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Boston Chamber
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          Pacesetters
          Doing Business with Mass General Brigham

          Join us for our installment of the Pacesetters Doing Business series featuring Mass General Brigham on August 7, 2025.

          08/07/2025

          1:00pm - 2:00pm

          Virtual

          arrow-go
          Read More
        • ...
          BIMA
          2025 BIMA Summer Sizzler

          The BIMA Summer Sizzler is a chance to network with your digital media industry peers from the agency, publisher, and adtech community!

          08/14/2025

          6:00pm - 9:00pm

          Fenway Park

          arrow-go
          Read More
        • ...
          Series
          Maximize Your Membership September 2025

          Enjoy networking with fellow members and hear from Chamber Staff on how to best leverage your Membership to achieve your business goals.

          09/09/2025

          3:00pm - 4:30pm

          Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce

          arrow-go
          Read More
  • Learning & Development
        • Learning & Development

          • Overview
          • Call for Nominations
          • Insights
        • Transformational DEI Certificate

          This program is in redevelopment. Click this page for DEI resources.

          Read More
          Women’s Leadership Program

          Our Women’s Leadership Program enables you to take your leadership to the next level by arming you with the most in-demand leadership toolkit.

          Read More
          Boston’s Future Leaders

          Our Boston’s Future Leaders (BFL) program provides emerging leaders with a socially conscious and civically engaged leadership toolkit, as well as the opportunity to apply their knowledge through experiential assignments.

          Read More
          Authentic Professionalism for Early Career Professionals

          In this highly interactive workshop with Strategic Career & Leadership Coach Carole-Ann Penney, you’ll define your professional identity and develop strategies to confidently navigate workplace dynamics.

          Read More
  • Economic Inclusion
        • Economic Inclusion

          • Overview
          • Pacesetters
          • Resources
        • ...
          Economic Inclusion
          City Awake

          City Awake empowers young professionals in a variety of ways that encourages these rising leaders to stay invested in the region’s future success.

          arrow-go
          Read More
        • ...
          Economic Inclusion
          Pacesetters

          We are developing an ecosystem of corporations and partners with the influence and buying power to transform economic inclusion for minority business enterprises (MBEs).

          arrow-go
          Read More
        • ...
          Small Business
          Small Business

          Small businesses are the backbone of the Boston economy. Learn more about the resources available through the Chamber.

          arrow-go
          Read More
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        • GET INVOLVED IN OUR POLICY FOCUS AREAS

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          Read More
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          Read More
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          Read More
  • Our Networks
        • GBCC’s Networks

          • Overview
        • OUR NETWORKS

          Small Business

          Small businesses are the backbone of the Boston economy. Learn more about the resources available through the Chamber.

          Read More
          City Awake

          City Awake empowers young professionals in a variety of ways that encourages these rising leaders to stay invested in the region’s future success.

          Read More
          BIMA

          BIMA (the Boston Interactive Media Association) serves a vibrant community of like-minded professionals from agencies, brands, publishers, and ad-tech companies with business interests in the New England market.

          Read More
          Women’s Network

          For over 30 years, the Chamber’s Women’s Network has connected female professionals of all background and career levels. Today, our Women’s Network is the largest in New England, strengthening the professional networks of women each year.

          Read More
          Massachusetts Apprentice Network

          The Massachusetts Apprentice Network convenes employers, training providers, and talent sources interested in developing and implementing apprenticeship programs in occupations across industries and statewide in fields such as tech, advanced manufacturing, healthcare, financial services, and more.

          Read More
          Pacesetters

          We are developing an ecosystem of corporations and partners with the influence and buying power to transform economic inclusion for minority business enterprises (MBEs).

          Read More
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Investing in Youth and Preventing Violence with Summer Jobs

July 1, 2021

 At the MA Coalition to Prevent Gun Violence, we understand that tackling this layered issue requires a holistic and multilayered approach. One that includes improving the well-being of young people across the Commonwealth. This is critical to violence prevention – when young people have what they need to be safe and well in the world, our communities are safer. What does this mean in practice? This means ensuring that young people’s basic needs are met: access to supportive adults, stable housing, educational and recreational opportunities, and sufficient financial resources. Youth employment readiness is key to both financial stability and to giving young people an experience involving supportive adults, skill-building activities, and positive engagement with their communities. These are all protective factors that can help prevent youth from being impacted by violence.

Recent research further demonstrates and quantifies how employment access mitigates the human, societal, and economic costs of gun violence. A 2018 study called “Stopping a Bullet with a Summer Job”, found a direct link between summer employment and reduced rates of violence. Participation in a Chicago summer jobs program nearly halved the number of violent crime arrests among program participants. Similarly, enrollment in a New York City program reduced the likelihood that participating youth would be incarcerated in New York State prison or would die prematurely. The impact of these job programs extended beyond the summer, suggesting that participation did not just keep young people busy and away from risky situations during the summer months, but also led to longer-term positive outcomes. The Chicago program led to a 35% reduction in violent crime arrests one year after program completion. These results are clearly positive for the young people served and are also significant for our communities’ safety and economic wellbeing. According to the Vera Institute, the cost of incarceration in Massachusetts is $55,170 per inmate yearly. The cost of the summer programs noted here were $1,400 to $3,000 per participant. This small investment in youth brings great returns, on multiple levels.

Closer to home, we see similar benefits. A 2017 Brookings study of summer jobs programs in Boston, such as YouthWorks, noted the following: “Summer jobs programs are a vehicle to give young people a boost in the labor market and help them develop positive relationships with adults and peers; imagine new possibilities for themselves; and engage in positive, constructive activities during time that otherwise would likely be unstructured.”

Our guest blogs are written and produced by organizations within our membership. They  are not intended to reflect the views nor opinions of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce.

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