The St. Peter’s Teen Center in Dorchester was opened by Catholic Charities in 2002, and since then it has served as a home away from home for many middle and high-school students who live nearby. The facility provides safe and constructive after-school spaces for kids and teens to grow intellectually, participate in sports, and have fun with their peers. 

“Our goal is to provide safety and do the best we can to help academically so that kids improve in school,” said Joao Dos Santos, the current director, who joined the center as a member in 2003 when he was in the ninth grade.

“It’s also [a priority] to get them thinking about their futures, and what they want to do after they leave here,” he said. “We want students who leave after graduation to come back and talk about their jobs and what they learned with the next group of kids.”

Dos Santos, who immigrated to Boston from Cape Verde, worked at the center as a counselor, peer leader, and then academic coordinator before becoming director in 2017. 

“We serve kids, mainly from this neighborhood. We get some kids from Roxbury and Mattapan as well,” he said. “We give them academic support, take them out of the streets so they’re safe and their parents can be comfortable. Most of our kids’ parents work two to three jobs. Sometimes the kids won’t see their parents until the weekend.” 

The halls of the Teen Center are decorated with art that Dos Santos said was created by a former student. The second and third floors of the three-story building are set off by grade level, with the second floor split between middle-school grades and the third floor made up of high-school grades. 

The building also has a basketball court, workout, dance, and music rooms and a common area where the students can play with an assortment of games from ranging from pool and foosball to Wii sports. 

The center provides structured after-school support as well as summer programming that keeps the students learning, active, and safe during hot summer months. The staff also provides students with daily snacks and home-cooked hot dinners, as well as transportation to and from the facility. 

Tenth grade students Aliah and Bruna love that they can come to the Teen Center and get their homework done. “It’s helpful for getting your homework done so that you don’t have to worry about it later,” said Aliah. “The staff are always here to help us.” 

Added Bruna: “You get to learn different things while you’re getting your work done and it’s a happy place to be.”

Dos Santos said that the Teen Center served close to 400 students last year. Although the program was originally meant for high schoolers, many of those students were missing out on substantial time at the center so they could care for siblings in middle school. When the center opened up its programming to middle school, De Santos said they saw a number of kids coming with their older siblings. 

Like Dos Santos, a majority of the staff members are former students themselves. The student roster includes many Cape Verdeans, and a number of young Haitians and Vietnamese.

“Dos Santos and his team will often bring former students back to meet with the kids and talk about their careers,” said Christine Fennelly, the director of marketing and communications for CCAB. “The kids are able to see themselves in these people who have been through the program.” 

Over the summer months, the Teen Center pairs with the Youth Opportunities Program (YOP) to take the kids on field trips to places like Spectacle Island, Georges Island, and an overnight trip to Cape Cod. In addition. students regularly attend Save The Harbor/Save the Bay events at Carson Beach. 

The Teen Center at St. Peter is located at 278 Bowdoin St. in Dorchester. For more information on their programs and hours, visit ccab.org/TeenCenter or call 617-282-3614.

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