Grants at the Boston Public Schools

ASPEN Challenge brings together students and educators from across 20 BPS high schools who will develop sustainable solutions to issues they identify in their communities.

It was a meeting of brilliant minds at the 2025 ASPEN challenge, which kicked off in South Boston on February 13, 2025! The challenge brought together about 200 students and educators across 20 Boston Public Schools high schools, who will develop sustainable solutions to issues they identify in their communities.

The launch featured several local leaders who presented a series of topics including affordable housing, access to green spaces, and post-secondary education pathways. School teams will spend ten weeks developing, implementing, and reporting on their chosen challenge. Some examples of the challenges that the teams could choose from include:

Reimagining an empty parking space, vacant lot, or unused asphalt as a vibrant park that reduces heat island effects, boosts biodiversity, and creates a safe, fun, and welcoming space to connect, play, and thrive.
Producing a media campaign that will raise awareness on the gun violence epidemic and empower youth around the country to take action in creating safer schools and communities.
Designing a solution that addresses homelessness among high school students and young adults in the community, and emphasizes the importance of stabilizing their access to education and academic performance

At the end of the ten weeks, the teams will reconvene on April 29 for the “Solution Showcase,” where they will present their work and impact to a panel of judges made up of community leaders, educators, experts, and activists.

Three teams will be chosen as the Grand Prize winners of Aspen Challenge: Boston and travel to Aspen, Colorado to present their community solution at the Aspen Ideas Festival in June.

Good Luck to our BPS teams who are participating in the 2025 ASPEN Challenge!

We cannot wait to see the incredible projects that our BPS school teams are working on!

Office of Food and Nutrition Recognized as Leaders in Farm-to-School Efforts

Farm to School recently recognized BPS's Office of Food and Nutrition Services as “Kale Blazers,” leaders in the farm-to-school movement who demonstrate excellence in bringing healthy, locally grown foods and food education to students.

STATEWIDE (Massachusetts) – February 3, 2025

Each year, Massachusetts Farm to School recognizes “Kale Blazers”, leaders driving significant change in farm to school efforts across the Commonwealth. This award honors individuals who demonstrate excellence and innovation in bringing healthy, locally grown foods and food education to students. Since naming the first Kale Blazers at the 2016, this award has celebrated those at the forefront of the farm to school movement.

This year’s Kale Blazers include two individuals from the Boston Public Schools Office of Food and Nutrition Services - Heidi Rivera and Anneliese Tanner. They are joined by additional honorees Kerrita Mayfield of the Amherst Regional Public Schools, and former Massachusetts State Representative Paul Schmid.

Anneliese Tanner, Director of Food and Nutrition Services, Boston Public Schools
Since taking on her role in 2023, Tanner has been instrumental in advancing Boston Public Schools’ focus on sourcing local food. Boston Public Schools serves 45,000 students across 125 schools. She has significantly increased local and values-based food purchasing, making strides in implementing the Good Food Purchasing Program, a collaborative citywide initiative led by the City of Boston’s Office of Food Justice to harness the power of municipal institutional food purchasing to achieve social, environmental, and economic goals. Tanner is on track to reach Boston Public Schools’ goal of sourcing 30% local food, and her initiatives emphasize culturally affirming meals, creating an inclusive and welcoming environment for all students. "Anneliese's work leading BPS Food & Nutrition Services has provided a steady and strategic vision to ensure students have a nutritious taste of home at school and that we are buying food that helps support regional farmers, values workers and protects our climate and farmland. Her expertise, creativity and dedication have already made significant strides for BPS students in less than two years,” said Aliza Wasserman, Director, City of Boston Office of Food Justice.

Heidi Rivera, Cafeteria Manager, Henderson Inclusion Upper School, Boston Public Schools
Rivera exemplifies how individual dedication in school kitchens can drive the farm to school movement. Known for creating a warm and inclusive cafeteria environment, Riverai’s efforts encourage students to explore healthy, locally sourced foods. A colleague shares, “She is an amazing asset to our inclusion school community, ensuring every day that students feel welcome and supported in the cafeteria.” This positive school cafeteria culture encourages students to try the new healthy, local foods being served and thrive throughout the school day.

These honorees are making an impact across school food and nutrition, education, and policy. They represent the best of Massachusetts’ commitment to creating a more inclusive and sustainable food system.

“Through the Kale Blazer award, we are honored to recognize the local heroes who are strengthening the food system in Massachusetts. From educating the next generation of climate leaders, to championing public investment in farm to school programs, and changing the ways schools source and prepare meals, the 2025 Farm to School Kale Blazers are an inspiration to us all,” said Mass. Farm to School Co-Director, Simca Horwitz.

About Massachusetts Farm to School
Founded in 2004, Massachusetts Farm to School strengthens local farms and fisheries while promoting healthy communities by increasing local food purchasing and education at schools. The organization provides training, technical assistance, and advocacy to support farm to school initiatives statewide, fostering sustainable relationships between local institutions and food producers.

For more information, visit www.massfarmtoschool.org.

Curley School Counselor Named 2025 MA School Counselor of the Year

In January, the Massachusetts School Counselors Assoication named Sugeily Santos, a 7th and 8th grade school counsleor at the Curley K-8 School in Jamaica Plain, as the 2025 Massachusetts School Counselor of the Year.

Sugeily Santos of the Curley K-8 School named 2025 Massachusetts School Counselor of the Year in Surprise Ceremony

BPS is proud to celebrate all of our School Counselors and their commitment to fostering a positive and inclusive learning environment. We are deeply grateful for the transformative impact they have on the lives of our students. Their work guiding students through academic challenges, helping them explore career possibilities, and offering crucial social-emotional support is key to creating the supportive spaces that allow our students to thrive and reach their full potential.

On January 30, 2025, Curley K-8 School Counselor Sugeily Santos was recognized as the 2025 Massachusetts School Counselor of the Year! Mayor Michelle Wu, State Secretary of Education Patrick Tutweiler, Acting Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Commissioner Russell Johnston, and Massachusetts School Counselors Association Executive Director Bob Bardwell joined Curley K-8 School Principal Dr. Katie Grassa for a surprise celebration to announce Ms. Santos as the 2025 Massachusetts School Counselor of the Year!

“We are incredibly proud of Ms. Santos and this honor for the Curley School community and our district,” said Superintendent Mary Skipper. “School counselors are such a vital part of our students' educational journey as they grow into adults and Santos represents the very best of what BPS offers. We are grateful for her dedication, expertise, passion, and caring approach to her work.”

“In my career I have hired hundreds of educators and Sugeily Santos is by far one of the best educators I have hired to date,” said Curley K-8 School Principal Dr. Katie Grassa. “She is very deserving of the honor of 2025 Massachusetts School Counselor of the Year. I have seen first hand her passion, work ethic and the exceptional connections that she makes with both adults and students, and I am very proud to have her as part of the Curley School team.”

“I am thankful for the award and recognition and I know how hard school counselors work,” said Curley K-8 School Counselor Sugeily Santos. “I am privileged to work amongst amazing colleagues who go to work everyday trying to connect with students and meet their needs.”

In December, Ms. Santos was also named as the 2024 BPS School Counselor of the Year, for her embodiment of the qualities of dedication, innovation, and leadership that define excellence in school counseling. She builds trust with students and families, and her care for others creates an environment where students feel comfortable seeking help and advice. Ms. Santos practices the highest ideals of school counseling.

Thank you, BPS School Counselors for all of your incredible work supporting our students and families, and congratulations to Ms. Santos on this incredible achievement!

Welcome to the New BPS Website

"Our new website reflects our commitment to transparency, accessibility, and engagement with our community. We want everyone to feel connected to our schools and to have easy access to important information and resources."

Dear BPS Community:

We hope that you had a joyous and restful holiday. Following months of planning and preparation, we are thrilled to announce the launch of the new Boston Public Schools website!

The website features modern, easy-to-navigate, accessible designs that will make it easier for you to find the information you need. Whether you are looking for information on our academic programs, extracurricular activities, lunch menus, or school policies, you will be able to find it quickly and easily. Our Communications Office, in collaboration with Finalsite, is leading the multi-year project. In addition to our improved navigation and design, we have added a number of new features to the site, including enhanced language translation and a communications hub where you can read about the latest happenings in the school community, including student achievements, faculty news, and much more.
Our new website will help us better serve our students and families. As we are deeply committed to continually improving our community engagement efforts, our new online presence will make it easier for us to communicate with you.

We invite you to visit our new website at bostonpublicschools.org and explore all the new features we have to offer.
We look forward to your feedback, which can be shared with our Communications team at communications@bostonpublicschools.org. Thank you for your continued support.

Sincerely,

Mary Skipper

Events

Jan 20

Spirit Day

all day

Jan 20

Martin Luther King Jr. Day

all day

Jan 20

Parent, Teacher, and Community Association Meeting

3:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Jan 23

Boston Special Education Parent Advisory Council (SpEdPAC)

7:00 PM - 8:30 PM

Grants at the Boston Public Schools

Thank you for visiting the Grants section of the Boston Public Schools! All grants at the Boston Public Schools are housed in one of two locations, which allows for strategic and compliant use of grant funding.

Please use the below links to access either the Office of Grants and External Funding website or the Boston Educational Development Foundation (BEDF) website.

Click to visit the Office of Federal and State Grants

The Office of Grants and External Funding houses and manages all Federal, State, and local funding, as well as some private funding, to assure all dollars are being compliantly and strategically used to support the education of all children in the district.

Visit the Office of Grants and External Funding for information about applying to grants, finding grants, grant management at BPS, facts and figures about grants at the Boston Public Schools, strategic use of funds, and grant compliance.

The Boston Education Development Foundation (BEDF) is the 501(c)(3) Fiscal Partner dedicated to improving educational opportunities for students in BPS.

Visit the BEDF website for more information about BEDF and managing private grant funds housed in BEDF.

Quick Links: I Want to...

Click to Find Current Grant Opportunities

Click for more information about how to Apply for a Grant at BPS

Click for facts and figures on grants at the Boston Public Schools

Click for more information on managing a grant at the Boston Public Schools

mobile-menu

trigger-news

district-nav

menu-trigger-container

mobile-main-nav

mobile-header-portals-nav

mobile-translate-container

custom-headline

header-container

logo-container

trigger-search

logo-image

menu-trigger-container

right-container

right-top-container

header-portals-nav

translate-container

search-container

trigger-search

trigger-news

district-nav

nav-district-menu

Select a School

Kindergarten

Elementary

High School

right-bottom-container

nav-main

fixed-header

logo-container

logo-image

nav-main

In This Section

Quick Links: I Want to...