In total the economic impact of the partnership is over $1.5 million per year across all programs. As always it is our pleasure to support the youth of the city of Waltham. Dr. Barnett is a finalist for the highly prestigious Presidential Award for Excellence in STEM mentoring (https://paesmem.nsf.gov/)  which is the nations highest honor for those working to improve access for those who may not have access to STEM fields.  This work would not be possible without the support of the larger Waltham community and partnerships including the Charles River Museum of Industry and Innovation and the Waltham Public Schools.

 This interim summary report covers the reporting period starting in June 1st 2023 and May 11, 2024.  This summary focuses on the city of Waltham which is one of our partner cities/communities.  The other communities and cities have their own summaries and are included in the larger report, we create this document separate because the city and public schools in Waltham have been one of the longest standing partners. 

 Financial and Economic Impact

  • In total $52,700 in food purchases have occurred within the city of Waltham. We strive to purchase from local vendors however, that is not always possible as the youth in the programs often make the choices on where to get food from.  The restaurants and caterers that we have ordered food from have included:
    • Pinis Pizzeria, Pizzis Farm, AKs, Los Amigos (Newtonville), and 2-3 times over the course of the year from Chipotle.
  • Youth in the programs have been paid as of May 11th, $151,000 in stipends (all but one are Waltham Public School students, the exception attends Our Lady Academy’s and whose parent is a teacher there). This is across 200 youth that have attended the programs.  Most youth attend the programs regularly, but some youth have only attended the programs 1 or 2 times to see if it was a fit for them.
  • We have employed 5 Waltham Public School teachers throughout the year and have provided them stipends totaling $25,000 over the course of the year at the Charles River Collaboratory.
  • The BC team has been providing support, funding, materials, and supplies for the after-school STEM program. This year the support has increased as all youth are provided stipends (at both schools), the teachers have been provided 3D printers, drones, robots, microcontrollers, and the BC team is providing stipends for the after-school STEM club teachers.  This is approximately $25,000 in support. 
  • In terms of materials and supplies that have been utilized that will be open to the community starting in the Fall of 2024. The materials and equipment total $75,000 that is use at the Charles River Collaboratory.

 

As such the direct economic impact of the Collaboratory on the city of Waltham is just under $300,00 over the past 9 months simply through stipends to teachers, materials and equipment, and stipends to youth and youth leaders.

 The in-kind support is a little harder to calculate but the estimate is per man-hours which includes the rates for undergraduates, faculty, post-docs, and graduate students.  Given that faculty have spent an estimated 200 hours, post-docs spend 2 days per week in McDevitt and Kennedy, and the Undergraduate and Graduate students spend 3 hours every other each Saturday at the Collaboratory the estimated in-kind support is approximately $250,000.

 

In May of 2024 every 8th grade student in the city will participate in the smart automated greenhouse project where the BC team continues to provide time and financial support in terms of materials and supplies that totals $20,000 per school and will be providing $1500 stipends to 8 Waltham High School seniors this year.