Community Learning Lab | WPS Institute

the community learning lab

WHERE LEARNERS OF ALL AGES DRIVE THE FUTURE OF EDUCATION

WHAT DO WE DO?

We partner with
out-of-school organizations to develop:

Capacity and resources to imagine greater educational possibilities

Programming that is learner-centered, empowers youth voice and fosters choice and agency

We collaborate with universities and community organizations to:

Research best practices for out-of-school learning that can inform and influence what happens in schools

Connect a network of greater-Boston area institutions that advance innovation in student-centered learning

We offer direct-to student programming that empowers students and strengthens ties with community including:

A summer leadership institute for high school students that centers hands-on, design-based learning and real world experiences.
The Innovation Everywhere Internship that engages students in the community and causes, and helps students generate and incubate ideas to address real-world problems over the course of a school year.

Our Community & University Partners

Join us

summer leadership institute

AN OPPORTUNITY
FOR RISING
9th-12th GRADERS

Explore.

Engage with institutions & leaders across Boston

Advance.

Build future-ready skills in design thinking, communication, and entrepreneurship

Apply.

Collaborate with peers to develop solutions to community problems that matter to you

Apply

A non-traditional internship where students are able to incubate their ideas under the guidance of expert mentors

Accelerate your Idea.

Connect with Experts.

Build your future.

Summer Leadership Institute graduates are automatically offered an internship spot
Launching September 2024
Sign up for updates to be the first to know when applications open!

Learn More

innovation
everywhere
internship

student advisory
board

Students empowering students

We support WPS in the mission to empower youth by elevating student-led initiatives and offering exposure to real-world opportunities.

Maya Abein

Maya is a junior attending Newton North High School. She joined the WPS student advisory board due to her participation in Dreamfar with an aspiration to grow the connection between teenagers and their communities and increase opportunities for teens within education and society. Some of Maya’s interests include music, STEM, running, and time with friends.

Yonatan Tevet-Markelevich

Yonatan is a junior at Newton South High School. He a co-COO on the LigerBots, the Newton High School robotics team, this is what first introduced him to WPS and the Student Advisory Board. With a mission to improve access to education about STEAM to younger students and underprivileged communities he saw the SAB as a great way to do that. In his free time he likes to take photos and bake.

Sofia Barros

Sofia is a junior attending Newton North. With her prior participation in the program I’m Amazing, it led her to join the WPS student advisory board. With similar morals from both programs such as diversity and inclusion, that was two of the many reasons why she joined. Some of her interests include cats, the Boondocks, and forensic science.

Bryce Campbell

Bryce C, A member of the Student Advisory Board, and a member of the Community Media Lab. He is a sophomore at Newton North High School. An alumni of the I’m Amazing program, Bryce joined the Student Advisory Board to spread awareness of the opportunities available and connect with students.

Evan Gan

Evan is a tenth grader at newton south highschool and participates in the school robotics team, the LigerBots, where he found out about the student advisory board and joined to help provide opportunities to get more students involved in STEM. In his down time, Evan likes to program, read, and play recreational ultimate.

Roshan Karim

Student Advisory Board Member

Kate Ostavnenko

Kate is a sophomore attending Newton North High School. She learned about the WPS Institute after Dreamfar, the highschool marathon training program in Massachusetts, was given an opportunity to have their practices hosted here. Inspired by the student leadership within the WPS, she hopes to bring in her own ideas of inspiring change with art and media into this community. She plans to use her hobbies such as digital animation and design to bring awareness to social injustice, and is always excited to bring up her pets whenever she can!

Johnathan Liu

A member of the WPS Student Advisory Board and a founding member of the Community Media Lab, Jonathan Liu is a senior at Wellesley High School. A returning Dreamfar runner, Jonathan joined the Student Advisory Board in order to elevate student voices within the WPS community. As he wraps up his senior year of high school and enters college, Jonathan hopes to research accessible technology and cognitive science. Some of his hobbies are running, playing the cello, as well as mathematics and computer science.

Sarah Hemment

Sarah Hemment is a Freshman at Newton North High School. She has been actively involved in community programs for several years. In 2018, she helped to launch a family-run non-profit called Six String Kids that provides musical instruments to students in underserved communities in the Boston area. Sarah is an active member of Ligerbots, a robotics team shared by both Newton North and Newton South High Schools. She is in the process of learning how to use software and tools for designing and building robots. Sarah joined WPS to explore ways to innovate and transform education and student learning. She also hopes to gain leadership skills and connect with peers to make positive change.