The Boston Foundation believes that the children and families of Greater Boston deserve to live in neighborhoods that are safe, clean and free of violence.

As such, it works with its partners in the nonprofit and public sectors to develop positive activities for our city’s young people and strengthen neighborhood-based organizing designed to create safe and healthy communities.

In close cooperation with the Crime and Justice Institute, the Boston Foundation’s Understanding Boston series has published two major reports on the state’s Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) system.  Both reports were released at forums.

Community Safety Spotlight:

StreetSafe Boston Initiative On December 17, 2008, the Boston Foundation, Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, the Boston Police Department and a broad partnership of leaders from the city, the private and civic sectors, and organizations that serve Boston neighborhoods launched an ambitious $26 million, multi-year strategy to cut violent crime among 16 to 24-year-olds in Boston by focusing on five neighborhoods (see map at right and list below) that are responsible for a significant percentage of the youth homicide, assaults and gun violence. Learn more »

Indicators-related research: October 08, 2009 Connect to the Boston Indicators Project's Public Safety sector for data, trends, research and resources. October 08, 2009 National Youth Gang Survey October 10, 2008 Connect to the Boston Police Department for up-to-date crime statistics.		Selected grants: June 10, 2010 StreetSafe Boston March 30, 2010 Ella J. Baker House October 08, 2009 ROCA
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Recent Community Safety Reports:

Priorities and Public Safety II: Adopting Effective Probation Practices Over the past six months, the Massachusetts criminal justice system has come under scrutiny due to the budget growth in its corrections agencies. This growth combined with the state’s budget crisis has compelled a closer examination of the oversight, decision-making and outcomes of one particular agency: the Probation Department.  Recent reports have highlighted the Department’s hiring practices, lack of oversight and reluctance to share important public safety data and has led to calls for significant change in its structure, management and oversight. Read Report

Priorities and Public Safety: Reentry and the Rising Costs of our Corrections System New research identifies rapidly growing state corrections costs as an economic burden at a time of budget cuts forced by the ongoing economic crisis. According to the report, the Commonwealth could ease this burden by adopting strategies proven to shrink prison populations and reduce rates of recidivism. Read Report

CORI: Opening Doors of Opportunity The Boston Foundation and the Crime and Justice Institute have released a report recommending changes in the way the Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) is used, in order to remove unnecessary barriers to employment for men and women with criminal histories.  At the same time, the report calls for retaining the system’s ability to maintain the safety of the workplace.    Read Report

CORI: Balancing Individual Rights and Public Safety As our society becomes increasingly focused on security as a key national and civic issue, we inevitably face the recurring dilemma of balancing the desire for public safety with the need to preserve individual rights. The conflict between public safety and individual rights is at the essence of the current debate around Criminal Offender Recorder Information, or CORI.    Read Report

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Community Safety Forums:

StreetSafe Boston is Launched December 15, 2008 On December 4th, a front-page story in The Boston Globe announced a new youth anti-violence initiative—an unprecedented partnership of the Boston Foundation, Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino, the Boston Police Department, other public and private civic leaders and organizations that serve Boston’s neighborhoods.Called StreetSafe Boston, the ambitious initiative was formally launched on December 15th at the Sportsmen’s Tennis Club in Dorchester.

CORI: Opening the Doors of Opportunity May 02, 2007 The Boston Foundation and the Crime and Justice Institute continued their focus on reforming the state’s CORI system with the release of a second report on the topic in early May. CORI stands for the Criminal Offender Record Information system, which is seen by many as placing unfair barriers to employment for men and women with criminal histories.

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