Kasey Boston is the Executive Director at the Brookline Teen Center (BTC). She joined the team in September 2023. Boston came to Boston in 2012 to attend the Harvard School of Education for her graduate degree. Before working with the BTC, Boston organized teen employment programs at St. Stephen’s Youth Programs, an out-of-school volunteer program in Boston.
Q: What do you do at the BTC?
I help oversee all of the programming; everything that keeps the place running, I have a hand in. We have a program manager who oversees all the different clubs and activities that all the different grades are able to do. And then we have an operations and community engagement team. So they handle things like getting new partnerships and helping to raise money, writing our newsletter and getting us exposure. So we have different teams and a board of directors that helps to oversee everything. They have vast knowledge and experience from different fields that come together to meet to make sure things are sticking into the mission that they all created 10 years ago. I bring all those groups together and have been the liaison between them.
Q: Since you took on the role of executive director in September, how have you seen changes throughout the BTC?
Right after I started, we probably hired six or seven staff. So, we’re growing, which is awesome, and now we have the capacity, resources and energy to create really cool programming. We were able to get our shuttle van up and running, so now we’re picking up students from the Baker and Hayes Schools. We’re trying to reduce any barriers to people coming here, and I’m really proud of our efforts to make it more accessible for everyone. I think there have been different perceptions of who this place is for. It truly is a place for everyone. There is something for everyone. If there isn’t something here for you, then we’re here to help you create it and see that dream come true. So, I really believe that this is a great asset to the community and to teens of Brookline, and I’m excited to see how we can keep growing.
Q: How do you think having a teen center shapes or changes a community?
I think this is like a really crucial third space. And I think that all teens, regardless of their background [or where] they’re coming from, need at least two caring adults outside of their family. And I think that that’s where people really push the boundaries of their own identity and what they know they can become: a space where there are adults who care about you and pay attention and hold you accountable. But, you can’t just come here and do whatever you want. We have expectations and a level of respect for each other that has to be upheld. I think that without having additional adults like that, teens really suffer. This is such a crucial stage in adolescent development, where your identity is shaped by the people that are there to support you or not, and I think that we can provide that.
Q: How does the BTC come up with concepts for events?
Teen-led events just go better when teens actually have decided that they want to do them, instead of adults saying, “This is a cool idea.” So, we have a Teen Council, which is for our 9th to 12th graders, and a Middle School Council for our 6th, 7th and 8th graders. We try to get ideas about what they want to see, what they are willing to put together and pull off for their peers and how we can make fun stuff happen. I’m super open to whatever they want to do; we have the space, we have the staff, we have the resources and I want us to be doing the programs that people want.
Q: What challenges have you faced in running the teen center and how have you faced them?
I think a challenge for me is figuring out how we stay true to the mission of being a place where teens can come and discover who they are and what they want to do. Another is adapting to what teens need and want now in 2024. People are changing; we all are. But I think that for teens, in particular, since this place came to life 10 years ago, a lot of what the perception of what teens needed and wanted has changed. I think there’s so much competition, if you will, for teens’ time and energy. There are thousands of clubs, sports and really great stuff that teens are doing that we don’t want to pull them from, but it means they’re not coming here. I think maybe 10 years ago, there was less of that, and there was more of a need for the hangout space and the additional place to explore clubs. So now that they have that at the high school, it’s like, well, what do we become? Who are we? What should we be? And I’m really open to whatever direction we need to go in to stay relevant and stay as something that the town needs. And I think what I’ve gathered from people is that one of those things is offering teen jobs and internships and being a place to connect with their next step into the world. And I think that this community really is in need of programming for 6th, 7th and 8th graders. And so I think, if that’s the direction we start to head in to support the needs of the community, how do we make sure there’s always space and always that it remains a teen center at its core? I think there are ways to do that, and we’re excited to pursue them. So the challenge is, who are we? Who do we want to be? Are we achieving that? And how do we make sure that we’re actually filling a need in the community? Because why else do we exist? I think once you’ve been here and seen that it’s a great place, you can see why a community would need this. But I think when you haven’t been here, or you feel like you don’t need it, it’s hard to get that message across.
Q: What are you looking forward to seeing at the BTC?
I would love for more teen leadership here. We have awesome food every day, like hot meals cooked, and then we have cups of noodles and mac and cheese. So just come and eat and see if it’s for you. Hopefully it is.
