Thoughts from Executive Director Ben Clark
Dear friends, partners, volunteers, community members, and supporters:
Today is an exciting day. I'm thrilled to announce that Cambridge Community Services (CCS) and City Links are re-branding, and will now be known as Enroot.
Our new name and brand is more reflective of our current work and aspirations moving forward. The word enroot [v. to establish, to attach or place securely, to fix by the root] speaks to both the unique student population we serve and the impact we strive for each day as we support their growth during their first few years in this country.
So what will change? Our name, website, and email addresses will change. So will our logo and colors. You'll see a new newsletter starting in September. But the mission and program you’ve known and loved for many years as City Links, the amazing students we serve, and our deep commitment to their success will all remain the same. We also still need mentors and tutors to empower our students, so spread the word!
I’d like to once more express my deepest appreciation and gratitude to all of you for supporting our work and students over the years. I am so excited to move into this next chapter with you by our side.
Ben Clark
Executive Director
Enroot (formerly Cambridge Community Services)
See our press release for more information and details on the process and new brand.
Press Release: For Immediate Release
August 10, 2016
A Brand New Day: CCS unveils a new brand strategy to further community impact
Cambridge, MA- Cambridge Community Services (CCS) is excited to announce that it has changed its name to “Enroot.” After 78 years of strengthening the Cambridge community, the time has come to change our name to better reflect our vision for an inclusive and thriving community and mission of empowering immigrant youth to achieve success.
CCS was established in 1938 as the Cambridge Community Federation, a philanthropic federation with a mandate to raise charitable funds, to assess needs in the community, and to distribute funds accordingly amongst federation members. In 1951, the organization rebranded as Cambridge Community Services (CCS), a community development agency which assessed community needs and designed direct service programs in response.
Since pivoting to direct service, CCS has played a central role in providing and coordinating youth employment, education and career development services across Cambridge. Its programs have impacted many thousands of Cambridge residents. In 1992, CCS founded the City Links program, an out-of-school-time program offering mentoring, tutoring, leadership development, and workforce readiness opportunities to low-income immigrant students at Cambridge Rindge and Latin School (CRLS).
Recognizing the success of City Links, CCS’ Board of Directors engaged in a long-term strategic planning process and emerged with an inspiring new vision for the future: expansion and sustainable growth of a program whose alumni graduate college at twice the rate of their peers, with substantially increased self- confidence, advocacy, and leadership skills.
This fall we will continue ambitiously growing the program at CRLS, serving more students than ever before. We will also pilot an expansion site at nearby Somerville High School in Somerville, MA. After spending a year refining our vision, mission and values, we are ready to update our name to better reflect our impact and the future of our work.
Executive Director Ben Clark notes, “Throughout the long process of identifying the organization’s new name, it remained essential that the name speak both to the unique student population we serve and the impact we strive for each day. The word enroot [v. to establish, to attach or place securely, to fix by the root] speaks to both.”
Echoing that sentiment, Board Chair Jonathan Steiman says, “Setting firm roots in their new land is perhaps the single most important pursuit for recently arrived immigrant students, since a strong foundation will be essential in realizing the dreams that brought them here.”
We are thrilled to have been part of the journey for hundreds of CRLS alumni, and are excited to enter this next chapter serving even more CRLS students as Enroot. Our deepest appreciation and gratitude to those who have supported us in the past; we are so excited to move into this next chapter with you by our side.
Enroot is an organization with a mission to empower immigrant youth to achieve academic, career, and personal success through inspiring out-of-school experiences. Enroot students are given a lens through which to envision their future in new roles they otherwise might not have imagined. Our team of adult mentors, tutors, instructors, and case managers empower students through a comprehensive after-school and summer program that enables each student not only to succeed, but to achieve their own American Dream.
Contact:
Ben Clark, Executive Director
bclark@enrooteducation.org
617-876-5214
www.enrooteducation.org