“Stars are born out of dark moments.” ― Matshona Dhliwayo

It has been a year of crisis and upheaval across our campus, the nation, and the world. In spite of it all, the Center for Social Policy has made significant progress in our quest to shepherd meaningful change for low-income families. The Center for Social Policy leverages its unique strength as a research center at an urban public university rooted in the community it serves, and taps the talents of our faculty, staff, and students in order to:

PRODUCE IMPACTFUL RESEARCH

• CSP Research Director Francoise Carré published a book: Where Bad Jobs are Better: Retail Jobs Across Countries and Companies.
• CSP Director Susan Crandall penned an invited book chapter: Employer Engagement in Workforce Development: The Open Book Solutions Profit-Sharing Programme at Paris Creperie, Boston for an OECD/ILO book Better Use of Skills in the Workplace.
• CSP published Exploring Opportunities for Urban Youth Inclusion in the Creative Economy in Boston’s Dudley Square, supported by the UMass Creative Economy Initiatives Fund.
• CSP released several reports on cliff effects for the On Solid Ground coalition, led by McCormack Graduate School Public Policy doctoral students Caitlin Carey and Jason Wright.

CONTRIBUTE TO POLICY

• CSP Director Susan Crandall was appointed to the City of Boston Mayor’s Office Economic Roundtable.
• CSP Research Director Francoise Carré was appointed to the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston Community Development Research Advisory Council.

BUILD THE CAPACITY OF THE FIELD

• The Center for Social Policy team hosted a successful Commonwealth Workforce Coalition conference on Advancing Equity.
• Brandynn Holgate and Francoise Carré facilitated Commonwealth Workforce Coalition regional networking sessions across the state on evaluating for economic impact.
• Director Susan Crandall was a featured speaker on cliff effects for events at The Boston Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, and the National Conference of State Legislatures.

SUPPORT STUDENT GROWTH

• Center for Social Policy student employees obtained employment with the City of Boston, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, and the Community Economic Development  Assistance Corporation (CEDAC).
• Public Policy Doctoral Student Caitlin Carey was awarded the Beacon Graduate Leadership award.
• Public Policy Doctoral Student Bianca Ortiz-Wythe was selected to present her research on youth inclusion for the University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees.
• Uchenna Nwangu, a third-year doctoral student at the UMass Boston School for Global Inclusion and Social Development, joined us as our summer Werby Intern.

ATTRACT ATTENTION

• CSP Research Director Francoise Carré’s Where Bad Jobs are Better book was cited in the New York Times, The Nation, CBS News, and Le Monde.
• CSP Director Susan Crandall’s research on Open Book Management profit-sharing for restaurant employees was featured in the Boston Globe.

I am so proud of the accomplishments of our CSP team! I am especially proud of our hardworking students, who, without the resources of a private university, dedicate themselves to produce high quality, award-winning research. I am deeply indebted to our funders, sponsors, partners, family engagement advisors, and UMass Boston faculty, staff, and students. With the Center for Social Policy receiving less than 15% of its funding from the state, we need your support to continue our efforts to systematically research policies and reveal the stories of those living in poverty, and develop policy solutions for a much brighter world for all families.

With appreciation,
Susan Crandall