Children’s Hospital Boston announces first annual William L. Boyan Award recipient

Sociedad Latina to receive $50,000 grant to expand mental health services

November 14, 2011

Boston, Mass. – On Monday, Children’s Hospital Boston will present the first annual William L. Boyan Award for Excellence in Community Health to Sociedad Latina, a Roxbury-based organization that cultivates leaders among Latino youth.Established by the Children’s Board of Trustees in honor Mr. Boyan, who served on the hospital’s Board of Trustees for 27 years, the award honors a community organization for their work and commitment to the children and families of Boston.

“We are proud to recognize Sociedad Latina for their leadership in supporting the mental health needs of Latino youth and their families,” said Children’s CEO James Mandell, MD. “We believe that when children are healthy our communities are healthier, too, and applaud Sociedad Latina for tackling health disparities across communities in the Boston area.”

For more than 40 years, Sociedad Latina has partnered with the Latino community to end the cycle of poverty, health disparities and lack of opportunity. Over the years the organization has grown into a premier youth development organization. As the recipient of this year’s award, Sociedad Latina will receive a $50,000 grant to expand their mental health services to Latino youth and families in the Boston-area. The grant money will be used to hire a full-time case manager and begin a weekly mental health workshop for families.

“Sociedad Latina is thrilled to be honored with the very first William L. Boyan Award,” said Alexandra Oliver-Dávila, executive director of Sociedad Latina. “We appreciate Children’s Hospital Boston’s acknowledgement of our longstanding commitment to and deep relationships with the Latino community. This is another important example of how our organization serves as a connector between the community and its institutions.”

Each year, the theme of the William L. Boyan Award for Excellence in Community Health will change. The 2011 award was focused on supporting a program within a community organization, health center, city agency or Boston school that addressed the mental health needs of children.

Children’s will honor Sociedad Latina at an event on Monday, November 14, 2011 at 3:30pm in the hospital’s Patient Entertainment Center. Please contact Erin Tornatore at 617-919-3110 or erin.tornatore@childrens.harvard.edu if you wish to attend.

Contact:
Erin Tornatore
617-919-3110
erin.tornatore@childrens.harvard.edu

Founded in 1869 as a 20-bed hospital for children, Children’s Hospital Boston has been ranked as one of the nation’s best pediatric hospitals by U.S.News & World Report for the past 21 years. Children’s is the primary pediatric teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School and the largest provider of health care to Massachusetts children. In addition to 395 pediatric and adolescent inpatient beds and 228 outpatient programs, Children’s houses the world’s largest research enterprise based at a pediatric medical center, where its discoveries benefit both children and adults. More than 1,100 scientists, including nine members of the National Academy of Sciences, 11 members of the Institute of Medicine and nine members of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute comprise Children’s research community. For more information about the hospital visit: www.childrenshospital.org/newsroom.

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