Meet the 2021–2022 Menino Fellow: Gloria Ampadu-Darko

The Initiative on Cities (IOC) is pleased to announce Gloria Ampadu-Darko (CAS’24) as our 2021-2022 National League of Cities (NLC) Menino Fellow. Gloria is a sophomore majoring in International Relations with a minor in Political Science and Public Health. Her interests include international development, human rights, civil rights, and social justice. She aspires to pursue […]

Faculty Friday: Monica Wang

Faculty Friday is a series highlighting members of the Initiative on Cities (IOC) Faculty Advisory Board, by exploring their work on campus and in the city. This week, we are highlighting Monica Wang, Associate Professor of Community Health Sciences in the School of Public Health.  By Diya Ashtakala Diya Ashtakala: Tell me about yourself and […]

Deep Patel: Reflecting on my 2021 Fellowship with the Boston Mayor’s Office of Policy and Planning

By Deep Patel (Undergraduate, Economics and Political Science, Kilachand Honors College) This past summer, I was given the opportunity to work as an IOC undergraduate fellow and public policy intern at the Mayor’s Office of Policy and Planning. In this department at Boston City Hall, a dedicated team of diverse and bright minds from across […]

Kimberly Rhoten: Supporting Citizens Returning from Incarceration: Reflecting on my 2021 Fellowship with the Boston Mayor’s Office of New Urban Mechanics

By Kimberly Rhoten, JD (they/them) (PhD Candidate, Sociology) Every year more than 3,000 people return to the City of Boston from prisons and jails, and over 6,000 people are released from the Boston-based South Bay Correctional Facility. Our City’s Office of Returning Citizens provides much needed resources, services, and referrals to get folks back on […]

2021 Early Stage Urban Research Awards

In Spring 2021, the Initiative on Cities issued its seventh request for proposals to support early stage academic research endeavors focused on urban challenges and urban populations, both domestic and global. We received 37 applications from 20 schools and departments at BU, and we are thrilled to announce we have funded 14 projects, including 8 […]

Youth Emergency Mental Health Response in Boston

Principal Investigator: Co-Principal Investigators: Many urban school districts are under-resourced to meet the mental health needs of their students and therefore rely on emergency service providers for crisis response. These emergency response services, however, can increase the likelihood that youth will be served in emergency departments and, in the case of police response, increase the […]