840, DeGrasse studied for one year at the Oneida Institute, a Presbyterian school in Whitesboro, New York, founded in 1833 by abolitionist Beriah Green. The institute emphasized manual training and academic education and favored Greek and Hebrew Scriptures over Latin Classics. Since Latin was not taught there, DeGrasse departed for the Clinton Seminary, where he remained two years. In the fall of 1843, DeGrasse had planned to attend college in the United States, but a friend persuaded him to spend two years taking courses in medicine at Aubuk College in Paris. He returned to New York in November 1845 and,
Seven months later, on August 24, 1854, having earned a favorable reputation by his skill and persistent effort, DeGrasse gained admission to the Massachusetts Medical Society, becoming the first African American to do so in the state. The following month, the “Boston Investigator” reported that it was probably the first time that such an honor was conferred on black man in the United States. Commenting favorably upon his induction, another newspaper remarked that many of the city’s most respected physicians consulted DeGrasse whenever medical advice was needed, and that the “Boston medical profession, it must be acknowledged, has done itself honor in thus discarding the law of caste, and generally acknowledging real merit, without regard to the hue of the skin.” In August 1855, DeGrasse served as a surgeon in the Massasoit Guard — a black militia unit, formed in 1852 under the leadership of attorney Robert Morris, John P. Coburn and others. The company numbered about 80 men. Although Morris petitioned the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
DeGrasse gained admission to the Massachusetts Medical Society, becoming the first African American to do so in the state. for two years, studied medicine with Dr. Samuel R. Childs. He then traveled to the coastal Maine town of Brunswick, where he attended the Medical School of Maine at Bowdoin College. On May 19, 1849, DeGrasse acquired his medical degree with honors, becoming the second African American to graduate from a U.S. medical school. In the fall of the same year, the doctor went back to Europe, traveling to England, Italy, Switzerland and Paris. While in Paris, he served as an assistant to the renowned French surgeon Alfred Armand Velpeau. Ferris noted that DeGrasse was an eminent black physician — “a polished and refined gentleman, whose culture had been ripened by studies in France and travels in Europe.” DeGrasse returned home to the United States aboard the ship “Samuel Fox” and initially set up his medical practice in New York. He soon moved to Boston and, on August 5, 1852, married Cordelia Lucretia Howard. One child, Georgiana Cordelia DeGrasse, was born of the marriage on December 5, 1855. By July 1853, DeGrasse had established a medical practice at 40 Poplar St. in Boston. He advertised it in William Lloyd Garrison’s paper, the “Liberator.” About DeGrasse, abolitionist and historian William Cooper Nell on January 24, 1854, wrote, “Dr. John V. DeGrasse . . . skillful and faithful in his practice, though laboring under the obstacles that beset all young physicians, will soon, it is hoped, realize a reward for the labor and cost, which, in the Parisian hospitals and elsewhere, have qualified him for administering to the various ills that human flesh is heir to.”
for recognition, the state did not recognize black militia units at that time. A Mason of the Prince Hall Grand Lodge in Boston, DeGrasse served as Grand Senior Warden from 1860 to 1861 and became Most Worshipful Grand Master in 1862. On September 18, 1862 at the Twelfth Baptist Church on Southac Street, on behalf of the Grand Lodge he delivered an address accepting the invaluable gift of a portrait of John T. Hilton, painted by artist William H. Simpson. Paying homage to his Masonic brother Hilton, DeGrasse said in part, “To us, this portrait is invaluable, not only to remind us of the man whom we all esteem, and with whose life and character we
are conversant, but to the young men who may have the good fortune to enter our sanctum sanctorum in after years, this picture can be pointed out, and we can tell them how faithful our friend and brother, John T. Hilton, was to the order for more than 40 years, and urge upon them the ardor, zeal and constancy that characterized him, not only for what would benefit the craft, but the community at large.” On April 23, 1861, DeGrasse and other black men, including Robert Morris, Dr. John S. Rock, Mark R. De Mortie, William Cooper Nell, and future state representative John J. Smith, met at the Twelfth Baptist Church to express their sentiments regarding the Civil War. At that time, they passed a resolution declaring that they were ready to raise an army of 50,000 black men to defend the United States and its flag, provided the laws could be altered to allow those men to enlist. It was also resolved that they immediately form companies for drill. Justifying the use of black soldiers as a war necessity, President Abraham Lincoln signed into law the Militia Act of July 17, 1862. Among other things, the act authorized the President “to receive into the service of the United States,” for the purpose of performing “any military or naval service for which they may be found competent, persons of African descent.” Once black men were permitted to enlist in the military, Massachusetts governor John A. Andrew, another Bowdoin College graduate, commissioned DeGrasse as an assistant surgeon in the Union Army. He was mustered in on May 18, 1863 and temporarily assigned to Camp Meigs in Readville, Mass.— a training camp for Union soldiers of the famed 54th Massachusetts Infantry. On January 1, 1864, DeGrasse was commissioned as an officer, under the command of abolitionist Edward Wild of Brookline, in Company S of the U.S. Colored Troops 35th Infantry Regiment — formerly known as the 1st Regiment, North Carolina Colored Volunteers. He was one of only eight African American surgeons to serve in the Union forces and the only one to serve in the field with his regiment. While serving in Florida, however, DeGrasse was charged with
City Life/Vida Urbana CRISIS RESPONSE PROGRAM Boston Residents in Foreclosure Only!! • Are you living in a foreclosed home? • Are you a Boston resident? • Are you low or moderate income?
# of Persons in Household
Low to Moderate Income (80% of PMA Median)
1
$47,150
2
$53,900
3
$60,650
4
$67,350
5
$72,750
6
$78,150
If you answered yes to all, we are able to provide counseling and relocation services; and help you apply for financial assistance to keep you in your home; back rent; utilities, and storage. Contact Kailla Pearl, Crisis Response Program at 617-524-3541 x315 or kpearl@clvu.org for more information. The Crisis Response Program is funded by the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office and the City of Boston’s Department of Neighborhood Development.
“drunkenness on duty” and “conduct unbecoming an officer.” It is suspected that the charges were trumped up and racially motivated, as there was testimony suggesting that the allegations were baseless and a clear record of concerted hostility by white officers towards black officers, particularly black surgeons. Nonetheless, an all-white jury convicted DeGrasse, and he was mustered out of the Union Army on November 1, 1864. For his brief service with the 35th in Beaufort, South Carolina, and Jacksonville, Florida, Governor Andrew awarded him a gold-hilted sword from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Dr. John V. DeGrasse died in Boston of tuberculosis on November 25, 1868, at the age of 42. The “Lowell Daily Citizen and News” reported that he was “respected by all who knew him.” He is buried
Dr. John Van Surly DeGrasse at the Cypress Hill Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York.
20 • Thursday, May 15, 2014 • BAY STATE BANNER
ONE AD. EVERY MEDIA. $30.* MASSACHUSETTS PORT AUTHORITY NOTICE TO CONTRACTORS Sealed General Bids for MPA Contract No. L892-C2, SUBSTATION HVAC UPGRADES, LOGAN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, EAST BOSTON, MA will be received by the Massachusetts Port Authority at the Capital Programs Department Office, Suite 209S - Logan Office Center, One Harborside Drive, East Boston, Massachusetts 02128-2909, until 11:00 A.M. local time on WEDNESDAY JUNE 11, 2014 immediately after which, in a designated room, the bids will be opened and read publicly. Sealed filed sub bids for the same contract will be received at the same office until 11:00 A.M. local time on WEDNESDAY MAY 28, 2014, immediately after which, in a designated room, the filed sub bids will be opened and read publicly. NOTE: PRE BID CONFERENCE WILL BE HELD AT THE CAPITAL PROGRAMS DEPARTMENT (ABOVE ADDRESS) AT 11:00 AM LOCAL TIME ON THURSDAY, MAY 22, 2014. The work includes Upgrades to 18 Airport Electrical Substations. New HVAC systems with demolition of existing systems for 15 of the substations including interlocking of new control systems into the Central Heating Plant Building Management System. New HVAC systems include self-contained HVAC units, air conditioning split systems, air handling units, air cooled condensing units and exhaust fans. New ELECTRICAL systems and demolition of existing ELECTRICAL systems. Architectural and Structural modifications to the existing substations to accommodate the installation of the new HVAC units. Bid documents will be made available beginning WEDNESDAY MAY 14, 2014 Bid Documents in electronic format may be obtained free of charge at the Authority’s Capital Programs Department Office, together with any addenda or amendments, which the Authority may issue and a printed copy of the Proposal form. In order to be eligible and responsible to bid on this contract General
Bidders must submit with their bid a current Certificate of Eligibility issued by the Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance and an Update Statement. The General Bidder must be certified in the category of GENERAL BUILDING CONSTRUCTION. The estimated contract cost is $1,700,000. In order to be eligible and responsible to bid on this contract, filed Subbidders must submit with their bid a current Sub-bidder Certificate of Eligibility issued by the Division of Capital Asset Management and a Subbidder Update Statement. The filed Sub-bidder must be certified in the subbid category of work for which the Sub-bidder is submitting a bid proposal. Bidding procedures and award of the contract and sub contracts shall be in accordance with the provisions of Sections 44A through 44H inclusive, Chapter 149 of the General Laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. A proposal guaranty shall be submitted with each General Bid consisting of a bid deposit for five (5) percent of the value of the bid; when sub bids are required, each must be accompanied by a deposit equal to five (5) percent of the sub bid amount, in the form of a bid bond, or cash, or a certified check, or a treasurer’s or a cashier’s check issued by a responsible bank or trust company, payable to the Massachusetts Port Authority in the name of which the Contract for the work is to be executed. The bid deposit shall be (a) in a form satisfactory to the Authority, (b) with a surety company qualified to do business in the Commonwealth and satisfactory to the Authority, and (c) conditioned upon the faithful performance by the principal of the agreements contained in the bid. The successful Bidder will be required to furnish a performance bond and a labor and materials payment bond, each in an amount equal to 100% of the Contract price. The surety shall be a surety company or securities satisfactory to the Authority. Attention is called to the minimum rate of wages to be paid on the work as determined under the provisions of Chapter 149, Massachusetts General Laws, Section 26 to 27G, inclusive, as amended. The Contractor will be required to pay minimum wages in accordance with the schedules listed in Division II, Special Provisions of the Specifications, which wage rates have been predetermined by the U. S. Secretary of Labor and / or the Commissioner of Labor and Industries of Massachusetts, whichever is greater.
CONTACT SANDRA CASAGRAND AT SANDRA@BANNERPUB.COM OR (617) 261-4600 x7797 FOR MORE INFORMATION *NOT INCLUDING THE PRICE OF PRINT AD
The successful Bidder will be required to purchase and maintain Bodily Injury Liability Insurance and Property Damage Liability Insurance for a combined single limit of $10,000,000. Said policy shall be on an occurrence basis and the Authority shall be included as an Additional Insured. See the insurance sections of Division I, General Requirements and Division II, Special Provisions for complete details. Filed sub bids will be required and taken on the following classes of work: HEATING, VENTILATING, AND AIR CONDITIONING ($1,130,000) MISCELLANEOUS AND ORNAMENTAL IRON ($33,000) MASONRY ($32,000) ELECTRICAL ($367,000) The Authority reserves the right to reject any sub bid of any sub trade where permitted by Section 44E of the above referenced General Laws. The right is also reserved to waive any informality in or to reject any or all proposals and General Bids. This Contract is also subject to Affirmative Action requirements of the Massachusetts Port Authority contained in the Non Discrimination and Affirmative Action article of Division I, General Requirements and Covenants, and to the Secretary of Labor’s Requirement for Affirmative Action to Ensure Equal Opportunity and the Standard Federal Equal Opportunity Construction Contract Specifications (Executive Order 11246). The General Contractor is required to submit a Certification of Non Segregated Facilities prior to award of the Contract, and to notify prospective subcontractors of the requirement for such certification where the subcontract exceeds $10,000. Complete information and authorization to view the site may be obtained from the Capital Programs Department Office at the Massachusetts Port Authority. The right is reserved to waive any informality in or reject any or all proposals. MASSACHUSETTS PORT AUTHORITY THOMAS P. GLYNN CEO & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Thursday, May 15, 2014 • BAY STATE BANNER • 21
NOTICE TO CONTRACTORS CLASSIFIED LEGAL ADVERTISEMENT COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS EXECUTIVE OFFICE FOR ADMINISTRATION AND FINANCE DIVISION OF CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT & MAINTENANCE (DCAMM) Sealed proposals submitted on a form furnished by the Division of Capital Asset Management & Maintenance (DCAMM) and clearly identified as a bid, endorsed with the name and address of the bidder, the project and contract number, will be received at the Division of Capital Asset Management & Maintenance, One Ashburton Place, 1st Floor, Room 107, Boston, MA 02108, no later than the date and time specified and will forthwith be publicly opened and read aloud. General Bids at 2:00 PM:
JUNE 3, 2014
DCP1425 Contract No. HC1
Transportation Building – Library Renovations, 10 Park Plaza Boston, Massachusetts E.C.C: $57,500 This project is scheduled for 30 calendar days to substantial completion and in general includes: Remove and dispose of existing broadloom carpet and install new carpet tile. Library stacks should be lifted/moved temporarily to remove existing carpet underneath and replace with new. Provide carts to off-load books and materials on shelves. All work to be performed during off-hours (nights after 5:00 pm & weekends starting at 7:00 am). The pre-bid informational meeting will be held on Thursday, May 22, 2014 at the site (2nd Floor, State Transportation Building, 10 Park Plaza, Boston, Massachusetts) @10:00 am, contact Jeremy Haskins at 857-204-1337. Minimum rates of wages to be paid on the project have been determined by the Director of the Department of Labor Standards under the provisions of the Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 149, Sections 26 to 27H. Wage rates are listed in the contract form portion of specification book. Each general bid proposal must be secured by an accompanying deposit of 5% of the total bid amount, including all alternates, in the form of a bid bond, in cash, a certified, treasurer’s, or cashier’s check issued by a responsible bank or trust company made payable to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The bidding documents may be examined at the Division of Capital Asset Management & Maintenance Bid Room, One Ashburton Place, 1st Floor, Room 107, Boston, MA 02108 Tel (617) 727-4003. Copies may be obtained by depositing a company check, treasurer’s check, cashier’s check, bank check or money order in the sum of $30.00 payable to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. No personal checks or cash will be accepted as deposits. Refunds will be made to those returning the documents in satisfactory condition on or before JUNE 17, 2014 (ten business days after the opening of General Bids) otherwise the deposit shall be the property of the Commonwealth.
Messenger and other type of pick-up and delivery services are the agents of the bidder and the Division of Capital Asset Management & Maintenance
Yard Sale
35th ANNUAL, Sat. 5/17, 9am-2pm. Over 50 houses on lovely Ashmont Hill, Dorchester. Ocean St. 617-288-6626 or www.ashmonthill.org
SUFFOLK Division
Citation on General Probate Petition
Docket No. SU14D0830DR
Blondine Constantin
vs.
In the Matter of: Foster Ralph To all interested persons:
Pierre Michel Cadet
To the Defendant: The Plaintiff has filed a Complaint for Divorce requesting that the Court grant a divorce for irretrievable breakdown of the marriage pursuant to G.L. c. 208, Section 1 B. The Complaint is on file at the Court. An Automatic Restraining Order has been entered in this matter preventing you from taking any action which would negatively impact the current financial status of either party. SEE Supplemental Probate Court Rule 411. You are hereby summoned and required to serve upon: Blondine Constantin, 41 Seymour St #2, Roslindale, MA 02131 your answer, if any, on or before 7/17/2014. If you fail to do so, the court will proceed to the hearing and adjudication of this action. You are also required to file a copy of your answer, if any, in the office of the Register of this Court. Witness, Hon. Joan P. Armstrong, First Justice of this Court. Date: May 1, 2014 Ann Marie Passanisi Register of Probate
A petition has been filed by Foster Ralph of Mattapan, MA requesting enter an order that his name is Foster Ralph so he can renew his passport. You have the right to obtain a copy of the Petition from the Petitioner or at the Court. You have a right to object to this proceeding. To do so, you or your attorney must file a written appearance and objection at this Court before 10:00 a.m. on 05/22/2014. This is NOT a hearing date, but a deadline by which you must file a written appearance and objection if you object to this proceeding. If you fail to file a timely written appearance and objection followed by an Affidavit of Objections within thirty (30) days of the return date, action may be taken without further notice to you. WITNESS, HON. Joan P Armstrong, First Justice of this Court. Date: April 18, 2014 Ann Marie Passanisi Register of Probate Commonwealth of Massachusetts The Trial Court Probate and Family Court Department SUFFOLK Division
Summons By Publication
Docket No. SU14W0902
Sherley Jackson, Plaintiff v. Jean Baptiste Jean and James Jackson, Defendants
Commonwealth of Massachusetts The Trial Court Probate and Family Court Department Docket No. SU14C0084CA
SUFFOLK Division
Docket No. SU14P0917PO
SUFFOLK Division
To the above named Defendants: A Complaint has been presented to this Court by the Plaintiff (s), Sherley Jackson, seeking a Complaint to Establish Paternity.
In the matter of Gianni Perez of Boston, MA NOTICE OF PETITION FOR CHANGE OF NAME To all persons interested in a petition described: A petition has been presented by Jessica Baez requesting that Gianni Perez be allowed to change her name as follows:
IF YOU DESIRE TO OBJECT THERETO, YOU OR YOUR ATTORNEY MUST FILE A WRITTEN APPEARANCE IN SAID COURT AT BOSTON ON OR BEFORE TEN O’CLOCK IN THE MORNING (10:00 AM) ON 07/10/2014.
You are required to serve upon Sherley Jackson — plaintiff (s) — whose address is 7 Oak Place, Hyde Park, MA 02136 your answer on or before July 17, 2014. If you fail to do so, the court will proceed to the hearing and adjudication of this action. You are also required to file a copy of your answer in the office of the Register of this Court at Boston. Witness, Joan P. Armstrong, Esquire, First Justice of said Court at Boston, this 7th day of May, 2014. Publication: Bay State Banner
Ann Marie Passanisi Register of Probate Court
21 Salisbury Street, Worcester, MA 01609 Brand New – Smoke Free
DORCHESTER/ MILTON 1st Class Office Space Corner of Gallivan Blvd and Washington St ample parking.
$375/mo. $695/mo. $1000/mo. $1395/mo.
to the banner 617-261- 4600
Commonwealth of Massachusetts The Trial Court Probate and Family Court Department
OFFICE SPACE
SUBSCRIBE call:
Commonwealth of Massachusetts The Trial Court Probate and Family Court Department
Sarah Aubrey Perez
WE DO NOT MAIL PLANS AND SPECIFICATIONS.
WITNESS, HON. Joan P. Armstrong, First Justice of this Court. Date: May 1, 2014 Ann Marie Passenisi Register of Probate
Carole Cornelison COMMISSIONER
Divorce Summons by Publication and Mailing
This Project bid in accordance with M.G.L. Chapter 30 Section 39M. Mass. State Project No.
assumes no responsibility for delivery or receipt of the documents. Bidders are encouraged to take advantage of a rotating credit plans and specifications deposit program initiated by the Division of Capital Asset Management & Maintenance to encourage the easy accessibility of documents to contractors.
heated
OWNER
617-835-6373 Brokers Welcome
Saugus Commons Choice One and Two Bedroom Elderly/Disabled Apartments in a convenient residential location. Rental Assistance is provided under the S8 program. Just off Rte 1 in Saugus, MA. Attractive elevator buildings on nicely landscaped grounds. All modern interiors. Clubhouse, pool, private gardens. Experienced professional management. Applications are for a newly opened waiting list for 1 & 2 BR Elderly/Disabled Apartments. Maximum Income limit applies: 1 person $47,450, 2 persons $54,200, 3 persons $61,000, 4 persons $67,750. For further information call Saugus Commons Rental Office. 781-233-8477
LIKE US ON FACEBOOK
Bay State Banner
1, 2 & 3 Bedroom Affordable Apartment Community! Now Accepting Applications for Initial Lease-up by Lottery for the following programs 30% AMI and the 60% AMI. Voke Lofts is an 84 unit mixed income community, with two affordable programs which consist of; 9 units within the 30% AMI program: (5)-1Br, (3)-2Br, and (1)-2Br wheelchair accessible; 33 units within the 60% AMI program; (19)-1Br, (1)-1Br hearing impaired, (2)-1Br wheelchair accessible, (10)-2Br and (1)-3Br. 30% AMI
Minimum
Maximum
60% AMI
Minimum
Maximum
1 person
$15,497
$18,420
1 Person
$32,435
$36,840
2 Person
$15,497
$21,050
2 Person
$32,435
$42,120
3 person
$18,480
$23,700
3 Person
$38,811
$47,400
4 Person
$18,480
$26,310
4 Person
$38,811
$52,620
5 Person
$44,708
$56,880
6 Person
$44,708
$61,080
30% AMI Rents 1 Bedroom $432 30% AMI Rents 2 Bedroom $539 All Rents Include: Heat & Hot Water Central Air
60% AMI Rents 1 Bedroom $946 60% AMI Rents 2 Bedroom $1,132 60% AMI Rents 3 Bedroom $1,304
Applications Available at the following Locations: Voke Lofts on 21 Salisbury Street, Worcester, MA 01609, weekdays 1pm to 3pm. Coes Pond Village on 39 First Street, Worcester, MA 01602, weekdays 1pm to 3pm. Worcester Public Library on 3 Salem Square, Community Bulletin Board, Worcester, MA 01608, Daily- including weekends: 1pm to 5pm, evenings Tues & Wed until 9pm. Applications must be mailed to: Voke Lofts, P.O. Box 2204, Worcester, MA 01613 Applications must be postmarked by 5pm, May 31, 2014 Submission of an application will not guarantee housing for occupancy, there will be a screening process. Once the initial lease up has been completed, your housing application lottery placement number will become your waitlist number for future occupancy. Only completed and signed applications will be considered for the Lottery. Lottery will take place on Wednesday, 2pm, June 4, 2014, at the following location Worcester Public Library, Saxe Room, 3 Salem Square, Worcester, MA 01608. You do not need to be present during the lottery drawing. Anticipated occupancy is July/August 2014. Section 8 Housing Vouchers Welcomed! Reasonable Accommodations may be requested by calling 508.755.1733 www.LiveVokeLofts.com T-508.755.1733 TDD: 800.439.2370 Date of Flyer 4/1/2014
22 • Thursday, May 15, 2014 • BAY STATE BANNER Thursday, February 17, 2005 • BAY STATE BANNER • 27
LEGALS
LEGALS
CHELSEA APARTMENT INVITATION TO BID
4+ bdrms Newly renovated, 2000+ sq ft apt DATE flrs,TIME in 3 fam,DESCRIPTION no smkng/pets, hrdwd eat-in WRA-2432 Furnish (2) Chesterton 3/14/05 11:00lv a.m. kit, pantry, lgTwo master bedroom, din and Mechanical Split Seals or Equal with Two (2) Enviro rm, laundry rm, enclosed frnt/bck prchs, Spiral Trac Seals for North off street T access, min to Bost. Mainprkng, Pump Station, Deer
The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority is seeking bids for the following: BID NO.
Island Treatment Plant
Sec 8 OK
Sealed bids will be received at the offices of the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority, Charlestown Navy Yard, Document Distribution Office, 100 First Avenue, First Floor, Boston, Massachusetts 02129, up to the time and date listed above at which time they will be publicly opened and read.
617-283-2081 SECTION 00020 INVITATION TO BID
Duxbury Woods
Sealed Bids for the construction of the Elm Street Sewer Improvements for the Town of Blackstone, Massachusetts, will be received by the Department of Public Works at the office of the Department of Public Works, 15 St. Paul Street, Blackstone, Massachusetts until 10:30 a.m. prevailing time, on March 29, 2005 and at which time and place said bids will be publicly opened and read aloud.
Affordable Housing Lottery www.s-e-b.com The scope of work includes furnishing and installing approximately 3,065 linear feet of 8-inch gravity sanitary sewer main with all appurtenances; furwww.DuxburyWoods.com
nishing and installing approximately 8,135 linear feet of 10-inch gravity sanitary sewer main with all appurtenances; furnishing and installing approximately 4,100 linear feet of 6-inch PVC gravity sanitary sewer service connections and all appurtenances, furnishing and installing approximately 315 linear feet of 4-inch and 3,475 linear feet of 6-inch sanitary sewer force main with all appurtenances, furnishing and installing fully Duxbury’s newest condominium community features 40 functional homes. sanitary sewer pump stations located at the Corrosion Control Facility (CCF), This is a lottery for the 10 affordable homes including eight newly Quickstream crossing, Fire Station, and Mill River crossing with all appurteconstructed and two renovated 3 bedroom nances, standby2 bedroom generatorhomes housed within a prefabricated building at the Quickstream and 10 Millhomes River will pump furnishing and to installing homes. These be stations; sold at affordable prices house- bituminousholds concrete trench pavement (permanent); water system reconstruction with incomes at or below 80% of the area median income. It is (Add Alternate 1); miscellaneous drainage improvements (Add Alternate 3); anticipated that the first affordable homes will be ready in late 2014. furnishing and installing associated manholes, paving, project wide maintenance of traffic and other feature appurtenances required to complete the levWork as Eight (8) new homes approximately 1,485 sq ft of one specified in the Contract Documents. Work must be substantially complete el living, central A/C, Energy Star tankless water heater, Energy within 1153 days of the Notice to Proceed. The estimated cost of the projwindows, GE Kitchen Appliances, Kohler bathroom fixtures ect Star is $4,500,000.00.
2BR Attached condominiums for $169,700 3BR Detached homes for $188,500
and a rear deck/patio. These 8 homes include a 2 -car garage
Bid Security in the form of a BID BOND, CASHIER’S, TREASURER’S, OR CERTwoCHECK (2) existing bedroom homesbank haveorbeen and the in TIFIED issued3by a responsible trustrenovated company is required the kitchens amount and of five percenthave of the price payable to the bathrooms beenbid updated. These homes areTown of Blackstone. approximately 1,600 sq. ft. and offer off street parking for 3 cars. Contract DocumentsIncome may be Limits examined the followingare locations: The Maximum foratHouseholds as follows:
$47,450 (1 person), $54,200 (2 people), $61,000 (3 people), BSC Group, 33 Waldo Street, Worcester, Massachusetts 01608 $67,750 (4 people), $73,200 (5 people) and $78,600 (6 people) F.W. Dodge Division, McGraw-Hill Information Services Co., Boston, Massachusetts Households cannot have more than $75,000 in assets.
Town of Blackstone, Department of Public Works, 15 St. Paul Street
Blackstone, Massachusetts For more information on the Development, the Units or the Lottery and Application Process or for reasonable accommodations Contract Documents may be obtained at the office of the BSC Group locatfor33persons with disabilities, visit: www.s-e-b.com/lottery ed at Waldo Street, Worcester, please Massachusetts, 01608, from 9 a.m. to 12 orand call1617.782.6900(press 1 for homeownership and then 4 of noon to 4 p.m., upon payment of a deposit of $100.00 in press the form a check payable to the Town of Blackstone. Any unsuccessful bidder or nonfor Duxbury Woods).
bidder, upon returning such set within the time specified in the Instructions Applications Required Income Documentation must be Contract to Bidders and inand good condition, will be refunded his payment. Documents bepostmarked, mailed via USPS prospective bidders received,will not by 2topm on July 17th, 2014upon request and receipt of a separate non-refundable check payable to BSC Group, Inc. in the Applications Information at the Duxbury Pubamount of $25.00and to cover handlingalso andavailable mailing fees.
lic Library at 77 Alden Street (hours M 2-8, Tu-Th 10-8, Fri-Sat
The10-5) selected furnish a performance bond and andcontractor the Townshall Planning Department in Town Hall.payment bond in amount at least equal to one hundred percent (100%) of the contract price as stipulated in Section 00700 GENERAL of these specificaInformation Session on June 4th at CONDITIONS 6 pm in the Mural Room tions. Anticipated fundingTown for this will be from the Unite States in Duxbury Hallproject (878 Tremont St). The
Lottery for eligible households will be held on July 30th at 6 pm in the same location.
LEGALS
ADVERTISE YOUR CLASSIFIEDS
Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Utilities Service, Waste and Water Grants and Loan program. Special attention should be paid with respect to the (U.S.D.A.) requirements for Bids.
(617) 261-4600 x 7799 • ads@bannerpub.com
All bids for this project are subject to applicable bidding laws of Massachusetts, including General Laws Chapter 30, Section 39M as amended. Attention of bidders is particularly called to the requirements as to conditions of employment to be observed and minimum wage rates to be paid under the contract as determined by the Department of Labor and Workforce Development under the provisions of the Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 149, Section 26-27D, inclusive, as amended.
HONG LOK HOUSE 15 Essex Street, Boston, MA 02111 Affordable Housing Opportunities
The Bidder agrees that this bid shall be good and may not be withdrawn for for(30) theworking Near-Elderly in Chinatown a period of thirty days, Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays excluded after the opening of bids.
(24) Studio Apts. – from $462 - $791
The Owner reserves the right to waive any informality in bids or to reject any (18)if One-Bedroom Apts.of–the from - $842 or all bids deemed in the best interest Town$489 of Blackstone.
Rent includes Heat, Hot Water and Central A/C OF BLACKSTONE, MASSACHUSETTS One or twoTOWN person households DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS Head of household (or spouse) must BSC Group, Inc. be at least 55 years of age.
Boston, Massachusetts
Maximum household income limit of BOSTON WATER ANDBoston SEWERMedian COMMISSION 30% and 50% of the Income INVITATION FOR BIDS
Household Size
30%
50%
The Boston Water and Sewer Commission by its Executive Director invites sealed bids for CONTRACT # 04-308-001, MAIN RELAY AND 1 19,770 WATER 32,950 SEWER/DRAIN REHABILITATION IN ALLSTON/BRIGHTON, CITY PROPER, 2 22,590 HYDE PARK AND JAMAICA PLAIN. Bids must be 37,650 accompanied by a bid deposit, certified check, treasurer’s or cashier’s check, or in the form of a bid bond in the amount of 5% OF BID payable to and to become the properApplications accepted at adjacent Hong Lok House building ty of the Commission if the bid, after acceptance, is not carried out. The bid rental office at 15 Essex MA 02111 of the Contract docdeposit is to be returned only Street, when allBoston, stated conditions ument are carried In addition, a performance bond and also a labor and (T-Orange Lineout. Registry Station) materials payment bond, each of a surety company qualified to do business under the laws of will the be Commonwealth satisfactory to the Executive Applications available asand follows: Director, and each in the sum of 100 % OF THE CONTRACT PRICE, must be Mon, June 2, 2014 from 11:00 AM to 7:00 PMdocument. Bids must be submitted within the time specified in the Contract Tues.-Fri., 3-6, 2014 fromfrom 10:00theAMPurchasing to 4:00 PMManager, Boston submitted on June the forms obtained Water and Sewer Commission, 980AM Harrison Sat., June 7, 2014 from 10:00 to 3:00Avenue, PM 3rd Floor, Boston, MA 02119, and must be submitted in sealed envelopes to the Purchasing Mon., Fri., June 9-13 from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM Manager clearly marked BIDS FOR CONTRACT # 04-308-001, WATER MAIN RELAY AND SEWER/DRAIN REHABILITATION IN ALLSTON/BRIGHTON, CITY Informational On Monday, Junewill2,be at publicly 10:00 AM at 15 and PROPER, HYDE PARKmeeting: AND JAMAICA PLAIN. Bids opened readEssex at the officeBoston of the MA Purchasing Manager June on THURSDAY, Street, and Wednesday, 4, at 11:00MARCH AM at 24, 2005 AT 10:00 A.M. There will be a non-refundable charge of $25.00 for Roslindale House, 120 Poplar St., Roslindale, MA 02131 each set of contract documents taken out. If the bidder neglects to bid on andevery Bus accessible). each(Tand item, it may lead to the rejection of the bid. The rate of wages paid to mechanics, teamsters, chauffeurs, and laborers in the work to be performed the contract shall notmust be less than the rate of wages in Deadline:under Completed applications be received by 2:00 the schedule determined by the Commission of Labor and Industries of the PM, Friday, June 20,of 2014 be mailed and postmarked Commonwealth, a copy whichor schedule is annexed to the formbyofthat contract referred to the herein. Copies of said schedule may be obtained, without cost, day to address above. upon application therefore at the office of the Executive Director. Before Selection bycontract, lottery ifthe needed. commencing performance on this contractor shall provide by insurance for the payment of compensation and2 the furnishing ofto all other Preference for 2 barrier-free studio and one-bedrooms benefits under Chapter 152 of the General Laws (The Workmen’s households who require wheelchair access. Preference for 4 conCompensation Law, so called) to all persons to be employed under this unitscontinue for homeless Homestart, Inc., the tractstudio and shall such households insurance in referred full forcebyand effect during term oforthis contract. Attention called to Chapter 370 of bedrooms, the Acts of 1963, other agencies servingis the homeless. Four one which must be strictly complied with. No bid for the award of this project will including a barrier-free one bedroom have a preference be considered acceptable unless the Contractor agrees to complyfor fully with the CBH-eligible requirement of the Minority Employee Utilization Requirement as set households. 70% City of Boston resident preference. forth in Article VIII of the Contract and the Utilization of Minority and Women ForEnterprises reasonable forofpersons Owned Business asaccommodations set forth in Article X the Contract. Included with the Contract with documents arecall copies the Bidder’s Certification disabilities (617) of 469-5800 Statement and Weekly Utilization Report. Each Contractor must complete, sign and file with his bid Bidder’s Certification Failure to do Forthe more info or TDD, call Statement. (617) 469-5800 so will result in rejection of the bid. The Weekly Utilization Reports shall be Developed and Managed by submitted in accordance with section 8.2 (ii) and (iii) of the Contract. Failure Rogerson Communities to comply with the Minority Employee Utilization Requirement may result in imposition of the sanctions set forth inStreet, section 8.2 (f) andMA (g) 02131 of the Contract. One Florence Roslindale,
(617) 469-5800 www.rogerson.org
Attractive and Affordable This beautiful privately owned apartment complex with subsidized units for elderly and disabled individuals is just minutes from downtown Melrose. Close to Public Transportation • Elevator Access to All Floors • On Site Laundry Facilities Heat Included • 24 Hour Closed Circuit Television • On Site Parking Excellent Closet and Storage Space • 24 Hour Maintenance Availability On site Management Office • Monthly Newsletter • Weekly Videos on Big Screen T.V. Resident Computer Room • Bus Trips • Resident Garden Plots
Call for current income guidelines Joseph T. Cefalo Memorial Complex 245 West Wyoming Avenue, Melrose, MA 02176 Call our Office at (781) 662-0223 or TDD: (800) 545-1833, ext. 131 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday through Friday for an application
visit us on the web at www.cefalomemorial.com
Wollaston Manor
Parker Hill Apartments
The Executive Director reserves the right to reject any and all bids, or any item or items of the bid, and to waive technical defects which are not of a 91 Clay Street substantive nature if the Commissioners should determine that it is in the Quincy, MA 02170 to do so. best interest of the Commission
Senior Living At It’s Best
The Style, Comfort and Convenience you By: Deserve! John F. Flynn
Purchasing Manager Heat and Hot Water Always Included
Modern Laundry Facilities A senior/disabled/LEGAL NOTICE Private Balconies / Some with City Views handicapped community Plush wall to wall carpet
CITY OF SOMERVILLE Adjacent to New England Baptist Hospital OFFICE OF HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT Secured Entry, Elevator Convenience
0 BR units = $1,027/mo Private Parking PUBLIC NOTICE Near Public Transportation 1 BR units = $1,101/mo and much more ... TheAll City utilities of Somerville is requesting comments on the City’s One-Year Action included.
Plan for the period of April 1, 2005 to March 31, 2006 for the Community Open House April 24 12-2 pm Development Block Grant Program, the Emergency Shelter Grant Program 2 bedroom and the HOME Program, which are funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). This document available for startingwill atbe $2200 Property Manager public review and comment from Friday, February 11, 2005 to Monday, Call Today for March 14, 2005 at the Mayor’s Office of Strategic Planning & Community more details and tobusiness Development (SPCD), 3rd Floor, Somerville City Hall during normal a visit... Public hours and at the front desk of the Main Branch schedule of the Somerville Program Restrictions Apply. Library. 888-842-7945
Call Sandy Miller,
#888-691-4301
Anyone wishing to submit public comment should send their written comments to Meredith Smith, Director of Finance, SPCD by fax 617-625-0722 or email msmith@ci.somerville.ma.us by 4:30 p.m. on Monday, March 14, 2005. Anyone having general questions regarding the proposed 2005 One Year Action Plan should contact SPCD at 617-625-6600 x2500.
SMALL ADS BRING
Joseph A. Curtatone Mayor
BIG RESULTS! REOPENING OF WAITING LIST
Notice is hereby given by the Braintree Housing Authority that on March 15 and March 16, 2005 applications will be available for its one (1), two (2) & Call 617-261-4600 x 7799 or visit three (3) bedroom State-aided MRVP project-based housing program and three (3) bedroom www.baystatebanner.com Chapter 705 Family Housing Program. Placement on the waiting list will be assigned by random order (lottery).
now to place your ad.
MRVP Eligibility Income Limits Limits Number of Household Members One (1) $18,620 Two (2) $24,980 Three (3) $31,340 Four (4) $37,700 Five (5) $44,060 Six (6) $50,420
705 Family Housing Eligible Income Number of Household Members One (1) $46,300 Two (2) $52,950 Three (3) $59,550 Four (4) $66,150 Five (5) $71,450 Six (6) $76,750
Burton F. Faulkner Tower 25 Highland Avenue, Somerville, MA
628-2119 Application will be available (617) from 9:00am – 4:00 pm on March 15 and March 16. Interested persons may apply in person at 25 Roosevelt Street, Braintree or obtain an application by mail by calling (781) 848-1484. Faxes willSection not be accepted. Applications mustfor beelderly receivedand or postmarked no later 8 subsidized housing handicapped. than APRIL 19, 2005. The BHA will not accept applications including 1&2 bedroom apartments, some wheelchair adapted. All (Emergency Applications) that are hand delivered or postmarked after April have will fully kitchens, 19,apartments 2005. The lottery be appliance held at 10 am on Aprilwall-to-wall 27, 2005 in the community buildingA/C at 25 Roosevelt Braintree. Housing carpeting. tiled baths,Street, recessed patiosThe andBraintree more. ModAuthority will close the MRVP family project based waiting list for one, two & ern 12 story building located on bus line, steps away from three bedrooms and the 705 three (3) bedroom Family Housing Program waitCentral list on March 16,Library. 2005 at Apartments 4pm. EHO Public available on an open occupancy basis. Waiting list maintained. Call for an application and eligibility requirements weekday mornings. Minorities are encouraged to apply. SMOKE FREE
Equal Housing Opportunity Handicapped Accessible
For Rent:
For Rent:
ONE BEDROOM APARTMENT
THREE BEDROOM
DUPLEX
Available in quiet Village Working fireplace, 2 Greendale in Needham Roxbury neighborhood. baths. All GE appliAffordable Housing Lottery Building is well mainances. Master bath www.s-e-b.com tained with only three has marble tile floor apartments. Renter Two 3BR Townhomesand for whirlpool $112,600* bath. responsible hot Building opposite Two for 3BRheat, Townhomes for $121,400* water and electricity. beautiful quiet park. This is a lottery for the 4 affordable Townhomes at Greendale Village
sold at affordable prices to households withPlease incomes contact: at or below 50% of Please contact: the areaKhallaq, median income. The first affordable homes Khallaq, will be ready in the Sharif Sharif summer of 2014. All affordable homes feature between 1,800 to 2,100 SAAK Realty SAAK Realty livable square feet and have 3 bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms,St. 2821 Washington St. 2821 Washington master bedroom air conditioning, Roxbury, MAwith walk-in closet, centralRoxbury, MAAnderson double-hung Low-E Insulated Glass windows, laundry room (washers and 617.427.1327 617.427.1327 dryers not included), and garage parking for one car.
The Maximum Income Limits for Households are as follows:
$32,950 (1 person), $37,650 (2 people), $42,350 (3 people), $47,050 (4 people), $50,850 (5 people) and $54,600 (6 people) Households cannot have more than $75,000 in assets. *A Mortgage Pre-Approval of at least $160,000 is required with the application. As the condo fees for the affordable units are $350/mo and $410/mo (depending on the unit), the buying power required to purchase one of these homes is the same as the buying power required to purchase a home that is $160,000 and has no condo fees. Therefore households must be pre-approved for $160,000 as mortgage pre-approvals generally do not consider condo fees. Please talk to your lender for more details.
Rudy Crichlow, CRS
For more information on the Development, the Units or the Lottery and Application Process or for reasonable accommodations for persons with 617-524-3500 disabilities, please visit: www.s-e-b.com/lottery or call 617.782.6900 Buyingand• then Selling • Relocation (press 1 for homeownership press 1 for Greendale Village).
1st timeIncome homeDocumentation buyer assistance Applications and•Required must be received, not postmarked, by• 2Free pm onhome June 24th, 2014estimate value A Public Info Session will be onhere May 20th, 2014 at 6 pm in Powers Hall “I’m to help you” in Needham Town Hall (1471 Highland Ave). The lottery will be on July 8th www.rudycrichlow.com in the same location. Applications and Information also available at EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY the Needham Public Library on 1139 Highland Ave (Hours: M-Th 9-9, F 9-5:30, Sa 9-5, Su 1-5).
Thursday, May 15, 2014 • BAY STATE BANNER • 23
Receptionist Dorchester, MA
Busy Management Office seeks full time receptionist with excellent communication and organizational skills; clerical and computer skills and ability to multi –task are required. Duties include answering telephone, greeting clients, collecting rents, data entry and filing. Applicant shall be energetic and display a strong desire to succeed. Must have HS Diploma/GED- bilingual English/Spanish is a must. Send resumes no later than May 16, 2014 - United Housing Management LLC, 530 Warren Street, Dorchester, MA 02121 – Fax: 617-442-7231. No phone calls please! United Housing Management LLC is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
GET READY FOR
Are you on unemployment? Update your skills for a great office job! Free training available. Work in hospitals, colleges, insurance agencies, banks, government, and more!
Call today: 617-542-1800 ext. 128 Training starts on May 20 Job placement assistance provided. No prior experience necessary, but must have HS diploma or GED. Free YMCA Membership included.
A Great Office Job! Train for Administrative, Financial
Services, Health Insurance Customer Service & Medical Office jobs.
Work in hospitals, colleges, insurance agencies, banks, businesses, government offices, health insurance call centers, and more! YMCA Training, Inc. is recruiting training candidates now! We will help you apply for free training. Job placement assistance provided. No prior experience necessary, but must have HS diploma or GED. Free YMCA membership for you and your family while enrolled in YMCA Training, Inc.
Call today to schedule an Information Session: 617-542-1800
resident services coordinator (boston)
Property Management Company is seeking an experienced Resident Services Coordinator for busy Boston Section 8 apartment complex to coordinate and implement services for resident population.
MUNICIPAL SERVICES SPECIALIST The Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC), the regional planning agency for Metro Boston, seeks a Municipal Services Specialist to help cities and towns to collaborate in the delivery of local services, both to save funds and to improve service quality. Duties include: Researching ideas for collaborative planning, procurement, and service delivery from Massachusetts and other parts of the country; working with city and town officials to identify opportunities for collaborative or consolidated service delivery; providing technical assistance as required. Qualifications: BA or MA in planning, public administration, management or a related field and/or 3 years of experience in or with local or regional government. Good understanding of Massachusetts local government (or comparable experience from another state); Experience developing and writing project proposals, grant applications, and consulting reports. Full time position with excellent state employee benefits package. Salary is $50-65,000, depending upon qualifications and experience. All candidates must have a valid driver’s license and/or the ability to arrange transportation to meetings in different parts of the region and legal authorization (citizenship or visa) to work in the USA. Position is open until filled. PLEASE SEE COMPLETE JOB AD AND APPLY ONLINE on MAPC Web site at link shown there (www.mapc.org), and please attach cover letter and resume. MAPC is an EOE/ AA employer. MAPC takes pride in the diversity of its workforce and encourages all qualified persons to apply. Posted by Thomas E. Hauenstein, Manager of Human Resources, May 8, 2014.
Qualifications:
BA in human services field. Two plus years experience working with elder/youth populations in resident services, social work or case management. Excellent organizational, communication (both oral and written), planning and creative thinking skills. Must possess good telephone skills and provide exceptional customer service. Self-starter who works well with little supervision and has strong follow-up skills.
Send resume with salary requirements to: clopez@cornerstonecorporation.net
Equal Opportunity Employer
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