Youth Literary Advisory Board Member

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About the Opportunity:

826 Boston is looking for new YLAB Members!

The Youth Literary Advisory Board (YLAB) is a paid youth leadership, writing, and community engagement program for students in grades 9–12. YLAB members will meet two times a week and will work together over the course of the year to create and publish an original publication of their own design. Through workshops, peer feedback, and mentorship, YLAB members will strengthen a wide range of writing skills, from poetry and creative nonfiction to fiction and prose. YLAB members will also play an active role in planning and facilitating innovative events and workshops in partnership with the Boston Athenaeum. Through field trips, guest speakers, public-facing events, and hands-on leadership experiences, YLAB members will build community, amplify youth voices, and explore the many ways writing can create change.

Apply online at: https://826boston.bamboohr.com/careers/128   

Mission: 826 Boston is a nonprofit writing, tutoring, and publishing organization where students in grades K-12 and beyond can share their stories, amplify their voices, and develop as leaders in school and in life.

Responsibilities: 

• Work 12-16 hours per month from September 2026 through June 2027 
• Attend in-person meetings twice a week. Meeting days, times, and locations are listed below: 
  • Tuesdays, Time is still to be determined but should be in the afternoonXX-XX
    • Location: Boston Athenaeum, 10-1/2 Beacon Street, Boston, MA 02108
  • Fridays, 4:30-6:30 PM 
    • Location: 826 Boston Tutoring Center, 3035 Washington Street, Roxbury, MA 02119
• Coordinate own transportation to and from each meeting
• Adhere to the YLAB attendance expectations

• Maintain regular communication with the YLAB Teaching Artist and Team Lead.
• Log hours weekly in the timesheet tracker; complete surveys and other paperwork as requested.

YLAB Program Activities and Responsibilities

• In collaboration with fellow YLAB members, produce an original publication of student writing.
  • Brainstorm and select a theme.
  • Draft, revise, and submit a piece of original work.
  • Provide peer feedback to other YLAB writers.
  • Moodboard for aesthetic of the book 
  • Vote on a book title 
  • Work closely with 826’s Publishing Manager to decide the layout of the book including but not limited to, chapter titles, sequence book dimension
  • Collaborate with the book designer on the aesthetic of the book including reviewing cover and interior mock ups and providing feedback
• In collaboration with fellow YLAB members, consult with the Boston Athenaeum on one or more events per semester to build community around writing and literacy for teens in Boston. Generate ideas, plan and prepare activities, and promote/attend/conduct events.

Optional Opportunities YLAB Members Can Join Outside of Scheduled Meetings:

• Attend accessible events and field trips that are co-scheduled with other YLAB members

• Tutor grade K-8 students during 826 Boston’s After-School or Evening Tutoring program.
• Participate in 826 Boston community events and fundraisers and/or external speaking engagements.

Qualifications: 

826 Boston recognizes that impostor syndrome and the confidence gap might prevent some applicants from applying. Few candidates will have all of the relevant experience listed below, but 826 Boston is committed to assessing candidates with transferable skills and a willingness to be trained for this role.

The ideal YLAB candidates hold an enthusiastic belief in the mission of 826 Boston as evidenced by their personal passion for writing and youth leadership. They are deeply collaborative, creative thinkers, willing to try new things, and lead the way in creating and engaging in genuine opportunities for student leadership and community advocacy at 826 Boston. Bilingual and multilingual candidates are encouraged to apply.

Additionally, YLAB candidates must be:

• Between the ages 14-19 years old 
• Currently enrolled in high school
• A Boston resident
• For applicants aged 14-17, able to obtain a state work permit
• Eligible to work in the United States

Compensation: $15.45 per hour. Each YLAB Member will also receive a one year membership to the Boston Athenaeum. 

This is a non-exempt,  part-time, temporary position that reports to the YLAB Teaching Artist. The start date for this position is September 29, 2026. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis until all the spots are filled. It is in your best interest to apply as soon as possible. 

826 Boston Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Statement 

At 826 Boston, we honor and actively work toward diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) across our organization. We are committed to centering the voices of the students who we serve, to creating inclusive spaces, and to incorporating feedback from our community into our decision-making processes. Our DEI lens is always evolving through the courageous conversations in which we participate and the relationships that we build through our work and service. We strengthen our cultural competency through experience, training, and feedback, which informs the development of all new organizational practices and goals and the evaluation of all existing procedures.

826 Boston is dedicated to providing a platform for student advocacy through writing and publishing opportunities. In our work and mission, we are committed to dismantling white supremacy culture by recognizing that we are complicit in systems of racism and oppression.

We will work to hold ourselves accountable in addressing these harmful structures and behaviors. 

About Us

826 Boston is part of a national network of youth writing centers, co-founded by the award-winning author Dave Eggers and educator Nínive Calegari, that were named in GOOD Magazine’s “30 Places We Want to Work.” Since opening in 2007, 826 Boston has delivered its free youth writing and tutoring programs to more than 29,000 students and has been recognized by The Boston Globe as one of the best places in the city to volunteer. 826 Boston’s youth writers have published their work in The New York Times, The Boston Globe, and in numerous award-winning 826 Boston books, including A Place for Me in the World, which was hailed as a “triumph of middle school education” by The Boston Globe. In 2014, the 826 network garnered the American Literacy Prize from the Library of Congress for its pioneering work to eradicate illiteracy in the United States.

Accommodations

826 Boston provides reasonable accommodations for candidates with disabilities at every stage of the application process. Disclosing a disability or requesting a need for accommodations is a separate process from admissions and will have absolutely no bearing on a candidate’s application status. 826 Boston will make every effort to meet your request, but specific requests are not guaranteed. If you need to request an accommodation, please contact Catherine Gomez at catherine@826boston.org.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.