COVID-19 Community Resources
Featured Stories
University community rallies to deal with COVID-19 crisis
Administrators and professors detail the many and varied ways Harvard is trying to help, including offering use of hotel by Cambridge first-responders and health care workers.
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Harvard and MIT donate $500,000 to Cambridge
Donations will support the creation of the city’s temporary emergency shelter the War Memorial Recreation Center, Field House, and garage.
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Harvard launches emergency grant program for Allston-Brighton
Harvard University announced the formation of a grant program to provide emergency funding to nonprofit organizations and community groups serving the Allston-Brighton neighborhood of Boston.
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Harvard values its longtime partnership with the Cities of Cambridge and Boston, particularly our shared history, our efforts to strengthen our communities, our shared achievements, and our commitment to education and creating opportunities that encourage lifelong learning. The following stories highlight some of the impactful and exciting collaborations and programs taking place across the community every single day.
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Resources & Programming
Through its mission of teaching and learning, Harvard is committed to supporting local communities managing the COVID-19 pandemic. From crisis management resources, health and legal services, to educational programming, Harvard is actively working to support community members—public school students, families, city officials, nonprofits, and small businesses—as they respond to the pandemic.
Resources for Local Government, Nonprofits, & Small Businesses
Allston-Brighton Emergency Response Grants
Harvard University announced the formation of a grant program to provide emergency funding to non-profit organizations and community groups serving Allston-Brighton.
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Crisis in Leadership
Launched by Harvard Business School and the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership, this initiative provides insights and strategies to support mayors as they manage
COVID-19.
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Managing Through Crisis
This Harvard Business School podcast by Professor Dutch Leonard offers strategies for organizations managing COVID-19. The resource was shared with the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce.
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Various online programs, events, and discussions organized by the Harvard Kennedy School provide information and a forum for cities, regions, and countries responding to COVID-19.
Education Now is a new initiative by the Harvard Graduate School of Education to respond to the dramatic changes in the field of education in the wake of coronavirus. The initiative is creating resources for educators, leaders, and families; sharing strategies and perspectives from Harvard faculty; and hosting a weekly 30-minute webinar that will offer valuable ideas to help you navigate today's complex landscape.
Amid the COVID-19 global pandemic, the Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD) community is working to leverage its skills and resources to contribute to response efforts. This website provides a centralized resource page for updates from across the GSD: news from the Fabrication Laboratory on production of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and other gear, relevant essays by leading design academics, remembrances of those lost, and other news from the GSD network.
Resources, workshops, and information for small businesses managing COVID-19 are offered through the Harvard Ed Portal and cover timely topics of applying for aid through the CARES Act and navigating the pandemic. Interested businesses and organizations are encouraged to sign up for a bi-weekly newsletter.
Resources for Public School Students & Teachers
Educational resources and programming for Boston Public Schools (with a specific focus in Allston-Brighton) and Cambridge Public Schools have been moved online. Harvard’s Public School Partnerships (PSP) team continues to work with each school district to identify responsive, innovative, and meaningful opportunities to connect Harvard students, faculty, staff, researchers, to youth, families, and teachers. PSP also continues to develop and deliver college and career awareness programs, academic and cultural enrichment opportunities, and meaningful family engagement initiatives.
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Online Programs for Youth
Allston-Brighton residents have access to additional youth programming through the Harvard Ed Portal such as clubs, virtual field trips, and mentoring.
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LabXChange Resources
Teachers, families, and individuals can use this free resource to learn or teach online with virtual classrooms, lab simulations, and more.
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Usable Knowledge
Harvard Graduate School of Education offers guidance for educators, students, and families on how to adapt to disruption, build resilience, and thrive in an online learning environment.
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Programming & Services for the Community
Free Legal Services
Harvard Law School’s Clinical and Pro Bono Programs continue to offer free legal services and referrals to low-income community residents. The School’s 44 clinics cover a range of services including: housing, immigration, family law, domestic violence, taxes, consumer protection, government benefits, bankruptcy, and more.
Skills Workshops
The Harvard Ed Portal organized several workshops on how to use Zoom for online classes and meetings, open to individuals interested in gaining proficiency in using the tool. Whether a beginner or a more seasoned user, anyone can access these workshops, also offered in Spanish, and learn about organizing techniques, using break-out groups, and leading virtual meetings.
Workforce Development
Innovative, market-driven programs and workshops for individuals looking for career and professional development opportunities have been moved online. The Harvard Ed Portal continues to help people through skills-based offerings that support their career goals.
Health & Wellness
Health & Wellness programs for Allston-Brighton residents are being offered online through the Harvard Ed Portal. Programming includes weekly yoga sessions and are available free of charge.
Arts & Culture Resources
Harvard Museums
Virtual tours and educational programming offered by the Harvard Art Museums and the Harvard Museums of Science and Culture are open to all who want to explore the exhibits and immerse themselves in the stories they have to tell.
Pause for Art
As rapid change and uncertainty have become a part of our everyday lives, the Office for the Arts at Harvard is offering Pause for Art: Creative Moments from Harvard, a daily dose of artistic inspiration for anyone looking to find a moment of beauty, comfort and connection.
Crossings Gallery
The Ed Portal’s Crossings Gallery is now online. Come explore Everyday Encounters by Harvard Mittal Institute 2020 Visiting Artist Fellows Shah Numair Ahmed Abbasi & Suhasini Kejriwal.
Zone 3
Zone 3—a Harvard-sparked initiative aimed at further activating Allston’s Western Avenue with creative programs, events, and retail—continues to offer new and exciting programs online, including the ever-popular Drinking and Drawing, Punk Rock Aerobics on Facebook live, and virtual orientations to podcasting.
Western Avenue Arts Walk
The Western Avenue Arts Walk showcases public art along Western Avenue in Allston and includes both permanent and temporary works of art on view at the Harvard Business School, the Harvard Ed Portal as well as works affiliated with Zone 3.
Resources For Lifelong Learners
The Harvard Ed Portal is a place where everyone in the community, at every stage and place in life, can come together, learn, and find inspiration. While its physical space in Allston-Brighton remains closed, a vast majority of programming has transitioned online, allowing for residents from Allston-Brighton, Cambridge, and beyond to access a wide variety of resources.
Browse free online courses in a variety of subjects from HarvardX, a University-wide initiative which was launched in parallel with edX, a non-profit learning platform founded by Harvard and MIT.
Supporting Teaching & Research Needs
Harvard community answers call to help support teaching and research needs
Members of the Harvard community, including alumni and friends from across the globe who have reached out to help, are responding to the challenges of COVID-19 on many fronts. Now, Harvard has created an online resource for those wishing to learn more about how to help in this time of need. This includes support for research related to addressing the pandemic, for online learning efforts across the University, and ways to directly support Harvard’s Schools.