A Brand New Day

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.

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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

Our visit to TripAdvisor

On a hot Wednesday during the summer, our Enroot group took a trip to Trip Advisor’s headquarters in Needham, MA. During our visit, we gained the favorable opportunity to learn about the major functions of this company and discuss with the employees.

“The field trip was great because they introduced us to different people who have different work to do and also learned that you don’t need to learn something to end up working in the area. The workplace is also really nice because of their gym and the cafeteria is healthy. I might be interested into interning there next summer after college.” -Widvine, Class of 2016   

“What I thought was really interesting was the department that designed the web. It is a really cool job.” -Alessandra, Class of 2017

TripAdvisor is an American company that arranges traveling services around the world. It helps travelers find the best places due to their reviews of travel-related contents. It was created 16 years ago by Stephen Kaufer, the CEO. He came up with the idea while he was on vacation and noticed that people would go to restaurants, hotels, or travel to foreign countries without knowing what the place looked like. So he decided to create an app where people could share their experiences in an area with other individuals. From there, the app developed into a bigger service and people can now book their trips throughout the website.

Overall, the company holds 3000 employees including a very large engineering team. They have 300 engineers to help build the site and have 38 locations  around the world in 45 countries, meaning their app is translated in 28 different languages. The app has gained a prominent popularity over the last decade and now has over 300 million reviews. These reviews consist of photos or comments users post on the website to share their adventure. TripAdvisor also provides internships for interested students and have a partnership with Girls Who Code.

“I would love to have an internship at their company next year.” -Weijing, Class of 2016

When we arrived there, we were lucky to grab lunch in their wonderful cafeteria. Everything was well organized and the food was delicious. I personally had a bowl of salad and added a chocolate chip cookie ice cream to complete my meal. Later on, we met with some of the employees in a conference room and were able to discuss with them and ask questions about their life [experience] at TripAdvisor. We were introduced to the four branches helping the company be successful. The Product Managing branch builds technology products in a way that works in favor of everyone. When building a product, they think about it from different perspectives because people have different needs, likes, and preferences. They discuss their ideas with the engineers which will have to find ways to develop the ideas into products. The Sales department builds relationships with other companies and verify their payments. They want to keep a great relationship with these companies in order to use them as referral when an individual wants to travel somewhere. These relationships go as far as Central America to Europe. The Advertising Operations branch tracks how many people visited their websites on a daily basis. They check how many people clicked on a photo, comment, or searched for a specific topic. Lastly, there is the Marketing department which makes sure other companies do not surpass them in terms of popularity. There is a huge competition in the traveling area where other apps and websites are also trying to upstand their reputation, thereby the Marketing team need to make sure that the majority of the population use the TripAdvisor website as much as possible.

“The TripAdvisor trip was nice because the food was amazing and it surprised me that they did not have Fashion Designing, which is what I would like to major in the future. So it would be a great opportunity to be able to introduce it to their company.” -Jarna, Class of 2018

To complete our trip, we received a tour of the building to have an idea of what it feels like to work at TripAdvisor. We visited their gym, their recreation room, and their magnificent fireplace. The company takes great care of their employees and reflects a welcoming environment. Going to TripAdvisor was an eye-opening when it comes to choosing a career path considering most of the workers majored in various subjects before working at this company. It says a lot to change your career to a whole different one. You never know what life has reserved for your future.  

Lastly, we want to thank the TripAdvisor team for giving us a wonderful tour of their building and giving us the time to converse with their staff, along with the City Links program for organizing this inspiring trip.   

- Saby, Class of 2016

Our Continuing Evolution

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: we’re evolving. Our fourth core value of “constant improvement” demands it and we are excited to continue to grow and change as the community and our students do along with us.

The city of Cambridge has been growing and changing, and CCS and City Links* have grown and changed along with it. More than Cambridge, the Greater Boston area has evolved, so we’re excited to be planning our first site outside of Cambridge to ensure City Links continues to serve low-income immigrant youth who need it most.

What does this mean for Cambridge Community Services and City Links? First- we’ll be expanding outside of Cambridge for the first time next year.Second- with a narrower program focus and expanded geographic footprint, we realize the time has come to rebrand the organization.

We’ve spent the last year refining our mission and program model (don’t worry- the City Links you know is still here!), now it’s time to refine our name. Over the next few months, we’ll be working with Soldier, a generous marketing firm in Harvard Square, to think about the future of our work.

Stay tuned!
– Ben Clark, Executive Director

*You'll see us reference CCS and City Links throughout older blog posts. We have chosen not to update all posts, as a nod to our history, and specifically not to update our students' voices from past year. Please enjoy getting to know them on their journey through City Links and Enroot.