Babson College
EN-6: Community Partnerships

Recycling Partnership with Re-Stream and the Boys and Girls Club of Boston.

During the period of move-out, Babson College engages in a dual collaboration with Re-stream and the Boys and Girls Club of Boston. Re-stream is an organization that is aimed at diverting reusable items from ending up in landfills and the Boys and Girls Club supports low income children in the greater Boston area. The program works by giving Babson students a convenient and sustainable alternative to donate their gently used belongings to Re-stream. During this program though major items like refrigerators and microwaves can’t be collected by Re-stream and would just end up in a landfill are collected by Babson students and donated to first generation college students who are members of the Boys and Girls Club of Boston. This dual partnership and program simultaneously support environmental and social issues.

Posse Foundation Partner University.

Founded in 1989, Posse identifies public high school students with extraordinary academic and leadership potential who may be overlooked by traditional college selection processes. Posse extends to these students the opportunity to pursue personal and academic excellence by placing them in supportive, multicultural teams—Posses—of 10 students. Posse partner colleges and universities award Posse Scholars four-year, full-tuition leadership scholarships. Babson's work as a Posse Partner: https://www.babson.edu/tuition-and-financial-aid/undergraduate/merit-awards/posse-scholarships/

Posse leadership: https://www.possefoundation.org/about-posse/staff-board 

E-Waste Recycling partnership with ABC Recovery:

Babson College has set up several electronic recycling bins all over campus. The sustainability interns educate on what and where to recycle your electronic devices. The bins are cleared monthly.

Babson runs several programs to support underrepresented groups.

Babson College's Institute for Social Innovation partners with schools and nonprofit organizations worldwide to virtually offer the Babson Youth Entrepreneurship Program, a curriculum created and taught by Babson students. The Babson students teach the Entrepreneurial Thought & Action® methodology, drawing on their experience in the Babson classroom and what they learn from the youth in the program about their culture and lives. Babson students will help these underrepresented groups develop solutions to community problems, focusing on the Sustainable Developement Goals.

• SEGA,  Morogoro, Tanzania Nurturing Minds,
• BOLD, São Paulo, Brazil https://www.institutobold.org.br/
  
• Girls Foundation of Tanzania, Arusha, Tanzania https://www.girlsfoundationoftanzania.org/ 
• The Ganako Secondary School, Karatu, Tanzania https://www.fotzc.org/ganako-secondary-school
• Peace Power Foundation, Juba, South Sudan
• Boys and Girls Clubs of Boston, Boston, MA  https://www.bgcb.org/

More information:

• https://www.babson.edu/social-innovation-institute/experiential-learning/service-immersion/youth-entrepreneurship-program/ 
• https://www.babson.edu/social-innovation-institute/experiential-learning/community-action-program/ 

Another prartnership is with MCI Framingham  a female correctional insititution.

The MCI Framingham Student Mentor partnership, part of Babson College’s Community Action Program (CAP), empowers incarcerated women through entrepreneurial education and trauma-informed humanities. This hybrid program pairs student mentors with inmates to develop business plans and conduct essential market research, compensating for the inmates' lack of internet access. The program fosters innovative problem-solving and supports pathways to success during incarceration and post-release.

This  program focuses on three key projects. One addresses potential water contamination at MCI Framingham, researching health impacts and proposing solutions like water filters. Another tackles homelessness in Boston by evaluating the viability of converting foreclosed homes into temporary housing versus building tiny homes. The third project aims to design a workforce development program for at-risk youth aged 16-25, inspired by successful models like Year Up and Job Corps. This program is an advanced community resource center in Boston that serves under-resourced students. Through collaboration and actionable research, the mentors will contribute to meaningful community-oriented solutions, enhancing the inmates’ entrepreneurial journeys and the broader social impact.

The institution has multiple centers focusing on various ways Babson students can put their classroom learnings to use in the real world. The Institute for Social Innovation - the center focusing on solving societal issues - has staff who hold continuous conversations with businesses and nonprofits addressing societal issues. Promising partnerships are brought to the team, and considered for opportunities for student engagement before being approved.

Community Sustainability Partnerships are assessed annually to ensure the partnership is reciprocal and the goals, agreements, and strategies are met. First, an internal assessment of the partnership is done with departments that work with the community partner. Once an internal assessment is conducted an external assessment is done in collaboration with the community partner to review the relationship, evaluate goals, and develop additional strategies. Feedback is given to both the parties involved and partnership agreements are re-established.