Burns & Levinson has been a strong supporter of inner-city Boston children, helping with their pursuit of further education, especially in the areas of the law and science and technology. A few noteworthy efforts are described here:

• In 1998, in conjunction with the Boston Bar Association (BBA) and the Boston Private Industry Council (PIC), the firm created a "partnership" with Brighton High School to focus on the school's Law, Government & Public Service Pathway program. The partnership provides the school's teachers, its students, and Burns & Levinson attorneys and paralegals with the opportunity to work together to supplement and enhance the educational experience and to offer motivation for students to pursue careers in legal services-related fields. The partnership serves as a model for other firms seeking to establish an ongoing positive presence at the school. It allows the firm to assist students with MCAS preparation, classroom projects, the Massachusetts Bar Association's sponsored mock-trial competitions and career day orientations. The firm also provides practical experience to Brighton High students by inviting them to work as interns at our offices.
• The Boston Bar Association honored Burns & Levinson in May 2005 with the BBA's Children and Youth Outreach Volunteer Leadership Award for the firm's many years of hard work with Brighton High School. (link to press release)
• Volunteers from the firm donate their time to read to elementary school children in the Everybody Wins! Metro Boston Reading Program. Attorneys, secretaries and other administrative staff donate time each week during lunch to read to students. Each student has two mentors and the program runs from October through May.
• For four years the firm ran the Power of an Idea® Scholarship Contest, a scholarship program for Boston high school and charter school students (grades nine through twelve). The contest awarded a $15,000 scholarship and initial patent filing services for the winning device, machine, or process. In those four years, the firm awarded more than $60,000 in scholarship funds and inspired numerous high school and charter school students from the Boston community to continue their interest in science and technology and pursuit of further education.

In addition to education, the firm is also very aware of sustainable efforts and is a supporter and Signature Firm in the Massachusetts Bar Association's (MBA) Lawyers Eco-Challenge: One Planet, One Pledge. In May 2009, the MBA recognized the firm as a leader by bestowing on us the "Green" award for expanding our greening practice by implementing green design elements in our recent office reconstruction project.

Burns & Levinson's attorneys are also very active in other organizations, business groups, boards, and committees throughout Massachusetts and Rhode Island. They work with children and support related non-profit clients and charter schools through pro bono work. For more information, please visit our Community page.