Mayor Wu slipped off her shoes, put on a pair of mixed martial arts gloves, and took to the mat at Level Ground in Fields Corner last Monday (July 7), where she celebrated the kick-off to a summer program called 5th Quarter Learning.
This year, more than 18,000 students will participate in hundreds of sites around the city as a part of the program, a collaboration involving the City of Boston, the Boston Public Schools, and Boston Beyond.
The Fields Corner setting “is one of 243 sites that are conducting summer learning in every neighborhood in the city, K through 12,” said Chris Smith, executive director of Boston Beyond (pictured above with Mayor Wu). “From arts to sports to STEM, there is something for everyone,”
Through 5th Quarter, the students will participate in learning experiences for an average of 175 hours of programming over a five-week period.
“The reason we have so many sites is that we’re 20 years old this year. This project has grown every year for the last 15 years, and it’s reached a high point because of Mayor Wu,” said Smith.
After speaking with students and sparring with an 18-year-old trainer, Avri Porch, Wu said, “This is going to be one of many times where I’m going to be back here. I’m used to rolling with the punches, but this is the first time today I got to put on the gloves and actually punch back with some real technique.”
She added, “Some of the most important learning that happens in our city happens outside of our Boston Public School classrooms, but it wouldn’t happen without our amazing BPS staff and all the partners and organizations who lean in to give our young people the whole world.”
Alexandra Fuller, the founder and executive director at Level Ground, said that her program empowers youth through athletics, academics, and employment opportunities, setting them up for bright futures.
Level Ground is the only athletic program in Boston that offers free youth mixed martial arts classes and affordable adult classes.
“This summer, in partnership with the 5th Quarter, 50 youth will engage in a super rigorous experience that combines academic learning with workforce development and athletic training, preparing them to lead in the classrooms, in the workplace, and in their communities,” said Fuller.
The summer experience in Fields Corner will be led by program director Ricardo Moreno and instructors Zhane Burton and Eamon Roberts. Participating students include 17-year-old Eli Brhane and 16-year-olds Xinyi Huang and Kate Osakwe.
“Level Ground has been more than just a community, it’s been a home,” said Osakwe, who has been training at the gym for the last two years. “They’re not just helping kids, they’re helping them turn into adults. Programs like these are really important in places like Boston, where we want to build our youth and give them successful careers that they want to be in.”
As students age, they also have the opportunity to become leaders on the mat.
“I started coming here when I was 14, so for four years I’ve been here,” said Porch, now a trainer. “I came here because I was homeschooled back then, but now I am able to help out with the women’s classes. I’m really into women’s safety and women’s protection. I also assist the kids’ class.”
She added, “I want to spread the knowledge, I want everyone to be safe because it’s such an unsafe world. It doesn’t matter how small you are. My whole life, I’ve been small, and coming here made me feel so big.”
City Councillor John FitzGerald was in attendance and he showed off some punches alongside the mayor.
“As a BPS alum and someone who has been punched in the face many times and not won many fights, this program is exactly what kids need,” said FitzGerald. “It gets you physically fit, it gets your confidence risen, it prepares you for the academic side as well, the business, and when you cover all those things, you’re going to be a good person.
“You’re going to be ready for the real world,” he said. “It’s just like a fight, it’s long, it’s hard, you’re gonna get punched, and you’ve got to punch back. It’s a real great sort of microcosm of what life is.”
5th Quarter is open to all Boston-area students from kindergarten through senior year. To register for a program, visit bostonbeyond.org/summer-programs.
