Gala for Central Square Theater and Front Porch Arts
Two Companies, One Gala!
Join us for an evening celebration of performances, honorees, and collaboration.
May 13, 2024
WBUR CitySpace
Honoring
The Inaugural Porch Cornerstone Award | The Margret and H.A. Rey Curiosity Award Recipient |
 |  |
Dr. Makeeba McCreary | Stephanie Couch |
President, New Commonwealth Racial Equity and Social Justice Fund | Executive Director, Lemelson-MIT |
Featuring Performances from Maurice E. Parent, Jackson Jirard. Sheree Marcelle, and more!
6:30pm | Registration & Cocktails, and Cuisine
7:30pm |Performances, Honorees, Auction, and Paddle Raise
Tickets and Sponsorships
Your gala ticket and/or sponsorship supports not just one company but two! Central Square Theater and Front Porch Arts Collective are collaborating once again and all gala proceeds will be split 50/50.
Gala Ticket: $250
Standing Reception Cocktail Cuisine Hour; Gala Program Seating
General Admission: $150
Standing Room Only. Limited Availability.
Sponsor an Artist: $150
Help support a Greater Boston artist to join the party!
Attend as a Sponsor
$2,500 | $5,000 | $10,000
Sponsor Levels include Reserved Seating, Social Media Spotlights, Gala Program Ad; and exclusive benefits commensurate with the sponsorship level.
Questions about Accessible Seating and Sponsorships, please contact Maggie Moore Abdow, Director of Development mma@centralsquaretheater.org, 617-576-9278 ext. 208
Unable to join us? Your gift to the Gala supports Central Square Theater and Front Porch Arts Collective. All contributions are 100% tax deductible.
Sponsors for making this celebration of collaboration possible!
(as of March 18, 2024)
Betsy & Joel Bard
Paul Kastner & Katherine MacLeod
Kimberly Holliday & Greg Netland
Ross & Kristin Krinsky
Laura Roberts & Ed Belove
Robert & Shari Thurer
Catalyst Collaborative @ MIT Sponsor
Philip Khoury, Chair, Advisory Committee
Ford International Professor of History, Associate Provost, MIT
ABOUT THE HONOREES
The Inaugural Porch Cornerstone Award
Dr. Makeeba McCreary serves as President of the New Commonwealth Racial Equity and Social Justice Fund (NCF). The New Commonwealth Fund was founded in 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and in the wake of George Floyd’s murder. When faced with these twin crises, nineteen of Massachusetts’ leading Black and Brown executives launched NCF with a collective goal – to fight systemic racism differently. In just four short years, NCF has invested $13 million into more than 150 Black and Brown-led non-profits across the Commonwealth.
Prior to leading NCF, Makeeba spent two and a half years with the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA). In her role she focused on audience development and integrating diverse perspectives through the lens of art. Prior to joining the MFA, Makeeba served as Chief of Staff and External Relations for the Boston Public Schools, and designed and managed philanthropic investment for global brands such as Nike, Jordan Brand, the National Boys and Girls Clubs of America, and Darden Inc.
The Margret and H.A. Rey Curiosity Award Recipient
Amplifying leaders of ingenuity, creativity, and curiosity in the legacy of Margret and H.A. Rey, authors of the beloved Curious George book series.
Stephanie Couch, PhD, is the Executive Director of the Lemelson-MIT Program. In this role, she leads a team which helps educators and students across the U.S. learn ways inventors find and solve important problems.
She has dedicated her career to K-12 and higher education policy issues and is an active participant in a national invention education research group. Her research as an ethnographer in education focuses on issues that are key to advancing equity within the field of invention education and STEM learning opportunities. She studies ways invention education impacts students (especially those underrepresented in STEM fields), schools, and local communities. She also works to understand the developmental trajectory of inventors as opposed to their inventions.
Locally, she spearheaded the creation of the Foundry Consortium that is operating the new community center for STEM and the arts in Cambridge, MA which opened to the public in fall 2022. Prior to joining the Lemelson-MIT Program, Couch was the Interim Associate Vice President of Research and Professional Development at California State University, East Bay, served as Bayer Executive Director of the Institute for STEM Education, and was the Director for Gateways East Bay STEM Network. These opportunities came about as a result of her work to develop new approaches to teaching and learning with technologies while employed by the Corporation for Education Networking Initiatives in California (CENIC).
